Chapter 23
TWENTY-THREE
november
PENELOPE
My heart hammers in my chest as I speed through the motions of closing the store. Dominic seemed fine when he went into the back room— what could have happened? In all honesty, I’m so flustered, I couldn’t tell you if I pulled the money from the drawer and locked it up. Did I?
On my walk home, I shiver the entire way, cursing the fact that I ran out of the store without my coat. There’s a bitterly-cold early-winter wind whipping about and by the time I make it to the house, my cheeks are burning and my fingers are frozen.
The living room light is on but the drapes are shut, which is strange since Carl loves to sit in the window seat for his “neighborhood watch”. I take the front steps two at a time and reach for the door— but it won’t budge. It’s… locked?
“Are you frickin’ kidding me?” We typically use the front door when we get home, and I just assumed Dom would leave it unlocked knowing that I wouldn’t be far behind him.
I knock but there’s no answer. My heart pounds faster and I can feel anxious thoughts begin to take over.
What happened to Dom? Is he okay? Has he passed out? Does he need help?
My phone buzzes with a text and I struggle to swipe on the screen, my fingers are so frozen. My heart flips when I see it’s from Dom.
Dom: Come around back
Huffing, I shove my phone in my pocket and hurry down the stairs toward the back.
I’m going to kill him. My blood pressure is probably through the roof and my emotions have swung back and forth like they’re on the damn teacups at Disney World.
The nerve he has, leaving me at the store and not answering my messages!
The audacity to suddenly get sick! Okay, I can’t begrudge him that, but the lack of communication, abso—
My internal thoughts jerk to a halt as I wrench open the back door. The kitchen is dark but there are tiny tealight candles lighting a path from the back door down the hallway. I shut the door but I stand frozen, blinking several times, trying to process what I’m seeing.
“Pea?” Dom’s voice calls from down the hall. “Are you… er, are you coming in?”
My hands are trembling so I curl them into fists, but that doesn’t stop the whole-body shakes. A combination of freezing from my walk and nerves about what lies ahead. “Um, yeah. Just… trying to… you know… process this.”
His chuckle is warm as it carries down the hall, slipping inside me, under the ball of anxiety and awkwardness growing in my chest and making me feel a tad bit at ease. “Stop overthinking, Pea. Come to me.”
Taking a deep breath, I force myself to move forward, following the delicately lit path. The range of emotions feels like it might choke me— from anxious nerves to the dramatic butterflies in my belly.
Is this what I think it is?
If it is… it’s not something we’ve truly discussed.
Sure, maybe we joked about it in passing, and maybe it became a deep-rooted desire in my soul.
Something that I would only think about within recent weeks, a hopeful thought that I tucked away during the day and only brought it out at night when Dom would wrap me in his arms as we fell asleep.
A thought that I relegated to my fantasies, the ones that are labeled “someday” and “maybe.” An ache for a future that I’m not quite sure belongs to me.
I wasn't sure if it’s something I deserve.
And if it’s not? Well, nothing and no one will take that bright kernel of “someday, maybe” hope away from my nights.
As I pass the threshold to the main living space, my breath catches in my throat. There’s so much that I’m not quite sure what to focus on first.
My mess and clutter is gone— the piles of books I had stacked throughout the room, on side tables and wherever I could find a flat surface, are gone.
The furniture is all switched around as well.
The couch and chair now line the opposite wall, and in their place…
a stunning, floor-to-ceiling custom bookshelf, filled with all of my books, and complete with an attached ladder that, guessing from the wheels on the bottom, can roll back and forth the entire length of the shelf.
The shelves are a stunning deep-chocolate color that I don’t recall seeing anywhere else.
I gasp and it sounds like a sob. “Oh my god.”
“What do you think?”
Tearing my gaze away from the shelves, I turn to see Dominic a few feet away.
His hands are in his pockets and he’s smiling, beaming even though he looks nervous as hell— not an expression often seen on his typically broody, chiseled face.
Beside him is Carl, sitting like the bestest boy, his tail excitedly thumping on the floor.
Tears fill my eyes as I murmur, “You always hated the clutter.”
“No,” Dom says softly, taking a step toward me, “you always deserved a library, Pea. I knew it from the moment I stepped foot inside your home. I knew that one day, I would build you a library.”
The candlelight flickers throughout the room, casting a dreamy haze over the space. “It’s so romantic. I thought you weren’t into grand gestures?” I smile despite the happy tears pooling in my eyes.
Dom reaches out, cupping my cheek. He brushes away a tear that’s already managed to sneak its way down my face. “Ah. Not always, no. But you, Pea? You deserve the world. The least I can do is make you some shelves.”
Sniffling, I ask, “So, you’re not sick?”
He lets out a relieved sigh. “No, I’m not sick. I couldn’t think of a good way to get you out of the house for long enough to pull this off.” He nods towards the shelves. “So, Chloe and Jasper helped me out.”
I place a hand over my heart which is still thumping away wildly. “I was so worried when you weren’t answering.”
“I know, and I’m sorry.” Dom presses a kiss to my forehead.
“I’ll forgive you, eventually,” I tease, glancing at the impressive display again. “This is stunning, Dom. I didn’t realize you were so…”
“Handy? Crafty?” He shrugs, dropping his hand from my face as I take a step closer to inspect the craftsmanship. “Honestly, I’m not. Let’s just say I owe Jack a favor at some point.”
