by Nicole Casey
He knew me all too well. As soon as I’d finished reading I would grab a pen.
‘I love you. You’re incredible. And I’ll see you when I can.
Forever yours,
D’
I sighed deeply and carefully placed the letter on the table, so I could refer back to it over the next few weeks when things got tough.
That was why I liked the letters. They were something real, something I could hold. I knew they took effort, which made them that more meaningful as a trinket to clasp onto during the lonelier days.
I stood up ready to get my writing equipment. It didn’t matter what Derek said. I was in the mood so I’d write now…
Knock, knock.
I glanced toward the door, feeling perplexed. I wasn’t expecting anyone, as far as I knew Max and Bryant were out tonight so it wouldn’t be them, so who could it be?
“Hello?” I called out curiously as I edged my way closer. “Who’s there?”
But no one answered me, so I grabbed hold of the handle and tugged it right open.
The face I saw standing there reminded me of the moment he got back, the sight of a ghost from the past. I wasn’t expecting him, he certainly hadn’t told me that he was coming, but that was definitely him. That beautiful olive skin and dark hair couldn’t possibly belong to anyone else.
“Derek?” I gasped in shock, wondering if I could reach out to touch him. I didn’t want him to vanish, like a mirage.
“Is that really you? What are you doing here?”
“I’ve come to see you, fool,” he chuckled. A wonderful sound filled my heart with glee.
“Now are you going to let me in or not?”
“But… but…” I started, before realizing that any questions were pointless.
Derek was here. Surely that was the only thing that mattered. Everything else could come later… much later.
“Yes, please come in.”
Chapter Sixteen
Derek
My heart thundered as I walked inside Gio’s home, because I had this news that I had to share with him. I knew he’d be excited, and that was why I’d gone to all those lengths to act like I wouldn’t be back for ages. I just wanted it to be right.
“So, how have things been?” I asked sweetly, acting all innocent which I knew would wind him up.
“What’s going on with you?”
“Don’t give me that!” He threw his hands above his head. “What are you doing here? I thought you weren’t coming home for ages.”
“I know,” I laughed so loudly my head fell backward. “I said that to fool you because… well, I have some good news for you.”
“What’s that?” He looked on edge, like he was expecting the worst to happen, making me smile much brighter. This had worked even better than I hoped it would.
“I’m back.”
He stared at me.
“As in, I’m back, for good.”
I felt the need to clarify, just in case he hadn’t totally gotten it yet. I wanted him to be surprised, but he needed to understand for that to happen.
“But… but… the contract.”
“I wasn’t totally honest about all of that,” I admitted happily.
“I was training to become an electrician. I did the qualification whilst I was still working, and now I have job set up ready for me.”
“So you’re done with the army?” Gio’s face paled.
He looked sick to his stomach, but in the best way possible, like he didn’t quite know how to process any of this.
“Like, for good?”
I pulled him in for a kiss, reaping the rewards of the last few months of hard work. This plan formulated a year and a half ago, when I first left Gio behind, and I’d been doing it in secret ever since.
At first I kept it to myself in case it didn’t all plan out in the way that I wanted, but I also enjoyed knowing that the surprise would be an epic one.
“I’m all yours now,” I told him softly. “If you’ll still want me.”
“Of course, you idiot!” He punched playfully on the arm as he chuckled weakly.
“I just… I’m stunned. I can’t believe it. Your letter only just came, and I was planning on months alone, dealing with the wedding planning nightmare without you.”
“Well, now you have me, so everything is all good. Although I might not tell Max until the wedding’s done…”
As I walked through the apartment, my heart lifted with excitement.
I knew how much Gio loved me. It was utterly obvious every single day, but I still found it touching when he did nice things for me to prove that much. It was clear that he’d slowly been making space for me in his home and his life. It was the little things, like the constant stock of lemonade he always had even when I wasn’t going to be back for months.
It meant I was right to do everything that I’d done, including what was to come next.
As Gio moved around me, still looking at me like I wasn’t quite real, my face broke into a smile. I wasn’t the best at keeping secrets anyway, so the fact that I’d just revealed a whole bunch that I’d been keeping locked away for ages was making it even harder to keep this last one inside.
Oh, sod it. It was time to do it now.
I didn’t have any major plans for this anyway, so why not now? If this experience had taught me anything, it was that there was no time like the present.
“Gio.” I dropped to one knee as he stared at me. “I have something that I want to ask you.”
“What are you doing?” he panted, his hand loudly clapping against his mouth.
“Derek, what is this?”
He knew, well it seemed like he did, but it was overwhelming him.
“This is something that should’ve happened years ago, if external forces hadn’t gotten in the way. We were always meant to be together; we knew that even back then. And now we’ve been brought back together to finally make that happen. It would be a waste to not take full advantage of that. I wanted to wait until I was back in your life full time to do this, because I wanted it to be perfect, and I hope you agree that it is.”
“It is…” Gio’s eyes had totally welled up, emotion was getting the better of him, but the most important part was that he looked overjoyed. “It is amazing.”
