We go up, then stop, and the doors open again. Two more people get on, and they also face the same direction.
I don’t know if I’m going to be able to hold in my laughter. My stomach shakes as I try to hold myself together.
Linc laces his fingers through mine, and that gives me just enough self-control to keep from bursting into a fit of giggles. I don’t know how he keeps a straight face so easily.
The elevator comes to a stop again, opening the doors.
He glances back. “This is our floor.”
We spin around and hurry out, dissolving into laughter as soon as the doors shut.
Linc clutches his stomach. “Every time!”
I wipe my eyes. “Do you think that’ll ever get old?”
“If it does, I’ll get a cooler and label it ‘human head.’”
“You wouldn’t!”
“You still don’t know me very well, do you?”
“Actually, I do. It’s just that you keep saying you’re going to do that but you don’t.”
He lifts a brow. “Is that a dare?”
“Maybe.”
“You’re on.” He wraps his arms around me and brushes his lips across mine. “But that’ll have to wait. We don’t want to be late.”
“For what, exactly? You still haven’t told me where we’re going, or why we’re dressed up.”
He looks me over. “Do I need a reason?”
“No, but you don’t usually request I wear a dress.”
Linc kisses my cheek, takes my hand, and whistles an innocent tune as he leads me down the hall.
“You’re such a weirdo.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment.”
“You would.”
We stroll down the immaculate hallway of the tall building. Outside the large picture windows, the summer sun is starting to lower, though it’ll be hours before the sky changes color.
“Is there some fancy restaurant up here?” I ask.
“You’ll see.” He gives me a teasing glance.
I try to glower at him but fail miserably.
He laughs and kisses my nose.
We pass a mirror, and he stops to adjust his tie.
I give myself a once-over. If I didn’t know better, I’d never guess I’d had crutches and stitches less than a year ago. Everything had healed perfectly to the point that walking in high heels doesn’t cause any discomfort. The doctor at the hospital had been concerned that some of my old breaks hadn’t healed properly, but I feel great. Especially standing next to Lincoln in his suit and tie.
He catches me staring and cups my chin, kissing me deeply. I nearly forget my curiosity about the secret location of our date. He pulls away all too quickly. “We’d better hurry.”
“If you say so.”
We go down the hallway a little farther. He stops at a door, starts to reach for the knob but then stops and pulls out his phone.
“What are you doing?”
“Nothing.” His eyes shine with mischievousness as he taps out a text then returns his phone to his pocket.
“Whatever.” I study the door, trying to guess what could be on the other side. There’s no sign or decoration to indicate what it could be.
Linc puts his arm around my waist and finally turns the knob.
We step into a dark room.
My pulse picks up speed. I start to say something when the lights turn on.
“Surprise!” a bunch of people shout.
I nearly jump out of my skin. My heart threatens to explode out of my chest. I look around, trying to make sense of it all—the balloons, wrapped presents, and orange flowers all over the room.
Jaiden, Samara, and Raven all run at me, nearly suffocating me in their embraces.
I turn to Lincoln. “What’s going on?”
“It’s your birthday party.” He grins.
“But my birthday isn’t for two weeks.”
“Surprise!”
My friends give me breathing room, and I step toward the small crowd. Holden and Belen both come near me. Holden looks better than I’ve ever seen him. He went through rehab after being released from the hospital and has stayed clean since. He’s in school, and even made the dean’s list last quarter.
I throw my arms around him. “Thanks for coming.”
He returns the embrace. “Are you kidding? I wouldn’t miss this for anything. I’m the one who should be thanking you.”
“Me?”
A wistful expression crosses his face. “For everything you’ve done for me over the years. Thank you, sis.” He wraps his arms around me.
I squeeze him tightly. “You don’t know how much that means.”
“You’ve always been there for me. Now it’s my turn.” He grins and steps back. “Belen wouldn’t miss it, either. He wouldn’t let me forget to pick him up. He texted me every hour for the last five days.”
My youngest brother wraps his arms around me. “Happy birthday, Malia. You look beautiful.”
