Page 1 of Moving Forward

CHAPTER ONE

MAX

Two Years Earlier

“You’ve gotta have the sexiest hands known to man.”

“Says you,” I countered, fighting a smile. It was nearly impossible with the diamond glinting on my finger. My gaze wandered to it as I uncapped the disinfectant. I could have spent hours looking at the ring—watching it catch the light, thinking about the future it promises us.

My new fiancé, Ethan, smirked and tucked my hair behind my ears. He was sitting on the lid of the toilet while I stood between his parted legs. “Hell yeah, says me. You belong to me now. For forever.” He cupped my cheek and I leaned into his hand. “Don’t deny me, Maxie. Tell me you belong to me forever. If you’re lucky, I might say I belong to you too.”

“Aren’t you hilarious?” Forever with Ethan—a perfect happy ever after. “And adorable.”

“So are you,” he told me, his grin vibrant as ever. But his eyes were serious, the normally mischievous glint missing. “Joking aside, I do belong to you. Do me a favor and never forget that.”

“I won’t,” I promised. I believed it too. He made a mistake, and we weathered it. He never gave me a reason to doubt him again and our relationship had only grown stronger. It took me a long time to rebuild my trust in him—maybe too long—but there we were. Engaged.

He winked at me. That wink, paired with his clean-shaven jaw, his bedroom eyes, and the dimples in his cheeks, made me swoon even after two years together. He was living proof there is no justice in this world. Even with his hair matted into stiff clumps of dried blood, he was handsome.

He fell while he and Danny were skiing. He’d hit his head hard enough that it was still bleeding when they found me and his twin sister Ellie drinking hot chocolate in the lodge. Persuasive as ever, he talked us into nixing a hospital visit but compromised by agreeing to let me apply disinfectant and bandage him up. There was also a joke about a sexy nurse costume, which I ignored.

“I’ve had that ring for a year and a half.”

I froze. “What?”

“You heard me—a year and a half. Danny and I were in the mall downtown and I saw it. Knew it was destined to be yours, so I bought it.”

I pulled my lip between my teeth. We would have only been dating for a few months. “I don’t know what to say.”

“Don’t say anything.” He shrugged, the twinkle back in his eyes. “You already said yes, and that’s enough. Well, for now. You have to one-up me for our first anniversary. Warning you now.”

“You crazy boy.”

He sat surprisingly still as I finished cleaning the gash on his forehead. Satisfied, I pulled away, but his arms swiftly wrapped around my waist, causing me to trip into his embrace.

“Hey, Maxie?”

“Yes?” I asked breathlessly.

“We’re getting married.”

“We are,” I said in awe.

He rested his forehead against mine. “Hey, Maxie?”

“Hm?”

“I love you.”

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Present Day

Number thirty-seven. That’s thirty-seven hollow hellos, thirty-seven awkward conversations, thirty-seven overpriced meals, thirty-seven uncomfortable goodnights, thirty-seven can-I-call-yous thirty-seven never-agains. Thirty-seven.

Thirty-seven too many.

Yet thirty-eight isn’t too far away. My best friend, Ellie, is responsible for every single date. She insists we will eventually find someone. “We,” like one of us isn’t already engaged. But she doesn’t want me to wind up alone, so she sends me on blind dates, hoping I’ll find love again.

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