Chapter 27
In years past, my birthday hadn’t been a day to look forward to. Gifts were practically nonexistent, quality time was a daydream, and it was just another day to cross off on the calendar.
It wasn’t until the last few years that I chose to celebrate my turning of age. Even before I moved to Vegas, Jax never stepped up to the plate. Instead of helping me put a positive spin on the day and change how I looked at my birthday, he chose to ignore it all together.
“If you don’t find the joy in your birthday, then why would I?” He’d said for the last year or so we spent together.
I never found the energy to argue with him or to plead my case.
I shouldn’t have had to beg someone to celebrate me, especially someone who claimed to love me.
His mom worked a lot in the years I lived with them, and if her son didn’t celebrate me on my birthday each year, then I didn’t blame her for missing out on it either.
Every year, when Jax’s big day came around, I always made it known I was thinking of him—usually with something more on the thoughtful end since I didn’t have the extra money lying around. I did for him what I could only dream of having done for me in future years.
It was easy to look into my past and think, “Why didn’t I cut that jackass loose earlier?
” But it wasn’t as easy back then. I brainwashed myself into thinking he was my knight in shining armor.
The man who saved me from my past. The man who came to my rescue and begged his mom to take me in so the foster care system wouldn’t whisk me away.
For years, he was extraordinary to me—easily better than being in the house I grew up in.
That was, until he showed me his true colors—his bad intentions.
It wasn’t hard to see that there had to be someone better out there for me.
Year after year, little by little, hope slipped from my fingertips.
The hope of feeling special on a day that was supposed to be all about me.
Hope that I’d find someone to prioritize me in the ways no one else ever had in my past. Hope that when someone said, “Happy birthday,” it could actually be happy.
Luckily, since Andi and Peyton had come into my life, they always had their own way of making it special. When each year rolled around, and they still remembered it was my birthday, it never failed to make me emotional.
When I walked onto the private plane, I was met with three sets of eyes looking back at me. Before I could take in all the shiny wood grain and beige leather seats, my two best friends, and the man I was falling for, all yelled at the same time, “HAPPY BIRTHDAY!”
Bouquets of red roses were bundled together, placed in vases, and spread throughout the entire cabin. Any direction my head turned, I was hit with the sweet floral aroma and the most romantic sight I’d ever seen.
First, I was startled, then I was teary-eyed. Beneath my feet it looked like a unicorn threw up. Confetti and glitter were popped from small handheld cannons, and a banner that spelled out, Happy Birthday Avery, hung from one side of the plane to the other.
Was it finally happening? Was this man who’d stumbled into my life not long ago, actually taking time out of his day to celebrate me?
“Oh …Wow. This is … I don’t even know what to say.” My tear-soaked eyes spoke for me—I was speechless.
“Happy birthday, Avery,” Spencer’s gruff voice whispered against my ear.
Taking my chin between his fingers, he tilted my head back so that my misty blue eyes looked up at him. Those three words tricked my emotions, stinging my eyes. Those three words coming from this handsome man’s mouth meant so much more to me than he would ever understand.
Leaning down, he kissed me, wiping away the salty tears that had trickled down my cheeks. “It’s your birthday, Bella. You’re not supposed to cry.”
“I can’t help it. How did you pull all of this off?”
“Your boyfriend went full stalker mode and reached out to us,” Andi said, popping into our conversation. “Happy birthday, babe!” She pulled me away from Spencer, wrapping me up in a tight hug.
“Stalker is a little harsh, don’t you think? Afterall, it wasn’t hard to find you two on your socials.” Spencer shook his head and chuckled.
“Thank you so much for inviting us along so we didn’t have to miss out on our girl’s birthday tradition! Granted, I have no idea how we will top this next year.” Peyton waved her hand around the private plane.
My jaw was still on the floor. The inside of the plane looked like a private venue all decked out for a night of partying.
My boyfriend stood with his hands in his pockets, not at all minding that my friends were along for the ride.
It was a weekend that was supposed to be all about work for him, yet he didn’t make it feel that way at all.
He was so goddamn selfless, and every day that passed, I only became more obsessed with him.
My friends were dressed to the nines while I stood there in sweats.
And did I mention the private plane? For someone who had never traveled outside of California and Vegas, never been on a plane before, and hadn’t spent much time surrounded by so much love in one room, I felt like I could say with confidence—this was one hell of a birthday to remember, and it was only getting started.
The flight to Denver was only two hours, and when we got off the plane, I wasn’t at all surprised when two blacked out SUVs were waiting for us.
“It’s only thirty minutes to the hotel, but I wanted you to myself for a little bit before I have to go to work for a while. Your friends get you all night until I can meet up later,” Spencer said as he wrapped his hand around my thigh.
“You are so insane for all of this.” I shook my head, still in disbelief.
“For what?” his lips brushed along my neck.
“The plane. My friends. All of it.”
“Do you not like it—?”
Was he serious?
“No, I love it so much. I appreciate it all more than you know. I just don’t know what I did to deserve this.”
Spencer turned his body toward mine. His brow was crinkled, and in the sincerest way, he said, “You deserve this and so much more just by simply existing.”
For what seemed like the hundredth time today, happy tears blurred my vision as I looked out the window and took in the city of Denver passing by like I was in a movie.
How was this my life? How was I in the position—on my birthday, of all days—to board a private jet and get away for the weekend with all my favorite people?
For forty-eight hours, I was able to leave all of my problems behind me in Vegas. Being a state away gave me the chance to let loose without a care in the world.