Chapter 12
Chapter Twelve
With the sun shining through the bedroom window, Nate was content to lie in bed and watch Tamara packing.
Not that there was a lot of packing to do.
It was mostly a question of picking up rumpled wedding clothes from the floor and finding a way to shove them back into their bags.
Tamara was dressed more casually today, back to normal, back to looking like she might go down to the beach at any moment.
In fact, that was a good idea before getting in the car to drive home.
A walk on the beach. A beautiful view. He could declare himself then, and it would be perfect.
Nate found himself beaming for one very special reason.
He’d gone from just enjoying the weekend to stupid-happy.
The wedding had been a success, his brother was married, and his family had been big and embarrassing and enjoyable.
And then, of course, there was Tamara. The sweetest most wonderful cherry on top.
He hadn’t dared hope that things would go this well.
He’d thought he might get a chance to show her in small, subtle ways how he cared for her.
Maybe even say a little of what he felt.
But he’d never dared imagine they might end up together, like this, so obviously in love, so obviously connected.
The only thing left to do was actually say the words, and he wanted to find the perfect moment for it.
“Do you want to go down to the beach?” Nate asked. “It might be nice to have a walk before we drive back. Also, I bet it’s probably very pretty without a party going on.”
“I think it’s always pretty,” Tamara said. She glanced at her watch, but there seemed to be something a little stiff about the movement. “We probably don’t have much time.”
“I’m sure we could fit something in,” Nate suggested. He wanted to stretch this weekend out as long as he could, even if Tamara did have a good point. They both had jobs to get back to today.
Tamara shook her head. “We still need to say good-bye to your family and drive back.”
“Is everything all right?” Nate asked, realizing Tamara had been a little quiet since they’d woken up. He’d thought maybe she was the kind of person who didn’t like talking as soon as she woke up, but now he was a little concerned.
“I’m fine,” Tamara assured him.
“You sure?” Nate asked. “It’s not like you to miss out on a chance to go to the beach.”
For a moment, a flicker of something Nate couldn’t place crossed Tamara’s features.
Then she smiled. “Nate, there’s really no time.
I have a coffee shop to manage. I know the kids opened up this morning, but I don’t want to press my luck.
Monday mornings are always busy. Besides, don’t you have a wedding that needs your help? ”
Oh, right. The wedding! Nate had totally forgotten about Zach and Yuriko’s wedding. He’d been too busy thinking about Tamara.
“I guess you’re right,” Nate said, quietly disappointed. “We both have a busy week ahead of us. Maybe we can come back another weekend and really spend some time on the beach.”
“That sounds good,” Tamara replied. She turned back to her bags. “I’m just about ready. I’ve got a couple more things to pack.”
Nate stifled a sigh. As much as he loved the challenge Zach’s wedding presented, he didn’t want to think about it right now. He wanted to think about Tamara and only Tamara. Even so, he made himself get up, get dressed, and finish packing.
Ten minutes later, they hurried downstairs.
In the kitchen, there were a few family members drinking coffee, but the house was quiet.
Some people had returned home yesterday, and a few more had made an early start that morning.
Still, there were enough family members around the breakfast table that it felt like glorious chaos.
Seeing Tamara, a couple of Nate’s cousins cornered her and asked all about running a coffee shop.
“It’s great,” Tamara said. “I love coffee, of course, and I get to work right on the beach. I’m my own boss. And I meet all kinds of interesting people.”
“Like Nate,” one of his cousins suggested with a small wink.
“Yes,” Tamara said. “Just like Nate.” She smiled at him. “Well, I guess ‘interesting’ is one word for him.”
Her comment prompted the usual round of jokes. His family never got tired of teasing him about how boring his job must be, but right then, Nate didn’t care. The important thing was that Tamara was with him, and this weekend had been exactly the kind of step forward they needed.
“Oh, I almost forgot,” Nate’s cousin said, dashing off toward the front door. She returned a minute later, “These came for you. It seems our Nate is a romantic.”
A beautiful arrangement of forget-me-nots was brought into the kitchen.
