Page 72 of Teach Me to Laugh

“Yeah,” he shook his head again. “I think this was her way of making sure we stick it out until at least July. And she knows I’ve always wanted to go . . .”

“Stick it out?”

“Don’t break up.” He explained and I stiffened at the thought of losing Beckett. He hurried to add, “I’ve never brought a woman home before, Amara. You know that. She’s a mom and moms often want their sons to settle down. My mom’s no different, as work obsessed as she is, she cares for me still.”

“So she bought us a trip?”

“Yes.”

“That’s—crazy.” And a little awesome, I couldn’t deny that very huge fact.

“Say you’ll come with me.”

“Of course I’ll come,” I said. “But they don’t need to buy us things to keep us together.”

“That’s true.” His grin turned devilish. “You’re stuck with me forever and ever.”

“Forever and ever.” I whispered, loving the sound of that.

Beckett settled back in the chair across the table from me, grinning as he sipped his coffee. “So, back to July eighth,”

“Back to the eighth,” I prompted, unable to lose my grin. There was something about the thought of attending a wedding with Beckett that made me feel irrefutably excited. It was likea promise for sugary sweet romance, and in the past month I’d had with Beckett, I’d come to realize that I adored romance.

“Has Raina talked to you about the dress you’ll be wearing?”

I narrowed my eyes. “Yes.”

“And?” Leaning his elbows on the table, he asked, “What color are you going to wear?”

“Any color I want.” I shrugged and he frowned.

“What?”

“We get to pick our own dress in whatever color we want.”

“You do?”

“Yeah,” I nodded down to my sprinkled donut. “Raina wants a rainbow wedding.”

“Of course she does.” Beckett shook his head. “It’s going to look like a circus.”

“Not even close. She’s got plans.” I defended my friend to my boyfriend. “You wait and see.”

“So you’re going to wear purple?”

“No.” I shook my head. “I don’t think so.”

He raised a brow. “What color?”

“You’ll see,” I teased. “Maybe it’ll be a surprise.”

“It can’t be a surprise. Kai says my tie has to match your dress.”

I didn’t respond. I just smiled as conspiratorially as I could.

The day had been great. Beckett made love to me in the morning before we’d decided we were too hungry not to venture out of bed. Once out, we decided the day was too beautiful to pass up staying inside. That’s how we’d decided to have breakfast at the coffee shop, so that was also why I was standing alone on the winding path that weaved through the large city park as Beckett jogged to the nearest trash can to toss our coffee cups.

That was why I was alone when my eyes locked on a familiar face that had ice filling my veins and my past crashing back into me with the vicious force of a train. Air raced from my lungs and my heart seized. My fingers turned numb and my belly felt suddenly weighted with rocks.

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