Page 43 of Sea of Love
“FromSea of Love.”
Harry’s jaw dropped. “No. Not that I saw, anyway. What did they want?”
Evan turned and leaned on the railing. “After the success of the first two seasons, they’re planning another.”
“Oh! Maybe Amber and Phil can apply. Do you think she’d be up for take two?”
Evan chuckled. “I think she’d rather never take another holiday again than go on that show. But I’m so happy she found Phil. Things really seem to be working out for them.” Phil was an orderly she’d met at the hospital where she worked. She joked that she’d travelled halfway across the globe for a TV show based on romance but had ended up finding love in her own backyard. “Maybe John?”
Harry rolled his eyes. “I wouldn’t put it past him, if he can find some sort of spin to put on it, but I doubt he’ll ever hear from the show again. Or maybe I’m wrong. They did say that everything that happened gave them a ratings boom.” After storming off the stage during that final segment, John had refused to come back in front of the cameras again. The show had been edited to make the most of all the drama, and Dennis and Mei had been declared the eventual winners. Following the airing of the show, John had played up the wronged lover angle, but those who knew them had confirmed that John and Harry had broken up prior to the cruise. It didn’t hurt that the viewers had a soft spot for Harry and Evan and loved the big “aww” moment when they’d publicly revealed their feelings for each other.
“The people from the show want to know if we’re still together—”
“Of course we’re together. It’s true love, remember? The audience even wanted to vote for us as the winning couple.”
Evan’s chuckle turned into a laugh. “Funny you should mention that. They want to know if we’ll go on the show as a real couple this time. Apparently the two of us are excellent for ratings.”
Harry stepped closer and put his arms around Evan’s neck. “Well, you get my rating. Ten out of ten every time.” He nuzzled Evan’s throat. “So what did you tell them?”
“They got a ‘hell no’ from me.”
He pulled away and met Evan’s big blue eyes. “No desire to prove how much you love me?”
Evan waggled his brows. “Oh no, the greatest desire to do that, just not in front of millions of people. Now the question is, doyouwant to show the world just how much you love me?”
Evan was mucking around, his eyes sparkling with merriment, but suddenly Harry wanted to do just that. He wanted everyone to know exactly how much Evan meant to him. “Actually…” Evan’s eyes widened. Harry stepped back and dropped his hands so he could take Evan’s in his own. “I want nothing more than for everyone to know you’re mine and I’m yours. Nothing’s changed since I said those words on the TV show, and one day,” he cleared his throat as his voice thickened, “well, one day when we don’t have your family about to land on our doorstep and the time is right…” He trailed off; it felt rightnow, but was it too soon, wasn’t it?
Evan swallowed heavily, his expression turning serious to match Harry’s. “I know.” He squeezed his hands. “But for now, how about you formalise moving in.”
“You want my mail in your letterbox?”
“Andallyour stuff around the place, and most importantly,youhere all the time.”
“I think that can be arranged.” Harry grinned and leaned in for a kiss, but he stopped halfway at the sound of the doorbell chiming. “Damn.”
Evan laughed. “I thought you wanted to see our pretty little niece.”
“I do.”
“Well, you’re gonna have to let me go so I can answer the door.”
He gave Evan’s arse a playful tap as he followed him to the apartment foyer. After all, it was hard to resist. Evan looked over his shoulder and gave him a cheeky grin before opening the door.
Monique stepped through, baby carrier in one hand, nappy bag over the other shoulder. “Thank god! She weighs a ton.” She thrust the carrier at Evan before kissing his cheek. Harry got the same treatment, but his kiss was accompanied by the nappy bag. “It’s great to see you guys. I can’t thank you enough for having Sofia tonight. As you know, Charlie couldn’t get out of going to Melbourne for work, and I didn’t want to bail on Amber, as this night has been planned for ages.”
“Don’t be silly. It’s our pleasure,” Evan said from the floor where he was crouching to unstrap Sofia and lift her from the carrier. “We love this little princess, and you deserve a night out, and the show sounds fabulous.”
“Still, you have my gratitude. I hope one day I can return the favour.” She headed to the living room.
Harry’s breath caught at her casually thrown out words. He turned from Monique’s retreating back to see Evan standing with the little bundle now firmly in the crook of his arm. His heart thumped an extra beat at the sight. Suddenly his future, a future that had been a tentative concept, took on a whole lot more meaning. He could picture a life where the two of them opened up their hearts to include one more.
He moved closer and ran a finger along Sofia’s plump, soft cheek. She looked up at him with those big blue eyes so like Evan’s as she sucked on her fingers, drool pooling on her chin. “She looks good on you.”
Evan met his gaze, lips tilting up in smile. “I might not give her back.” He bent and picked up the handle of the carrier. “I hope you don’t mind fighting her for my company.” He winked then moved to the living room.
Warmth bloomed in Harry’s chest as he followed and stood in the doorway watching Evan coo to the baby as he showed her the view from the open balcony door.
I’ll be asking you a very important question soon.
And in his heart, he knew that Evan would say yes.
* * *
The End
