by Jody Holford
This was her chance. “No. He didn’t do it happily. I wish that could have happened. Instead, I had to resort to his type of negotiations.”
She watched his face as he processed the information. His eyes burned into hers, setting her skin on fire.
“Why?” His voice came out as a husky whisper.
“Because I wasn’t losing the opportunity to show you I meant everything I said. This is our home,” she whispered.
“You own the whole place?” The awe in his tone soothed the residual pain. He squeezed her tight. “I’m so happy for you. You deserve it. I’m sorry your brother and father couldn’t see that.”
Doesn’t he get it? “Me, too. But we all make our own choices. I wanted to make ones I could live with. I didn’t expect it to turn out this way, but sometimes we just have to believe things will end up how they’re supposed to be.”
Pain flashed in his eyes and panic beat frantic wings in her stomach.
“I’m sorry I didn’t give you the faith and trust you deserve, Mia. Honestly, I am. I wrecked something really amazing because of my own insecurities.”
She waited. What was he doing? Wasn’t he going to try to fix it? “Are you still moving out?”
Please say no. Please say that we aren’t just walking away from everything. He shifted and eased out from under her so she was sitting beside him. He put his head in his hands and sighed.
“I have to.”
Panic surged in her chest, making her heart race. “You don’t. I’m about to tell everyone they don’t have to move. I told you it would be okay.”
“Regardless of what okay looks like to you, Mia, I can’t stay here.”
Fury that he was so goddamn stubborn had her off the couch and on her feet. “Why the hell not? Why do you have to run?”
He stood and went toe to toe with her. “Because I can’t stay here knowing I screwed up what could have been the best thing to come into my life. I can’t stay here knowing how easy it would be to fall in love with you while you go on with your life.”
Her heart fell to her feet. She couldn’t move and she was back to not breathing.
Unsure if her voice would be steady, she spoke quietly, “What?”
His tone was like an anchor of pain drowning them both. She wanted to save him. To keep him afloat. Not because he couldn’t save himself. They’d both hurt if they walked away, but they’d be okay. But they’d be so much more than okay if they kicked to the surface together.
“I can’t. I’m sorry. I know you’re going to make things right here. I do have faith in you. I didn’t show it and I hate myself for it. But I know whatever you have planned will include taking care of the people that live in this place that matters so much to you. I’m sorry I didn’t say that sooner.”
“You think you could fall in love with me?” She couldn’t remember the last time anyone other than her grandmother had said those words.
Brady’s mouth tightened. “If we’re going for straight up honesty? I think I already did.”
He pressed a kiss to her forehead and started past her. She grabbed his arm and pulled him back to face her.
“What if I fell in love with you, too?”
His lips parted and he sucked in a breath. “Did you?”
She lifted her chin. “Possibly.”
Brady exhaled hard. “Mia. Now is not a really great time to mess with me.”
She saw the sadness—and the hope—in his eyes and though it made her feel better to know she wasn’t the only one feeling both, she wouldn’t let him off the hook completely. “When it comes to me—to us—you walk away too easily. I won’t ask you to be something you’re not. But that’s not who you are. Only with me. You fight for things, Brady. You fought for this building, for your friends, for your nephew. Why didn’t you fight for me?”
He squeezed her hand and cupped her cheek. “Because I didn’t think I deserved you.”
“You do. We do. We deserve each other.”
“You love me?”
“Tell me you won’t walk away.”
He pulled her to the chair and nudged her into it and went down on his knees. He took her face in his hands.
“If you give me this chance to show you that I can be whatever you need, I swear to you, not only will I stay, you’ll have to get an army truck to pull me away from you.”
“That’s a bit dramatic.” She gave him a teasing smirk. But it felt so good to hear him say.
“I doubted you and I’m so sorry. I was trying to be stoic and leave with my head held high. Without pushing you or begging you for forgiveness.”
She put her hands to his face the way he did hers. “You can beg a little.”
He kissed her then and she forgot that she was teasing him. She wanted to crawl inside and believe every word he said. That he’d stand by her and they’d figure it out.
She pulled back. “It’s a choice, Brady. Making it work, believing in each other. The kind of people we want to be. It’s all a choice. I choose you.”
He crushed her against him and kissed her until she forgot about everything but the feel of him against her. When he eased back, he hugged her tightly.
“I won’t let you regret your choice,” he whispered.
Neither of them were perfect and maybe they both needed to work on believing in themselves as much as each other, but doing that didn’t seem as impossible as it once had.
“That sounds like a long-term truce,” she teased.
He held her hand as they started for the door of her office. “As long as you’ll have me.”
Stopping, she tugged him back once again. “Does this mean you won’t move out?”
Brady kissed her slow and sweet, then touched his forehead to hers. “I’m not going anywhere. Trust me.”
She laughed. “I do.”
Epilogue
Four months later
Brady leaned against one of the lobby walls, a glass of overpriced, really great champagne in his hand. A three-piece band played softly from where they were set up in the corner. A warm summer breeze drifted through the crowd of people mingling. Later, when the sun slid completely from the sky, they’d turn on the heat lamps they’d placed outside under the large white tents.
