30. FIREFLY
FIREFLY
IVY
Neither of us looked away as we drifted onto the dance floor.
As he slowly uncurled his grasp from around my hand, his fingers slid along the small of my back, their warmth radiating through the fabric of my dress.
“Karson,” I murmured, “can we fix this?”
His fingers traveled upward, leaving a burning trail beneath his touch.
“Ivy, I can’t imagine my world without you in it,” he murmured. “If you can forgive me… it’s already fixed.”
My heart skipped a beat. “But can you forgive me? I know I messed up,” I said, the words catching in my throat.
“Ivy, Ivy, Ivy,” he moaned. “I want you more than anything. Maybe we both messed up, but I overreacted. And that’s on me. But we can move past it.” His eyes filled with hope.
“Okay, but I should’ve seen it coming with Miki, and avoided that night—”
“Yeah, but instead of flying into a jealous rage and storming out, I should’ve listened to you!” he blurted, his eyes darkening.
“Are we arguing about who was more in the wrong?” I smiled at him, relieved to be talking openly about it. “So, it’s official, then? We forgive each other?”
“Completely. Forgiven.” His eyes smoldered as his hand pressed against my back. “But there are conditions.” One corner of his mouth lifted.
“Oh, yeah?” I grazed my lips across his cheek. “And what might those conditions be?” I asked, inching away as his eyes pierced mine.
“That I can see you and hold you. Every day. We can start with dawn to dusk.” He ran his hands through my hair. “Do you know how much I want you?” he murmured, crushing me against him.
Groaning softly, I locked my hands around his back, reveling in the feel of his warm, hard chest. “I want you too,” I breathed, heat rising through my core.
“You don’t know what you do to me,” he moaned. “We need to get out of here. I’m not sure I trust myself.”
“No complaints from me,” I giggled. “And by the way, I’m glad I accepted your invitation. I mean, it was kind of hard to resist.”
“Ahh, I’m pleased to see my genius plan of seducing you with an Oscar de la Renta gown worked.” He grinned before his face grew serious. “What would I have done if you hadn’t come?” He shook his head lightly.
I squeezed his arm and drew closer.
“God, you look incredible, Ivy. So much so that it takes my breath away.”
I twirled in a full circle. “Full disclosure, your plan to win me over with the swag worked,” I said with an elated giggle. “And don’t even get me started on these boots!” I lifted my foot into the air.
“Well, I can’t compete with that now, can I?” He grinned.
“Truthfully, you could’ve sent rags. I wouldn’t have cared,” I said, leaning closer. “I’ve missed you so much.” His arms circled around me, and I melted against the contours of his firm chest.
“Even from the other side of the planet, you’re all I could think about.” He pushed a loose tendril of hair off my face. “You’re everything, and more, that I ever wanted in a woman. And we’re free from my father now. We can do anything. No more obstructions.”
I buried my face in the warm curve of his neck, kissing him softly. He straightened with a groan. When I drew back, our eyes met. “Karson, you’re the one who has my heart. I’m yours.”
The song ended, but we stayed in each other’s arms on the dance floor, swaying together, neither of us loosening our grip.
“What sort of jerk would ghost you like that?” he asked in a gravelly voice.
“I wasn’t thinking straight. I’m so sorry I put you through that.
Once I sorted things out in my head, I could only see one thing that really mattered.
” He twisted a lock of my hair around his finger, tracing it slowly to the tip. “And that one thing… is us.”
I stroked his cheek. “That means a lot, and believe me, I get it. After all, I did the same thing to you.” I wore a guilty smile. “Shall we call it even?”
He threw his head back and laughed. “You’ve got yourself a deal.”
We danced beneath the blanket of clouds, surrounded by the sweet scents of summer drifting through the night air.
My hands linked around his back as we leaned in, gazing at each other until his mouth found mine, igniting a fire within me.
His fingers glided down my back like satin as his heart thumped wildly against mine… until it felt as though we were one.
As he held me close, everything else faded into nothingness. He pulled away gently, his eyes glistening as his chin dropped to his chest. “You’re the best thing that ever happened to me, Ivy Lawrence—”
Cries of joy and gasps of delight echoed around us as people huddled together, staring and pointing at the sky.
We stood by the river, our heads tilted upward toward the drizzling sky as a fountain of colors spilled across the canvas-like darkness, and my hand flew to my cheek in amazement.
“The laser show. Perfect timing.” Karson beamed. “I’ve been looking forward to this,” he said, his eyes glued upward.
Holding each other tightly, we watched as explosions of light transformed into hearts, peonies, and stars, synchronized to the beat of the music.
