11. Avery
11
AVERY
I’m in love with Micah Erikson.
I think in some ways, deep down, I always knew it. He’s been my constant. My rock. My best friend.
Maybe it really is possible for two friends of the opposite sex to fall in love and live happily ever after. Sure, we don’t agree on everything . He’s annoying me by not letting me see the second floor and he dropped another hint about Henry before he got in the shower this morning. But I redirected the conversation when I followed him in and immediately grabbed his cock.
“We’ll be okay,” I say to myself, sipping on a white chocolate mocha from Espresso of Love . Coffee has been a lifesaver today during my two photoshoots, considering I didn’t get much sleep last night.
I park in the driveway, next to Micah’s truck, and grin like a fool.
Yep. I’m totally in love.
Why did I wait so long?
Shouldering my camera bag, I consider sneaking upstairs and surprising Micah— naked . I don’t see Caden’s Jeep anywhere, so it should be just the two of us?—
The door to the second floor is open, and coming from upstairs is the distinct sound of laughter. Female laughter.
I feel like I’ve been gut-punched.
No fucking way.
Micah and I haven’t even talked about a third roommate. I would never have agreed to another woman who wasn’t blood related to him moving in with us. And because I know Micah almost better than I know myself, I know he’s an only child. But maybe the new tenant isn’t up to me. It is Declan’s house, after all.
But why is there no other car in the driveway? Did this woman walk here?
“I can’t thank you enough, Ruby,” I hear Micah say.
“Ruby?” I remember her from The Book Cellar . Remember thinking she’s more Micah’s type than I would ever be. My heart sinks as a very bleak future flashes before my eyes. Ruby moves in. Micah loses interest in me and starts dating Ruby. Eventually they get married and kick me to the curb.
I should go .
I quietly slip away to my bedroom, wondering where the hell I’m going to live now. But I’ll be damned if I stay here and watch myself lose Micah to another woman.
When I open my door, I’m surprised to find a pile of golden fur curled in a ball on my bed.
“Henry?”
His tail wags before he manages to lazily lift his head in my direction. Home boy was having a good nap. This makes me smile. In this moment, I don’t care how he ended up here or that I can’t keep him. He’s exactly where I need him to be. He greets me as I sit on the edge of the bed and pull him into a hug.
Meant to be .
The phrase pops so clearly in my mind that there’s no more denying it. Haley’s right. We make time for what’s important. And Henry is very important to me. Too important to let another minute go by before I adopt him as my own. “I’ll figure it out, boy. I promise.”
“Henry, you spoiled the surprise,” Micah says from my doorway, wearing that sexy lopsided grin that got me all those years ago when we first met. For a moment, I almost forget about the woman he had upstairs.
Almost.
“Find a new tenant?” I ask, my tone flat.
“What?”
“Ruby McCray.”
“Are you…jealous?” I hate the smug way he smiles, then laughs.
“What’s so funny?”
“ You are.” Micah comes into the room, risking my death glare shooting laser beams at him. He might think this is funny, but I’ve already seen how this three roommate situation plays out. I will not be made to be a fool.
“I’m moving out.”
“Knock it off, Avery,” Micah says, sitting on the bed and draping an arm around me. Henry inches forward so his head is in both of our laps. “Ruby is not moving in here.”
“She’s not?”
“Of course not. She owns her own place a couple blocks down.”
Not the most reassuring headline.
“Why did you let her see upstairs then?” Am I pouting? Okay, maybe a little. But I’ve been dying to see the progress, and he’s shot down every single time I’ve asked to so much as take a peak.
“Because I needed her signature.”
“Okay, I’m lost.” Henry grumbles, as though agreeing.
“A covenant change requires fifty-one percent of the neighborhood to sign off on it to be approved. Ruby was the last one I needed, but she wanted to see it for herself before she was willing to sign.”
“I don’t understand.”
“I was going to wait until I officially filed the paperwork, but I suppose I’ve tortured you enough,” Micah says, just playful and teasing enough to annoy me. It hits me that I secretly love it. He presses a kiss to my temple before standing. “C’mon, you two.”
“Wait, why is Henry here?” I ask. “Did you get another day with him?”
“You really know how to spoil surprises, don’t you?” That lopsided grin is proof enough that he’s completely teasing. There is no tension. No annoyance. No fighting.
Maybe we can go the distance . Because yeah, I didn’t fall out of love with the man in the last few minutes of misunderstanding. If anything, I’ve fallen harder despite not having a damn clue what this surprise is he’s talking about. It’s why I accept his offered hand and follow him through the house, to the foot of the second floor staircase.
“We’re not getting a third roommate,” he says.
“We’re not?” I’m both relieved but also slightly panicked. An increase in rent would mean more shifts at the bakery and even longer before I can rent a photography studio downtown.
“Go on,” he says, nodding upstairs.
Only the first two steps are hesitant, as though he might change his mind and yank me back. After that, I rush all the way to the top, eager as a kid on Christmas to see what he’s been hiding.
But when I see it for the first time, I’m not prepared for the shock. Luckily, Micah’s there to catch me before I can fall back down the flight of stairs.
The space is open—are there walls missing?—and inviting. The walls are painted my favorite periwinkle blue. There’s furniture staged throughout, just the way I’ve always pictured when I dared to daydream about turning the second floor into my own studio.
Then, I notice the framed prints all over the walls.
My prints.
“If you don’t like something, we can change it,” Micah says, his breath tickling my ear from behind. I’m so fucking glad he’s standing behind me, because I’m not sure I could stand on my own two feet right now. The shock is overwhelming.
“You did this?” I turn into his arms. “For me ?”
“It’s always been you, Avery.” He cups my cheek. “Only you.”
“You really mean that.” It’s no longer a question, but a statement. All this time, I’ve been holding back out of fear of losing the most important person in my life. I vow in this moment to never waste another second holding back from this love I feel for him.
“Micah, I lo?—
The click-clack of claws on the stairs alerts us to Henry’s presence. His tail wags lazy and wide as he plops down at our feet. “You haven’t explained this part of the surprise yet,” I say to Micah.
“He’s ours.”
“What?”
“I signed the adoption paperwork this morning. So now we’re a package deal.”
“So I can only have Henry if I’m willing to take you, too?”
“I’m afraid so.”
“Wow, that’s a tough call.”
“Avery Flanders,” Micah says in a mock scolding tone.
“You know I’m not giving up Henry,” I continue to tease him, enjoying the way his blue eyes twinkle as they stare into mine. “So…”
“So?”
“It’s a good thing I love you.”
“Finally,” he says, releasing an exaggerated heavy sigh.
“That’s all you have to say?”
“No.”
I smile up at him expectantly.
“You haven’t even seen the rest of your studio. You have an office, a powder room, a prop room?—”
Micah doesn’t have to admit that he loves me too, because the evidence is woven into every detail of this magical space he’s created for me. It’s evident in the way he’s always been there for me, no matter what. That he refused to move back to his hometown without me, and encouraged me to take a chance on my own dreams.
“Do you believe me yet?” he asks, tracing his thumb along my jawline.
I don’t need him to say it, but yet I really want to hear those words. “You might have to be a little more specific.”
“It’s always been you , Avery.” He presses his forehead against mine, our lips a feather’s width apart. “I’ve always been in love with you , and only you.”