She silenced him by pressing her lips to his and then kissing him senseless.
Levi’s arms banded around her, and for the first time in almost two weeks, he felt like he could breathe again.
“Geez, get a room, you two,” Maxi said as she breezed by.
“Yeah,” Anthony said, walking by on their other side. “Take the night off, for crying out loud. This is a family place.”
Lifting his head, Levi smiled down at Willow. “What do you say? Can I take you out on a proper date tonight and finish groveling?”
“Hmm…define…proper.” And with a sassy wink, she stepped from his arms, taking one of his hands in hers. “Because I had other plans for us.”
This girl…
Grinning at his employees, Levi gave them a quick wave. “It looks like I’m taking the night off.”
“Please, don’t show your face in here until Monday,” Anthony called out. “Do us all a favor, okay?”
“Done!” Willow replied happily, dragging him from the pub.
“I really did want to take you out tonight.”
“And I really wanted you to take me to bed. It’s called a compromise, Levi.”
They were sprawled out in his bed and he felt like everything was right with his world. He hadn’t had to grovel too much before Willow jumped him.
He really liked it when she did that.
“Well, hopefully tomorrow, you’ll allow me to take you out for breakfast then. I know a place that serves the best waffles.”
“Oooh…I do love waffles. As a matter of fact, I love…” She stopped talking as her phone chimed. With a muttered curse, she rolled over and reached for her purse, which was on the floor next to the bed.
“Everything okay?”
“Yeah, I think it’s Gammy. It was the Words With Friends notification. I want to silence it until tomorrow.”
He chuckled softly. “I should reach out to her for a game. She’s the one who introduced me to it. What’s her screen name on there?”
“Oh, it’s IreGemGal.”
Why does that sound so familiar?
Then it hit him and he laughed out loud.
“What?” she asked. “What’s so funny?”
Rolling off the bed, he found his phone and sat down beside her, pulling the game app up on his phone and showed it to her. “Look at the words she played!”
Then Willow was laughing hysterically. “Oh, my goodness! That is so Gammy! I love it!”
“Hey! I think it was a little insulting.”
“Aww…poor baby,” she cooed, cupping his cheek. “Did my sweet little old grandma make you sad?”
With a slight pout, he said, “I wouldn’t say sad, but she certainly didn’t make me feel good…”
“Well, tomorrow you can call her out on it. But for the rest of the night, the phones are off, and you have my full attention.”
“Hmm…I like the sound of that.”
“Mmm…that’s good because…I like you. A lot.”
“Oh, yeah?”
“Yeah.”
Leaning in, he placed a soft kiss on her lips. “And I like you too, Willow. A lot. Actually, I think I’m in…”
Her hand instantly covered his lips. “Don’t,” she whispered. “Not yet.”
Disappointment washed over him.
“It’s too soon, Levi, and we have some things to work through.” Slowly, she removed her hand. “But just know, it means a lot to me that you wanted to say it.”
It would have meant more if he had actually had the chance to say it, but…he knew he would.
Soon.
Epilogue
One Month Later…
“Do you believe in love at first sight or do you think it takes time to grow?”
It was a little after midnight and they were lying in Willow’s bed, naked and exhausted, but she couldn’t help but want to talk. It was one of her favorite things to do with him.
“We never did finish those questions, did we?” he asked before yawning loudly.
“We are right now…if you answer the question,” she teased, placing a soft kiss on his chest before snuggling closer.
“I kind of remember you asking me that one in the car.”
She shrugged. “I may have, but…refresh my memory.”
“I don’t know if I have enough brain cells left to think and answer questions. I’m not even sure I know what day it is or my own name.”
Crawling on top of him, she cupped his face in her hands and kissed him soundly. “You’re Levi Sullivan, pub owner extraordinaire, boyfriend extraordinaire, and…”
Dare I say it…
“And…?” he prompted.
“The man that I love.”
There. I said it.
And it felt like a giant weight had been lifted from her shoulders.
Levi’s arms banded around her as he kissed her softly on the lips. “I kind of like all those descriptions.”
“Oh, yeah?”
He nodded. “Definitely. Especially that last one.”
She could seriously feel herself blushing from head to toe. They had been back together for a month now and things had been going really well. Levi was taking a little more time off from the pub so they could see each other at a decent hour a few times a week, and Willow was helping him with some of the decorating at the pub.
And loving every second of it.
Levi had teased her that maybe she should forget about going to school to get her early childhood education degree and instead go into interior decorating. It was something she actually considered, but realized it was more like a hobby for her. Working with kids in a loving and educational environment was always going to be her first love.
Well, that and Levi because…yeah, he was definitely her first real and true love and she was so happy she could finally say it out loud.
“I love you, Levi.”
His hand anchored up in her hair as he said, “I love you too. I have for a long time, but…I didn’t want to say it too soon and spook you. I already messed things up once between us. There was no way I wanted to do that again.”
“It’s never a bad thing to tell someone you love them. At least, I don’t think so.” Leaning down, she kissed him and kept on kissing him until they were both breathless. “Say it again.”