Everyone oohed and aahed as scattered beams of light trickled down over us like liquid. All around, the crowd reached out, running their hands through the beautiful shards of light.
“This is incredible!” I laughed. “You guys organized all this?”
“Full credit goes to Dyson. The guy stops at nothing,” he said with a chuckle. “But there is one thing I had a hand in.”
“Oh, yeah?”
His face lit up. “Look up.”
As I raised my eyes to the sky, a flood of bright red light erupted, forming a rose. All eyes fixed above as letters began to form beneath it.
“Oh, look, I wonder what it’s going to say!” My lips parted, and as each word appeared I read them out slowly.
I—L O V E—Y O U—I V Y
My hands covered my mouth as I looked at the wonder before my eyes. He loves me! My heart melted all over again. My god, how I love this man.
Tears blurred my vision before I could blink them away. I can’t believe he did all this for me without even knowing if I’d show up. Turning toward him, I took his face into my hands and kissed him.
A hard, demanding kiss…
A kiss that showed him how much I wanted him—and just how much he meant to me.
A kiss that made it clear there was no one else for me.
Just him. His hungry response silenced everything else, and the world faded away.
“So,” I breathed a few minutes later, “I didn’t organize anything spectacular for you, Karson Wells. But I love you too.”
He pumped his fist into the air, breaking into a victory dance on the spot. “Ivy, you amaze me. You’re kind and strong. Beautiful and funny. And straight-up the most incredible person I’ve ever met. I can’t believe how lucky I am. You’re all I want, and all I—”
I pressed my fingers to his lips. “You’re all I want too, Karson,” I whispered. “You’re the bravest, most thoughtful, cleverest guy I’ve ever met… not to mention seriously hot.”
He grinned sheepishly, looking down at me, love softening his face.
“And I can barely think straight when I’m near you. I never used to know what I wanted in a guy. But now I know. It’s you. Not just the good bits, but all of you.”
In an instant, his mouth was on mine as a fire raged through my body.
And then I knew without a shadow of doubt.
We belonged together.
His hands tightened around my waist as he lifted me into the air, twirling me around while I squealed with delight. After a few twirls, he lowered me back down, enveloping me in his warm embrace.
As we hugged, a man in a black tuxedo, reeking of alcohol, stumbled into us. “You’re a lucky man, mate,” he slurred. “I’ll have you know I was on the most eligible bachelor list in the early 2000s. And I’m still a bachelor, in case you were wondering.” He gave me an exaggerated wink.
Karson and I laughed as our eyes met.
Calling out to a brunette, the self-declared bachelor vanished into the crowd.
“Look, as tempting as that offer was… I’m pretty happy with you.” I giggled.
“Wait.” He clutched at his chest in mock horror. “Pretty happy? I write a message in the sky declaring my undying love and send you an Oscar de la Renta gown in a Bentley, and all I get is pretty happy? Oh, man, I’m wounded. What does a guy have to do?” He chuckled.
Tilting my head, I tried to suppress a grin. “Hmm, would very happy make you feel better?”
“We’re getting warmer.” He rested his hands on my hips. “But tell me what I can do to make you—”
A butler paused beside us, holding out a tray of champagne.
“This is a good start.” I giggled, taking two flutes from the tray before handing one to Karson.
I linked my right arm through his, we clinked our glasses together then drained our champagne flutes.
“Did you know what we just did is called Brüderschaft?” I whispered. “Traditionally, to solidify the bond, it’s sealed with a kiss.”
“Hmm, kissing you is most definitely a tradition I’d like to continue. But I think I know an even better way to solidify the bond,” he said in a low voice.
The butler reappeared and refilled our empty glasses.
With drinks in hand, we strolled arm in arm past the amphitheater where we’d danced, following the river toward the dock.
***
After finding a quiet spot, we sat, dangling our legs over the side of the pier while I rested my head on his shoulder. Our fingers interlocked as we watched the night birds dart and dive through the darkness, catching their dinner.
“So… how’s that happiness level coming along?”
My heart swelled. “I think it needs a little prodding,” I teased.
He drew his hand slowly up my thigh. “I might be able to help with that.”
“Hmm, as lovely as all this is,” I said with a quick glance around, “perhaps it’d be even more lovely if we checked into a hotel.”
“That sounds heavenly,” he breathed, warm air brushing my cheek. “Or, we could—”
A camera flash burst white across my vison.
“Karson! Karson! Tell us about the investigation!”
“Do you know your father’s whereabouts? Is he coming back?”
“Can you make a statement for Channel One?”