Page 81 of The Love Trick

“You really seem to know your lady.” The woman, a middle-aged redhead, tips her head back and laughs. “Normally, men just buy the first thing I hold out.”

“Yeah, well—” I blow out a nervous breath, already dressed in a tuxedo that’s far,farfrom my normal. “This is a massive apology gift. And a birthday gift.”

“Oh my,” the woman hums, her smile fading. “You’re one of those…”

“I don’t know what you mean by that,” I mumble, fighting the urge to rake my fingers through my freshly styled hair. “But if falling in love with your best friend and then denying it for way too long counts, then yeah, I am one ofthose.”

Her smile returns. “Oh, no, that’s not what I meant. This is a much better predicament. You mentioned it’s her birthday,” she continues. “What about we find something with her birthstone?”

I shrug. “Okay, I don’t know about stones… She’s not really—” My words fail as she pulls out a bracelet with alternating green and turquoise-colored stones. “We made this for a client who wanted August and December alternating birthstones.”

“December is my birthday,” I say blankly, as if the stars are aligning right here and now.What are the odds?“I’ll take that one.”

The woman holds it out to me. “It’s got a hefty price tag…”

“That’s fine.” I take it from her, imagining it against the pale skin of Addy’s wrist. The thought makes me smile—until I imagine her throwing it on the ground and stomping it to pieces.

Yeah, really, this night could go either way.

Ugh.

I keep a pleasant look plastered on my face and hand it back to the woman. “Yeah, I’ll take it.”

Honestly, this was a last-minute gift, but it wasn’t like I hadn’t already bought Addy a birthday present. There’s a brand new Kindle at my house, all wrapped and ready, but it didn’t feel like the right kind of present for tonight.

I want to give her something with a little wow factor.

“Well, the lady who gets this is a lucky one.” The jeweler beams as she rings it up, then places it in a fancy box. I mean, seriously, the box is nearly as delicate-looking as the bracelet.

Addy might hate it.

Once again, I battle the urge to rake my fingers through my hair. I feelsoout of place right now, wearing a tuxedo that costs more than my mortgage payment and a pair of shoes that are so polished they might start a fire.

And now I’m buying a bracelet.

All because I need to tell Addy I love her.

After she blocked me.

I fish out my phone, thinking about that very fact, and then pull up our message thread as I hand over my debit card. I type out one last message to her.

Me:Happy Birthday, Addy. Miss you.

The jeweler hands me the bag and thanks me. I give her a nod and then head for the exit of the store, pausing at the door. A slight frown tugs at my lips. Addy’s birthday party starts in forty-five minutes. I’m going to seeher, so why am I even considering sending a text that won’t go through?

Because it feels like the right thing to do.

I grit my teeth and then press send, already knowing the message will never be seen. I tap my foot, watching the word “delivered’ pop up on my screen…

“What in the world…” I mumble, shock flooding my system.I catch my breath.

She unblocked me.

Three dots pop up on the screen, and I wait for her reply, mentally begging her to invite me to her party. I don’t want to crash her thirtieth birthday party if she doesn’t want me there. I know what her mom said. I know what her sister said. They spent an hour blabbing about me surprising Addy while I got this suit tailored. Iwantnothing more than to sweep her off her feet. And that’s all fine and great…

But I wantAddyto invite me.

Finally, a message comes through.

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