Page 245 of The Nanny and the Beefcake
“There are a lot of people rooting for us.”
“Us?”
“Look around, Libby. What do you see?”
“There are a ridiculous amount of people staring our way.”
“Look beyond that,” he nudged.
She studied the park. Indigo-colored tents dotted the lawn, and each tent sported a sign. Helping Hands Community Center, animal rescue shelters, community gardens, after-school activities, senior fitness programs, food banks, Rickety Rock Donkey Rescue, and a myriad of other community organizations and charities were represented. People lined up at tables, chatting and gathering pamphlets.
“Is it a volunteer drive?” she asked.
“Yes, and we’re also raising money for charity. Every dollar donated will be matched by the Cress Family Foundation.”
“Did you do this?”
“With a lot of help from my family and our friends,” he answered with a wide, easy grin.
Who was this alternate beefcake?
“Briggsy might be on the verge of a mental breakdown, but we got him a plate of bull testicles to calm him down,” he said, staring at her like she made up the entirety of his universe.
She laughed. She couldn’t help it, and she still wasn’t a hundred percent sure she hadn’t fallen over at the petting zoo, bonked her head, and was now lying in a hospital bed, happily hallucinating.
She zeroed in on indigo-colored flags printed with the wordsCress Family Foundation, then gestured to the jovial volunteer festival. “Why did you say that this is for me?”
He pulled a piece of paper from his pocket. “I hear you’ve been dodging the news and social media. You might have missed this.”
PRESS RELEASE
Cress Family Foundation Festival and Charity Drive.
Sign up to help your community and donate to local causes.
Heavyweight champion Erasmus Cress will be in attendance.
Find out if he trades in his belt for a ring.
She stared at the page. “Why would you trade a belt for a ring? And why are you here? Shouldn’t you be preparing for the fight? It’s scheduled to start in a few hours.”
“This is the fight that matters, and it’s the fight for your heart, Libby,” he said as an earnest expression overtook his beefcake demeanor.
“The fight for my heart,” she whispered.
He cupped her face in his hands. “I missed you so much, plum, and yesterday at the weigh-in, I finally figured it out.”
She melted into his touch. “What did you figure out?”
“Aug asked me what I was fighting for. I thought I knew the answer to that question, but I didn’t. The answer came to me at the weigh-in when I was staring in Silas Scott’s eyes.”
A shiver ran down her spine. “What answer?”
He released a slow, steady breath. “I’m a fighter, plum. I’ll always be a fighter. But now I know what I’m fighting for.”
She stared into his gray eyes, breathless.
He took her hands and led her onto the stage, situated in the center of the park. Surrounded by a sea of indigo, she looked past the media crowding around the stage, and found her friends. Penny and Charlotte waved as they stood by Rowen and Mitch, who had Phoebe and Oscar on their shoulders while Landon and Harper looked on. Her dad stood with Madelyn, not far from Finola, Bob, Maud, Luanne, and Ida. Augie tossed her a wink as Alec and Anders joined Callista and Calliope, rounding out the group.
