Chapter 56
GABE
Velour is… a lot.
It’s always been a little dramatic for Willowrun, with red lights, velvet curtains, the drone of conversations that sound more seductive than they probably are.
But tonight? With a DJ taking any and all requests, the tables cleared out so half the town’s population can thrash around to whatever they want?
It’s pressing in on me. Abbie has been begging to come for months now, so I finally said yes. But as I look around, I’m wondering if that was a mistake.
Breathe, Gabe.
Four in. Hold. Four out. Hold.
Dr. Keane’s voice plays in my head. I match my breath to my counting until I come back to myself.
You’re safe. This is panic, not danger.
I whisper it to myself, speaking it aloud before it can take root.
Noah’s hand finds the small of my back, palm warm through my shirt, and I hold onto that feeling. “You doing okay?” he murmurs against my ear, his voice barely audible over the bass.
I nod, shake my head, nod again.
“I’m here. We’re together. I won’t let anything happen to you.”
I exhale deeply and nod. I’m okay.
He comes behind me, wrapping me in his arms, breath warming my ear. “Pretty great family we’ve got here.”
My eyes find them immediately, a smile springing to my lips. Our friends are already waving from the corner—Abbie practically bouncing, Ciarán with a beaming smile, Aiden and Theo standing behind them, laughing at something.
I feel the weight of the ring sitting snugly around my finger. I’ve been waiting days to show them, they already know we’re engaged because I called them as soon as I could. But still, this is an important moment, and I deserve to enjoy it. We both do.
When I look at Noah, all the noise blurs around the edges. His blue eyes are warm, focused on mine, that crooked smile tugging up like I’m the only person in the world who matters. “Ready?” he asks.
I shake out my limbs. I can do this. “…Yes.”
He threads our fingers together and lifts our hands to his mouth, kissing the ring—like he’s reminding me it’s there, and so is he, and I don’t have to do anything alone.
We cross the room, Noah shielding me from most of the chaos. When we reach the table, Abbie shrieks, “OH MY GOD, YOU TWO—”
I flush immediately, laughing awkwardly. “Calm d—”
“SHOW ME THE RING!” she demands, and suddenly everyone’s crowding in.
Noah slings an arm around me and smacks a wet kiss on my cheek.
The look in his eyes is all pride. And not just pride that I’m here, he’s proud to be with me.
He’s enjoying showing me off. The thought makes me grin at him.
I’m proud to show him off too, he looks beautiful tonight in dark jeans and a crisp white shirt, sleeves rolled up to the elbows.
His hair is pushed back off his face for a change.
I’m going to marry this man, this gorgeous, sweet, sexy man. My face splits with a smile.
I lift my hand and let them see. Everyone fusses over it, congratulating us both.
Abbie is bawling her eyes out, no idea what she’s even saying.
Aiden puts a hand on both our shoulders, then drags us in for a hug, clapping our backs.
When Theo wraps an arm around me, I lean into him.
“Really happy for you both,” he tells us before hugging Noah.
Finally, delicate fingers find my hand, a thumb brushing over the ring. When Ciarán looks up, those cerulean eyes are shining beneath thick lashes and dark waves. The lights make his skin look iridescent, catching on the shimmer of his cheeks.
“Gabe,” he starts with a wobble in his voice. He squares his shoulders and sniffs it back, smiling sweetly. “You have no idea how happy it makes me to see you so happy,” he says earnestly, and my own eyes start to well.
The others have backed up now, giving us space.
“C…” I breathe.
He shakes his head, giving me a lopsided grin. “I am so unbelievably proud of you. I don’t know what I’d do without you.” He speaks so low I barely hear him over the music, but I feel the words.
I drag him into me, resting my chin on his head, and we squeeze each other tight. When he pulls back, his smile is sly. “Okay, enough sappy shit,” he declares, making me chuckle. “Let’s have a good time. You deserve it.”
After being here an hour, I feel settled. The nerves aren’t totally gone, but I feel strangely calm. The place is packed, the music is loud, but we’re tucked away in a corner.
I’m sitting on a stool, arms crossed, watching Abbie and Ciarán dance. They’re not even trying to look good; they’re doing some seriously dorky moves. I can’t stop smiling at them.
A warm palm lands on my thigh. I don’t jolt, I don’t panic. I know his touch. I uncross my arms and place a hand over his.
“Jesus, I feel like a third wheel,” my brother grumbles.
Noah’s eyes glitter as he watches me before saying, loud enough for Aiden to hear, “Aw, my least favorite Shaw is feeling left out.”
I bite back a laugh as Aiden grunts, “Fuck you. You should be grateful to me. You wouldn’t know Gabe if it wasn’t for me. Don’t make me regret sharing that sandwich with you twenty years ago.”
Noah’s eyes soften instantly. He claps Aiden on the back. “Forever grateful.”
I feel those words. I have no idea how I got lucky enough to end up with a sweet man like him, but I’ll spend my life showing him how much he means to me. I lean in and kiss his cheek. I feel his smile as his lips tick up.
