28. Brooke
Chapter 28
Brooke
One Year Later
“ Come on, girl, we’re going to be late!” Marie shouted from the living room, and I rolled my eyes as I finished applying my lipstick.
“ Yes , come on, Ma !” Anne yelled, and they giggled together in the living room. My stomach fluttered whenever Anne called me her “ma” or when she introduced me as her mother to her friends. I always got giddy and broke out into a huge smile.
It was an honor for Anne to call me her mother even though I really wasn’t, biologically. I loved her so much, and she was such an amazing person. And because of how serious our relationship was getting, Asher and I felt it was important for Anne to know more about her mother.
Asher rarely talked about Charlotte , but the day he did, I was sobbing with Anne because Charlotte sounded like an amazing woman, and it also felt like Asher had been robbed of a chance to be a family with his first wife.
It was clear that he loved her by the way he talked about her, and I finally understood what Elise meant when she said that it was clear that Asher had a type. But then again, I was attracted to the grump, and I was madly in love with him.
“ We won’t be late because our appointment isn’t until one o’clock, and it is barely noon,” I groaned as I lifted my phone and showed them the time.
“ Yeah , yeah, but there is nothing wrong with getting there early,” Marie mumbled as she opened the door and motioned for us to get out. “ People might take our space.”
“ We literally have an appointment; stop being so paranoid,” I told her, and Anne laughed as she held my hand, standing between Marie and me. “ You booked this appointment three months in advance, and you’re a regular there,” I reassured her, and she sighed as she pressed on the elevator keys.
“ You don’t understand, Brooke . It happened once, and I felt like I was going to lose my mind.” She curled her fingers like a cat as she clawed the air, and I laughed, shaking my head.
“ They apologized and proceeded to give you a free massage,” I reminded her, and she clicked her tongue as she crossed her arms over her chest.
“ Yeah , that did happen,” she admitted begrudgingly, and I laughed. My best friend was incredibly dramatic.
“ So , where did the boys go today?” I asked her as I slipped my locks behind my ear, and she looked at me out of the corner of her eyes.
“ What , are you scared that Asher will do something out of character?”
“ No , I’m not,” I denied, but I was actually scared. The man had been acting suspiciously the first two months of our relationship, and I could never figure out what was wrong with him or whether he was up to something.
I would ask Jax if everything was alright at work, and Jax would tell me that Asher was still the grumpy, always pissed-looking, huge man that I had fallen in love with.
“ Well , Matthew said they’re going to watch the World Series and that they all had bets on the Cubs . Just some man stuff,” she shrugged as we got to her car.
“ Oh ,” I whispered as I buckled Anne in her booster seat, and she thanked me with a toothless grin. She had recently lost her front tooth, and her father almost fainted when he saw her tooth on the palm of her hand.
It had been such a funny day, and I had to reassure him that his daughter wasn’t dying, and that it was quite a normal thing to happen at her age.
It took forever to calm him down.
“ Girl , relax and enjoy your day away from your man. He hogs you too much,” she said as she started driving to our next destination, and I gasped as I turned to face her.
“ Asher doesn’t hog me!”
“ Then why don’t I ever see you?” she threw back, and I scoffed as I looked out of the window, whispering under my breath. “ I’m sorry. I didn’t get that.”
“ Excuse me for wanting to spend time with my man,” I said a bit louder, and Marie laughed as if offended by my statement.
“ Oh . My . God ,” she mimicked Janice from Friends , and I laughed. “ Are you saying you don’t like me?”
“ I never said that.” I defended myself, and she scoffed as she whipped her hair over her shoulder. Marie had decided to grow her hair and dye it black; the look was gorgeous. She had changed faces and looked like a black cat now. She and Matthew used to look like golden retrievers, but Matthew wore that hat alone now.
My best friend was incredibly hot!
“ Sure , but that’s what it sounded like,” she said dramatically as she pulled into the parking spot and parked her car. “ And to think I organized this spa date for us, and you said you would rather be with your man.”
“ What ? Is it so wrong that I like my man?” I asked as we walked to the spa entrance, and she huffed.
“ Your man stole you from me.”
“ Just as your man stole you from me!”
“ When will I get a man?” Anne asked, and Marie looked at me, amused, biting her lip to stop herself from laughing.
“ Baby , you can only get a man after you’ve graduated college with honors,” I said as I pushed her hair away from her face, and she pouted. “ I promise it’ll be worth it if you wait.”
