I stared, baffled, until he shrugged and reached for my hand. He lifted the ring finger where I’d taken off the placeholder from our fake marriage.
“There was one truth to Harrison’s rant,” he said quietly. “He never had a judge sign our marriage papers. And that gutted me. But it also gave me a new resolve. You were never really mine, Blue. Not in the way I want. But now I get the chance to do things the right way, when the time is right. So I’m giving you this.”
He pressed the Lego box into my hands.
“It’s not an engagement ring. It’s a stand in. A reminder of my goals. Of what I’m working toward. My new mission in life.”
I stared down at the silly, brilliant little ring. My breaths came uneven, my eyes flicking between the plastic box and his face like I was caught between reality and a dream.
“When did you even make this?” I whispered.
“Right before I went to see your dad. It didn't take long. You were getting dressed and I felt inspired. Then I hid it. I was goingto give it to you when we got back to Atlanta last Sunday, but everything fell apart.” His jaw clenched. “I was going to ask if you’d let me do this the right way. If you’d let me fall in love with you. Because I was contractually obligated not to and I couldn’t live like that anymore. Eventually…” His eyes softened. “I want to ask your dad for your hand in marriage. The old fashioned way. The way it should have always been between us.”
The thought made my throat ache and I thought of Dad and Lisa laughing over the LEGO set earlier that day.
“After you sent him that box this afternoon,” I teased, “he might be the one to ask you to marry him.”
West laughed, the sound so rare and real it tugged something deep in me.
“I thought that was your favorite one,” I said, narrowing my eyes.
“I love that thing,” he said, grin spreading. “But I love you more. And I figured if I was going to take something your dad loved and make it mine, I should give him something in return.”
Something in me broke loose then. I couldn’t stop myself. I launched forward, wrapped my arms around his neck, and pressed my lips to his. It had only been a week, but it felt like a lifetime since I’d kissed him, and I swore I’d never let it go that long again.
“I love you too,” I breathed.
His arms came around me instantly, strong and certain, lifting me onto the bar. My legs wrapped around his waist, and then we weren’t talking anymore. We were just a couple of kids, clinging to each other like the world outside Fiddlers didn’t exist.
Chapter Sixty-Five
WEST
We spentthe next few days remembering the lines and curves of each other’s bodies while getting to know each other on a level we hadn’t trusted to do before. Blue didn’t rush back to Fiddlers, and I didn’t flee to my penthouse. We skipped Sunday dinner, ordered food to be delivered to the lake house, and moved around each other in the easy, careful way of two people rediscovering the habits they wanted to keep. I could have lived the rest of my life in that cocoon, showing her what she meant to me.
Then Friday night happened: Tuffy sent an SOS text and the little world we’d made dissolved into responsibility. Marshal and Marcus had the week off because neither of us expected to need to go anywhere. So when Blue said she had to go help Tuffy, I handed her the keys to my truck and told her to leave her fixed-up Toyota at the house. She didn’t protest, just kissed me quick, and said she’d be home late.
Home.Damn it sounded good.
I’m sure Blue thought I’d stay home, maybe open my laptop or close my business deal while she worked, but I didn’t want to wait all night to see her again. I pulled on a t-shirt and a pair ofjeans, knowing they made her eyes linger and darken with need. I always wanted her to look at me that way. Nothing made me feel more powerful. Not even my pristine suits.
I climbed into her Toyota, turning the engine a few times until it kicked to life. Then I made my way out of the gated property and onto the old road that led away from the lake. A big SOLD sign attached to the FOR SALE sign of the house next door made me slow down, and that brief pause was just enough to make the old car sputter and stall. I laughed when it finally turned over again, and that time, I floored it like the engine was a fuse about to blow, because it felt like there was only so much time before she’d sputter again.
Once at Fiddlers, I opted for parking like a regular patron, and went in the newly fixed glass front door. Inside was louder than I expected. Word had already spread about the Murphy brothers’ debacle and the locals treated the reopened doors like an event. A cover band played on the small stage, people were dancing, and the room smelled of fried onions and beer. There was a Friday night electricity in the air, with the kind of happiness you only get at a place you love.
Blue was behind the bar and I watched her work, with her hair loose and smile full and bright. As if she sensed me, she looked up, and somehow her smile grew bigger and brighter when she saw me. Then her eyes scanned my attire and the smile fell, just long enough to let me know her thoughts had shifted to the want and need that only I could give her.
Pretending to be a Fiddlers’ regular, I found a spot at the bar and squeezed onto a stool between two separate groups that were distracted by their own good times. I was acting like the kind of man who could stroll into a bar, order a drink, and take the pretty woman behind the bar home for a good time.
I leaned on the bar like I was just another customer and she played along, sliding a clean pint glass in front of me and cocking her head.
“What can I get you, stranger?” she asked.
“A dance,” I said, and watched the small question flit across her face.
“Is that a fancy pink drink? Should I add an upside down umbrella to make it look like a tutu?”
“You know exactly what I’m asking for,” I growled playfully, making her feign exasperation.
