Page 47 of First Comes Marriage

“And then you moved back to Aster Bay,” he said.

“To Aunt Lucy’s at first. I wouldn’t have wanted to put any pressure on you. I mean, what if we met again in person and this...what if it wasn’t as good as it had felt from a distance? But it would have been a silly thing to worry about.”

“Not silly. Pragmatic.”

She loosed a startled laugh. “As if any of this is pragmatic.”

He grinned despite himself and let his thumb drift over the ring on her finger, straightening the diamond solitaire until it lined up perfectly with the tiny sparkling gems embedded in the matching band.

“And then Vegas?” he asked.

“The least pragmatic of all.” A deep crease formed between her brows as she lifted her face to his. “Do you think they’ll believe it?”

With his free hand he smoothed her furrowed brow, the back of his hand grazing her cheek as he lowered it. “Of course.”

“Really?”

“I almost believe it myself.”

Her eyes widened, a look somewhere between panic and pain swirling amongst the green of her irises.

Shit. That was too honest.

She opened her mouth to speak, but a sharp knocking on the drivers’ side window cut her off.

They turned to see the exasperated face of Maryann Page peering through the window, her lips twisted into a purse that emphasized the pink lipstick seeping into the crevices around her mouth. Baz lowered the window and pasted on his most neutral smile, the one he used with new clients and customer service representatives.

“Are you two going to sit in the car all evening?” she demanded. “Your father and I are waiting.”

“I apologize, Maryann,” he said as Sabrina’s hand tightened its hold on his. “We were just about to come in.”

Maryann harrumphed, clearly annoyed that she couldn’t continue scolding her daughter over the perceived slight. “Yes, well, come along then.” She marched off across the flag stone without waiting to see if they followed.

“So it begins,” Sabrina said under her breath.

Chapter Sixteen

“What was that?” Sabrina whispered to Sebastian as they walked, hand-in-hand, towards her parents’ front door.

“What?”

“I apologize, Maryann,” she said, lowering her voice in a poor imitation of his rich baritone.

He shot an amused glance her way. “That’s not what I sound like.”

“Yes, Maryann. Of course, Maryann. May I lick your boots, Maryann?”she continued.

He stopped, turning to meet her eyes, the corner of his mouth quirking up. What a rush, to make this man smile, even a half smile.

“May Ilick your boots?” he repeated.

She shrugged and bit the inside of her cheeks to keep from laughing, “If you’re into that sort of thing.”

He chuckled and turned back towards the door where her mother now hovered, sighing theatrically, and pulled Sabrina along with him. Sabrina’s smile broke free, the exasperated laughter in his eyes easing some of the tension that had wrapped around her spine on the drive to Brookline. She liked needling him, liked watching him try to pretend he wasn’t amused by her, almost as much as she liked the feel of his hand in hers.

“Richard! Sabrina and Baz are here!” Maryann shouted as she turned away from the door and disappeared down the hall, continuing to shout her husband’s name.

Sebastian mounted the first step, but Sabrina froze, like her mother’s bellowing had brought back every time she’d ever visited this house and it had gone poorly. Why had she agreed to come? To bring Sebastian? She tugged on his hand until he stepped back down.

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