Chapter 23
Chapter Twenty-Three
HAZEL
A t the senior center, I helped Mabel and her friends—Sofia, Blaire, and Edith—decorate for the party we were throwing to celebrate the anniversary of the opening of the center. Every business and community member who'd donated their money or time would be in attendance.
The timing was perfect for our plan to work. We needed a way to ensure Brady was present. I thought it would be best to do something in front of everyone because we'd deceived the community and I owed them an explanation.
I still wore the ring, but I felt a little like a fraud with it on my finger, even though it was Grandma's ring.
When I tried to give it back to her, she'd curled my fingers around the ring and asked me to keep it. She'd said she always wanted me to have it but only if I married Brady.
That caveat had everyone laughing, but it made me nervous. Did Brady want a future with me? Or did he see me as a friend with benefits? We got along great together, but had I missed all the signs that we were better off as friends? I was driving myself crazy with the doubts.
I had to relax and trust that everything would work out. Grandma seemed convinced that we were meant to be, but my friends were a little more skeptical.
It was Ivy's job to get Brady here. I'd ignored his calls, texting to let him know where I was and what I was doing. He had to be here for my plan to work.
When the same lanterns we'd used for my engagement party were hung, we added streamers and balloons. Mabel and her friends adored throwing parties. I think they enjoyed any reason to celebrate, and I couldn't blame them.
At one point, Elena had appeared with a bag from the local pharmacy, and she went into the single-use bathroom with Ivy which was more than a little strange. I made a mental note to keep an eye on them. I didn't want to ignore Ivy if she was having a personal crisis too.
Ten minutes later, Elena emerged, and a few seconds later, Ivy came out. Her hair fell in front of her face as she headed out of the room and into the hallway. She may have wanted some privacy, so I didn't follow her, but I did take the opportunity to duck into the bathroom.
What was in the bag? When I closed the door behind me, I felt a little silly. It was probably just tampons or something like that. I scanned the room, not seeing anything amiss, but then my gaze snagged on a box resting on the back of the toilet.
It was a box of pregnancy tests, and one was missing. I couldn't help but look down at the garbage can where a used test stick was staring up at me. The results must have been on the other side because I didn't see a screen with any lines.
This was a huge invasion of privacy, but I couldn't resist. I used the box to flip it to the other side. There were two pink lines. The box indicated that meant whoever took the test was pregnant. It had to be either Elena or Ivy. Elena was the only one dating someone.
Odds were, though, that Elena bought the test for Ivy to be a good friend. Which meant it was probably Ivy's test, but I couldn't be positive, and she hadn't come to me. It was none of my business. I'd be there for her when she needed me. But I couldn't help but feel a pang of loss.
Elena was already with the man she wanted to spend the rest of her life with, and Ivy was pregnant. Everyone was moving on in their lives while mine was standing still.
If Brady didn't want me, that meant going back to my single-lady existence. No ring on my finger. No beach house. And no love of my life. Max was already irritated that we were back in my apartment. What would it be like if this was my life?
I'd have to watch Brady date and marry someone else.
Would I forever be single? Would we drift apart, neither of us baring to be close anymore?
I couldn't see any way around it because there was no way that I could pretend to be okay with him dating someone else.
Or hanging out with him and not wanting to touch him. It would be impossible.
Maybe I should consider leaving the island, starting over in a new town. I could start an after-school program at a library in another city. There were options.
But I didn't like the idea of never seeing Brady again either.
There was a knock on the door, and I jumped into action, throwing the pregnancy box into the trash and covering it up with paper towels. Then I washed my hands and exited the bathroom.
Once everything was in place, I ran home to shower and change, hoping the redness in my face would dissipate slightly.
I wanted to look my best when I told Brady how I felt. I was nervous about admitting the truth in front of everyone, but it had to be done.
By the time I returned, people were arriving for the party. I walked inside, pleased to see the lanterns providing twinkling lights for the evening. Music played over the speakers. There were round tables placed throughout the room for eating, and a dance floor.
A slideshow presentation played on the overhead projector, showing the work the Kingstons had done on the center, and various parties. The photo array included pictures of many people who'd contributed to the center over the years.
The plan was for me to thank everyone for coming, and then say what I needed to while I had their full attention. My hands shook, and it was difficult to draw in a deep breath because my chest was tight. As the room filled, the nerves only got worse.
The director, Phyllis, motioned for me to come on the small stage and handed me the microphone.