Laughter sang out along with the music as his eyes roamed the room. Wyatt and Shay stood by the buffet table. Wyatt smoothed a hand down Shay’s blond hair with an affection that could be felt all the way across the room. She went up on her tiptoes, an hors d’oeuvre in her fingers and fed it to him.
Gabby stood by the massive painting she’d completed just in time for the party. Owen held her hand as Mia’s grandmother showered her with praise. At least, that’s what it looked like from where Brady stood. She kept gesturing to the painting of the building and then squeezing Gabby’s arm.
Justin, looking way too mature in a three-piece suit, was laughing at something Tyler—his new boyfriend—had said. Jonathan, who had been chatting with the two of them, laughed as well. Turned out, the guy wasn’t so bad.
“You just standing here taking it all in?” Mia appeared at his side and his heart squeezed like it always did when she was near.
“Everyone I love is in this room,” he said.
She leaned her head against his shoulder as her fingers linked with his. Dressed in a flapper-style outfit, she looked freaking gorgeous. He’d woken up every morning for the last few months wondering how the hell he was so lucky.
“Shay did an amazing job with the event. My grandmother is so happy. Even my mom and dad are enjoying themselves.”
Brady turned them so they were facing each other and let his thumb brush across her cheek. Neither of them mentioned Michael, who had refused to attend.
“It’s not just Shay. You’ve done an incredible job as well,” Brady said, pressing his mouth to hers.
How did that never get old? He could spend hours just kissing her.
“Thanks. I’m really happy with how it’s turned out. Shay’s going to have a full
schedule now. I’ve had at least a half dozen people ask for my planner’s name.”
Pride swamped Brady. They were all doing what they loved. And they were still together. Kendrick Place—now fully occupied—was being recognized as a heritage site in the city, an honor Mia’s family was extremely moved by. Business was booming for Brady, and his friends, his nephew—his family—were thriving. They wouldn’t all live in the building forever, but for right now, they were all here. He couldn’t ask for more.
“I was thinking we should book her now before she gets too busy to say yes,” he said, pulling Mia closer.
“Hmm. Book her for what exactly?” She put her arms around his neck and smiled playfully.
“A party of our own.”
“What kind of party would that be?”
Brady smiled against her lips then eased back. “The kind where we stand up in front of all our friends and family and promise to love each other forever.”
Mia’s fingers trailed across the back of his neck, sending sparks down his spine and through his body.
“I’ve heard of those types of parties. Usually they start with a man buying a woman something shiny and getting down on one knee,” she said.
The ring sat heavily in Brady’s pocket, but he’d make himself wait until they were alone.
“What if the man already bought the woman something shiny and is just waiting for the perfect moment?”
Mia’s eyes widened and her mouth dropped open, just a little. “You did not.”
His heart hammered fast at the hopeful tone in her voice. “Bet you I did,” he whispered.
Letting her hands trail down to the front of his suit, she grasped the lapels. “Prove it.”
Brady put one of his hands over one of hers and slid both downward toward the pocket of his jacket. Mia gave a little gasp, whispering his name.
“Relax. I’m not putting your hand there.” He chuckled. God, she made him laugh and ache and want. She was perfect. And though he still had to remind himself sometimes, he knew he was perfect for her.
When her hand found the square box inside his pocket, she sucked in a hard, fast breath.
“When did you buy this?” she whispered.
“Doesn’t matter as long as you say yes.” He didn’t care about the other people in the room. All he saw was her.
She threw her arms around his neck again and pressed a hard, noisy kiss to his mouth.
“Yes.”
Brady leaned back, gripping her hips and laughing. “I didn’t ask yet.”
She framed his face in her hands and moisture filled her eyes. “But you will. And then we’ll make each other happy for the rest of forever.”
He pressed his forehead to hers, loving her so much it was painful. A good painful. The kind he never wanted to be without.
“You sound pretty sure.”
“I am. Completely sure. Of you. And of us.”
Happiness burst in his chest, warming him everywhere. “Me, too.”
“I love you, Brady.”
“I love you more, princess.”
She grinned, her eyes going soft at the nickname she no longer disliked. “Wanna bet?”
Brady laughed and hugged her close. Either way, he’d won. Everything.
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Acknowledgments
Thank you to everyone at Entangled who believed in these stories and helped me make them better. Particularly my lovely editors, Stacy and Alexa. There are so many people who work behind the scenes to ensure the words mean something on the page. I’m very grateful to all of you. To Fran…thank you for insisting I believe in my writing. As always, thank you to my family. Your support makes it easier to do this. To my writing friends and the amazing community I’m lucky enough to be part of—thank you. Finally, thank you to my readers for falling into these three stories with me…to being part of this journey, for reading my work.
About the Author
Jody Holford lives in British Columbia with her family. She’s unintentionally funny and rarely on time for anything. She writes multiple genres but her favorite is romance. Visit her online at http://jodyholford.weebly.com/ or sign up for her newsletter here to stay up to date on all of Jody’s new releases.
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