TROY
Waking up with Juniper in my arms always puts me in a good mood, but knowing that today I’m waking up with her as my fiancée makes it even better. Seeing her left hand on my chest, wearing my ring on her finger, makes me the happiest man in the world.
Gently, I take her hand and bring it to my lips to kiss the finger that now signifies her as mine. She hums awake against my side as I do.
“Morning, beautiful.” I smile as I kiss her on the head.
“You’re way too awake and cheerful this early in the morning. Aren’t you tired?” she asks as she stretches, arching her back before snuggling up against me again.
“I’m worn out and my body is exhausted, but I’m also really happy to be waking up with you in my arms as my future wife.”
Resting her chin on my chest, she grins up at me. “Me too.”
“Do you have to work today?”
“Nope. It’s a freak accident that I have nothing on my schedule today. I’m going to call it a happy coincidence.”
“After the game, Coach pulled me aside and told me my probation period was over and gave me a pass on practice today since he’s been running me so hard.”
She sits up a little at that. “Really? So, we both have the day off?”
“Looks like it.”
“What should we do?” she asks, a little more excited and awake now.
“Whatever you want,” I tell her.
She sighs as she lies back down and burrows into my side once more. “I should call my mom. I haven’t talked to her since our nationally televised engagement. I’m sure she’s freaking out.”
“Good freak-out or bad freak-out?”
“Undetermined at this time,” she chuckles.
Reaching for her phone on the nightstand, she turns over to check her messages. I should do the same, but so much of me doesn’t want to pop the bubble we’re in right now.
My family already knew I was going to propose yesterday and, thankfully, they all supported me. Each of them really likes Juniper, and she’s fit in well every time they’ve been around to visit.
Looking at my cell, I see I have messages from each of my parents saying congratulations and one from Damien. I’m sure he’ll have more to say on the matter when I meet with him later in the week, but for now, I’m taking the kind words while I can.
I’ve been tagged in a whole slew of posts and articles, but I’m not about to try to read each one. I know that there will be an equal amount of bad with the good, and again, I’m not ready to pop our bubble just yet.
“How’re things looking on your end?” I ask, then see a look on her face that I don’t like. “You okay?”
“Yeah.” She looks over at me with a smile that isn’t as big or bright as it should be.
“Is it your family?”
“No, work.” She grins again. “I’ll get to that tomorrow. Today is about celebrating us.”
“So, no word from Sunny?”
“Oh, no, she had words.”
I chuckle because I can only imagine what Ip’s mom has to say about everything. “What’d she say?”
“She wants us to come out to the farm.”
Shrugging, I say, “Alright. Let’s go.”
“You’re a little too eager to get scolded by my mother.”
“I’m not scared.”
* * *
“Why does that damn goat always stick its nose in my ass?” I ask Juniper as we walk to the house. She can’t stop laughing at the fact that I have a goat that’s trying to make me his lover.
“Mom!” she calls out when we reach the front door of the house, still muffling her laughter.
“’Bout time you two lovebirds got here,” Sunny says, walking to greet us. “Come in, I just started a pot of coffee, and Ivy made a pie.”
“Ivy made a pie?” Juniper asks, shocked that her sister would bake something.
“That’s right. I’m more than a pretty face, you know,” Ivy muses from the kitchen, listening in on our welcome.
“I always knew that, but I didn’t know you did,” Juniper teases her sister as she walks to give her a hug.
“Ha-ha,” Ivy deadpans before turning to me. “You ready to join this family of women?”
Pulling Juniper against me, I wrap my arms around her middle, leaning my chin on her shoulder. “I’m more than ready.”
“Then why are you using my sister as a shield right now?” Ivy sasses back.
“Because I’m also not stupid,” I laugh.
“Ah, fast learner,” Sunny chuckles. “Ivy go cut your pie. Lilly and Rose should be here soon.”
“Everyone is coming?” Ip asks her mom, surprised that all three of her sisters will be here today.
“Surprised me too,” Sunny admits.
All the girls give their mom shit about how they were raised and how she lived her life when she was younger. And although Sunny is a little bit of a wild card, you can’t deny how much she loves her girls.
We sit around the table as Sunny pours coffee and Ivy serves up plates of pie.
“Oh, shit,” a woman, who has to be Rose, says when she walks in. “You are gorgeous.” She’s staring at me.
“And he’s taken,” Juniper states, getting as close as humanly possible to me. “Rose, this is Troy, my fiancé. Troy, my sister Rose.”
“Nice to meet you,” I greet, reaching over Juniper and extending my hand to her with a smile.
“No wonder they call you Mister Dimples.” She wags her brows.
“Okay, that’s enough of that,” Juniper scoffs.
Leaning over, I press my face into her hair to muffle a laugh at how she’s acting so jealous and territorial over me. Not going to lie, I am enjoying it.
“You know I’m not interested in your sister, right?” I ask quietly so only she can hear me.
With a sigh, she turns her head to look up at me. “Yeah.”