“ Okay , Mom ,” Anne agreed, and I leaned down to kiss her forehead. It was just a year later, and she was growing quickly; her height now reached somewhere around my belly, and I knew she would be a tall woman when she grew older.
“ Mom , it seems like you’ve got your hands full,” Marie joked, and I pinched her side as she leaned against the receptionist’s desk.
“ Welcome to the Marriott Wellness Spa .”
After our much-needed spa date, Marie suggested that we go shopping, but I really wanted to go home and nap. The massage therapist had worked her magic on my body, and I felt so relaxed and refreshed that I only wanted to sleep.
We walked around a few stores before Marie decided that I should go look for a dress while she took Anne to the kids’ section.
“ Come on, go get a dress and some lingerie for your man,” she whispered as she pushed a silk dress into my hands and pointed to the lingerie section, with her eyes lit up.
“ What ? I thought we came here for you.” I pushed the dress back into her hands, and she grabbed another dress, shorter than the first, and gave it to me.
“ I have more than enough clothes. Plus , don’t you want to show Asher just how much you love him?” She winked, and before I could get a word out, she pushed the cart that had Anne in it, and I sighed as I walked to the fitting rooms, but Marie’s words rang in my ear as I stood in front of the lingerie section.
“ No , I shouldn’t buy anything,” I tried to convinced myself as I entered the fitting room and removed my clothes. I decided to start with the longer silk dress. The deep red color complimented my skin; the open back dipped all the way down to my tailbone. My breasts felt incredibly big in this dress; it felt like they were strained against the material that pushed them upwards, but damn, I felt sexy!
I grabbed my phone and decided to take some pics; I pushed my hips outward to create the illusion that I was curvier than I was. With a slight pout, I took the picture and quickly changed into the next dress; this was much more revealing than the first one.
Where in the world would I wear such a dress? The bedroom, with Asher . It felt like I was wearing a shirt; the skirt of the dress barely covered my ass, and to top it off, it had slits on both sides.
Just like the last dress, my boobs spilled over the top, and I found myself trying to pull the dress down my body. I took some pics, angling my body in such a way that wouldn’t reveal my assets but would still be enough to give Asher the idea that I wished he was in the dressing room with me.
The things I would allow him to do to me in here!
I sent him the pictures and bit my lip as I typed out my text.
Me : A present to make you come back home early 3.
I locked my phone and took the dress off as I waited for his reply. I knew he would demand that I come back with the dress, and I was such a slut to admit that I wanted him to see me in it.
I was excited just thinking of his reaction. Maybe I should’ve gotten some lingerie, as well. I changed into my clothes and checked my phone, hoping he had responded, but there was nothing from him yet.
Marie and Anne were waiting for me outside the fitting room, and I smiled as I slipped my phone into my bag.
“ And , how are they?” Marie grinned as she pointed to the clothes in my arms.
“ I’m getting them,” I told her, and she squealed happily as she clapped her hands.
“ You’re definitely going to get pregnant in the blue one,” she whispered, and I gasped. “ Don’t say I didn’t tell you so when it happens.”
We paid for our items, and Marie took her phone out for the umpteenth time. I wondered if she was also waiting for Matthew’s messages, just as I was waiting for Asher .
It wasn’t that I didn’t trust Asher ; I just didn’t trust the person he had visited - Jax - because he wasn’t in a relationship yet, and I knew just how much he loved having women around.
“ Is everything alright?” I asked her as we packed our bags inside the trunk of her car, and she nodded and smiled.
“ Everything is great; let’s get you home.”
“ Are you sure? You’ve been checking your phone since we left the apartment.”
“ And you’ve been checking your phone since you came out of the fitting room,” she said, and I rolled my eyes.
“ You have a way of deflecting the conversation from you.”
“ I realized that I’m the one who always talks in this relationship; it’s your turn, baby girl.”
I showed her the picture I had sent Asher , and her eyes widened as she looked at it. She whistled in a low tone as she zoomed into the image.
“ Damn ,” she whispered as she passed me my phone and drove us back to the apartment. “ I should’ve been born a man.”
“ Shut up,” I laughed as I increased the volume on the stereo, and we all sang along to the song. Even though my manhadn’t responded to my message yet, I could confidently say that today was an amazing day with my girls.
