F O R T Y T W O
F O R T YT W O
- Oliver -
I t meant a lot to hear her say that, but it would mean even more if she could just admit—
“I love you, too, you know.”
I held her gaze until her cheeks blushed, and I couldn’t help but think she’d never looked more beautiful. “If you don’t, you sure have a funny way of showing it.”
Her eyes sparkled with conspiratorial mischief. “Thank you,” she said, gesturing toward the article. “This was very sweet of you.”
“It was lazy,” I said. “I wrote it because I’d already done the research.”
“Is that what you’ve been up to all this time?” she asked in a teasing tone. “All those chocolate croissants were research .”
“What can I say? I like to be thorough.”
She laughed and her head fell back, revealing the smooth column of her tempting neck. “I probably would’ve realized you were only doing research if I wasn’t always so busy undressing you with my eyes when you come in.”
My mind flashed back to how she looked in pigtails the first time we met. “That’s only a shame because you’re perfectly capable of doing the job with your hands.”
“Will you go to the wedding with me?” she asked, her expression full of hope.
“Of course. I want to be your date for every wedding you go to for the rest of your life.”
She stared unblinkingly at me, letting my words sink in.
Including yours . “And I want to share every meal and morning with you, too.”
“Well, that settles that.”
My brows lifted.
“Might as well break down that wallbetween our apartments.”
“Really?” I asked.
“No,” she said. “I still owe my parents a hundred grand.”
I hadn’t realized she didn’t own her place.
“They figured if they had to cosign for me anyway, they might as well own the asset till I paid it off.”
“When will that be?”
She shrugged. “A few years?”
“Guess we’ll have to go away for the weekend before that,” I said, eager for an excuse to whisk her away in my convertible, which she only pretended to think was crass. “Not sure I can wait that long to get my hands on you in a nice jacuzzi.” If our forays into shower sex were any indication, having her in a jacuzzi would be revelation.
“Bet I could swing it,” she said. “Maybe not before the wedding since there’s so much to do, but Grace will owe me big by then.”
“Where would you like to go?”
Her lips pulled to one side.
“Please say my parents’ lake house.”
Her head whipped towards me. “I didn’t know you had a lake house?”
“I don’t,” I said. “My parents do.”
“Still.” She ran a hand through her hair. “That’s like every teenage girl’s wet dream.”
I laughed.
“Can we drink too much peach schnapps and go skinny dipping?”
“Yes, to the skinny dipping,” I said. “No to the schnapps.”
She scrunched her nose. “Did you have a bad experience with peach schnapps?”
“Never,” I said, “But I’m getting the feeling that you did.”
A puff of air passed through her pouty lips, as if to say, “Don’t remind me.”
“I’m glad you’re excited about the lake house, anyway.”
“I am,” she said, her face lighting up. “I hope your invitation is sincere because I’m already looking forward to it.”
“Me too,” I said. “It’s one of those places that holds a lot of happy memories for me, and I’d love to make some there with you.”
She took a deep breath like she was inhaling the idea.
“I also wanted to mention it in case you think it would come in handy for bachelorette shenanigans. The place sleeps eight. More with air mattresses, obviously.”
“That’s such a kind offer.”
“It’s a selfish one,” I said. “I suspect the local strippers are shocking quality, so I’m suggesting it because I’m confident you’ll hurry home to me after the trauma.”
She threw her eyes to the sky. “Pretty sure Grace doesn’t want strippers.”
I arched a brow.
“Just penis cookies and eighties movies.”
“I’ve never understood the appeal of penis cookies,” I said. “But I can confirm there’s already a projector and a copy of The Princess Bride on site.”
She threw her hands in the air. “Amazing!”
Her level of excitement exceeded my expectations. “It might be wise to get you up there for a few days sooner rather than later then. So you can make sure it’s a suitable venue.”
“Good point. If we go soon, it wouldn’t be selfish. It would simply be… research.”
“Precisely.”
“I’m in,” she said. “Maybe the weekend after next? What is there to do up there?”
“The only thing I’ve planned so far is going down on you by the firepit.”
She looked around to see if anyone was within earshot. “You could’ve said toast marshmallows by the fire,” she said, blushing. “I would’ve known what you meant.”
