Meg and Christian had gotten married in May, and it had been a small affair right there on the beach like Meg had wanted. It turned out to be the perfect little wedding, and Vivi looked adorable as the flower girl being pulled in a wagon by Dylan.
And then there was Emma, the new resident in town. She had become a constant fixture in their social scene. She and Janine were very good friends, and she was settling in to Seagrove like she had always been there.
Emma had confided in Julie about her past, and she had talked to Colleen as well since she was the one who had figured out who Emma was. Nobody thought any less of her, and they all understood the situation she found herself in as a police officer. Eventually, Emma started to forgive herself.
She had been going to support group meetings with Janine for a long time and recently had started to see a trauma counselor. It was helping her so much, and she was smiling more and more. She seemed at peace, like she had forgiven herself for taking someone’s life. There was some level of PTSD she was still dealing with, but she was determined to fight it with everything she had through counseling and the support of others.
Seagrove was a place where a lot of people came to recover from whatever life had thrown at them, including Julie. It was like a hospital for hearts. The ocean, the people and just the sense of community did a lot to soothe people who had gone through sometimes horrible things.
“How did you like those ribs?” Dawson asked, walking up behind her and sliding his arms around her waist. She loved when he did that. It made her feel safe and secure.
“Fabulous, as always,” she said, looking up at him. He gave her a quick peck on the lips.
“I feel like our get togethers are getting larger and larger with each holiday.”
She smiled. “Isn’t that great? I just love that we have so many family and friends, and I also love that we have this great big property to host them.”
“I do too. It’s a dream come true. You know, I lived a very lonely life here for a long time before I met you.”
She turned around and looked up at him, rubbing her thumb across his five o’clock shadow. “So, are you saying you were lost before you met me, Dawson Lancaster?”
“I would say that’s pretty true.”
“I was being sarcastic.”
“And I was being serious,” he said, pinching her cheek.
“Can you believe that William and Janine are engaged?” she said, as she turned back around and noticed them standing over by the picnic table.
“I think we all knew it would happen eventually. William is just a slow poke.”
“Still, it was a pretty romantic proposal.”
“That it was.”
They stood there quietly watching all of their friends and family, and Julie smiled the whole time. She saw Dixie slow dancing with her husband. She saw her own mother playing with Julie’s new son. She saw Colleen and Tucker running while holding hands with Vivi and swinging her up into the air.
There were so many things to be thankful for in her life, and she couldn’t wait to see what the future would bring. If it was anything like the present, it was going to be a perfectly wild ride.
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