Chapter 30
thirty
. . .
Winnie
On Sunday morning, I’d sent a text to Eloise, Lulu, Henley, Wren, and Emerson, who was in town for the weekend. I’d told them about the plan for the proposal, and they all met at Archer’s house so we could get to work.
“Are you Uncle Archie’s girl yet?” Cutler asked as he helped me lay out the book pages. Everyone else sat in the kitchen, cutting out the letters Bridger had requested to say, Will You Marry Me, Angel?
“We’re good friends,” I said as I glanced over to where Melody was coloring some hearts that she wanted to give to Bridger and Emilia once they got engaged.
His gaze moved to the table where his cousin was sitting and then back to me.
“Well, my best friend is also my girl. Her name is Gracie, and I’m going to marry her someday.
So you can be Uncle Archie’s friend and his girl.
And my pops and my mama waited a long time to tell me they were together back then, too. ”
I chuckled. This kid was so smart. Wise beyond his years. He was barely nine years old and just one of those old souls. The kind of kid everyone wanted to be around. “Thanks, Beefcake. I think Gracie is very lucky to be not only your best friend but also your girl.”
“I’m the lucky one,” he said as he finished laying out the row of book pages, and he extended his hand so I could pass him another stack. “And my pops says that when you know, you just know.”
I moved around, tying the pages together where he’d laid them out with pretty ribbon that I’d picked up at the craft store.
We were making good progress in our ginormous backdrop made from book pages.
Bridger had ordered a very large floral arch from Emilia’s flower shop, and Beatrice, a woman who worked at the Vintage Rose, was arranging everything so that Emilia wouldn’t know about it.
The backdrop would be surrounded by floral trees and baskets filled with beautiful blooms.
I glanced up when Eloise showed me her letter M to demonstrate how she’d covered it in glitter.
My favorite thing about this family was the way they all rallied around one another.
My father and I had always been that way, but it was just the two of us.
This whole family showed up, repeatedly, for each other.
Bridger’s words still played in my head.
You’re part of this family now, Winnie.
It meant a lot to me that he’d agreed to keep my uncle’s secret.
I’d returned the computer to Uncle Oscar last night when they’d arrived home from work, and Aunt Edith and I had come up with a plan to say that I’d just stopped by and fixed it easily an hour earlier, adding the extra storage and organizing his files.
He looked a little nervous at first, but I acted completely unfazed, and he’d then appeared relieved to have it back.
“Your pops is a smart man,” I said as I sat down to start another row.
“And my mama said you write books. I think that’s really cool, Winnie.”
“I think you’re really cool, Beefcake.” I chuckled, because his nickname was hilarious.
“Did you always know that you wanted to be a writer?” he asked.
“I always liked writing, but honestly, I don’t think I knew that I could be a writer. My father and my uncle both really encouraged me to chase my dreams, and I finally took the leap.” I tied off the bow and started cutting new strips. “Do you know what you want to be when you grow up?”
“Well, my mama’s a doctor and my pops is a contractor, so in a way they both help people, and I like helping people.
And my uncle Hayes built this office space out at his house in his barn, and I was out there all the time watching my pops and my uncle King turn it into this cool space.
I even drew an idea for the twins’ nursery out there, because Uncle Hayes and Aunt Savvy have twin girls, and they both loved my drawings.
So sometimes I think I’d like to draw houses and then build them.
So I could do what my pops does, but I’d draw it first.”
Wow. Not a lot of nine-year-olds knew what they wanted and had so much passion for it.
“So you’d be an architect? That’s so cool.”
“Well, I want to take over ROD Construction from my pops and Uncle King someday, because they built it from the ground up. But they don’t have an architect, so that would be even better.” He winked at me, and I couldn’t help but laugh.
This kid had more charm in his pinky finger than most grown men had in their whole bodies.
“I like that you have a plan. I’ve always been a planner, too.”
“You’ve gotta have a plan if you want to grow up and take care of your girl, right?” He grinned at me. “I’ve got big plans, Winnie.”
“I can see that.” I was chuckling just as Emerson walked over.
“This looks great,” she said, turning her attention to me. “You are one creative woman. Emilia is going to love this. You’ve even got my grumpy brother doing romantic gestures now.”
I shook my head and smiled. “This was all Bridger’s idea. He wants to make it special for her.”
“I think she’s going to love this. Thanks for stepping up and making this happen so quickly.
