Page 122 of Pick Me
“Hey, don’t complain,” my dad said as he gestured to the line behind them. “This is a good problem. We never doubted you, sweetheart. We knew this day would come.”
My eyes welled up, and I bit the inside of my cheek to keep the tears from spilling over.
The rep from the bookshop did a great job gently moving people along, until there was just one person left waiting, hugging my book to his chest.
The person who’d helped make the words happen.
Not a mystical source of inspiration, but a very real, very loving, very supportive person who’d helped me find my way to myself and, with that, my book.
Every time I looked at Owen, my heart did a little stutter step. He felt like home and an adventure at the same time, two impossible extremes that somehow both existed within him.
“What are you doing?” I asked him as he placed the book in front of me like it was an offering to a queen. “You know I have a boxful at home.”
He glanced around, then leaned across the table to kiss me.
“Numbers, B, numbers,” he scolded softly, cupping my cheek. “Every sale counts. Now, sign please.”
He opened it to the title page and flattened it before sliding the book to me.
The love on his face, thepride, was the perfect end to a whirlwind evening.
During the event, I’d struggled with every signature, not sure how to encapsulate my deep appreciation for the person on the other side of the table. But this time, I knew exactly what I wanted to write.
For Owen,
Thank you for being my favorite plot twist, and my very own happily ever after.
Love forever,
B
