Page 91 of When Love Is Unexpected

His smile is back, and I realize I put it there. He loves me!

***

When he walks me up to the studio, it's past one o'clock in the morning, but I'm wide awake. I want to invite him in, but sound judgment prevails, and he gives me a brief kiss goodnight before heading back downstairs.

In the morning, we go for a run on the beach, but we end up walking instead. Sam holds my hand as we walk for a few miles, stopping at an outdoor cafe for breakfast. I order a chorizo and egg scramble with toast, and he orders poached eggs over sourdough toast with an avocado spread. We talk, hold hands, kiss, and eat off each other's plates. On our way back, we stop at a shop where he buys me a San Diego tank top. It's almost noon by the time we return to the house.

When we sit down for lunch with the rest of the family, I can sense everyone's approval and blessing, even Emma's.

"I wish we had known you would be here for the wedding," says Emma. "I would've loved for you to be one of my bridesmaids."

"Thank you," I say. "I appreciate that."

"You and Sam would look great walking down the aisle together," says Abby.

"Who will you be paired up with?" I ask Sam.

"With Annie," he says. "Tom's wife."

"She's only five feet, three inches tall," says Tiffany, "but she'll be wearing four-inch heels, so that'll help."

***

A couple of days later, Sam and I are relaxing on the couch before we have to get ready for the rehearsal dinner. He pulls me close so I'm snuggled against him. It brings back memories of how our friendship progressed and grew into the bond we now share. I haven't told him I love him, and he hasn't asked, but I know I love him, and I can't wait to tell him.

"So, how was the bachelor party?" I ask, holding his hand and resting my head on his shoulder.

"It was just a bunch of guys watching sports, eating chicken wings, and drinking non-alcoholic beverages," he says. "The married men tried to give the groom marriage advice, the divorced men tried to talk him out of getting married, and the single men, well, we said nothing because we're clueless. It was loads of fun."

"No strippers?" I ask.

"I told you. The men in our family and circle of friends wouldn't consider that entertainment. Besides, Mom and my sisters would kill us, so no, no strippers. It was all clean and wholesome fun, I promise."

"I heard the bachelorette party was a memorable event," I say. "I'm sorry I missed it."

"They didn't have strippers either," he says, laughing. "Emma would've closed her eyes the entire time, and Abby. Well, Abby wouldn't have shown up if there had been strippers. Trust me."

"Your Abby and Emma sound a lot like my Katherine and Loren," I say.

"Speaking of," he says, "you never finished telling me about the phone call you got from Eric.

"He apologized for his aggressive behavior," I say.

"Good," says Sam. "Either way, I'm glad you're here, and he's there."

I tell him what Eric said, and paint a picture of their exchange, including the part about Aaron's T-shirt.

"So," Sam says, "if you were to get me a personalized T-shirt, what would it say?"

"Well, it's funny you should ask."

I get up and walk to the closet. I pull out the package that arrived yesterday and throw it to him.

"Catch," I say.

"What's this?" he asks, catching the package in mid-air.

"Open it," I say.

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