Total pages in book: 70
Estimated words: 66753 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 334(@200wpm)___ 267(@250wpm)___ 223(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 66753 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 334(@200wpm)___ 267(@250wpm)___ 223(@300wpm)
“Maybe that’s because you’re his drug of choice now. Just be careful. Give him something to do that doesn’t include drinking. I’m sure you can figure something out.”
Allie smacks him. “You’re her brother.”
Dash just laughs, and I change the topic to Becker, excited about my new signing.
When my dad and Tyler return, Tyler sits next to me, but it’s clear the two men are in good spirits and I sense an easy friendship between them. “When do you leave, Dad?” I ask as the cheesecake arrives.
“Unfortunately, early tomorrow. I have a commercial shoot.” He motions to Tyler with his fork “But your future husband here promised to bring you out to see me when my race reschedules.”
At the future husband reference, Tyler squeezes my leg and I don’t even have to look at him to know we’re both feeling that same surreal feeling. This is real. We’re really doing this.
When the time for goodbye arrives, Dash points at Tyler and promises my father, “I’ll keep him in line.”
“Do you know your sister?” Tyler asks. “I can assure you, she doesn’t need any help keeping me in line.”
My father chuckles. “True story,” he concludes, apparently quite pleased with Tyler’s observation. He motions to me. “Come give me a hug.”
I’m happy to oblige, but always sad when we leave each other. “I miss you,” I say, holding onto him extra long.
He pulls back to look at me. “I miss you, too,” he says, lowering his voice to add, “He loves you. Of that, I have no doubt. I’m here if you need me.”
“I know, and that means everything.”
Later, Tyler and I lie in the bed with the puppy at our feet, and he says, “What’s your fairy tale wedding?”
“Italy,” I say easily. “It’s just so beautiful.”
“I love Italy,” he murmurs. “And my mother is there. I could task her with the legwork. She’ll drive us crazy, but a wedding is a status thing to her. She’ll do it right.”
“I was thinking very small. My brother, father, Allie, your mom. I mean I know we could have this huge wedding with all kinds of famous people there, but that’s the life we live every day. And our wedding isn’t for them, it’s for us.”
His eyes soften. “I fall more in love with you every minute, Bella. I like that.” He grabs his phone. “I’m looking at the calendar.” He scrolls. “I was thinking the six months gave us a winter wedding, but it’s right at the end of the summer. If we announce tomorrow, late August. Translation: hot. Fall would have been a better season, but thanks to my father, we’re stuck with August.”
“We’ll have it indoors,” I say. “It’ll be perfect.”
His hands stroke my hair. “Yeah, baby, it will.
I snuggle into his side, my head on his chest, with every intention of dreaming of my perfect wedding but unbidden I’m thinking about the day my mother died. My parents lived in Texas at the time and Dash hadn’t moved here just yet.
I was new to Hawk Legal and still nervous with Tyler and in general. I was in my office when Tyler called me over the intercom. “Bella, come to my office. It’s urgent.”
I’d imagined some major client issue I’d created, but when I arrived at Tyler’s office, he wasn’t even behind his desk. He was waiting on me when I walked in and he’d shut the door. I’d whirled around, a bad feeling destroying me.
“What’s going on?”
His hands had come down on my shoulders I didn’t even process the intimate touch. I’d frozen when he’d said, “Bella.” His voice had trembled and I have never heard his voice tremble since. “I have bad news.”
“What? What news?” I’d grabbed his jacket. I remember that now, but I didn’t then.
“Your mom. She’s gone.”
I’d been hysterical and he’d held me through it all. When I’d calmed down, I’d been on his sofa next to him. “Dash wanted to tell you. He’s on his way here, but it’s all over the news. He was afraid you’d find out the wrong way.”
“I don’t know what to do right now,” I’d said.
He’d gotten me whiskey and sat down next to me. “Stay with me. Or I can take you home and stay with you. I’m not going to leave you alone.”
“I don’t know if I can walk out of here without making a scene.”
And so, we’d stayed, and he’d talked to me, all about her, for hours. I don’t know how I didn’t remember that until now. It’s like a mental block. It was the worst day of my life. I ease up and turn to him. “You were there for me when my mom died.”
“Not a day to remember, but yes, I was. Why are you even in that headspace?”
“I don’t know, but, Tyler, I blocked that day out. I shut down and shut it out. If I thought of you being there for me, I had to think of her dying. But that day, it changed us. It was always there, even when we weren’t thinking about it. When I think back now, I think it’s why we had those no-barrier debates. I know you don’t do that with anyone else.”