In full bloom, the wash of color was incredibly delicate yet bright against the rest of the house.
Nate had totally forgotten about the flowers he’d ordered for Tamara.
In the rush of the weekend, it had slipped his mind to check on the delivery.
“Oh, Nate, they’re perfect,” Tamara said, taking them. She looked over at him. “Thank you so much. These are beautiful. I can’t believe you remembered they’re my favorites—you didn’t have to do this.”
“Yes, I did!” Nate gave her a kiss on the cheek, happy she was happy.
He’d wanted to give Tamara something to show her how much he loved her.
He’d wanted to turn this into the most romantic weekend ever.
But it seemed that his flowers were going to be the punctuation to the weekend rather than signaling the beginning.
If he and Tamara had been alone, this would have been the perfect moment to say how deeply he felt about her, but he couldn’t do it in front of his family.
“How are you going to get them home?” Nate’s cousin asked. “Are they going to fit in the car?”
It was a valid question. Nate had gone a little overboard when it came to the size of the bouquet, and the flowers were very delicate.
“We’ll make room,” Tamara said, still grinning. “I’m not leaving these behind.”
After saying good-bye to everyone in the kitchen, Nate grabbed their bags and headed to the car. Tamara promised to find his parents so they could say good-bye.
Nate and one of his cousins packed the car, rearranging everything to make sure the flowers weren’t crushed. Soon, Tamara and Nate’s mom joined him in the driveway.
“Honey,” his mom said, “I don’t know where your father is. We couldn’t find him, and he’s going to be mad he missed you this morning. But you have to promise me that you and Tamara will come back and visit soon. The wedding was great, but I feel I hardly got to talk with you.”
“Oh, we will,” Nate said as he hugged his mom good-bye. “And say bye to Dad for us, okay?”
“Yes, please,” Tamara agreed, adding, “it was great to meet everyone, and I look forward to seeing you again.” She hugged Nate’s mom and hopped in the car. As they drove away, Tamara and Nate waved good-bye to the small crowd who’d come outside to see them off.
Nate smiled to himself. Being a couple wasn’t a pretense anymore, but it was an idea that took a bit of getting used to.
It felt right, though. It was the way things should be.
The way Nate could see their lives unfolding for a long time to come.
Forever, if he had any say in the matter.
He was going to forget his family’s record when it came to marriage and divorce.
With Tamara, he just knew that things would work out.
For now, they had to get back to Malibu, and maybe that was a good thing. Time around his family had been fun, but time alone was better. He was thinking he could find a spot on the way back to stop and say what he’d been wanting to say all morning.
“Well, that turned out to be a pretty good weekend,” Nate said as he made a left turn. It was the king of all understatements. Pretty good wasn’t even close to summing up everything he was feeling.
Tamara smiled. “I agree. It was good to meet your family. I really liked them. Like most families, there are a few unique characters, but that’s okay. I enjoyed meeting everyone.”
The drive back was a little longer than they had expected.
They were, after all, heading in the direction of LA at rush hour, and the traffic between San Diego and Malibu wasn’t going to magically disappear.
It gave Nate some time to think. He realized that all the thoughts that had occupied his mind on the way out there had been resolved—they’d made it to the wedding in a reasonable amount of time, things had gone great with his family, and it had gone better than great when it came to Tamara.
Everyone seemed to love her, and she liked them too.
No one had an inkling that they were trying to pretend to be together.
And now the best thing was that they didn’t need to pretend anymore.
They made a quick stop to get gas and some bottled water, and then Tamara dozed off in the sunshine. Nick was happy just to listen to the radio with Tamara beside him and remember all the details of the happiest weekend of his life.
About three hours later, Nate drove into Malibu.
Tamara sat up, looked around, and then sighed. “I forget how much I love this place until I go somewhere else,” she said.
Nate had to agree. Malibu was beautiful.
More than that, it felt like home now. That feeling had a lot to do with the people he worked with and his connection with Married in Malibu.
But it had a whole lot more to do with the fact that Tamara was here.
She was it for him. Everything he had ever wanted.