Marie pulled into the guest parking spot, and we made our way to the elevator. I leaned against the cold steel doors, my body telling me that I was in serious need of a nap, yet Marie and Anne were the opposite of me as they sang and danced in the steel box.
“ How are you guys not tired?” I whispered as I stepped out of the elevator, and Marie gasped. “ What’s the problem?”
“ We left the things in my car. I’ll go fetch them with Anne ; you go into the apartment and put on a movie that we can all watch,” she said as she pressed the button erratically, and I took a step forward, confused by her worry.
Our stuff could wait; it didn’t need her to be that rushed.
“ Okay ,” I whispered as the doors closed, and they both smiled as if they had achieved something, and it terrified me. What were they up to?
I walked toward our apartment and unlocked the door.
“ Asher ?” I called out into the dark apartment. As I walked further into the apartment, a warm flickering glow came from the living room, and I swallowed. My eyes widened when I walked into the living room, and there he was.
In the middle of dozens of candles laid out in the shape of a heart, he knelt with a box opened as he stared at me. All the love, nervousness, and excitement swarmed in his blue eyes, and my lips parted as I tried to find something to say.
So , the spa date and errands Marie made us go on were so that he could prepare this? My heart panged deliciously against my chest as I entered the heart, and Asher licked his lips as he looked at me.
“ Brooke , baby,” he swallowed as he reached his hand out toward me, and I placed my hand in his.
“ Hi ,” I whispered, feeling nervous as shit. It felt like my heart had dropped to the depths of my stomach, and the more I tried to swallow, the drier my throat became. My knees felt weak, and I was sure that my hands shook as I stood before him.
“ I had a speech prepared, but when I saw you, I got nervous. I’m sorry,” he apologized, and I laughed as I nodded and brought my other hand to my lips; it shook badly as I waited anxiously.
“ Fine , it’s—that’s. Fuck !” I stammered. He smiled, and I fell in love with him again. Now , I was the one who was nervous.
“ Be my wife, please?” He raised the ring, and I bit my lips as I tried to take a deep breath, gathering the answer in my head.
“ Whew ,” I breathed out and nervously bit my nails. Why the fuck wasn’t my brain functioning properly!
Error 404!
“ Baby ?” His voice was thick with nervousness, and I parted my lips.
“ Ask me again, please?” I was supposed to say yes!
“ Brooke Taylor , I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?”
“ Yes . I will marry you,” I smiled as my tears rolled down my face, and he slid the engagement ring on my finger. It felt so cool against my hot body, and he got up from the floor and pressed his lips against mine.
I moaned as I got lost in the kiss mixed with my tears, and he pressed me tightly against his body, thanking me every time he pulled away from the kiss.
“ Thank you, Brooke ,” he whispered, and I giggled as I pressed my head against his chest as he hugged me.
This was a dream. I was engaged to Asher .
“ I thought you hated candles,” I sniffled against him, and he chuckled as he stroked my back gently.
“ I did, but if it weren’t for them, you wouldn’t be my fiancée.” I giggled as he squeezed my ass and pressed a kiss on my temple. “ I hope you bought that dress?”
“ You saw the picture?” I asked, surprised, and he clicked his tongue as he took a deep breath in.
“ I almost came to the store and proposed to you there,” he admitted. I laughed as I placed my hands on his chest, eyeing my engagement ring.
The door opened, and Anne entered with Marie , Jax , Matthew , and Elise as they carried a bouquet of flowers and other celebratory items in their hands.
“ You were all in on this?” I asked, and Marie gave me an apologetic look. Asher pulled me to him, my back pressed against his front. “ I was losing my mind!” When Asher didn’t respond to any of my texts, an insecure part of me thought he was losing interest, but I was incredibly wrong.
“ Sorry , Ma !” Anne apologized as she passed me the flowers and hugged me.
“ Congratulations to the future Mrs . Stone !” Marie said as they passed me their flowers, and I cried again.
A year ago, I decided to be happy and loved, and here was this dreamy man who had made it a reality for me.
“ Thank you so much for getting him off the market; you saved us all!” Jax joked, and we all laughed as Asher chased him around the apartment.
Life was beautiful, and so were all the people in my life. I was so loved by everyone, and I was happy.
Winter . Summer . Fall . Spring . All these seasons came with lessons, but most importantly, they taught me that it was possible for broken people to be loved wholly.
And all this because of a little fire.