Page 96 of Take A Number
“Dean,” she cuts me off, blinking her wide, tear-streaked eyes at me. “I thought you were more of a yacht rock guy.”
“What?”
“Nothing,” she shakes her head quickly, visibly clearing her thoughts as she refocuses on me. “Why did you do all this?”
I swallow my pride and say the words I came here to say, “Because I want you back.”
Norah’s lips part, and she presses her hand to her chest like she might actually be gasping for air. “But you said—”
I cut her off, not wanting to hear her repeat the horrible things I said. She deserves the truth. “I said nothing because I was too scared to tell you I’m terrified I could hurt you the way my dad hurt my mother.”
She bites her lip, her eyes bending with sympathy. “Dean, you’re not your father.”
“I know,” I reply and take a step closer, my hand itching to touch hers but holding back because I still don’t know what she’s thinking. “But I have a dark passenger inside me, you know? That asshole can flare up sometimes and really fuck shit up. I know apologies are fucking bullshit, and the things I said to you can never be erased, but you have to know the truth, Norah, because I’ve been lying to myself for way too long.”
“Lying about what exactly?” she asks, tilting her head like she’s trying to read my mind.
“About my feelings for you. Even before you and I started fake dating…all that stupid flirting I did, the reason I invested in your franchise and came to work in your bakery all the time. Norah, my gut knew you were worth taking a risk on in more ways than just business. I’m so sorry it took my head this long to figure out I’m in love with you.”
She inhales a sharp breath and steps back like she’s going to bolt. “You don’t mean that.”
“I do mean that.” I step forward and grab her hand with desperation laced in my voice. “And look, I know dropping the love bomb is a lot today and you’re opening a new bakery and going to Paris, and God, I do not want to hold you back from that. But since you forced me to sell my investment back to you, I thought maybe we could do a new contract that says I can be your long-distance boyfriend and visit you in Paris and fight off any Parisians with big baguettes.”
“What?” She shakes her head with a pinched smile of confusion, so I elaborate as tears fill her eyes.
“I just want to see you because I’m in love with you, and I miss you even right now as you stand in front of me,” I rush out and add stupidly, “And I swear I will not hold you back from getting that fat ass in Paris that your mother would hate.”
She laughs and then kind of groans, and then tears are coming down, andfuck, I can’t tell if I’m winning or losing right now. With a deep breath, she steps into my arms and wraps her hands around my head. Burying her face in my neck, she wafts her perfect sweet, vanilla scent all over me. Her face wiggles against my collarbone, and I pull back slightly to ask, “Are you wiping your lip sweat off on my shirt?”
“Yes,” she croaks into my neck with a laugh. “There’s a camera crew filming us right now.”
“Okay, cool, just checking.” I pull back and see a smile that looks very promising. “And?”
“And I think I might love you too, but I might write a pros and cons list just to be sure,” she says quietly and thoughtfully and so fucking on brand.
“I’m good with that.” I press my forehead to hers and breathe in the sweetest relief I’ve ever felt in my entire life. “Is it cool if I kiss you now, or would you rather I not because of the cameras?”
She smiles up at me. “Let’s give ’em a show.”
“Holy shit, if I knew you were getting a place this nice for your temporary Denver digs, I would have totally agreed to be your boyfriend last weekend.”
“I’m going to kill you.” I smile through my threat because I can’t help it. Tonight was easily the best night of my life. And not just because Foreigner played at my bakery opening.
Okay, it’s mostly because Foreigner played at my bakery opening.But it’s also because Dean is here, in my new Denver pad, walking around like a boyfriend.
“How can you threaten murder on me?” Dean asks, slipping off his suit coat and making his way into my kitchen. “I had Foreigner play for the grand opening of your bakery. There were at least four news crews that showed up tonight because of that surprise performance. How many interviews did you do?”
“Five.” I cringe as I drape my jacket over a nearby barstool and ditch my heels.
“And how many did you tell it was your boyfriend who pulled out all the stops for your big day?” Dean lowers his glasses and pins me with a look.
“Only one, but I was nervous. I wasn’t prepared for any of this tonight, and you know I do better with prep.”
Dean sighs and shakes his head. “You’re just lucky I love you.”
My face scrunches up at his words because I still can’t get used to them. Tonight was unimaginably awesome. We danced, we drank champagne, and I gave tours of the bakery to my friends and family while having Dean beside me the entire time. Even my mother gave Dean a very nice hug when she saw him again, a very big step for the ice queen. Nate steered clear of us, which was definitely for the best. I might end up needing a new accountant by the end of all this, but we’ll see how things progress over the next few months first.
And Kate and Lynsey…my God, you’d have thought they were attending Dean’s and my wedding. They looked so happy watching us holding hands and visiting with customers that I felt like I kind of gained a couple of sisters all of the sudden. Josh even passed off sweet Julianna to me so I could walk her up to the machine to take a number for her and her dad to have a croinut. It was a perfect grand opening.
