Page 108 of Make Mine Sweet
“Do you make wedding cakes too?”
I can’t help but look over at Ian. He’s talking to Griffin, with August and Dutch making cute little bookends on either side.
“That’s the plan.”
Iris follows my gaze. “We’re so happy Ian’s made a friend out here. He wasn’t very friendly when he left Colorado.”
“No.” I smile, remembering those first days. “He wasn’t very friendly when we first met, either. But he’s come out of his shell.”
Iris laughs softly. “Pretty soon, you’ll wish he would go back into his shell. Ian at full blast is a lot to handle.”
“Oh, no,” Steven puts in. “We need him at full power when he comes back.”
All the light, effervescent bubbles inside me pop at once, slamming my feet down to earth. My lungs ache like I’m breathing in cement. I keep my smile on, clinging to the fragile, sham of a thing as if it can save me from drowning.
“Is he going back soon?” I hope I sound casual, and not as if my heart is fissuring like a crinkle-topped cookie.
“As soon as possible. We’ve been waiting on him to sort himself out for two years.” Steven seems to realize just what he’s said. “I get it. He went through a lot with the accident and recovery. It’s understandable he needed to work through some things. But look at him now.”
I do. He’s smiling and happy andhimself. I can’t turn around and be sad when I got exactly what I wanted. I befriended him. Maybe helped him get his spark of life back.
I dug my own grave, lay down in it, and now the dirt’s raining over on me.
My throat sticks as I swallow. “Look at him now.”
Isn’t this what he wanted when he came out here? To rest and recuperate. So he could go home to the business he built with his brothers. So he could go back to the life he worked so hard to create for himself. The life he missesevery day. This was never a permanent move.
He catches my eye again, and his smile glows in the firelight. It hits me like a sucker punch.I love him, and now, I’m going to lose him.
I told myself not to sail into dangerous waters, but here I am. Shipwrecked.
THIRTY-SIX
IAN
I never could have predictedI’d be wearing a party hat when I realized I’m in love. It was festive, at least. But in the moment, I couldn’t even regret the ridiculous thing. When I opened that compass, all the pieces clicked together, and Iknew. Tess is the one. She sees me in a way I haven’t let anyone try in years. Maybe ever. She accepts me for the man I am today—and that just makes me want to be a better one tomorrow. She’s the woman I want to spend the rest of my life with, now and forever.
My heart stutters in my chest as I finish loading her dishwasher. Forever isn’t a word I’m familiar with. Most things in my life, no matter how good, have been temporary. A collection of excellent memories, fun while they last, but they don’t stick around. And a few months ago, I would have thought the idea ofthe oneas juvenile. Something out of fairy tales, not real life.
But now? I know that angel is meant to be mine.
“August is ready to say goodnight.”
I look over my shoulder to find Tess smiling softly from his doorway. She’s been getting him ready for bed while I finish the after-party clean up. Another small, domestic thing I want more of. I just want to be with her, in whatever capacity she’ll let me.
I dry off my hands and head into August’s darkened room. He’s illuminated by his night light, tucked up in bed, his arm around the T-rex I gave him. Dutch is curled up next to him, already used to this new sleeping arrangement.
My phone’s wallpaper is a picture of the two of them in their party hats.
I sit on the bed beside him. “Did you have a good birthday?”
“So good. Did you have a good birthday?” He giggles at the reminder we share the day.
“The best.” The happiest. The most significant. All the superlatives.
“Will you take me on a hike one day?” he asks. He overheard some of the conversation between Griffin, Steven, and me. “A big hike? Up a whole mountain?”
“Anything you want.” And I mean it. Mountains, lakes, valleys—there’s nowhere I wouldn’t go for him. He owns my heart as much as his mom does.
