Page 106 of The Fiance Dilemma

“That’s right,” he confirmed. “And all I got was a laughing emoji. I was genuinely curious, and I wanted to press for more information. What did she look like? Would she laugh at my shitty jokes? What color were her eyes? How did she smell? Did I stand a chance?”

My lips parted, and I swallowed, trying to push down the emotion clogging my throat, chest, head.

Matthew’s fingers, still around my hand, still on my lap, intertwined with mine. “But most of all, I wanted to ask my very pragmatic best friend what had brought her to make such a statement.” His features sobered up. “Soul matesisn’t a term one throws around lightly.”

“And what did you do?” Otto asked.

Matthew’s gaze dipped down to my mouth, before returning to my eyes. “Bided my time.” He swallowed. “Prayed to God.” The hand clasping mine rose, moving from under the table. Lips brushed my skin. “Believed in magic.”

My mouth parted, the pounding organ inside my rib cage demanding to be let out. I wanted to ask him if he meant that more than I’d ever wanted to ask anything in my life. I wanted his answer to change things, to make him kiss me, to push every worry out of my head and just… fill me up.

His dream should have been getting married to you.

I could swear I could hear those words, from his lips, in my head. I could see them in his eyes right now. Waiting for me.

A glass clinking aggressively sliced right through the moment. My ears caught the sound of sniffling, female. Was Adalyn crying?There was a muffled baritone voice, too. Soothing. Hushed. I sensed people moving, rearranging their seats. Surprised murmurs. But I still kept my eyes on Matthew. Just like he did on me.

Bobbi was talking. Announcing a speech that had Matthew’s face shifting, that emotion that was making the brown in his gaze warm, intense, more beautiful than ever, slipping away. A deeper voice took over in the background. Andrew’s. Matthew’s brows furrowed. I heard my name.

I turned around then. Ripped my eyes off the man by my side and let them fall on my father.

Andrew stood at the end of our table. There was silence. Everyone listened. Watched. His voice was deep, his posture commanding, his presence meant to fill the room. This farmland. To travel further than the dark slopes behind us.

“… And I couldn’t be happier to be here to celebrate their union.” Eyes a blue as light as mine found me, brows pressing down. “Here in Green Oak. In fact, it was Josephine’s heartfelt speech back at the welcome gathering a few weeks back that made me see something I had somehow missed.” Matthew’s body was suddenly there, his chest against my back. Stiff, solid, as if bracing. Preparing. For what? “I’ve missed this. Green Oak. My daughters. Everything.”

The air in my lungs seized. I was still so dazed from Matthew’s words. From what they meant. So raw. So… exposed. That I didn’t even think I could process what my father’s conveyed.

“And that is why,” Andrew continued, “I’ve decided to move back here.”

My ears rang.

There was more following that. Something about not wanting to blindside anyone. Something about the book deal and Willa Wang. I was somewhat aware of Adalyn standing up and saying something too, something about Andrew not learning from his mistakes, making this about himself, but I… I didn’t know.

God. I didn’t think I cared.

Had my father just announced such huge, personal news at a rehearsal dinner? Mine. News he’d decided without checking in with Adalyn or me. This was Green Oak. It was my home. Shouldn’t I know? Shouldn’t I…

A ripple of laughter reached me. Mine. I was laughing.

Every head turned to me. “Well, that’s just so darnbootylicious.Isn’t it?”

Everyone blinked.

Matthew was immediately pulling me up from that horrible, horrible chair. “I’d love to stay and witness how Adalyn hands Andrew his own ass, but I’d rather spend my rehearsal dinner in a more pleasurable way.” He threw the napkin that had been on his lap on the table. “And yes, that’s a nice way to say: I’m making my woman scream until she forgets her father thinks so highly of himself, he decided to make this night about him.”

There was a beat of silence. Then Adalyn snorted, Cameron laughed, and to my utter and complete shock, Grandpa Moe said, “Attaboy.”

And with that very bright green light Grandpa had just given Matthew to make me scream, my fiancé turned around and led me away from the table with a smile.

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

Matthew was no longer smiling by the time we pulled into my driveway.

He killed the engine of my truck, the kind of silence that preceded a storm pouring into the vehicle, making the air thick with the smell of rain, the anticipation of what was coming, making my heart pound.

“Matthew?” I called softly. Making sure he didn’t miss my question. “Are you going to kiss me?”

“Yes.”

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