Page 99 of Hypnotized By Love

With my plan set in motion, I asked Camila about her trip, and she had a slideshow all locked and loaded, and Peru looked gorgeous. I had always admired Camila so much, looked up to her and wanted to be just like her. She was a holistic therapist, and the conference she had gone to had sounded a bit out there to me. I didn’t think I would have enjoyed it.

Did I want to become a therapist? The idea that I could help people like my sister really appealed to me. But I could do that now with my hypnosis. I didn’t necessarily have to become a licensed therapist. I could do good either way.

If the only reason I had wanted to become a therapist was because of my concern over how people reacted to my career choice, I had been letting my fears control me. When I did a hypnosis session, I was looking for the underlying reason that kept a person from reaching the thing they wanted to achieve, and mine was staring me in the face.

Mason had called it. I couldn’t tell him, given that it might make him slightly insufferable if I admitted that he was right. But I did worry way too much about what other people thought. It had started in high school after that rumor and had stuck with me all these years. I hated when people made fun of my job, and so I had looked into becoming a therapist, not only because of Camila but also because I thought it would make others take me more seriously. And if I was spending all this money and time to get a license just to impress some imaginary audience, was that a good enough reason to be doing it?

It was something to consider.

I thought about it for the rest of the afternoon and into the evening. When I got home, I spent a long time getting ready. I wanted this moment to be perfect.

Waiting by the front door, I was the one who answered when Mason rang the doorbell.

He let out a low whistle when he saw me. “You look gorgeous. Like you should be somebody’s girlfriend.”

“If somebody asks me, maybe I’ll consider it,” I said, then grabbed him by the hand and led him into the dining room.

It was Mom’s turn to host the quilting club, and so Heather, my mom, and every major purveyor of gossip from Playa Placida were seated together. My dad was in the living room reading, and Sierra was in the kitchen making a snack.

Mason’s face fell when he saw everyone. “Sinclair, what—”

But I interrupted him with a kiss, in full view of everyone around us.

Heather was the first one to react. She made a joyous sound and ran over to throw her arms around us. My mom stayed put, fielding questions that she didn’t have answers to from the rest of the club, but she had a grin so big I was worried her face might split in half. My dad glanced at us over the top of his book, shook his head, and went back to reading.

Sierra just said, “Finally,” and went up to her room.

“Does this mean what I think it means?” Heather asked when she finally stopped hugging us.

“Sinclair’s my girlfriend,” Mason announced, holding my hand.

“Not technically, since he hasn’t asked. But we are dating.”

“I am so happy!” Heather said and hugged us again. She then went over to my mom and hugged her.

“You do know they’re already starting to plan a wedding,” Mason said.

I shrugged. They could have the moment that they’d been hoping for since the two of us had been born twenty-four years ago.

“What brought this on?” he asked, kissing my hand.

It was something I adored about him, how he always found a way to make a physical connection with me, to let me know that he was there, close by, ready to support me in whatever I needed.

“I spoke to my mentor, Camila, this afternoon. We have the all clear.”

He grinned. “So we can be official?”

“That’s still not asking,” I reminded him.

Mason slid both of his arms around my waist. “Sinclair, will you be exclusive with me? Given that I’m already in love with you?”

That urge to share my feelings with him hit me full force, but I didn’t say it. The first time I told him that I loved him was not going to be in a roomful of overly excited middle-aged parental units watching our every move. “Exclusive, huh? I’ll take it under advisement,” I said.

“That’s all I can ask for,” he said before he gently kissed me.

It was a perfect moment.

I should have known it couldn’t last.

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