” She bent down and handed me the next ribbon.
“And thanks for being so good to Melody and Archer. Melody has always been so full of joy, but it’s been a long time since I’ve seen Archer so happy.
He’s just lighter now, you know? And that’s all you. ”
My chest squeezed at her words. “Thank you. I’m much lighter since being here, too.”
I truly felt that way.
I was crazy about this man in every way. And I adored his little girl.
“Okay, Emilia is texting and wondering where everyone is,” Eloise said. “I’m going to go meet her for coffee downtown so she doesn’t get suspicious.”
Emerson’s phone vibrated, and she quickly typed out a message. “Ohhh… she wants to see Cutler, too. I told her we were helping Mom out in the garden, and we’d meet her at the coffee shop in ten minutes.”
“Okay, you drive separate, so it doesn’t look suspicious.” Eloise leaned down and kissed my cheek. “This is going to look so good. Love you, Win.”
All of our phones were vibrating with texts from Emilia, and we each came up with an excuse as to why we couldn’t meet, hoping she wouldn’t find it odd.
But we had more work to do here, and I couldn’t wait to get this all set up for her next weekend.
Melody had gone to sleep about forty minutes ago, and I was folding up the backdrop, which I’d left out for a few hours so the letters we glued on could set.
“Hey,” Archer said as I placed the backdrop in the office just in case Emilia happened to stop by this week. “I ran you a bath. You need to relax.”
Archer and I had a routine now where I’d sleep in his bed and we’d set the alarm for an hour before Melody woke up, and I’d sneak back into my room. We wanted to make sure we handled our relationship right where she was concerned.
“You ran me a bath?” I walked into his arms and hugged him. He was always doing thoughtful things. Putting gas in my car. Leaving treats on my desk when I had big word-count days. Sending sweet texts to encourage me.
“Yeah. Your back must be killing you,” he said. “You’ve been working on that banner all day.” He took my hand and led me to his room, closing the door behind him.
“I’m fine. But do you know what I’d love?”
“A glass of wine?” he asked as he reached for the hem of my sweater and tugged it over my head.
“Nope. I’d love if you took a bath with me.”
His hand slipped behind my back, and he unsnapped my bra before tossing it on the counter. The comfort I felt with this man was unparalleled.
“You want me to take a bath with you, beautiful?”
“I do. I just want to be close to you right now.”
“Done.” He leaned down and kissed me.
I tied my hair in a bun on top of my head, and we both finished getting undressed. The bathroom smelled like lavender from the bubble bath he’d poured into the water.
He turned off the faucet and stepped in before dropping down and offering me a hand. I settled between his thighs, my back resting against his chest.
His arms came around me and his nose nuzzled my ear.
“How do you always smell so good?” he asked.
I chuckled. “I guess I take a lot of baths.”
He nipped at my ear. “You do. Wait till it warms up, and you can just take a dip in the river, right in the backyard.”
A fluttery feeling moved in my stomach at his words. He’d been speaking about the future lately. I liked that he saw me in his future. That he wasn’t putting an expiration date on this thing between us.
Because I felt it, too.
I felt it in every inch of my body.
And I didn’t want to hold back anymore.
I rolled onto my stomach, which made him bark out a laugh.
“Hey,” I whispered.
“Hey, little mermaid girl.” He tucked the piece of hair that had broken free from the bun behind my ear as a wide grin spread across his face.
“I need to tell you something,” I said.
His brows cinched together, and his smile dropped. “Is something wrong? Are you okay?”
“I’m more than okay.”
“All right.” His shoulders relaxed a bit. “Tell me what’s on your mind.”
“I just, well, I wanted you to know that I have these feelings for you. Deep feelings,” I said, clearing my throat as the nerves kicked in.
I was naked in a tub of water with the most beautiful man I’d ever seen, and I was declaring my feelings in the most vulnerable way possible.
“I just feel so much, you know? It’s overwhelming sometimes. ”
My voice started to wobble.
Oh my gosh. This was an epic fail.
His finger moved over my lips to stop me before one large hand covered the side of my face.
“I have deep feelings for you, too, Winnie. I didn’t see this coming, and I’ve been trying to control it and slow things down, but I can’t.
So I understand feeling overwhelmed. But I think it’s a good thing, because we both feel it. ”
I wanted to say it right here.
Right now.
I love you.
But something stopped me from going there.