“Ah, I see.” Running my fingers along the spines of the books, it strikes me how perfect this is— the much-appreciated order and structure it brings to something that was so beautifully chaotic.
“I, uh, hope you don’t mind,” Dom says quietly, stumbling over his words. “I added a few of my favorites to your collection as well.”
“Oh?” I turn back to the shelf, looking for anything new-to-me.
Dom steps up close behind me, pressing up against my back and trailing his fingers down to my left hand.
His breath is warm on my neck and can’t contain the shiver that runs through me.
His touch, as he threads his fingers through mine, and the way he holds me never fails to electrify me.
Dom guides my hand up a shelf higher, then down slowly, pausing finally on a very well-read, tattered copy of…
“The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe?” I ask, smiling at him over my shoulder.
“Do you remember that summer we met?” Dom asks quietly, an unreadable expression on his face.
Swallowing hard, I nod. How could I forget? Laughing, I say, “I practically forced you to read it.”
“Yeah,” Dom nods, his lips tilting into a smile. “That summer changed my life, Pea.”
My eyebrows knit together, emotion coursing through me like the tide. “Me too.” I look back to where our fingers rest on the worn book spine, and something catches my eye. Something I asked him about months ago, that I’ve seen nearly every day since he’s been back in my life. “Dom, your tattoo!”
He smiles and I notice his cheeks are wet too; we’re both emotional little messes together, aren’t we?
“I wasn’t completely honest with you, when you first asked me about it.
” Dom lowers our hands and holds his wrist out, turning it slightly so I can better see the lamppost tattoo.
His first tattoo ever. A visual reminder of…
something that made him happy. “I got it because it reminds me of you, Pea. You were my beacon. My light in the darkness. I never got to tell you that.”
Words are impossible— a ball of emotion rises in my throat, threatening to spill out in a sob. “Dom,” I whisper through my tears. “I… I don’t know what to say.”
Dom places a steady hand on my hip and presses his lips to the top of my head. “You don’t have to say anything, baby. Why don’t you take a peek inside?”
With a shaky hand, I tip the book out from its place on the shelf. It’s the first book in the series and, as I settle it into my hands, there’s a weight to it that I cannot explain. Physically, I mean, but metaphorically too.
“Open it up, Pea.” Dom’s whisper is warm against my ear and I shiver again.
I do as he asks, noting that the book seems to only open about halfway through.
While puzzling, my confusion doesn’t last long because there, in the center of the book, in a hollowed out square hole, is a gorgeous square-cut sapphire ring.
It’s breathtaking, the most beautiful piece of jewelry I have ever seen in my life— two thin silver bands frame a sapphire, flanked by teardrop diamonds.
“Dom,” I breathe, turning to face him. He’s behind me still, but he’s lowered to one knee. I can’t help the tears from running freely now, though I let out a small laugh as Carl hurries to Dom’s side. The goofy dog dives low and rolls, paws in the air and tail wagging, waiting for belly rubs.
“Penelope Elizabeth Adams,” he begins, then pauses. Dom shakes his hands at his sides, shaking his head. “Fuck, I don’t know what I’m supposed to do with my hands since you’ve already got the book. Er…”
“Here,” I laugh through my tears, holding the book out to him so he can hold it up to me.
“Thanks.” Dom’s smile at this moment is one I wish I could burn into my memory— his smile is so wide that his dimple is popping, it’s so beautifully radiant.
It’s my favorite smile yet. “I love you, Pen. Without you, there is no me. And that’s not a hyperbole, it’s the damn truth.
The man I am today is all thanks to an outgoing, kind-hearted, intelligent girl who wouldn’t take no for an answer. ”
I giggle at the memory, touched by how much of an impact I truly had on him back then.
“Despite it all, this last year has been the absolute best of my life. Yeah, I came back to Prairie Ridge because of some stupid shit, but I won’t regret that.
Ever. Because it all brought me back to you.
When I’m with you, I’m home. And I never want to lose that feeling, never want to lose you again.
” Dom takes a shaky breath and whispers, “Will you marry me, Pea?”
Crying the happiest tears, I drop to my knees beside Dom. Gently, I place the book on the side table before we wrap our arms around each other. Carl jumps up on us, trying to get between us, licking our faces and hands.
Pulling back slightly, I press my forehead to Dom’s, staring into his eyes with unabashed passion.
“Of course I’ll marry you, Dominic Miller.
I can’t imagine my life without you, without us.
You’ve brought so much light and joy to my life this last year.
” He rolls his eyes playfully and I nudge him with my shoulder.
“I mean it. Even when you’re being an absolute grump.
” Taking a deep breath, I continue. “You see me, Dom. You see me in a way no one ever has, not even me. You make me feel like I’m enough, just as I am. ”
Dom runs a hand through my hair, tugging it softly so I tilt my head up. “You are everything, Pen. Fucking everything to me.”
“You know, I think I like you, Dom.”
“A little?” He smirks as he wraps an arm around my waist, another around my legs to scoop me up, depositing me on the couch.
Before I can respond, he covers me with his body— that delicious, masculine weight pressing into me, his mouth covering mine. And he claims me, right there on the couch. Right beneath the stunning custom-built shelves. Before I even have a chance to try on my ring.