Chapter 47
CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN
Athena
I rush back into Wild Lilac after spending an hour in bed with Liam.
He ate me to an orgasm before I sucked him off.
He didn’t have a condom, and the ones I still have in my nightstand drawer wouldn’t fit.
He tried, and we laughed at the fact that they were too small.
It didn’t matter.
It was still magical and perfect in every possible way.
I walked back to the store feeling as though a weight had been lifted off my shoulders. Liam knows that my parents have made horrible mistakes, but he didn’t judge me because of them.
I still saw adoration in his gaze. I still felt tenderness in his touch.
He agreed to meet my family next week.
Maybe my twenty-fourth birthday will be the start of the best year of my life.
“You’re back,” Leanna singsongs from behind the table. “Your cheeks are flushed. Your hair is messed up. It looks like you had a good time with that gorgeous man of yours.”
I fumble with something to say. “We…I…”
“You don’t owe me an explanation.” She sighs. “I think you should duck out of here more often to meet him.”
I think so too.
“Al is on his way over.” She points at the coolers. “I got everything done, so we are ready to hit the road for deliveries.”
“What would I do without you?”
She tilts her head. “You’ll never find that out. I plan on sticking it out until the day I die.”
I can only hope that’s the truth.
“I’ll take you up on that offer for my birthday.” I smile. “I want to take the day to get ready for a very special dinner my family has planned.”
Narrowing her gaze, she studies my face. “I hope Liam will be there.”
Hearing his name come from her lips so effortlessly keeps the smile on my face. “He will be.”
“Mark my words, Athena.” She crosses her arms over her chest. “By this time next year, you’ll have a diamond ring on that finger.”
I glance down at my left hand. “One day at a time, Leanna.”
“An assistant can dream, right?” She flashes her wedding ring. “When he does pop the question, promise me that you’ll let me help with the flowers for your big day.”
“I promise,” I sound back even though I don’t want to tempt fate.
Liam and I are a long way from exchanging vows. We haven’t even said I love you to each other yet, but I feel it inside. After today, I think he might too.
“You like this guy a lot, don’t you?” Jeremy leans his hip against the kitchen counter in my apartment.
It’s late.
I’ve worked non-stop for the past few days because I booked a last minute wedding.
The original florist bailed, so the bride came to me in tears three days ago.
I was still wallowing in the lingering grief of finding out the truth about my father when she walked into the shop.
I sat her down, went over what she envisioned for her wedding, and I set out to make it happen.
It took calls to three different suppliers on the east coast, but I pulled it off.
Leanna worked late the last few nights, and we had to reschedule the drop-in flower arranging class, but we got the job done.
“Liam is a good man.” I take a sip of water. “You’ll like him, Jer.”
He nudges the bag of food he brought with him toward me. “You should eat something, Athena.”
“Leanna ordered pizza.” I glance into the brown paper bag. “I’ll make a sandwich before I go to bed.”
“Can you see yourself marrying him?”
I choke on the last swallow of water in the bottle. I cough once and then again as I wag a finger at my brother. “Don’t go there.”
I don’t mention the fact that Leanna is still driving the marriage train at high speed. She’s mentioned it at least once a day since Liam came into Wild Lilac. I haven’t seen him since. I pointed out that fact to her, but she laughed and told me that absence makes the heart grow fonder.
“We are dating,” I say on a wheeze. “Promise me that you won’t bring up marriage at my birthday dinner.”
His hand dives into the bag. “I promise. I’m putting this food away, and then I’m taking off. Eat and then sleep, Athena.”
I need to fit a call to Liam in there too, but I don’t tell my brother that.
“I’ll see you on Sunday,” I say with a smile. “You’ll be on your best behavior, right?”
“I’ll be a charming son-of-a-bitch.” He flashes an over-the-top smile. “Tell your boyfriend that if he doesn’t show up, I’ll hunt him down.”
“He’ll be there,” I reassure him with a kiss on the cheek. “He promised me that he would be there.”