Wanting to take away whatever this unease is in her, I lean forward and kiss her, pressing my lips softly to hers. She presses further, opening up to me, and I take the invitation, allowing myself to get lost in her for a moment, forgetting the audience we have. Pulling away, I smile at her, running my finger along her jaw.
“Okay, that was hot,” Lilly says, making everyone laugh as she enters the room fanning herself.
Juniper lets her head fall against my shoulder as she sinks against me once more. It’s so easy to get caught up in her. To let everything and everyone around us fade away no matter where we are.
“Now, if you’re done staking your claim and peeing on him, can we eat our pie now?” Ivy asks, sounding annoyed.
We all dig in to our dessert, one that’s delicious and hands down the best pie I’ve ever had. “Ivy, this is delicious,” I tell her around a mouthful of sweet goodness.
“Thanks,” she says, looking shy for the first time since I’ve known her.
“It really is, Ives. I didn’t know you could bake like this,” Juniper adds on to my compliment.
“I only do it when I’m bored,” she says, gathering up the empty plates and forks to dump in the sink.
“Hey, I wasn’t done with that,” Lilly yells at her sister, who steals her plate from under her.
Leaning forward to lick up the last bite of crust left on the plate, Ivy says, “You are now.”
“Brat,” Lilly grumbles, crossing her arms across her chest.
Sunny leans back, shaking her head as she watches her daughters interact with each other. It is entertaining, to say the least, to watch all of them.
It doesn’t take long for the conversation to shift to Juniper and me. They all bombard us with questions about the proposal and our life back in the city. The sisters take turns teasing their older sister in the process, but it’s clear they’re happy for her.
We leave a little later, feeling all the love from this band of misfits. The Love women are not to be messed with, but when they’re on your side, you can’t go wrong either. I plan to keep them on my go
od side because I do not want to see what happens when they turn on a person.
Crazy in-laws or not, they’re a part of Juniper and a part of what makes her the woman I love.
23
I put my bathroom scale in the corner and that’s where it can stay until it apologizes.
JUNIPER
“You had a full weekend, huh?” Connie says the next day from behind her big intimidating desk before I even have a chance to sit down.
When I arrived at work this morning, I had an email from her asking for a meeting. I knew exactly what it was about before I even walked in.
“Congratulations,” she adds, nodding toward my left hand.
“Thank you,” I reply slowly, unsure of how this conversation will go.
She stares at me for a minute longer than I’m comfortable with, making me feel uneasy and squirmy.
Finally, she relaxes slightly. “You put me in a really bad position Juniper.”
I drop my head to look to my hands. “I know. I’m sorry.”
“Unfortunately, sorry isn’t enough this time. I was clear with you from the beginning about the parameters of your contract when you first came to me about your relationship with Troy. I went along with your idea to do a new show with him. And then you repaid me by breaking the trust I had in you. Not only did you break our contract, you plastered it all over national television. What am I supposed to do with that?” I look up at her then, taking everything else she has to say face to face. “I like you, Juniper, but you messed up. Big.”
“I knew I was playing with fire when I started sneaking in to watch his games, but I had no idea he was going to propose like that. And although I’m happy to be engaged to Troy, I understand what this does to the show and my future here.”
“Does he really place so little value on everything you’ve worked so hard for that he’d put it all in jeopardy?” she asks, and it’s like a slap in the face.
“I don’t think he saw it that way.”
“Are you sure this wasn’t his way of manipulating you?”
“How dare you!” I seethe. “Troy has nothing but respect for me and has never done or shown me anything less. You have no right to attack him like that.”
She purses her lips and stares at me a moment. “Then why would he destroy your career? He knew about your strict contract from when we met to go over his contract before starting I Can Gym Too!.”
“Because I told him that you agreed to let me go watch his home games,” I admit, looking down again.
“I see.”
Wiping a falling tear from my face, I look up at her once more. “I’m sorry, Connie. I know I put you in a horrible position, as well as Troy. I honestly have no excuse other than I was being selfish. I was tired of not being able to be there for my boyfriend, to watch his games or talk to him about his career.”
“I’m not a heartless woman, Juniper. You could have come to me to renegotiate your contract.”
“I… I honestly didn’t even think about that.”
“I’m really sorry it’s come to this. Unfortunately, I have to let you go. Your old shows will continue to run, but there won’t be any more. Go Sports! is officially cancelled.”
“What about the gym show?”
“That’s a different matter. Honestly, I was ready to be done with Troy, but after what you just admitted to me, I need time to think about. That’s a completely different contract.”
“I understand.”
I’m so disappointed in myself. I have no one else to blame for my behavior. And like I told Connie, there’s no excuse but my own selfish want.
Something hits me then. I’m not really disappointed in the show ending. It actually feels more like a relief, which seems so strange after all the time and effort I’ve put into it the past three plus years.
“Thank you, Connie. For everything you’ve done for me since I first started here. I’ve learned so much from you and this business. You’ve been a great boss and mentor. I truly appreciate everything,” I tell her, standing to shake her hand.
“It’s been a pleasure, Juniper. And I hope it’s not the end between us.”
