Page 78 of Wedding Bet

I hummed softly, kissing his earlobe. “If I did it as much as I want, I think we’d end up in my bed for the rest of our lives, and that’s just not productive for either of us.”

He turned his head to the side, catching my lower lip between his teeth. He gently gave it a tug, and I sighed.

“You taste like honey,” he said softly.

“I had some sort of calming tea in the car on the way down,” I admitted. “Felt like I was going to jump out of my own skin with nerves. Not that the tea really did anything.”

“Other than make you smell and taste amazing.”

“Worth it, then.”

“Come on,” Jamie said, breaking off again and leading me down the street. “We’re almost there. I have to show you now, or else I’ll never want to.”

A few more houses down the way, he turned and walked up a little pathway in front of one of the homes. It was small like all the rest, and some of the plants in the front were certainly in need of a trim, but overall it looked like any other adorable beach house. We got to the door and he led me inside, and in the living room, his roommates were watching some reality TV show.

“Oh, hey,” one of them said.

“Hey, Marcus. Hi, Nicole. This is Landry.”

“Nice to meet you, dude,” Marcus said, reaching out to shake my hand. He was wearing a backwards hat and a basketball jersey. The other roommates looked like they were already passed out on the other couch. “Feel free to come chill and watch shit out here.”

“We’re just going to hang out in my room. Thank you, though.” Jamie nodded once, taking me down the short hall to his room at the end. I glimpsed the kitchen on the way down, and noticed that it was a bit cluttered, but nothing too bad.

And when I stepped into Jamie’s room and he turned on a little lamp by the bed, I was speechless for a moment.

He shut the door softly behind us, and I looked at one of the coziest rooms I could imagine.

“Holy shit,” I said, glancing around. “Did you do all of this?”

The room wasn’t just any small bedroom. It looked like it had been carefully considered for years. There were shelves on the far wall opposite the bed—very simple planks of wood that were covered in various books, objects, photos, and art. There was a small chair and desk under a window, just the right size to fit next to the bed. The walls were painted a dusky, dark, calming blue, and with the glow of the lamp, it felt like a haven.

“Just about everything you see in here was either something I made from scrap wood, something handed down from my mom, or random finds from garage sales and secondhand shops,” Jamie said. “It was a lot emptier for the first year or two that I was here, but slowly, it’s become what it is.”

“It’s fucking beautiful,” I said, still in awe.

“I’ve never had a lot of money, but I’ve always wanted my room to feel like a peaceful place.”

“Better than peaceful,” I said. “A lot of rich people I’ve known don’t have bedrooms that feel anything close to this personalized.”

He nervously scratched at the back of his neck as I went to sit on the corner of his bed. “Thank you, Landry.”

“Why on Earth would you be afraid to show me this?” I asked as he came to sit next to me.

He shrugged a shoulder. “I know my room is okay. But you… you’re used to mansions. Penthouse lofts. Resorts. I didn’t even know if you’d ever stepped foot in a house this small.”

I shook my head, pulling him close and pressing a kiss to the top of his head. “I’ve been to a lot of places. And I don’t think I’ve ever seen a bedroom that feels more like home than this.”

He squeezed a hand on my thigh. “You’re too nice to me.”

I breathed next to him for a moment, just enjoying the room, the utterly relaxed vibe it had, and the fact that the whole thing smelled like him.

“You won’t be with these roommates forever,” I assured him. “But even right now, you are living beautifully, Jamie.”

I pulled back to look him in the eye again, and he squeezed my hand.

“You make me feel like I’m worth something,” he said softly. “I haven’t really ever felt that before. Not like this.”

“I want you to feel that wayallof the time.”

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