“So, what do you say, will you make me the happiest man alive and agree to marry me?”
Saying those words aloud caused a hot happiness to explode in my chest.
It just felt so right.
“I can’t believe this,” Gio said breathlessly. “It’s too much, I just… after all this time I can’t believe that it’s finally happening. You’re going to be moving in here, you’ll be with me properly, and now we’re going to get married too.”
“Is that a yes then?” I asked, trying to laugh before I burst into tears too.
“Come on, don’t leave me hanging.”
“Yes, of course it’s a yes! How could you ever think it wouldn’t be, you fool? You know I love you, I’d love nothing more than to marry you.”
As Gio threw his arms around me, and his lips collided with mine, everything felt right with the world.
All the choices that I’d ever made in my life, even the not-so-great ones, had made all of this happen, and I was so grateful.
“I can’t believe you’re going to make an honest man out of me.”
“I know,” I murmured against his lips.
“I’m the luckiest man alive. I can’t wait to love you forever more.”
The End
###
Read an Excerpt from The Wedding Date (Only Him Series Book 1)
Bryant hates that he can’t get over Tony. The way that their relationship has ended was brutal and he doesn’t know what to do to help himself recover… especially when he learns that he’s going to have to face him and his new lover (the man that destroyed them) at his sister’s wedding this weekend.
Luckily his friend Hayley has a plan. All he needs is a hot date to make his ex
jealous, and she knows the perfect man for the job. He’s sexy, fun loving, and far more exciting than his ex ever was.
Max only agrees to go to the wedding because he needs to inject some spice into his life. Things haven’t really been going well recently, but as he starts to notice a little spark growing between him and Bryant, he can’t help but wonder if he’s falling in too deep… this might be a little bit too much excitement.
And then secrets and lies coming spilling out, which threatens to tear both of their lives to shreds. Will they survive the eventful wedding weekend, or will they both regret faking it?
This book is the first part of Only Him Series, but it can also be read on its own.
Chapter One
Bryant
"Yeah, of course, Sally," I forced my lips to curl up into a smile as my sister told me the most horrendous news ever - over the phone, making it cut even deeper.
"That'll be fine." My heart had sunk. My mood dipped lower than ever, and I had no idea how I was going to get through this now.
"I'll see you on Saturday, looking forward to it already."
"Love you!" Either my sister was too consumed by wedding fever to notice, or she was totally ignoring my inner turmoil because it really didn't suit her right now. "See you then."
As I clicked the phone shut, my work colleague and closest friend, Hayley, gave me a sympathetic look from her tiny booth.
"More bridezilla stuff?"
To be fair, she wasn't far off in her assumption. Sally had been a bit of a nightmare with the wedding at times, but this time I could shake my head and be totally honest.
"No, it's worse," I sighed deeply. My mind was spinning with ideas, trying to find anything to get me out of this, but of course there wasn't any way I could avoid the long awaited wedding day of my only sibling.
"I guess I knew it'd happen, but hearing it has really freaked me out. Tony will be there this weekend, and I'm going to have to face him and Desi."
Urgh, I wasn't sure that I could manage it.
It was going to be awful.
I couldn't imagine it was ever good to see your ex with someone new, but this was even worse because Tony had found love with the person he'd cheated on me with. I'd been left with my heart broken and my life in tatters, and he'd gone on to find pure happiness.
That killed me.
It absolutely destroyed me and had left me unable to move on. With no closure, what was I supposed to do? I'd tried my best to forget about him, and I'd even vaguely attempted to date someone new, but I couldn't do it because the whole time I couldn't work out what I'd done wrong.
Why wasn't Tony happy with me? Why did he feel unable to communicate with me? Why was I so blind to the signs of him being with someone else behind my back? I had to be the last person in the whole world to notice. It was as humiliating as it was gut-wrenching.
Sure, eight long months had passed and clearly everyone else had moved beyond the upheaval, but not me. My life was stuck in limbo, and I couldn't seem to shake that off however hard I tried.
"Well, I suppose Sally is marrying Tony's cousin," Hayley replied cautiously. "It makes sense that he'll be there."
"I know, but does he have to bring him?" I whined, flopping my head into my hands. "They're still together, everyone will be flocking around them talking about how good they are together, and I'm still by myself. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if I had some hot date on my arm, but I don't..."
"That's it!" Hayley exclaimed, grabbing hold of my arm in over the top excitement. "That's what you need to do. Take some hot guy as your plus one."
As much as that idea appealed, it was utterly impossible.
"You are my plus one, remember," I nudged her playfully. "I wouldn't want to deprive you the joy of watching my sister and her beloved get hitched."
She screwed up her face, making her feelings on that plan very clear. Hayley didn't really know my sister, only what she'd heard of since she started working with me, so I already knew she wasn't too keen on the idea of coming. She was only suffering it because I begged her to, and the idea of a free trip and bar probably helped. There was no way she'd be offended if I ditched her, but there still wasn't a chance in hell of me finding anyone to come to the wedding with me at such short notice.
