Page 117 of Lovetown, USA
He gestures vaguely toward the display case. “For you. Every petit four we carry has been purchased for you.”
My confusion deepens just as the bell sounds again.
I turn to look and it’s him.
Trey.
Time slows. He strides in, my mind fooling me into thinking it’s slow motion. His eyes lock on mine, his every step measured to get to me. My face is calm, but I’m roiling inside. He stops at my table as the waiter walks off, dropping to his knees on the cool tile floor.
“What are you doing?”
He takes my hand. “Begging. I crossed an ocean, baby girl. I don’t know what else to do but to plead with you.” He stares intently. “I know I fucked up. I know I hurt you. I’m sorry. Please forgive me.”
I snatch my hand away, crossing my arms. “You hurt me,” I say flatly. “For no reason. You literally could have told me, Trey. I might have even understood in the beginning. I know what it’s like to want something so bad, you cross lines to get it. You’re human. I’m human. We all make mistakes.”
He swallows hard, his eyes glistening. “I know. I should’ve been honest. I shouldn’t trusted you. Just…tell me what to do to make this right.”
“You can’t.” I take a deep breath, shaking my head for what I’m about to say. “To be honest, Trey, I forgave you the moment you walked in.”
His mouth falls open in disbelief. “You serious?”
“Yeah.” I finally give him a smile as the tension in my shoulders releases. He pulls me up from my chair and grabs me in a tight hug, his hands cradling my face, mine curled around the back of his neck. Our lips meet, tentative at first, then hungry and urgent.
“I love you,” he murmurs between kisses.
“I love you too,” I whisper, shocked to hear my own words spilling from my mouth.
Our waiter isn’t pleased at all. He’s bored in fact, and he certainly doesn’t enjoy boxing up all those petit fours. But for now, he and the rest of the world disappear, and it’s only us.
45
Epilogue
One year later
The grand opening of Trey’s clinic is buzzing with energy. Streamers in deep purples and golds hang from the entrance, his frat colors for some reason, and balloons bob gently in the evening breeze. I stand at his side, the proud fiancée, while he greets his guests. I can’t stop smiling as we stand in the midst of his dream come true.
One of them.
His parents are here, dressed impeccably. His mom leans in toward me, eyes twinkling. “So when’s the wedding?”
I laugh softly, brushing a strand of hair behind my ear. “Not anytime soon. We’re taking our time.”
She’s polite about it, but I know she wants a wedding soon. Not for grandchildren, though. Trey told me he didn’t want any more children. He always knew whoever he settled down with needed to be on the same page, so that worked out beautifully.
Ms. Dina just wants to see her son get married to a woman she actually likes.
Cam leans casually against the podium, grinning with mischief. “You leanin’ a little bit,” he says to me.
“What are you talking about?”
“That big ass rock on your finger.”
Trey’s head snaps in our direction, which makes Cam apologize immediately for his language. We always get a good laugh out of that. Trey cares about that way more than I do.
Trey proposed on our trip to Fiji a few months ago. I knew it was coming. We’d gone ring shopping after all, but it was still amazing. Very romantic. Very real.
Across the room, Shayla sees me and waves. She approaches me, holding Anya’s hand. Anya is fairly new, but Shayla already likes her a lot, and I love that for her.
