Page 96 of Poppy Kisses
The house would be finished this week. I’d confirm the food with Alder, but honestly, they could flake, and we’d be fine. Our ceremony was small. Intimate but casual. Instead of dreading fake nuptials, my excitement grew every day. I might even be daydreaming about how Jensen would look at me when I walked down the aisle. Then I had to wonder when I’d quit pretending to others that my feelings were fake.
I was falling in love with the man I was going to marry.
“So, there’s this tournament in the Black Hills next month, and we can sign up just our team, but we need an official coach because I’ll have to play.”
A thrill rose inside me like a helium balloon. I’d love to coach a competitive game. Hadley and her friends knew how to play, and I’d been watching them practice. With some targeted guidance, they could be formidable.
“Aspen has summer school,” Hadley continued, “so I thought we could ask you. Aspen even said that she’d have to get us the extra cost to pay for your fees and travel.”
Ohmigosh, it would be like a coaching job. I was donating my time for the evening practices, but it was a couple of hours a week. This was the most basic of a coaching position, but it meant that I was doing it again. “I would love to. Send me the dates and times that would work for you, and we can find some around my lessons.”
She grinned. “Nice.” But her tone said it was more than nice. She sprinted back to the girls and yelled something I couldn’t make out. All the girls whooped and cheered.
Aspen laughed and trotted to meet me at the neighboring field. Jensen had the boys doing penguins, kicking it from the inside of one foot to the inside of the other, for warm-ups.
“You’ll do it?” she asked.
“Yeah, I’ll do it.” Now that I had committed, it felt right. This was what I wanted to be doing.
Her grin was radiant. “I’ll figure something out for jerseys, but I won’t bug you with anything until after the wedding.”
“Hey, do you wanna come?” I shrugged. “Sorry, I didn’t send out invites because it’s small, but I’d love to have you.”
“And I’d love to go.”
“The Perez house at seven.”
“Is that to party all night or so you two can get away by yourselves earlier?”
I wished. Actually, I really did. The idea of a honeymoon poked at my brain, planting suggestions in the dirt of my fantasies. A weekend away with him? Even a trip with him and Auggie where we could openly hold hands or something.
I was getting ahead of myself.
I had to marry the man first. Then we’d see if we wanted to stay that way.
* * *
Jensen
I walked through the first floor of the Perez house. The wedding was tomorrow. Poppy, Auggie, and I had cleaned all day, windows open and music blasting. All the surfaces gleamed and the floors were freshly polished. Poppy had run to the furniture store in town and purchased some area rugs and a few seats to make a homey waiting area for when she had in-person students.
A part of me was nervous that she hadn’t recruited clients yet, but she had several kids she worked with each week. But if she named her learning center, I’d feel better that she was staying.
“Does it pass inspection?” Poppy asked as she came down the stairs. Yesterday, we ran to the store to get supplies for the wedding. The bathrooms were stocked, the kitchen had backups of napkins and silverware, and she’d gotten a small table and chairs for the dining room. Three stools lined the island.
It wasn’t homey, but the aesthetic wasn’t clinical.
“I think it does.” I fought the urge to pull her into my arms, to push a stray curl behind her ear, and claim her mouth. Auggie was still upstairs.
“My desk and shelving won’t be delivered until after the wedding and then it’s ready.”
We hovered at the base of the stairs. The weekend had been low-key fun. Hassie had gone to Montana with her friend to look at a horse. I hadn’t realized how much she’d changed the atmosphere around the house, infused it with an ever-present tension that didn’t dissipate until she was out of city limits. Even Auggie had seemed more relaxed. Poor kid had been on a journey to please his mom since she’d arrived.
I didn’t want this moment to end. The wedding had pulled together with little planning, and I wanted to enjoy the ease. “Should I grab a couple of pizzas from the gas station and bring ’em over?”
Poppy pressed a hand to her stomach. “Mm, I think we worked up an appetite.”
“Can I get a root beer?” Auggie asked, coming down the stairs.