Then, all of a sudden, her eyes lit up and my heart stopped dead in my chest.
That meant she had an idea, and as past experience had taught us, her ideas often landed me in hot water. Whether I ended up hung-over and late for work, or with a small tattoo on my hip... Hayley was officially a bad influence.
Still, I loved her for it.
She managed to bring me out of my shell when I was at my lowest ebb. She helped me to get over my heartache, and for that I'd always be grateful. If it wasn't for her, I would still probably be sobbing on my couch, unable to even move in my sadness, texting and begging Tony to come back to me every five minutes. At least she'd gotten me out of that pit.
"I know someone," she nodded frantically as she spoke, becoming increasingly animated with each passing second.
“Oh my God, I know the perfect guy. He's so cool, with light brown wavy hair, and a body to die for. And he has that awesome stubble, the sort that makes him rugged and handsome, rather than scruffy. Know what I mean? Oh my God, he'll be perfect." She had her phone out and was tapping away on it before I could even speak.
"Erm... what the hell are you on about?" I finally ventured. "Please tell me you aren't setting me up on a blind date for my sister's wedding! Do you know how awkward that'll be? Are you insane?"
"No, it'll be fine," she shut me down without even bothering to meet my eyes. "Max is awesome, you'll love him. Look." As she held out her phone to me, showing me a picture that literally made my heart skip a beat, I found my mouth unable to speak.
I could just picture jealousy coursing through Tony.
"He's honestly amazing. Totally perfect for this. Trust me." She said.
Trust me. Two simple words that I had no idea what to do with.
I wanted to go along with her plan, however crazy it sounded, but the reality wouldn't work out the way I pictured it in my mind.
Would it?
"Yeah, yeah, okay," my mouth spoke without me even realizing that I'd made my choice. I was lost in my mind, consumed by the awesome fantasy of finally having the upper hand.
Who knew? Maybe Tony would be so sickened by jealousy that he'd beg for me to go back to him. I didn't want to admit it to anyone, but I really wanted him to want me back. I didn't want to take him up on that offer (although maybe I probably would, if I was totally honest with myself), the main point of it would be to reject him. To watch his face crumble the way mine did when I walked in our apartment to find him and Desi sitting there, calmly holding hands, waiting to tell me that they'd found love behind my back.
I wanted to hurt him the way he hurt me, and this actually felt like a great way to do that.
"Yeah, I think you're right after all, Hayley. I think this might be exactly what I need to do."
Hayley grinned that wicked smile at me, approving of my decision.
"You won't regret this," she assured me.
"You'll be kissing my feet once you see the heartbroken look on Tony's face. Finally, the punishment he deserves!"
Chapter Two
Max
"What do you want?" I asked Hayley suspiciously as she sidled over to me with a smirk plastered across her face.
I'd been coming to the same gym as her long enough to know when she was up to something... and this was definitely one of those times.
"You're up to something. I just know it."
She didn't answer. Instead, she simply sat in the seat next to me, sucking down her smoothie with an overly innocent expression on her face.
"Oh God. You want something, don't you? What is it this time?"
Her face lit up, and I knew that I was in a lot of trouble.
"This will be something you love, I promise." She said.
/> But I couldn't trust those words. She was terrible for telling me I'd love things that were bad for me. The number of times that I'd missed out on training because she dragged me into the cafe before I got a chance to even lift a weight... Still, she was a lot of fun, so I'd let her get away with it.
"What is it?" there was a warning in my tone now, one that she picked up on because her expression instantly became more serious. "You better tell me now. I'm too sweaty to be dealing with questions right now." I shot her a wink so she knew that I wasn't angry.
"Look, I have this friend, a guy that I work with actually, and he's absolutely awesome."
"Right..." I didn't like where this was going at all. My hackles were well and truly raised.
Was she trying to set me up? Was I giving off desperate vibes? Maybe I hadn't been in a relationship for a while, but that didn't mean I needed help. I actually felt really defensive about it.
"He has his sister's wedding coming up this weekend, and he needs a date." She fluttered her eyelashes at me, but that wasn't going to be enough to coerce me. I needed more information before I'd even begin to entertain this idea. I wasn't keen on the idea of attending such a formal event surrounded only by strangers. I didn't think anyone would want that?
"Why doesn't he have a date already?” I asked incredulously. “Surely the wedding has been organized for a while now?" Why couldn't I work out what was wrong here? I felt like all the clues were all there but I couldn't quite put them together.
"Actually, his date is me, but I can't go now. I know this is a bit sudden, and maybe a little crazy, but I just know for a fact that you'll love him."
I'd gone out with Hayley a couple of times. She knew the sort of guys that I was into, but still I couldn't shake the suspicious feeling snaking through my veins. I just really felt like there was something deeper going on here, and I wanted to know what.
"So, this really nice guy was going to take you to a wedding?" I asked.
