Aaron sighed. “I’ll get the first round. Apparently, congratulations are in order.” He shared a quiet exchange and a chaste kiss with Emily before he broke off from her side and moseyed over to pull me into a hard hug. “That ring mean you’re back for good?” he asked.
“I’ll be here as long as he’ll keep me.”
He chuckled. “Then you’re back forever.”
I knew it.
Bowen knew it.
But I really liked the fact that our love, tumultuous as it had been, was so obvious even from the outside.
Remi
“Hey, babe, do you want me to prep the lettuce too?” I called from the kitchen.
He leaned in the back door. “Already did it.”
I loved Bowen Michaels, but being a gardener for a gardener was not nearly as easy as I’d imagined. In the five days I’d been back, I’d woken up to fresh coffee and a hot breakfast each morning, my laundry done and folded, the dogs fed, and little love notes written in the steam on the bathroom mirror.
Thank God he actually went to work every day or I was pretty sure I would have been served lunch on the patio, complete with a full-body massage too. Not that I would have complained. He did have magical hands, but I was supposed to be refilling his emotional reserves, not the other way around.
However, he seemed happy—breathtakingly so—so I let him have it his way the majority of the time.
I had always been a resourceful person, so I found other ways to spoil my man. Usually with my mouth, but he wasn’t picky.
“Tomatoes, onions, pickles—anything I can do?” I asked.
“Done, done, done. Short of tossing the burgers on the grill when everyone arrives, we should be good.”
I shot him a glare. “I really wish you would have let me at least help.”
“What are you talking about?” He walked inside, shutting the door behind him. “You made three different desserts, two pasta salads, and chicken kabobs. If it weren’t for my famous burgers, I’m not sure anyone would even care if I was here or not.”
It was true. I had gone a touch overboard for the cookout. But come on. Who could blame me? It was my first time meeting his family—again. I knew that Linda loved me. Tyson too. Cassidy had acted like we were still friends the last time I’d seen her, but after the hell my situation had put Bowen through, I wouldn’t have blamed any of them for being less than thrilled about us being back together. And freaking engaged, no less.
The cookout had been planned for weeks, and rather than canceling, Bowen thought it would be fun to surprise them with me.
Me. The woman who had repeatedly broken his heart and even once put him in a situation where he’d had to wrestle a gun away from a madman and then dodge bullets as he’d carried me to safety.
Yay! I’m back! Let’s eat burgers!
I blew out a ragged, self-deprecating sigh. “Okay, fine. But I’m getting out the cute bowls and filling them with condiments instead of just putting out the bottles.”
“It seems like extra dishes to wash, but whatever floats your boat. Hey, have you heard from Jenna?”
I rolled my eyes. While we’d done some shopping to get me enough clothes to squeak by for a few days and body wash that wasn’t volcano scented—whatever that meant—I needed the rest of my stuff. Overachieving as always, Bowen had paid a small fortune to get packers and movers for me the very next week. But I needed more than one pair of shoes and I had been terrified of what was happening with my plants. I’d planned an overnight trip down to Savannah since Bowen had to work, but he was having none of it.
While I’d been on the phone with Jenna, filling her in on my life and explaining to her why I was moving back, Bowen had taken the phone from my hand and offered her almost a full month’s rent to drive my plants and a few other things up to me. She’d gladly accepted before I’d had the chance to snatch the phone back. I’d wanted to be annoyed, but she was still unemployed and probably needed the money.
“She’s supposed to be here around six,” I answered. “Will it be a problem if your family is still here?”
“I’ve seen your plant collection, babe. We’re going to need all hands on deck hauling them inside.” He walked to the foyer and grabbed my shoes off the floor, pairing them together before tucking them into the hall closet beside a row of his own.
Nerves momentarily forgotten, I admired his backside before saying, “I remembered that.”
He stood all the way up and turned to face me, not quick enough to hide the flash of fear in his eyes. I hated that it was still there. We’d talked a lot over the last few days about being open and honest when memories arose, and he seemed far more comfortable than before. Though I didn’t think he’d ever truly stop worrying.