“I can work with code words from now on.”
She batted her lashes. “I look forward to that.”
“I was only trying to be upfront.”
“What you’re trying to do,” she said, poking my chest, “is get me all hot and bothered at this wholesome family gathering.”
I couldn’t argue with that. Her presence alone was enough to make my mouth water, and the intoxicating scent of fresh pastries wafting through the air only amplified my urges.
Noah approached us and offered me one of the beers he was holding.
“Thanks,” I said, taking it and clinking the neck of the bottle against his.
“Thank you.” He raised his beer between us. “The photographer you recommended was a total pro, and Grace is over the moon with the photos.”
“Avery showed them to me,” I said. “They turned out great.”
“Even I look good in them,” Noah joked. “I owe you one, man.”
I gestured for him to come closer and leaned over to whisper in his ear.
When he leaned back, he had a serious look on his face. “I’ll see what I can do.” Then he turned toward Avery. “Thanks again for organizing this. I think maid of honor duty would be too much for Kayleigh right now if you weren’t waiting in the wings to lend a hand.”
“I’m happy to help,” she said, glancing over at Grace’s sister, who’d been sticking by her mom like a burr since I arrived. “And Kayleigh’s going to do great.”
“I know,” Noah said before excusing himself.
Avery turned to me as soon as he’d gone. “What did you whisper to him?”
“Nothing.”
“I saw you.” Her eyes probed mine. “I was right here.”
I shook my head like I hadn’t the slightest.
“He said I’ll see what I can do right afterwards.”
I stroked my chin. “I can’t recall.”
She groaned.
“Or maybe it’s a surprise.”
“I’m sick of your surprises,” she lied.
“You live for my surprises, and we both know it.”
She folded her arms. “If you think you can butter me up with sweet articles and then keep secrets from me, you’ve got another thing—”
“I told him to have a word with Grace.”
Her brows knitted together. “About what?”
“About throwing you the bouquet on the big day.”
She blinked at me.
“Why would you go and suggest a wild thing like that?”
“Because ever since the night I made you lobster and saw you in that little white dress on X marks the spot, I’ve been ring shopping.”
“Excuse me,” she squeaked.
“What?” I shrugged. “If you won’t wear the leash I got you…”
“Very funny,” she said, pretending to scowl. “But I’m nobody’s property, Oliver.”
“That’s what’s going to make you such a good wife.”
“We’ve barely been together for four months.”
“I’m aware.” It had been the best hundred and seven days of my life. “But we can’t put our happy ending on hold forever.”
She narrowed her eyes on mine.
“What?” I took a sip of my cold beer before licking my lips.
“You really are a stubborn, presumptuous man.”
“Save it for your vows.”
“I’m not ready to marry you, Oliver.”
“Good. Because as I explained before, I don’t even have a ring yet.”
She stared at me like she couldn’t tell if I was joking.
“Plus, I have to wait around for some bullshit nothing day that isn’t celebrated anywhere by anyone for any reason.”
“Aww,” Her features wilted like she’d seen a puppy. “You were listening.”
“Your voice is my favorite sound.”
“You can’t possibly keep this up,” she said, shaking her head at me. “Being this sweet and romantic all the time.”
“All I ask is you give me the chance to try.” Something fired in her eyes, and I felt the warmth from head to toe. “I love you, Avery. For better or for worse. And God knows I’ve already discovered what both sides of you entail.”
“Much to my undying mortification.”
I tipped her chin up, counting down the minutes to when I could get her alone. Not just because of how much fun we had together, but because she was my favorite company of all time. No offense to her friends and family, but she was my real life, the life I’d been looking for. The love I’d been waiting for.
“How can you be so sure?” she asked. “That we’ll be able to go the distance?”
“Because you met me halfway.”
She searched my eyes.
“When things got tough, you met me halfway.”
“I did, didn’t I?”
I nodded. “As long as we’re both willing to meet each other halfway, we can go all the way.”
She rose onto her toes to give me a kiss, her warm mouth soft against mine until she smiled. And I knew then that if there were a cure for how lovesick I felt for her, I’d never take it.
Because she was the woman for me, the dream for me. And I never wanted to wake up from it, or without her, ever again.