“Hey, who’s Theo dancing with?” Noah asks.
I scan the crowd, spotting him off to the side, dancing with a smaller man, copper hair shining under the lights. “I think that’s Luke,” I respond, squinting to see better. Yeah, definitely him. I can’t believe he’s here, he’s always been so shy and awkward.
Noah’s peering into the crowd. “I don’t know him.”
“The florist that owns Petal & Thorn.”
“Oh, we should get him to do the wedding!” he exclaims excitedly.
I was so caught up in the proposal, I never thought about the actual wedding. Noah standing in front of me wearing a suit, exchanging vows. Surrounded by our little family. My stomach flutters excitedly. “Yeah, we should.”
Abbie drops into her seat across from me, guzzling some water. “Where’s C gone?” I ask, looking around.
“Bathroom,” she responds, but she’s got a strange look on her face, like she’s up to something. I tilt my head at her, but all she does is prayer hands like she’s an angel.
Then I hear it, the beginning of “Fantasy” by Mariah Carey.
I throw my head back, laughing loudly, causing Noah and Aiden to stare at me.
Both wearing pleased expressions of surprise.
Abbie starts drumming her hands on the table to the beat.
Our ultimate drunk in college song Ciarán made us learn choreography for.
“Where is he?” I shout to Abbie over the music. She shrugs, eyes searching Velour.
I turn to Noah. “Please don’t love me any less for this,” I say, still laughing.
He clutches the back of my neck, bringing me in for a heated kiss, right in front of everyone. “Baby, nothing could ever make me love you less,” he says with conviction. I feel myself preen. “In fact, I have a feeling anything you do here is going to make me love you even more.”
I’m grinning like an idiot at him.
Then, from the corner of my eye, Ciarán bursts through the crowd, electric sliding toward us with a shit-eating grin. He starts belting out the song while pointing at me and Abbie. Shoulders rolling, finger guns aimed, hips swaying.
It’s not his usual sinuous movement. It’s what he would call Cheesy Stripper Chic.
Then the invisible lasso comes out, aimed straight at me. My cackle could be heard in the next town over. Ciarán spins so his back is to us, blazer dropped down his shoulders as he shimmies before locking eyes with me and winking, gesturing with his finger to come dance.
I’m up in a flash, Abbie following suit.
Ciarán grabs my wrist, drags Abbie in with the other, and suddenly we’re in formation, the same ridiculous one we always did in college.
He snaps his fingers over his head and rolls his shoulders.
Abbie matches him with dramatic hair flips, and I commit.
Hard. At one point, all three of us drop into a squat and thrust upward in perfect sync, and people around us clap.
I’m pretty sure I hear Noah shouting, “I’m gonna marry that guy!
” I’m also pretty sure future me will regret nothing about this moment.
I feel like the old Gabe again. No, better.
I feel like someone who fought to come back to himself.
This is the new Gabe—healing, self-aware, and finally able to see his own worth.
When the song ends, we’re breathless. My stomach and face hurt from laughing and I have a stitch in my side.
I look around, people are closer than I’d like, and everything is loud, but I’m here.
I’m not hiding or running. My eyes search for Noah, and he’s already watching me with a massive smile.
I don’t think he’s ever looked happier. I crook a finger for him to join me.
He holds up one in response, winking before making his way to the DJ.
A minute later, “Take My Hand” by Picture This begins playing.
Noah jogs over to me, cutting through the crowd.
It’s like watching some strange stop-motion video of the life I get to have.
Every time the lights flash over him, he’s closer.
Little snapshots in time, ones I’ll never forget.
When he reaches me, strong arms encircle my waist as he starts singing the words to me.
My Noah is as bad a singer as he is a dancer, which only makes me love him more.
He grabs my hand and tries to twirl me… except he turns the wrong way and bumps into someone’s shoulder, apologizing mid-spin. Then he does this goofy half-grind that absolutely does not match the beat, and I swear my heart grows three sizes watching him.
Capable hands cup my ass and hoist me up until I wrap my legs around him. “What are you doing?” I squeak through a chuckle.
He presses a firm kiss to my lips. “Taking my future husband for a spin.”
Future husband. I let my head fall back and grin at the ceiling while Noah spins me. When I look down again, I see Abbie and Theo dancing, and Noah’s still singing happily.
But what I see next has my brows furrowing. Ciarán is by the table, standing between my brother’s spread thighs, fisting his shirt. He pulls him up and starts walking backward, dragging him onto the dance floor. Not only that, but Aiden is grinning at him.
My eyes snap to Noah’s. He follows my gaze back to them before letting out a booming laugh and spinning me faster. So fast, everything blurs.
I close my eyes, let my head drop back, and enjoy the moment. Music thrums through my bones, lights flash behind my eyelids. My heart is taking off on a wild gallop. But it’s not fear, it’s proof.
Proof of life.
Proof of love.
Proof of me.