Chapter 28 #2
“If you marry him”—she points to Connor, who is still sitting right next to me and very much listening to this conversation—“does that mean I get to call him Uncle Connie?”
“What?” I sputter.
Connor wipes a hand over his mouth. I can’t tell if it’s because he’s uncomfortable at the thought of marrying me or if he’s trying to hide his amusement. Hopefully the latter.
“Isn’t that how it works?”
“You’re one smart cookie,” Connor says, because I apparently can’t form words right now.
“Thanks.” She grins. “You’re getting married, right? That’s what I overheard Mama talking about with Aunt Alyssa and Aunt Kelsey.”
I really hope Connor doesn’t think I told my friends we’re getting married. That’s one way to scare him away before we’ve truly begun. I clear my throat, hoping my voice doesn’t come out shaky. “We’re not getting married, sweetie.”
“Well, not right now.” Evie shakes her head, causing her cute curls to bounce around. “They said something about it only being a matter of time. I learned in school that time was in hours, minutes, and seconds.” She scrunches her little nose. “I don’t know what matters are.”
Connor’s shoulders shake beside me as he tries to hold in his laughter.
Evie snuggles closer to me, resting her head on my chest. “Can I be the flower girl?”
Oh, poppy.
A strangled laugh slips out of Connor’s mouth. “Excuse me.” He gets up from his seat and leaves the suite. A sliver of worry settles inside me at his abrupt departure. I hope he wasn’t upset by Evie bringing up the whole marriage thing.
Evie turns to me with an innocent expression. “Is that a yes?”
I run my fingers through her curls. “Of course you can, but it’ll be a while before I get married, sweet girl.”
She shrugs and leans back against my chest, seemingly satisfied with the answer.
I give Evie my phone to watch Frozen 2 on while I watch the sun set over the field.
I never imagined this would be my life. Surrounded by my best friends in a box suite at an MLB game.
One week out from Sunshine Blooms debuting at my first event.
Being an us with Connor. Life has never been sweeter, and I don’t know how I got so lucky.
Connor returns a little bit later with enough hot dogs on hand for all of us to enjoy, dispelling my worry about why he left. Austin ensured our suite had catered food, but nothing beats the nostalgia of eating a ballpark hot dog.
Evie hops off my lap to go eat one while I load mine up with mustard and relish before diving in. I wipe my mouth with a napkin, making sure I don’t have any rogue mustard on my face, before turning to Connor. “Thanks.”
He dips his head. “I remember you used to buy one at all my games.”
“How did you—” I don’t finish the rest of my question as the answer hits me. The only way Connor would know that is if he was watching me, too. Looking for me in the stands.
Connor shrugs, but there’s a hint of a blush on his cheeks. “A lot of memories have been popping up for me recently.”
I take another bite of my hot dog. “Such as?”
“Ones with you.” He polishes off the rest of his hot dog and balls up the foil paper it was wrapped in.
“It made me realize something.” He wipes his hands off on a napkin before running them through his hair.
I wish he knew he doesn’t have anything to be nervous about, not around me.
“I’ve noticed you all along, flower. In the stands at every one of my games.
Across the room at events. Whenever I gave you and your friends a ride home from football games.
You were always right there. In all my best memories, you stand out. ”
I place my hot dog in the wrapping on my lap and reach up to dab under my eyes with a clean napkin.
“I thought it was because you were kind, but Kelsey and Alyssa were always nice to me, too. Then I realized that I’ve always been drawn to you because you’re you. I think all along I knew you were special, but I moved away and then thought I didn’t want to date again after Jillian.”
I glance around, making sure no one is within earshot, then play with the edges of my sweater, scared to ask this question but even more scared to not know the answer. “Have I changed your mind?”
Connor reaches over and wipes the next tear that falls away with the pad of his calloused thumb, a reminder of all the selfless work he does for our community. Of the flower vases he made because he said they reminded him of home—of me. “You’ve changed everything.”
I lean in, ready to kiss him despite being surrounded by all our friends, not to mention his sister.
But when a man goes and says something like that, how can I not kiss him?
I’m inches away from his face when I hear the first crack of a firework go off.
I startle, and Connor drops his hand from my face and moves his gaze to his lap.
I pick up the rest of my hot dog and his trash. “I should throw this away.” After carrying it all to the trash can by the buffet table, I pop a mint in my mouth and return near the glass to watch the show.
I look up in awe as the night sky comes to life. Every color of the rainbow sparkles above with each crack of a firework. It’s beautiful, and even more fun to watch when the Mustangs are celebrating a win.
I swear, the fireworks for Thunder get better every year.
Or maybe I just appreciate all the work and planning that goes into it more as I get older.
A few minutes pass as I bask in the beauty above me until I feel the hairs on the back of my neck raise in awareness.
I turn to find that while everyone else’s attention is on the brilliant display of fireworks, Connor only seems to have eyes for me.
I join him in the back of the box suite, away from everyone else. “You don’t like the show?”
“I had a more beautiful view right in front of me.”
“My backside?” I tease, trying to get a handle on my racing heart. As if I have any shot of calming down when he just called me beautiful.
Connor snickers. “I was going for all of you.” He cocks his head to the side. “But that works, too.”
I playfully slap his chest and he reaches up, wrapping his hand around mine. My heart pounds. “Are you ever going to kiss me?” Embarrassment courses through me. I can’t believe I just blurted that out, but around him, I feel bold.
His eyes go wide before they dart to my mouth, like he’s been thinking about this, too. “I’ve been waiting for the right moment.”
“That moment is now.” I tug him toward me, my lips only centimeters from his.
I need this, need him. “Kiss me.” The words come out as a plea, begging him to fulfill my request. If he does one thing I ask of him for the rest of my life, I want it to be this.
A moment almost fourteen years in the making.
Connor brushes his nose against mine and wraps his hands around the small of my back.
I arch into his touch and let out a shaky breath, still trying to wrap my brain around the fact that this is really happening.
He pulls back enough to look into my eyes.
His gaze is both soft and determined before he moves one of his hands up to the back of my neck and pulls my mouth to his.
Connor’s lips are still at first, as if he’s scared I’m going to jump away at any second. But when I part mine and move them against his, his resolve seems to melt away. Our mouths move together like we’ve been doing this for years, like they were made for each other.
I’ve imagined this a hundred—no, a thousand—times. But nothing in my wildest dreams could compare to the real thing. The feeling of Connor Porter’s lips on mine, breathing me in like I’m his only source of oxygen.
Every stroke and press of his lips against mine is a reminder of why there will only ever be him for me. All my pent-up years of feelings go into each kiss. I slide my hands up until they’re at the nape of his neck, in his hair that’s gotten a little bit longer again over the past month.
I run my nails along the back of his head, and he sucks in a breath before pulling me closer for more. His kisses become more frenzied and impassioned, like he can’t get enough of me. It feels like an out-of-body experience, one I want to partake in over and over again.
As Connor continues to do an extremely thorough job of kissing me under the fireworks, one word reverberates in my mind:
Finally.