I hug him. “Thank you. You look great yourself. Things are still going well with your foster family?”
He steps back with a conflicted expression.
“What?” I ask. “Is something wrong?”
Belen looks back and forth between Holden and me.
Holden puts his hand on our brother’s shoulder. “They want to adopt him.”
I turn to Belen and beam. “That’s fantastic!”
“But I still want to be your brother.”
My heart swells and I pull him close. “You’ll always be our brother, no matter what. You’ll be a part of two families, and that’s great news. You can never have too many people who love you.”
“Really?”
“That’s what I told you.” Holden gave him a knowing look.
I give my youngest brother another hug. “We’ll always be family. I need to say hi to the other guests, but we’ll talk more in a bit. Sound good?”
Belen nods, a slow smile spreading across his face.
“I’m really happy for you.”
Lincoln’s parents come over and wish me a happy birthday.
“You two knew about this all along?” I’m still staying with them, so I don’t know how they went along with Linc and kept silent about such a big event.
Greer smiles. “We did. And you never suspected a thing when I asked you about your favorite meals, colors, and other things.”
I shake my head. “No, but now it all makes sense. I thought you were just making small talk.”
Lincoln appears and kisses my forehead. “Mom never just makes small talk.”
She laughs.
He places his hand on the small of my back. “Someone else wants to wish you a happy birthday.”
“Who?” I look around.
Linc leads me just around his parents. Around the corner is a dance floor, and a band in place ready to start playing.
It’s not just any band.
Before I have a chance to react, Rogan and Kenna run over and wish me happy birthday. Then they break out in song, and the whole room gathers around singing. Half the people pull out their phones and take pictures and videos of the surreal moment.
Then Rogan and Kenna head back over to the band and start playing my favorite song.
I turn to Lincoln. “How did you manage to pull all of this together? I seriously had no clue.”
He gives me a quick kiss. “I had a lot of help.”
Then he pulls me to the dance floor and busts out some moves I never knew he had.
Others join us until we’re bumping into them.
I gaze into Lincoln’s eyes, getting lost. The whole thing is surreal. Not only is my favorite band playing at my birthday party, but both my brothers are here and doing better than ever. Despite all the damage our now imprisoned parents inflicted upon us, they couldn’t keep us down. And none of it would’ve been possible without Lincoln, who believed in all of us.
The music stops and doesn’t go to a new song.
Rogan st
eps up to one of the mics. “I believe someone has a very important question to ask a special person.” He then glances my way.
I turn to Lincoln. “What’s he talking about?”
Linc takes my hand, and the crowd makes room for us to walk over to the band.
My heart races and I nearly trip over my own two feet before we reach them.
Kenna hands something to Linc, then my boyfriend gets down on one knee.
“What?” My hands fly to my mouth.
Lincoln smiles wider than I’ve ever seen and takes my hand in his. “Malia, you’ve changed my life in the best way imaginable. When I walked into your family’s restaurant that night, I had no idea how that would change that entire trajectory of my world—it brought you into it. And now that you’re here, I don’t know how I ever lived without you. I’ve grown to love you more than I ever thought possible. More importantly, I don’t ever want to go a day without seeing your gorgeous face or hearing your voice. I want to be with you for every up and down we face. I’ll support you in your trials and I know you’ll be there for me in my hard times. Will you make me the happiest man alive and marry me?”
Tears sting my eyes. This can’t be happening.
He pulls out a black velvet box and opens it, revealing a stunning diamond ring. “What do you say?”
“Yes! Of course!”
Lincoln slides on the ring. It’s a perfect fit. He rises and gives me the most passionate kiss of my life.
Applause sounds all around us.
We pull apart, then people envelop us in hugs.
Rogan steps up to the mic again. “We have a special song that we wrote just for you two.”
My knees nearly give out.
I turn to Linc. “He can’t be serious.”
He cups my chin. “He is. They’ve been working on it for a while.”
Music fills the room, then Rogan’s and Kenna’s voices blend together in perfect harmony.
