Page 110 of True Honey
I didn’t. And I did. It was not that simple.
“Yeah.” I offered and his lips curled into a smug smirk.
“The least you could do is say it with some conviction.” He kissed the corner of my mouth and then my cheek and my nose, making a path across my face. “We do this slowly, at our own pace. The ring doesn’t mean anything until you ask me to make it mean something. Alright?”
That helped, the next breath I took didn’t feel as strangled.
There he went, making it better with such ease.
“Come on,” he said, brushing the crazy strands of hair behind my ear with another quick kiss.
He led me through the chaos into the front doors and I paused to take in the incredible extensive inside. Large couches, high ceilings, with a huge kitchen and a wall of windows that looked over the lake. There was a set of stairs that led up and down, the sheer size of the building felt daunting but Silas never let go of me.
“Nice of you to show up, asshole!” Arlo groaned, leaning against the counter with Ella resting between his legs with a mug between her hands. “We were going to do this without you.”
“You can’t do this without me, prick,” Silas snapped with a bright smile.
“Van was looking up how to get ordained.” Arlo shrugged and Silas bulldozed across the kitchen only pausing for Ella to scoot out his way before he started wrestling with Arlo.
“Don’t you dare give him a black eye!” Zoey yelled loudly from her spot on the couch with Van who was reading comics with Jensen, his girlfriend, and August… At least he was good at making himself at home.
I must have looked uncomfortable because Ella slid around the island with a second mug and handed it to me. “It’s okay, they won’t hurt each other… too badly.”
“Thank you,” I said, holding the warm tea to my lips.
“I’m glad you came,” She said.
“I’m glad to be here,” I said, she stared at me for a second and I couldn’t tell if she was waiting for me to continue but I tried, “I actually didn’t know until we got here…”
“That sounds like Silas,” Ella sighed with the shake of her head. “Did he spring it on you and scare the shit out of you?”
“Ha,” I huffed, “something like that.”
“For a man that is so incredibly smart. He really is stupid sometimes. However,” Ella paused, setting down her mug. “He did have me pick up a surprise for you.”
“You guys shouldn’t have done that, it’s your d—” I started but Ella shook her head at me, crooking her finger for me to follow. Down the hall and to the left was a massive well lit bedroom with large windows and classic cottage touches.
“One thing you need to learn if you’re going to be around us, is that nothing is a hassle and a day never belongs to just one of us.” Ella opened the closet on the back wall and disappeared inside before I could argue with her that she shouldn’t have been worrying about me on a day like today.
“And if Silas had brought you up here with nothing to wear, I would have had to find another person to marry me and the love of my life, because I would have killed him. So before you argue, this was in the best interest of everyone.” Ella stared at me with a long bag in her hand and a better death glare on her face than I could have ever given.
“Consider me quiet,” I said, holding up one hand in surrender. I set the mug on the table next to me and stepped closer to the bag Ella laid on the bed.
SHORE
“Beautiful.” I pressed my palm flat to my chest and shifted in my uncomfortable dress shoes at the end of the bed as Drew appeared from the bathroom. The mid-morning light bathed her in a hazy golden light that made her glow like an angel. I swallowed tightly, my heart racing so fast in my chest I could have sworn it was ready to escape.
“Stop it,” she said, turning to the large mirror on the wall. She fidgeted with the dark red satin around her breasts making sure it was hanging appropriately and not revealing too much but my focus was on the thin, wispy pieces of lacing that worked up the small of her back in a criss-cross pattern.
“I have something for you,” I said, moving around her. My restraint was waning and it made it so much worse when she looked as perfect as she did.
“Silas the dress was enough,” she hummed, fixing the pieces of her hair back behind her ear.
“It’s from Auggie,” I said to her and handed her the box. Inside on a simple chain was a small gemstone that matched August’s birthday. It had taken him two hours to pick out and cost me a fortune but he was proud of himself for finding something that Drew would love. And by the look on her face, he had been right.
“He picked this?” She asked, her finger running over it. “It’s perfect.”
“Just like you,” I said, taking the necklace out of the box and wrapping it around her neck so it rested on her collarbone. I took the chance to press a kiss to the back of her throat, looking across to the mirror just to see her smile. Her fingers came up and tangled into the scuff against my jaw holding me against her for a long, private moment.