Walking out of her office, I feel a sense of relief that I wasn’t expecting. Packing up my office, I pause, turning to look around one last time before leaving the place that’s been my second home since graduating college.
I have so many fun and sweet memories, but I’m not completely sad about it because I knew it wouldn’t last forever. The show always had an expiration date on it; I just didn’t know when that was.
I text Bianca to meet me for lunch before I head home. She asks if I want to try a new ramen place since it’s raining and we can’t do a patio. Seems fitting with the day I’m having.
The car service that Troy uses and has fought with me to use, especially on rainy days in the city, pulls up and we wait for Bianca to exit the building. The driver takes us to the Japanese restaurant, navigating through the busy city traffic. I evade answering questions from Bianca when she notices the box sitting on the seat between us.
We’re seated at a traditional table, removing our shoes as we sit cross-legged on the cushioned floor in front of the low-sitting table.
“I can feel your laser eyes on me,” I tell Bianca as I pour tea into cups for each of us after we order from the server.
“Then stop evading,” she tells me, grabbing my hand to examine my ring, which she’s seeing for the first time. Tossing my hand away like it offended her, she looks at me. “Talk. What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” I laugh. “Okay, that’s not entirely true.”
“I’m going to stab you with chopsticks if you don’t start talking soon.”
“I was fired today.”
“What? Why?”
“I broke my contract by going to watch Troy’s games. Obviously, the engagement wasn’t exactly a private moment.”
“Didn’t Troy know?”
“Yeah…so, that’s the thing. I told Troy that I was allowed.”
“Juniper!” she scolds me.
“I know,” I whine. “I’m a terrible person. But I just wanted to watch my boyfriend play football, and I didn’t want him to feel bad about me being there.”
“And you think he’s going to feel good about it now?”
“I know he won’t,” I say quietly. And it’s the truth. He’s going to feel awful, even if it is my fault.
We eat our delicious ramen, slurping up the noodles and splashing the broth all over our faces. We laugh our way through lunch in between her telling me how much I need to tell Troy the truth.
Hugging her goodbye as the driver drops her back at work, she leaves with a promise to still meet for lunch or coffee at least once a week on top of still walking the dogs on Sundays. If she thinks she’s getting rid of me, she is sorely mistaken.
The driver takes me home next. I unpack the sad box of things I had at my studio office and then look around, wondering what to do next while I wait for Troy to get home.
Flopping down on the couch next to Brutus, I grab his little face in my hands. “What should we do now?”
I take him for a long walk to clear my head and think about my next move. When we get back, I decide to attempt to make dinner for once instead of us ordering in.
I find a couple Pinterest recipes that look easy enough and head out to the grocery store to buy everything I need. I get to work in the kitchen the second I’m back.
By the time Troy walks in the door, there’s smoke billowing from the stove, I’m covered in flour and the kitchen looks like a bomb went off. Blowing my hair out of my eyes, I take the burnt pan of biscuits from the oven.
“What are you doing?” Troy asks with wide-eyed laughter.
“I was trying to make dinner,” I say, feeling embarrassed at the mess in front of him.
“I don’t know if we can eat any of it, babe.”
I throw a puck-like biscuit at him, which he catches and tosses into the trash.
“Yo
u order; I’ll clean this up,” I tell him in defeat.
Walking toward me in the middle of the warzone, he bends to kiss me. “Or you order food and shower while I clean this up.”
“Why are you so good to me?”
“Because I love you, Ip.”
Those words break me, the lie I told him hitting me hard in the gut. I burst into tears in the middle of our kitchen.
“Whoa, what’s wrong? We can try to eat this… stuff if you want.”
“It’s not the food,” I cry.
“I don’t mind cleaning it up,” he tries next.
I shake my head against his chest, where he’s now holding me. “It’s not the kitchen either.”
“Okay, then what’s wrong?” he asks, pulling my face away from him so he can look at me.
“I lied to you.” I rip off the Band-Aid.
He steps back and away from me like I just slapped him. “About what?”
“Connie didn’t tell me I could come to your games. My show was cancelled today, and I was let go.”
Realization hits him, and it shows all over his gorgeous face. “Why did you lie to me about that? It’s all my fault—”
“No,” I stop him. “It’s my fault. I was so tired of not being part of your whole life. Of having to miss parts of it and not share them with you. I knew if you knew the truth, you wouldn’t let me come watch you play. I was wrong to lie to you about it. But you are not to blame for any of this. This is on me.”
“I know I should be mad that you lied, but the selfish man in me insanely loves the fact that you wanted to watch me play so badly you risked your job to be there,” he says with a smile.
“I’m really sorry I lied, Troy. I promise I’ve never lied to you about anything else. I don’t want you to question our relationship or my trust.”
“Never even crossed my mind.” He takes my hand and pulls me closer to him again. “You alright?”
“Yeah,” I sigh. “I’m surprisingly relieved. I enjoyed doing the show… until I didn’t.”
“Until me?” he asks, his voice full of humor, but he’s right.
I look up at him, my chin on his chest. “Yeah, until you. You became more important to me.”
Mister Dimples Page 15
