Niki filled the ice bucket. “Grant was nervous to tell you and Dex when we started dating.”
Lucy nodded. “As he should have been. We were concerned about you. Dex asked Grant to keep guys away from you, not to be your next boyfriend. You’d had too many broken hearts.”
Niki nodded. “Grant isn’t like the others. My heart’s in good hands with him.”
“We know. It’s all good.” Lucy hugged her. “Dex and I couldn’t be more pleased.”
“Thank you. It means a lot to me and to Grant.” The sisters returned to the living room, and Niki set the ice on the table near the drinks.
“When will Grant be here?” their mother asked.
“Dex is supposed to text me when he and Grant turn into the neighborhood,” Niki said. “Then we can all hide and shout ‘happy birthday’ when the birthday boy walks in.”
“You did remember to charge your phone, didn’t you?” her mother asked.
Niki picked her cell up from the counter and realized it was dead again. “Oops.”
“I’ll have Dex text me instead,” Lucy said.
But as her sister typed a message on her phone, the front door opened and in came Grant.
Niki shouted, “Surprise!”
Grant stopped in the doorway as the rest of the guests repeated the greeting almost in unison. His face reddened, but as soon as Niki ushered him into her living room and put a bottle of beer in his hand, he relaxed.
“Happy birthday, buddy.” Dex slapped him on the back.
Niki’s stepdad gave him a hug.
Aunt Bev patted his arm. “Good thing you snapped her up when you did. My friend Florence wanted to introduce her grandson to Niki, and he’s almost as handsome as you are.”
“I chased her until she caught me,” Grant said.
Niki grinned at him. The rest of her family and Grant’s said their happy birthdays and wished him well. Her turn would come later when they were alone.
After he thanked everyone for coming, he pulled her aside. “You make me very happy, Niki.”
“Back at ya, birthday boy.” She gave him another kiss and wondered how she’d gotten so lucky.
“You’re the best birthday present I could imagine.”
“Get a room,” Lucy teased as she strode past them on her way to the kitchen. “Oh, right, you already have one. What do you think of your birthday present, Grant? I told Niki that a cat tree that big would take up most of your living room.”
Niki groaned. “Well, so much for your surprise.”
“Oops,” Lucy mumbled.
Grant chuckled. “Really?”
She rolled her eyes. “I couldn’t think of anything to get you, and you were no help, by the way.” She’d been asking him for a week what he wanted, but he’d never given her an answer.
His expression grew serious. “That’s because as long as I have you, I have everything.”
Looking up at him, she’d never been more sure of anything in her life. “Remember how I crashed into you before Lucy and Dex’s wedding?”
“Of course. I’ll never forget the first moment I laid eyes on you.”
“Then you helped me up when I stumbled going down the stairs.” Her eyes stung with tears. One escaped.
He wiped his thumb across her cheek. “An idiot had just let you go.”
She nodded. “Every time I fall, you catch me. You’ve always been there for me.”
“Because I love you.”
When he cupped her cheek, she leaned into his touch. “I love you, too, Grant.” No more shattered dreams. This time she’d found a keeper.
Did you love this Lovestruck? Check out more of our satisfying titles here!
Don’t miss another book by Wynter Daniels! Sign up for our newsletter here!
Acknowledgments
Huge thanks to my amazing editor, Tracy Montoya, who takes a manuscript and hugs it and loves it and squeezes it and calls it George. I aspire to have a tenth of your talent someday.
As always, thank you to my agent, Jill Marsal for being my advocate and doing your job with such kindness and finesse.
About the Author
Wynter Daniels has authored more than two dozen romances, including paranormal, contemporary, and romantic suspense books for several publishers including Entangled Publishing and Carina Press. She lives in sunny Florida with her family and one very spoiled cat. After careers in marketing and the salon industry, Wynter’s wicked prose begged to be set free. You can find her on the web at http://www.wynterdaniels.com.
Also by Wynter Daniels
The Surrogate Husband
Find love in unexpected places with these satisfying Lovestruck reads…
Ten Days with the Highlander
a Love Abroad novel by Hayson Manning
There’s no way Callum MacGregor is going to let a gorgeous American turn his hotel in the Scottish Highlands over to bored tourists looking to satisfy their Outlander fantasies. But if he can get go-getter Georgia Paxton to slow down and see the magic of the town and its people, maybe he won’t have to run her out of the county…or his heart.
Her Sexy Challenge
a Firefighters of Station 1 novel by Sarah Ballance
Caitlin Tyler doesn’t do bridges. Cue the cocky, infuriating fireman who goads her off the bridge. He’s hot, but he’s also exactly the kind of guy she wants to avoid…which she manages to do for a whole four hours. Lt. Shane Hendricks is only two weeks away from leaving Dry Rock. He sure as hell doesn’t need to get involved with a woman he has to rescue twice in one day. They’re moving in different directions. Leaving should be easy, but falling for Caitlin might be the one fire he can’t put out…
The Right Ranger
a Men of At Ease Ranch novel by Donna Michaels
Former Army Ranger Cord Brannigan secretly promised his fallen teammate he’d protect the tempting, fiercely independent Haley Wagner from a distance, but now they’re stuck together for three weeks. Alone. Keeping his hands off will take every ounce of control he can muster. And that control is slipping…
One Little Kiss
a Smart Cupid novel by Maggie Kelley
Love blogger Kate Bell is finished with men—especially the hot ones. Of course her only chance to save her career requires snagging an interview with the man who literally wrote the book on love, reclusive and super-sexy relationship expert Jake Wright. Who happens to be her boss’s brother.
The Best Man's Proposal (The Hamilton Sisters) Page 20
