Chapter 18 - Epilogue and Tag

Almost two years went by and then one day, a wedding invitation arrived in the mail addressed to Dotty West and Amanda King. Inside the following was written

Dean McGuire

And

Cynthia Murk

Request the pleasure of you company

At the celebration of their Union

May 15, 1986

12:00pm Sharp

Grace Community Church

125 S Old Glebe Road

Arlington, VA

Reception to follow

Amanda couldn't believe what she was reading but she was very happy for Dean and hoped that this was the right girl. She and Dotty both agreed that they needed to go to the wedding out of curiosity and out of courtesy for a man who had once been an important part of their lives. They arrived at the church around 11am and found seats near the front. Amanda decided to see if she could locate Dean so she could talk to him privately.

It wasn't hard to find him. He was outside staring at the field that was behind the church. Amanda walked up behind him and said "Hello Dean"

Dean whipped around and smiled and said "Hello Amanda. I'm so glad you could make it." They quickly embraced and Amanda straightened his tie for him when they separated.

"I wouldn't have missed it for the world Dean. I'm so happy for you. Does she make you happy?"

"Oh, Amanda, she makes me so happy. What were those words you said two years ago? She makes me tingle all over. I want to thank you for what you did that day. I was so sad that I was losing you but you broke up with me in such a gentle, kind way and I can never thank you enough. You were such an important part of my life. Before I met you, I struggled to be with people and enjoy myself. Do you know that after we broke up, I took your advice? I invested in dance lessons. I had never dared to dance before and I know it was one of the things that you really wanted me to do that I always avoided. That was how I met Cynthia. She was taking lessons too so our instructor asked if we would be willing to take lessons together. We were both pretty clumsy at first but it gave us a chance to laugh at ourselves and pretty soon I got up the nerve to ask her out for coffee and I knew that I was in love. I was never really in love with you Amanda any more than you were in love with me. I was just comfortable around you and that was all I thought I needed."

"Oh Dean, I'm so happy to hear all of this. I always knew you were meant to find the right woman. You are a very special man and you deserve all this happiness. Thanks for inviting Mother and I to share this special day with you."

"Thanks Amanda. Are you happy? Did you find your soul mate yet?"

"I am working on it. I have a very special man in my life too and we are slowly working on a relationship. This day isn't about me though. I think we should probably get you inside. You have a bride who is waiting to become your wife." Amanda gave Dean another big hug and was thrilled to feel that he really was returning the hug to her. He definitely had changed and she was sure that Cynthia had more to do with that than she did.

The wedding was beautiful in a church that had been decorated with rose buds everywhere. Cynthia was dressed in a beautiful white wedding gown that was decorated in lace and beads and was just amazing. The dress had a huge decorative bow in the back and the train was about 2 feet long. Cynthia made a beautiful bride. She didn't look anything like Amanda at all with her sandy blonde hair that was pulled back in a bun. She had a pretty face and the two were definitely a nice looking couple. They both had written their own vows and they both cried as they recited them. The whole wedding was amazing. Amanda and Dotty both found that their eyes had something in them as they watched the ceremony. They both knew that Dean had found his happily ever after for sure.

In the Receiving line, they both gave Dean a huge hug and told him that everything had been beautiful. Dotty stayed behind to talk to Dean while Amanda went ahead to talk to Cynthia. As she stood in front of her, Cynthia said "You must be Amanda? I have heard a lot about you. I want to thank you for helping Dean find his way. I know he would never have gone to those dance lessons if it wasn't for you. He is the best thing that has ever happened to me. Thank you Amanda!" Amanda and Cynthia shared a hug and a few knowing looks. Amanda said "Cynthia, I know Dean is in good hands. Take care of him. Make sure he takes care of you. Thank you for letting me be a part of your special day. Mother and I are going to head out now. I'm really glad I got to meet you. I'm so happy for both of you."

"Are you sure you can't stay for the reception? You are both welcome you know."

"No, we really need to get home. I have two small boys at home and the babysitter needs to go to a meeting soon. Thank you for everything Cynthia. Enjoy your future. I think it is going to be amazing."

Amanda realized as she was leaving that she never did see Dean's Mother. She mentioned it to her Mother in the car. Dotty responded "Didn't you hear? You know Amanda, I love reading the obituaries and I thought I had told you that she died about 6 months ago. She was in a bad car accident. Dean told me today that she left him everything so he and Cynthia are set for life. They are two of the luckiest people on the face of the earth."

SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK SMK

TAG

Later after dinner, Amanda was cleaning the dinner dishes when she heard the usual knock on her kitchen window. She smiled as she saw those beautiful hazel eyes looking in at her. Amanda stepped outside and said "Hi, what are you doing here?"

"I came to see how the wedding with Dan went."

Amanda smiled and said "Dean and it went really well. He found a really nice lady to marry. I think he is going to live happily ever after."

Lee nodded his head obviously in thought. "I knew you two didn't belong together. I told you that I have instincts for this type of thing."

Amanda laughed and said in her raspy voice "You do, do you? Well what do your instincts tell you about who I should be with?"

"Oh you know..."

"No, I don't. Why don't you tell me?" Amanda smiled as she watched Lee squirm a little.

"Well I would tell you Amanda, but I think that is still classified information"

Amanda laughed and said "Well it would give me a chance to practice some Class C Interrogation Techniques to try to get it out of you."

Lee broke into a smile while he was looking at her lips and said quietly "That might be fun. When can we get started?"

Amanda chuckled as she smacked his chest. "You are something else Stetson."

"Well okay, how about letting me take you out to dinner tomorrow night. Maybe we can figure out the answer together." Lee said.

"I think I would like that very much. I accept." Amanda answered.

The End

A/N - Thanks so much for all the kind comments and reviews for this story. I spent a lot of time rewatching the scenes that Dean was in during the series and listened to what he told me. In real life, many women are married to men like this and never complain because he was good to Amanda and to the boys, he was financially stable, very dependable and though he liked things a certain way, he never acted like he had a right to boss Amanda around. Overall, he was a good guy, just a little dull and ordinary especially compared to our beloved Scarecrow. I hope this story at least entertained you. Thanks for reading it.