Lincoln wraps his arms around me, and we move to the slow and beautiful love song. He plays with a strand of my hair. “You really have made me the happiest man alive.”
Tears of joy mist my eyes. “And you’ve made life worth living.”
Rusty Caldwell is no stranger to tragedy: First he lost his wife and kids in a deadly accident, and now his sister has committed suicide. But as Rusty unpacks the sad and unexpected event, he stumbles upon hastily buried secrets…
Read No Return today!
Other Books by Stacy Claflin
THRILLERS
Alex Mercer Thrillers
Girl in Trouble
Turn Back Time
Little Lies
Against All Odds
Don’t Forget Me
Tainted Love
Take On Me
Danger Zone
Lady in Red
White Wedding
The Gone Saga
The Gone Trilogy: Gone, Held, Over
Dean’s List
No Return
Brannon House
The Perfect Death
Family Secrets
The Darkest Garden
Standalones
Lies Never Sleep
Dex
ROMANTIC SUSPENSE
When Tomorrow Starts Without Me
The Only Things You Can Take
When You Start to Miss Me
PARANORMAL ROMANCE
Dark Sea Academy
Mermaid’s Song
Mermaid’s Heart
Mermaid’s Wish
Curse of the Moon
Lost Wolf
Chosen Wolf
Hunted Wolf
Broken Wolf
Cursed Wolf
Secret Jaguar
Valhalla’s Curse
Renegade Valkyrie
Pursued Valkyrie
Silenced Valkyrie
Vengeful Valkyrie
Unleashed Valkyrie
The Transformed Series
Main Series
Deception
Betrayal
Forgotten
Ascension
Duplicity
Sacrifice
Destroyed
Transcend
Entangled
Dauntless
Obscured
Partition
Standalones
Fallen
Silent Bite
Hidden Intentions
Saved by a Vampire
Sweet Desire
Standalones
Haunted
Beauty
SWEET ROMANCE
The Hunters
Seaside Surprises
Seaside Heartbeats
Seaside Dances
Seaside Kisses
Seaside Christmas
Bayside Wishes
Bayside Evenings
Bayside Promises
Bayside Destinies
Bayside Opposites
Bayside Mistletoe
Bayside Dreams
Indigo Bay
Sweet Dreams
Sweet Reunion
Sweet Complications
Standalones
Fall into Romance
SHORT STORIES
Tiny Bites
Author's Note
Thanks for reading When You Start to Miss Me. I’ve really fallen for all of the main characters who have their own demons to fight. There is a strong piece of me in each of the main characters - especially the Malia, Sutton, and Kenna. I put my heart into most books I write (some have just been for fun!) and it’s true especially in this series. If you found yourself relating to any of them, you’ll also likely enjoy my thrillers which also often deal with deep issues of the heart and soul.
If you enjoyed this book, please consider leaving a review wherever you purchased it. Not only will your review help me to better understand what you like—so I can give you more of it!—but it will also help other readers find my work. Reviews can be short—just share your honest thoughts. That’s it.
Want to know when I have a new release? Sign up for new release updates:
http://stacyclaflin.com/newsletter/
I’ve spent many hours writing, re-writing, and editing this work. I even put together a team who helped with the editing process. As it is impossible to find every single error, if you find any, please contact me through my website and let me know. Then I can fix them for future editions.
Thank you for your support!
~Stacy
About the Author
Stacy Claflin is a two-time USA Today bestselling author who writes about flawed characters that overcome unsurmountable odds. No matter how dark situations seem, there is always a sliver of hope—even if you have to search far and wide to find it. That message is weaved throughout all of her stories.
Decades after she wrote her first tales on construction paper and years after typing on an inherited green screen computer, Stacy realized her dream of becoming a full-time bestselling author.
When she's not busy writing or educating her kids from home, Stacy enjoys time in nature, reading, and watching a wide variety of shows in many genres. Her favorite pastime activity is spending time with her family.
For more information:
stacyclaflin.com/about
When You Start to Miss Me: A Romantic Suspense (Wildflower Romance Book 3) Page 17