"I wanted to welcome you to the senior center. We're so happy to have you here tonight to celebrate—" I broke off because Brady walked in, and Ivy rushed to the projector. She held up a finger for me to wait.
I chuckled nervously. "There must be some difficulty with the projector."
Ivy stepped back, and the pictures disappeared. In its place was a video of Brady and a man I'd never seen before. He introduced himself as Colin Waters, a reporter from an independent Florida newspaper.
The room was quiet as the video played of the man interviewing Brady. Brady explained how we met, the engagement, and the fake relationship. I couldn't believe that he'd done this. I looked over at him, and his gaze was locked on me.
His words continued to play over the speakers, how he loved me and wanted a future together but wasn't sure how I felt about him. He was worried about losing our friendship, but he didn't want to let the love of his life go.
Tears filled my eyes until I couldn't see him clearly anymore. I swiped at the moisture, desperate to see him, to know that what he was saying was real.
His voice ended, and there he was in front of me, holding my hands between us.
"Do you mean it?" I asked him.
"Every word." His voice was tremulous as if he wasn't sure how he'd be received. "There's just one thing I have to know."
"What's that?" I asked as he stepped closer, cupping one cheek.
"Do you feel the same? I've been dying to know." He placed my hand over his heart. "But I'm scared to find out that you don't feel the same."
His heart was racing.
"I love you, Brady Kingston. You're my everything."
It was like a weight had been lifted from our shoulders, and there was nothing holding us back. His lips touched mine, and I was only vaguely aware of the cheers from the crowd around us. Nothing else mattered but this moment.
Brady loved me. This wasn't just a friendship, or a friends-with-benefits situation. All my fears and doubts fell away until I was pliable in his arms. He pulled me close to him, tucking my head into his chest. "I'm never letting you go."
The rumble of his voice against my cheek solidified his words.
This wasn't pretend. This wasn't to prove anything to anyone else but me.
Now the town knew everything, and I hoped they wouldn't hold it against us.
What mattered was that we ended up together, right where we were supposed to be. "You'd better not."
"I've waited too long to make you mine, hiding behind fears and doubts.
Worries that I'd lose our friendship. But then you said something about moving off the island, and I was scared to leave everything behind, my family, the business.
The thing was, I was more scared of losing you.
That's when I knew this wasn't just a fling or a blurring of the lines. You're it for me."
Mabel appeared at our side. "I knew you'd work things out. But everyone would like to see the happy couple dancing on our lovely dance floor."
I pulled away to hug her. "Thanks for your help, Grandma."
Grandma waved a hand in Brady's direction. "Oh, that was all his doing."
"Why did you thank Mabel for her help?" Brady asked when we were facing each other on the dance floor.
I smiled sheepishly. "I was hoping to get you here so I could tell you how I felt on the podium."
He grinned. "I beat you to it."
"I'm not upset about that. But I was worried about what everyone would think. That they'd be upset we deceived them."
"I think they're fine with the outcome. A lot of them wanted us to be together for real, so they don't care how we came to be here, just that we are."
I looped my wrists around his neck, pressing my body against his. "It took us a long time to get here, and there were a lot of roadblocks, but I wouldn't change a single thing." Then I remembered what Grandma had said earlier. "Did you know that Grandma planted her ring there for me to find?"
Brady tipped his head to the side. "She couldn't have predicted I'd volunteer to be your fake fiancé."
"I think that worked out better than she imagined. She hoped the ring would trigger us to make a move."
"It got me to make a move, the only one I had to play at the time. If someone was going to put a ring on your finger, it was going to be me. I couldn't stand by and watch you fall in love with someone else. I had to take my chance."
I raised a brow. "Are you saying that you didn't volunteer to be my fiancé to help with your show?"
"That was the opening for me to put my plan into action. Then when someone asked about us moving in together, I saw it as my opportunity to make you see that we could be more than friends. I just wasn't sure if you felt the same way."
"I think we need to work on our communication," I teased.
"We're not denying how we feel anymore."
I played with the hair on his neck as we slowly swayed to the music. "We should probably put a stop to the meddling grandmothers though."
He tipped his head to the side. "I need to thank Mabel. Without her and this ring, I wouldn't be dancing with you right now."
"I suppose you're right. But I'm not sure I want her meddling in our lives going forward." Next thing we knew, she'd be pushing for great-grandkids. Not that there was anything wrong with that, but I wanted to go by our own timeline from now on. No more pressure from the outside world.
"Somehow I don't think we're going to be able to stop her," Brady said as he spun me away from him, and then bent me over his arm so that he could kiss me.