Luckily, he knew exactly what she meant.
“I love you, Willow. So damn much.” Then he kissed her and kept on kissing her as he rolled them over so he was the one on top. “Do I believe in love at first sight? Absolutely. It happened to me several months ago.”
And yeah, she was totally blushing now.
“A beautiful girl tripped right outside my window. And the first moment her eyes met mine, I was lost.”
It wasn’t the first time he’d mentioned having feelings for her before their fateful road trip, but it was the first time he admitted how deep those feelings ran.
“That makes two of us.”
“Yeah?”
She nodded. “Yeah.” Ducking her head, she explained, “When I told my family I was dating someone? It was you.”
“Well, yeah. That’s why I went with you to be your fake boyfriend.”
“No,” she said with a small laugh. “Before that. When I first made up a boyfriend, I told them his name was Levi and…and…totally described you to them.”
“Willow, I…you never told me that.”
“It was a little embarrassing.”
“You never need to be embarrassed with me. Ever. You can tell me anything.”
“Anything?”
He nodded. “Anything.”
That got her thinking. “Can I…tell you that I’m really thirsty right now and wish I had something to drink?”
And before she knew it, he jumped up and ran to the kitchen and came back with a bottle of water for her.
“Wow. Thank you.” She took a long sip and then studied him as he got comfortable under the blankets again. “Can I tell you…that I really didn’t like t
hat movie we watched earlier?”
His eyes went wide. “Seriously? What was wrong with it?”
“I don’t know. I’m just not a Star Wars fan, I guess.”
“Hmph…I wish I had known that before the whole I love you thing,” he teased and then immediately laughed and wrapped her in his arms. “But I guess it’s okay to have some flaws…I mean, not everyone likes those kinds of movies, right?”
“Sure, just like not everyone knows all the songs in Aladdin.”
“I don’t sing!” he argued, still hugging her tight. “And I’m a grown man! Why would I know that?”
“Because you were a child once! And the cartoon version was popular when we were kids!”
“Are we seriously naked and discussing a Disney movie because…that just seems wrong.”
She sighed dramatically. “You’re right, you’re right. So tell me…what should we do while we’re naked?”
Slowly, he rolled her under him. “How about I show you instead?”
And as he began to kiss his way down her body, she thought no suggestion had ever sounded better.
And now for a preview of
Looking for more RoadTripping antics?
Check out an excerpt from
DRIVE ME CRAZY
As far as wedding days went, Grace Mackie could say with great certainty that this one completely sucked.
And considering she was the bride, that was saying something.
Sitting alone in the bride’s dressing room in the exclusive Lake Tahoe resort where her fiancé had insisted they have their destination wedding, she felt bored and oddly disappointed. This wasn’t the wedding she had always dreamed of. As a matter of fact, it wasn’t even the wedding she had planned.
Two weeks ago, Jared suggested the idea of eloping and no matter how much Grace resisted, he steamrolled ahead and now…here they were. Granted, the resort was the most luxurious she’d ever stayed at; her gown was amazing, and…even though California isn’t exactly the destination that came to mind when she thought of destination weddings, it certainly didn’t suck.
The downside was that they went from a big, family-filled wedding to a small and intimate event that most of her family and friends couldn’t afford to attend. She had argued that point–among others–with Jared, but he had promised they’d have a big party when they got back to North Carolina. Getting married in Tahoe was a dream of his so she figured it wouldn’t be so bad.
Except it was.
She was alone in this gorgeous dressing room and wished her best friend Lori or even her parents were here with her. A light knock at the door had her turning.
“Hey, Gracie! Thirty minutes until showtime! Are you ready?” The super-perky and extremely annoying wedding planner, Tilly, said with a smile as she walked through the door.
Smiling serenely, Grace replied, “Yes, thank you.” Smoothing her hand down the white satin gown she was wearing, she tried to present the perfect image of the calm and serene bride-to-be.
Even though internally, she was like a squirrel in traffic.
“Great! In about twenty minutes, I’ll come back and…”
“Tilly,” Grace quickly interrupted before she could go any further. “If it’s all right with you, we’ve gone over the schedule dozens of times and I’d really appreciate a few minutes to myself.”
Tilly, with her severe bun and power suit, nodded. “Of course, Gracie. Anything you need,” she smiled broadly and made her way back out the door, gently closing it behind her. At the sound of the soft click, Grace sagged with relief.
She hated being called Gracie. No one she knew ever called her Gracie. And yet for some reason, Tilly insisted on calling her that.
Catching a glimpse of herself in the full-length mirror, she should have been a happy and smiling bride. But was she? No. Instead, she was a neurotic mess who was dealing with more than your run-of-the-mill wedding jitters. She was angry, disappointed, and she knew if she didn’t speak up for herself one last time, this was the way her entire marriage was going to go–with Jared making decisions she hated and then being resentful forever.
