Total pages in book: 71
Estimated words: 69919 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 350(@200wpm)___ 280(@250wpm)___ 233(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 69919 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 350(@200wpm)___ 280(@250wpm)___ 233(@300wpm)
The connection.
The love.
This man loved me as much as I loved him.
Everything else melted away as I took the first step toward forever.
The evening felt like a whirlwind of one event after the other. The ceremony, pictures, arriving at the reception, more pictures, dinner, speeches, another round of pictures, cutting the cake, and talking to people. There were so many people to talk to. Friends, family, Boone’s teammates from all the teams he’d played for in his career, coworkers from both my current job as well as from the university in St. Louis. There were a lot of people here and everyone wanted our attention.
“You look amazing,” Hadley said, hugging me. “I’m so happy for you both.”
“Thank you.”
“Did you tell her yet?” Sheridan asked, nudging her.
Hadley giggled.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“I’m pregnant,” Hadley whispered.
“Really?” I asked in surprise.
“Aiden is thirteen months old, so he’ll be almost two by the time this baby comes. We decided we didn’t want there to be a huge gap between the four kids, so we started trying. But you can’t tell anyone—I haven’t even told Wes yet. It’s going to be a surprise on our anniversary since it’s next week.”
“Congratulations.” I hugged her again. Then I eyed Sheridan. “And you?”
She laughed. “Lars is still traumatized by the C-section. But he’ll come around. I think we’ll start trying later this year.”
“You’ll be back from your honeymoon before our wedding, right?” Lucy asked, coming over to join us. She and Konstantin were getting married in August.
“Of course.” I squeezed her arm. “We wouldn’t miss it.”
“I’m thinking a baby next summer,” Sheridan teased her.
Lucy rolled her eyes. “Have you been talking to Kon? He wants to get pregnant on the honeymoon.”
I laughed. “Boone and I spend so much time with Joey, it’s like we already have a kid.”
Sheridan frowned. “How’s Emma doing?”
“Honestly, she’s doing well, determined not to fall off the wagon. We’re really proud of her. She and Joey just moved into their own place a couple of months ago, and she’s gone out on a few dates recently, so things are looking up. But every day is a struggle. We try to help with Joey because we adore him, but also because it’s important for her to have a little time to herself, you know? Being a single mom is hard.”
“For sure,” Hadley nodded. “I can’t even imagine doing this on my own.”
“Are you gossiping without me?” Sariah asked, joining us.
“Just updating Jolie on some of what she’s missed since her last visit,” Hadley said, winking.
“Have you and Nash set a date yet?” I asked Sariah.
She wrinkled her nose. “Between all the baby births, your wedding, and now Kon and Lucy’s coming up, we haven’t wanted to step on any toes. We’re not in any hurry, though. We already live together, so there’s no rush. When we start getting baby fever, we’ll think about setting a date.”
“I feel like whatever’s going on here in this little circle is dangerous,” Wes said, coming over to us and sliding an arm around his wife, his eyes twinkling with amusement.
“Whatever do you mean?” Hadley looked up at him with an innocent look on her face and they both laughed.
We dispersed after that, and before I knew it, the DJ had called on Boone and me to have our first dance.
“Doing okay, beautiful?” Boone whispered in my ear as we started to move.
“I’m wonderful,” I whispered back, gazing into his gorgeous blue eyes. “I just wish I had more than five seconds to enjoy my new husband.”
“We’re going to have two whole weeks alone in Fiji,” he said. “We’ll have so much time together, you’re going to be sick of me.”
“Never going to happen,” I said softly. “Not in a million years.”
“Have I told you how much I love you yet today?”
I twined my arms around his neck. “Once or twice. But I wouldn’t mind hearing it again. And again.”
“I love you so much. And I plan to spend the rest of my life showing you how much.”
“Can you believe a year ago we didn’t even know each other?”
“And then you freakin’ carjacked me in the parking lot of a church.” He pretended to look horrified.
“Best day of your life,” I quipped, laughing.
His face softened as he gazed at me, the look of adoration in his eyes melting my heart. “Absolutely the best day of my life. Until today anyway. I love you, Mrs. Boone.”
“Love you more, Mr. Boone.”