Page 81 of Late Nights

I hugged him back, smiling too. “Thanks, man. Your approval means a lot to me.”

He pulled back, clapping me once on the shoulder before taking his place by Halle, putting his arm around her waist.

“Now that we’ve got all our family business taken care of,” Victor said. “It’s time for you guys to mingle.” He looked pointedly at me and West. “I need you two socializing and making sure everyone is having a good time and is happy at Vanderhall Capital.”

We all rolled our eyes.

“What?” Victor asked. “This isn’t me being crazy business focused. This is a work event, if you don’t recall.”

West smiled. “We remember, Dad. We’ll get to work.”

West and I separated and began to make the rounds with Halle and Demi. Demi was great at talking with people, always so polite and friendly, but also able to speak to the business since she’d worked for years to be ready to join the company.

Now there was a part of me that was a little disappointed she had chosen not to come work at Vanderhall Capital. It would have been fun to work together. But she was loving going to hair school, and I loved seeing her so happy.

Needing a break from all the small talk, I pulled Demi toward the dance floor.

Pulling her close to me, I took one of her hands in mine and then placed my other hand on her back, her bare skin sending a rush of electricity up through me, a low groan escaping me. “Did you wear this dress to torture me?”

“Maybe,” she said flippantly, but the coy smile was enough to tell me the truth.

“Well, it’s working,” I told her as we swayed to the slow song. “You know what’s been my favorite part of the night so far?”

“What?”

“Not having to force myself to stop staring at you all night,” I said, looking straight into her eyes. “I get to stare at you the entire night, drinking you in, knowing you’re mine.”

Her hand played with the hair at the nape of my neck, our eyes still locked. “I am completely and totally yours.”

The corners of my mouth lifted. “I’ll never get tired of hearing you say that.”

She let go of my hand, having her hand join the one at my neck, pulling our bodies closer. “And I’ll never get tired of being in your arms, of being the one you share your highs and lows with, of being the one you look at the way you’re looking at me right now.”

I wrapped my arms around her, the glowing lights above us reflecting in her eyes. The music was still playing, but I was too lost in Demi to tell you what song it was.

Gently, I pressed my lips to hers, the silkiness of them instantly sending me to a place of bliss. The tenderness of our kiss spread through me, filling more of the gaps and repairing more of my broken pieces.

Our future wasn’t set, it wasn’t guaranteed, but I vowed to myself to do whatever would be required to make her happy, to do what I could so I could always be by her side. Because Demi was a once-in-a-lifetime kind of woman, and I would be forever hers.

And by some luck, she was mine.

Epilogue

Cannon

One Month Later

“You promise you won’t be upset if I mess up?” Demi asked, clippers in hand.

I sat on one of our kitchen table chairs with a black cape wrapped around my neck. “I promise. It’s just hair. If you mess up, it will grow back. No big deal.”

“True,” she mused, a mischievous glint in her eyes. “I can always just shave your head if it looks really bad.”

“Don’t you dare.” I reached out to grab her, but she stepped out of my reach.

She held the clippers out in front of her like a weapon. “I don’t think you want to mess with me when I have these in my hands.” She turned it on, the buzzing noise filling the apartment.

I held up my hands in surrender. “I’ll keep my hands to myself.”

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