Page 168 of Already At Risk
“We’re so happy for you!”
Cameron’s mom rushed forward next, and I tried to pull back from his side to let him greet her, but Cameron held me tighter, pulling me into his side and not letting go. But he looked toward her, grinning, surprised and happy to see her here.
“Thank you, Mom.” He draped his free arm around her, enveloping her on his other side and tilting his head so it rested on top of hers. I saw his eyes wander to the rest of the crowd, who had gone back to chatting, milling around the bar and high-toptables in Mulligan’s. Behind them, a large sign hung on the back wall that Chloe had made, her loopy handwriting spelling out “Congratulations”and“Gardener Law is lucky to have you” with drawings of sunflowers sprouting from the bottom.
I didn’t have the heart to tell her that she’d spelled the name of his law firm wrong, and I thought it sort of fit anyway.
Gardner was one of the reasons Cameron had planted himself here in Boston, why he’d grown as a professional and as a human until I’d been lucky enough for him to bloom into my life.
And the other reason…what had drawn Cameron to this city and brought us together the first time? It was this place right here: Mulligan’s.
I’d rented it out for the afternoon and evening; I thought it’d be nice to have the place to ourselves. I’d also wanted Chloe to be involved today and knew that likely wouldn’t be appropriate with other patrons around. Cameron’s mom, Mia, was friendly with the owners who had taken over after her parents, and they were more than happy to let us have the bar tonight, so much so that they tried to let us have it for free. But I wasn’t going to let that happen. It was my way of giving back to them. For being the place that introduced me to Cameron. A place where I’d feltalivefor the first time in so very long.
“I can’t believe…” Cameron trailed off as he took everyone in—from Julian and Juniper laughing with my brothers to his grandfather and uncle studying the baseball game on the huge wall-mounted TV, Chloe between them, watching with just as much intensity. “You’re here,” he finished finally. “That you all came, that you’re all here.”
“We wouldn’t miss it for the world,” his mom gushed. “When Natalie proposed the idea, I don’t even think I let her finish her sentence before saying yes.”
“It’s true,” I laughed.
Mia had beensoenthusiastic when I’d called about the idea.
Although, to be honest, since I first met her at afamily baseball outing a couple of months ago, there hadn’t been a time where she hadn’t been enthusiastic. Mia was so lovely, so excited to welcome Chloe and me into their family folds.
But I was pretty sure today was extra special for her, too. I’d seen the wistfulness in her gaze when she’d looked around Mulligan’s after first arriving. There was a sparkle in her gaze, a flush rising over fair, freckled skin. Memories danced over her face, so apparent that I had to look away, feeling like I was intruding on a private moment.
I felt Cameron’s gaze fall on me again and grinned up at him, feeling a little watery, like my emotions lived too close to the surface today.
“You’ve got such a special girl,” his mom was saying as Cameron stared down at me, just…looking. And all I could do was look back. “Twospecial girls,” his mom amended as Chloe’s bright laughter rang throughout the room.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Noah standing with his arms across his chest, lips twitching with reluctant amusement. Beside him, the devious crinkle in the corner of Pops’ eye made me suspect that Cameron’s grandfather just roasted my brother about something.
“I sure do,” Cameron breathed, and I rolled my bottom lip into my mouth, slightly sheepish. “So fucking special.”
I was still getting used to being with a man who didn’t shy away from public affection or declarations. A man who was loath to take his hands off me, really no matter where we were, as evidenced by the way he still had me pressed into his side.
Mia drifted away. I heard her saying something to Pops that made me think she was playfully chastising him, but I couldn’t get myself to look away from Cameron to see what, exactly, was going on.
“Thank you for this.” Cameron’s eyes dropped to my lips a second before his mouth did, landing a tender kiss that seemed to travel, making its way to my ear where he whispered, “I’ll give you a proper thank-you later tonight, yeah?”
My breath hitched as I tried to fight the burst of heat inside me, and I had to clear my throat before I was able to respond.
“I can’t wait,” I said, my husky voice betraying me. Cameron pulled back, unnamed intensity swirling in his expression. “I’m so proud of you. We all are.”
Cameron’s eyes fluttered shut at my words, and he leaned forward, pressing a kiss to my forehead this time. “Fuck, you make mesohappy.”
“I could say the same thing about you.”
Sohappy.
I hadn’t known happiness like this existed.
Every day, I felt lucky to experience it. What a privilege it was to not only have that emotion sprinkled in with all the others that life brought, but to have it feel sopresent.
Cameron brushed the tip of his nose along my hairline, inhaling as he murmured, “And here I thought you told me to meet you at Mulligan’s because you wanted to celebrate it being a year since the first time we shared a drink here.”
I tipped my head back so I could meet his warm gaze.
“I think we can celebrate that, too.” I grinned. “As long as you’re okay with sharing that drink with others this time.”