Knowing she wasn’t going to breathe easy until she talked to him, Grace decided to go find him and hash this out. If it meant calling off the wedding, then so be it. It wasn’t like she had any real investment in it. None of her family were here, Jared had made all the arrangements, and she had very little input into any of it.
Suddenly all the signs she should have seen were right there in front of her.
She was going to find Jared, tell him how she felt, and maybe they could look into couples counseling or something. It would be a good thing. It would help them grow closer. Looking back now, she realized this was a pattern that had gotten completely out of control. Why hadn’t she noticed it sooner?
“Hindsight and all,” she muttered, opening the door and stepping out into the hallway. They had toured the resort yesterday and she knew where the groom’s dressing room was, so there was no need to ask for assistance from perky Tilly. At the end of the hall, she turned to the left and saw the door to Jared’s room was ajar. The closer she got, Grace could hear him talking. Was Tilly giving him the thirty-minute speech too?
“You have to trust me, baby. It’s all going to be okay. This is only temporary,” she heard Jared saying.
Temporary? What was temporary?
“How could you do this, Jared? You said you loved me! You said we were going to be a family!”
What?!
Slowly, Grace moved closer to the door and tried to figure out who Jared was speaking to.
“We will, baby. We will,” he promised. “You have to trust me, Steph. Marrying Grace will help me secure this promotion, and then six months from now, I’ll divorce her and we’ll be together. Just in time for the baby to be born.”
Steph? Steph? Wait…the only Steph she knew was Jared’s assistant, and he wouldn’t…
“How am I supposed to come into work every day knowing you’re sleeping with her every night?” Steph cried.
Grace heard Jared’s soft laugh. “Baby, you need to relax. Grace and I haven’t slept together for almost two months. What’s a few more?”
Grace was about to barge through the door and put a stop to this, but…
“Just because she was stupid enough to fall for that whole ‘wanting to make the wedding night sex better’ excuse before doesn’t mean she’ll keep falling for it, Jared. And besides, tonight is your wedding night!”
“Don’t worry,” he cooed. “I’ll come up with an excuse. The only woman I plan on sleeping with from now on is you.”
Rage filled her, followed by a wave of nausea. How could she have been so blind? When Jared had mentioned not having sex to enhance their wedding night, it sounded kind of sexy. Hell, she had been horny all this time, and for what?
Taking several deep breaths, she told herself to calm down. Everything would be all right. She’d get through this. And then, something weird happened. She was suddenly calm–like eerily calm. It was true that Jared needed her to secure his promotion–Grace had been grooming him for the position of junior vice president of operations practically since they met! Her job as a career coach meant it was her specialty and Jared had begged her to help him move up in the company. She’d helped him change his image and his wardrobe and gave him lessons in manners and how to present himself in social situations. He was a complete doofus when she met him! And now that she transformed him, someone else was going to reap all the benefits of her hard work?
Well, she had news for him…he was never going to pull it off without her. He had definitely made great strides and his bosses were impressed, but without her there beside him, there was no way he was going to secure that promotion. His bosses weren’t completely wowed by him yet and she had no intention of sticking around and helping him any longer. True, she could marry him and when he asked for a divorce, take him for everything he was worth, but that wasn’t her style.
Wait, do I even have
a style? She wondered.
Turning around, she made her way back toward her room and calmly walked inside and closed the door. In the corner was the small satchel that had her makeup bag, her wallet, her iPod and earbuds, her phone, and…
Before she knew it, the bag was in her hand and she was walking back out the door. The hallway was still deserted as she made her way to the rear exit and stepped outside. The sun was going down–Jared had said a sunset wedding would be romantic–and as she looked out at the lake, she had to admit the view would have been stunning.
“No time for that, dummy,” she muttered, pulling her phone out of her bag and quickly pulling up the Uber app to request a ride. Saying a silent prayer that she wouldn’t have to wait too long and risk someone finding her, she sagged with relief when the app showed a car was only five minutes away. Doing her best to stay out of sight, Grace hid behind some tall shrubs and prayed no one would come out and find her. Of course, a woman in a blindingly white gown didn’t exactly blend into the greenery.
If they weren’t so close to the ceremony time, she would have run up to their room and grabbed her luggage. Unfortunately, she didn’t want to draw any attention to herself and would just have to deal with making her escape in her gown.
Staring at her phone, she willed the damn car to hurry up. The ride to the airport would take an hour, and she was hoping to get enough of a head start that should Jared try to come find her, she’d be on a plane before he could reach her.
Wishful thinking, but still…
Behind her, someone came out the back door but luckily, it was a janitor and he didn’t even look in her direction. Her heart was beating a million miles an hour and when she glanced down at her phone again, she saw the car was two minutes out.
In any other circumstances, she would be pacing. Unfortunately, that wasn’t an option right now and she suddenly wished she had packed a change of clothes in her satchel. If she were in jeans and sneakers, she would be trekking toward the road to meet up with the car and burning off some of this nervous energy. But no, she was stuck in this stupid, bulky gown hiding behind a shrub.
Test Drive: Road Tripping Series Page 23
