Seven Months Later Avery #2
As Martinez had already discovered, it turned out that Arlo’s criminal expertise hadn’t matched up to his self-confidence.
He had indeed sent the messages and photos to Avery—something that still made Tanner sick to his stomach—and, although Arlo thought he’d covered his tracks by swapping out prepaid SIMs, he hadn’t realized he had a phone with a hybrid slot.
After seizing his handset, Martinez and his team had found a micro-SD memory card holding multiple deleted texts and images—and, when they managed to recover them, the evidence was damning.
Arlo’s harassment of Avery and, to a lesser extent, Sam seemed to have been driven by his resentment of their influence over Tanner—not that he’d ever admitted it. With everything that came to light, Tanner had no doubt Arlo was protecting the money stream he’d grown to rely on.
In total, he’d defrauded Tanner’s accounts of somewhere in the region of $265,000.
It wasn’t easy to work out an exact figure because Tanner had been both embarrassingly lax in his attention and carelessly generous over the years.
It grated even more that he’d been so prepared to share his wealth with Arlo.
But then, as Avery and Sam—and his mom—reminded him regularly, real friends weren’t in it for the money. And he knew that now.
Talking of which . . .
Avery’s eyes fell on the bag he’d stored under one of the booth seats and the hint of a frown stole over her face. “Did you bring me another present?”
Tanner’s mouth went dry and his eyes slid to Bel. Her grin was blinding.
“Maybe just a small one.” There was a fine tremor to his hands as he reached for the bag and handed it over.
“Red Wing boots!” Avery’s smile when she peered inside was reluctant but delighted. “Damn, Tanner—they’re gorgeous.”
He’d consulted with Bel on her memories of the conversation they’d had all those months ago about what they would buy if money were no object. If Avery wanted Red Wing boots, Tanner was going to make sure she had them.
Avery’s eyes sparkled as she instantly slipped off her sneakers and tried one on. He’d chosen carefully and settled on an ankle boot in an olive suede finish, and they made her legs look incredible. If he hadn’t been so fucking nervous, Tanner would have patted himself on the back for a great job.
“They fit perfectly.” She turned her foot this way and that. “I’m never going to take them off.”
Trying to remember how to swallow, he undid the top button of his shirt. Sam caught his eye and winked. “Pull the other one on, just to be sure.”
“Talk among yourselves if your idea of a great night out isn’t watching me model footwear,” Avery suggested to the group, a pink flush to her cheeks. But she took the second boot out of the bag and tried to slip it on. “There’s something in the toe.”
The tip of her tongue poked between her lips as she delved into the boot with her fingers and pulled out a small square box. When she turned with confusion to Tanner, he took it gently from her hand.
“What—” Avery didn’t finish the question.
Her eyes widened as he lowered himself to one knee and his heart clattered in his chest like a lumpy camshaft. Behind him, Leah squeaked.
“I can’t remember why I thought it was a good idea to do this here but I just know I don’t want to wait any longer.
” He’d been confident right up until the last five minutes, but now sweat rose between Tanner’s shoulder blades and his voice was a husky rasp.
“I used to wonder who I was without hockey and you helped me see that I will always have other options. But a far bigger question is who am I without you, Stretch? Because honestly, I never want to find out.” He dragged a breath in through tight lungs.
“And I can manage all the rest—injuries, pressure, what comes next—as long as we’re together, because nothing matters more than being the guy who tries to match his strength to yours. ”
“Damn you for making me cry, Tanner Stone.” Bel’s soft growl wobbled at the edges but, for once, he was oblivious to any distractions.
Fingers trembling, Tanner opened the tiny box and held it out, looking up at Avery’s stunned face with a shaky grin on his lips.
“I love you more than I can say because I’m not smart with words.
More than you could ever possibly understand, but I’m prepared to show you and tell you for the rest of our lives.
So please help a guy out, because my heart is going like the clappers. Will you be my wife?”
Avery’s mouth moved several times before any actual words emerged. “You know you’re probably kneeling in something sticky right now?” She faltered, her hand pressed to her chest.
Tanner grimaced. “I think I can feel it,” he said. But when Avery reached out unsteady fingers to take the ring, he held his breath and any momentary regret at not picking somewhere more aesthetic for this proposal melted away.
The blue topaz caught the light, an exact match for the blue of Avery’s eyes.
He’d tried to choose one that was just as pretty but Tanner wasn’t sure it was possible.
The tremulous curve of her mouth was all wonder and delight as she slipped the ring onto her finger and he felt the symbolic punch in his sternum.
“Answer him, you goof noodle!” Bel prompted. Tanner could have kissed her for the nudge.
Avery gave a soggy laugh, swiping at a tear with the back of her hand and leaving a wet smear over one cheekbone.
“Yes, I’ll marry you. I can’t think of anything I want more.” She tugged him to his feet and cradled his face in her hands. “But you have to stop buying me stuff.”
Slipping his arms around her waist, Tanner lifted her feet off the ground to the whistles and catcalls of their friends. Exhilaration and gratitude thrummed in his veins as he ducked his head to kiss her deep and long.
“Some things might change over the years, Stretch, but you’re onto a loser there.” Tanner’s grin came from the center of his chest. “I want to be the one to give you everything you need.”
Only now he knew that the majority of those things didn’t involve money.
When Sam and Kash grabbed the champagne and glasses he’d arranged to have waiting behind the bar, Tanner popped the first cork, congratulations showering over them from all sides. Giddy with relief, he pushed a glass into Avery’s hand.
“To us,” he whispered. “The idiot who nearly threw away his scholarship and the girl who saved him.”
“To us,” she replied. “The girl who locked her heart in a box and the man who prized it open.”
“I did, didn’t I?” Satisfaction filled his lungs.
Persistence and hard work had paid off in many areas of his life, but never had they proved more valuable than in the pursuit of Avery Delgado.
Breathing in the scent of her perfume, Tanner moved his mouth to her ear.
“On a scale of one to ten, how much favor do you think I’ve earned from Bel tonight? ”
“Oh, you’ve done well—I’d say a nine, at least. Why?”
Tanner’s satisfaction was a growl in his throat. “Because I try very hard not to piss her off, but if I can’t have you to myself in the next ten minutes, there’s going to be trouble.”
“She’s cooking for us tomorrow,” Avery murmured, blue eyes dancing. “Leo has a date he’s bringing, too. So I think we’re good to go now.”
“Thank fuck for that.” He grabbed her wrist and backed them steadily away from the group. “Looking forward to dinner, Bel! Appreciate all the good wishes, guys. You’re the best. See you soon!”
Avery waved, laughter bubbling in her throat. Then they turned on their heels and headed for the exit, bursting like Bonnie and Clyde out into the parking lot, where the first few drops of a light shower were just starting to fall.
“Seems fitting that we should end up here, on another rainy night in a parking lot.” Tiny specks of water mingled with the freckles on Avery’s face.
“Oh, this isn’t the end, Stretch.” His heart full, Tanner pinned her up against his car and kissed her until all they could hear was their own breath in the dark. “We’ve only just started.”