With a little Googling and the strength in his impressively ripped arms, he’s figured it out in no time.
Another week or so here at the ranch, and he’d be a plumber/electrician/wood chopper in no time.
I can tell which movements require more concentration, because that’s when the tip of his tongue sticks out. Floaty and light from the incredible view before me, and the amazing afternoon we’ve had, I’m too slow to play it cool when he catches me staring.
His low chuckle drifts over to me, and I can feel the heat in my cheeks. “Hey, I’m not complaining,” he teases. “I like having your attention on me. I’m your fiancé-you can admire me all you want.”
“I wasn’t looking at you,” I sputter at the cocky, makeshift plumber who’s making a mess of my head and my heart. I keep making excuses, even though nobody’s going to believe me, least of all me. “I was just… checking on the sink.”
“Sure, I believe you,” he says, his egotistic tone belying his claim. Carl used to tell me I was too needy, so I constantly feel the urge to pull back and protect myself. Simon, on the other hand, seems happier the more I want to be with him.
He cranks the wrench one last time, a grunt punctuating the sound. Giving a satisfied nod, he sits up and wipes his hands on the dish towel I extend in his direction. “Well, that’s that. No more leaks. What’s next?”
What was next, indeed? And just like that, I have an idea.
With the sun gone from the day, it’s cooler outside than it was earlier. Low forties are still much warmer than what we’ve seen in New York in a while, giving cozy fall vibes.
Simon and I sit side by side on a hay bale, watching the sky turn shades of orange and pink as the sun dips toward the horizon.
Letting my boots swing, I kick out my feet and raise my glass of sweet tea to Simon’s. The ice cubes rattle within, quickly melting in the liquid. “Thank you. For everything.”
“Eh, it was just a little plumbing,” he says, the empathetic eyes I noticed on the day we met, drinking me in.
A stray curl falls in my eye as I shake my head. “I mean for everything-for helping me and my family. Carl would’ve never done something like this. He hung everything over my head. Each favor, each act of kindness always coming with a price.”
“That guy’s a prick who doesn’t deserve you.” Simon winds an arm around my shoulders and nestles me against him. The warmth of his body transfers to me, lulling me into a blissful sense of calmness. “I’m just glad it’s me here with you, not him.”
I blow out my breath, wishing it’d take the self-doubt my relationship with my ex had left me with along with it. “Me, too. I spent so much time trying to keep him happy, trying to be on his level. All I got in return was betrayal.”
“That’s not on you,” Simon says, twisting his head and pressing a featherlight kiss to my temple. “It’s exhausting trying to keep up with people like that-people who’ll never be happy and always blame others. He was never good enough for you in the first place.”
I appreciate the words so much, but the knot that’s overtaken my throat adds a slight squeak. “I guess. But it made me realize that a girl like me shouldn’t expect to be with someone out of my league.”
My lack of confidence also bothered my ex, even as he continued to chip away at it. Tears well before I can blink them away.
I automatically throw my hands to my face, not wanting him to see me like this. In proof he’s a better human than most, Simon simply takes the glass of sweet tea from my hand and puts it aside next to his.
“That’s ridiculous, because you’re the one in a league of your own,” Simon says, and then he hauls me into his arms. I sink into his strength, letting it hold me together as I incline my head against his chest and listen to his steady heartbeat. “Nothing shines brighter. You’re my north star.”
I lift my head, searching his face for any hint of teasing. Only there’s nothing but sincerity. “Really? That’s how you see me?”
“Yes,” he says without hesitation. “You’re one of a kind, nobody else is like you. Every day I’d watch you skip inside the restaurant. Wearing those incredibly endearing cowboy boots.”
I swing them through the air again, my stomach coasting along with the movements. Carl hated them. Jade mocked them.
Simon found them incredibly endearing.
“I’ve already told you how your kindness got me through some hard times. Every now and then, I’d peek at the headlines so I could pick your brain and hear your thoughts. You have this boundless optimism that never faded, not after rude customers, and not when the clouds would open and unleash a downpour.”
Awe shines through his features as he depresses my lower lip with his thumb. “You’re perfect.”
Everything within me goes all melty warm, and I sniff and wipe the tears from my cheeks. “You’re the best, Simon. I’m so lucky to have you.”
Like earlier in the living room, the air grows thick with desire, every cell in my body prickling at his nearness.
Ever so slowly, eyes remaining locked onto mine, he leans in.
Our breaths mingle together, anticipation streaking through me like a comet across the night sky.
Just as our lips are about to meet, my phone buzzes loudly in my pocket.
Simon groans, the sound matching my sentiment as he drops his forehead against mine. “Why do we always get interrupted at the worst times?”
A giggle slips out as I fish my phone out of my pocket. I glance at the screen, and then everything within me drops to the hard ground. “What? A high school reunion?”
Simon
Moonlight spills through the curtains, painting silvery patterns across the bed. Victoria shifts restlessly beside me, the mattress dipping slightly every time she turns over.
She turns over a lot, kind of like an alligator death roll. Only instead of subduing and dismembering her prey, it seems like the bad thoughts are winning.
I roll to my side, studying her beautiful profile in the streaks of silver light. “Still thinking about the reunion?” I ask softly.
Evidently, she thought I could sleep through that, because she startles slightly. Sheets rustle as she rolls onto her side to face me, hands tucked up under her cheek.
“Yeah. I haven’t seen a lot of my old friends since I moved to New York. I really miss them. But Carl and Jade will definitely be there, and I’m not sure if I should go. We’ve got plenty to do before the wedding as it is.”
I can tell she’s trying to convince herself more than me, so she wants to go but is worried about seeing enemies instead of friends. I hate that they still have any power over her and figure the reunion might be the perfect time to amend that.
As I said before, I could only be patient with the blatant disrespect for my fiancée for so long.
“Don’t let them get to you,” I say, dragging my fingertips in a soothing motion over her arm. “I’ve got your back. Don’t worry, I’ll be there.”
Everything’s perfectly still for a moment, her shallow breaths the only sound. Then I watch as resolve spreads across her face like a sunrise, boosting her confidence-I’ll do whatever it takes to help her hold onto it.
“You’re right,” she says. “I do want to go, and I’m sure they’ll let me bring my ridiculously handsome fiancé.” She returns to lying on her back, tension gradually draining from her limbs and her features. “Okay, I’ll go.”
I smile, satisfied.
I wait until I’m sure she’s asleep and then I slip out of bed, careful not to wake her.
Once I’ve closed the bathroom door, I lean against the sink, my cell phone pressed to my ear. In the reflection of the mirror, the dim glow of the screen illuminates the tenacity in my face as I wait for Luis to pick up.
Again and again, others have made Victoria lesser than. I won’t let it happen again on my watch.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.