Page 62 of Going for Two

If Fran herself was dressed for the occasion, her house was decorated for the party of the year. Gold and white balloonscovered every inch of the ceiling with the tails of the balloons hanging down like confetti. Disco balls that were cut in half held bottles of champagne in various locations. Plates of food covered nearly every available surface. New Year’s Eve glasses sat on an entry table for guests to grab.

“Lottie? Olivia?” The three of us were stopped in our tracks by Derek, who had a pair of New Year’s Eve glasses sitting slightly askew on his face and a silver boa wrapped around his neck. A half-drunk glass of champagne dangled from his fingers as he pulled me into a hug and then my sister, whose cheeks turned a suspicious shade of red when she pulled away.

“Having a good time?” I asked Derek, eyeing the drink in his hand. There was no way that was his first of the night.

“Well, you see,” Derek started, swaying slightly. “Nolan bribed me into coming over early to help with the set up and Fran put me on balloon duty. After about the hundredth balloon, I needed something to quench my thirst.”

Olivia slipped away from Fran and wrapped an arm around Derek’s back. “Direct me to the liquor, kind sir.”

Derek’s eyes lit up behind his New Year’s Eve glasses. “Right this way, m’lady.”

Fran and I exchanged a smile as we watched the pair weave their way into the party. Soft music played from built-in speakers throughout the house and mingled with the sound of many different conversations happening throughout the space. Lots of the team were scattered around inside of Fran’s home, and I even spotted Adam Steel and his wife.

“Do you guys do this every year?” I asked, taken aback by the sheer amount of people that Nolan’s parents were hosting.

“Oh goodness, no.” Fran laughed at the idea. “We’ve done it a couple of times over the years. Nolan’s apartment isn’t nearly as big as our home, and he likes being able to have his team allin one place to celebrate the holidays. It’s like his way of giving back to them. We just wanted to do this one last time before we don’t have the chance again.”

Fran paused in the entryway to her kitchen where I finally spotted Nolan conversing with his father. He was wearing a black sweater with a pair of dark jeans and brown boots that matched the color of his eyes. His brown hair was styled, and his face was freshly shaven. But it was the easy smile that was the best accessory he was wearing. Nearly all the tension I’d seen in the set of his shoulders from the beginning of the season was gone and, in its place stood a man who was enjoying where he was at in life while surrounded by the people he loved.

“I will never get over having all this energy under our roof.” Fran patted my arm. “Now, no matter how much I love your company, I know I am not the person you truly want to spend your time with tonight.”

With a wink, Fran drifted back into the party, leaving me in the kitchen staring at the side profile of the man I’d been so conflicted over these past few months. But as I stood in a room full of people that had helped knowingly or unknowingly to heal a piece of the little girl within me, I found a spark of courage. I wanted my life to be one where I lived for the moments like tonight, surrounded by friends and family. Not full of worry about how the things that I wanted would affect my career or that I was undeserving of them.

Harry noticed me first. “Lottie! You made it.”

My eyes were locked on Nolan though, as I watched, in what felt like slow motion, as he turned around to see me. His entire face lit up as soon as he saw me, his eyes crinkled at the corners as he smiled. Like a glimpse of the future, I saw Nolan with deeper-set wrinkles around his eyes, grey peppering the edges of his hair, and a salt and pepper beard that framed his sharpjawline. Those same eyes but years older still looked at me the same way they were right now.

“Happy New Year, Lottie,” he greeted. He reached out his arms like he wanted to pull me into a hug, before thinking better of it and dropping them back to his sides.

Take a risk.

Before I could lose the courage I’d found, I slipped my arms around his waist and tucked myself into his body. Nolan stiffened against me but only for a second before his arms wrapped around my body and pulled me in tighter.

“You look breathtaking,” Nolan bent down to whisper into my ear.

When I pulled back out of his arms, I noticed that his father was nowhere to be found and it was only the two of us, tucked away in our own corner of the kitchen.

“This place looks amazing,” I told Nolan as I took in yet another room filled with balloons, disco balls, and more food than I could fathom.

“My mom and I had a fun time getting all of this ready,” Nolan told me as he admired all his hard work.

Take a risk.

But before I could open my mouth, Nolan slanted his mouth over mine, silencing my thoughts as he pulled me into his arms. I didn’t even register in the moment that his parents were watching us with wide smiles from the doorway of the kitchen before they left to give us some privacy. All I could focus on was the feel of his lips and the overwhelming sense of happiness I felt whenever I was in his arms.

“Wait.” I managed to pull away with bruised lips and heavy eyelids. Nolan was practically a mirror image, like he’d already drunk a few bottles of champagne. “I have a question.”

Nolan nodded, urging me to go on.

“Will you be my kiss at midnight?” I asked.

His laugh filled my ears like music before he nodded his head. “It would be the greatest honor I’d have all year.”

I glanced around the empty kitchen to ensure no one was close enough to hear me as I stood on tiptoes to whisper in Nolan’s ear. He bowed his head to meet me halfway and I was immediately enveloped in his cologne—vanilla and cashmere. “Maybe we can sneak away before the night really gets going?”

Nolan’s eyes flashed with surprise as if he hadn’t imagined I would ever suggest sneaking off to somewhere private in his parents’ house full of our friends and family. To be honest, a few months ago I wouldn’t be able to believe it either, but Nolan Hill made me feel so emotionally and physically safe with him that I finally felt comfortable enough to reach for a few wild ideas.

Take a risk.

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