Total pages in book: 120
Estimated words: 121755 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 609(@200wpm)___ 487(@250wpm)___ 406(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 121755 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 609(@200wpm)___ 487(@250wpm)___ 406(@300wpm)
I had to think on this.
I had to see if I’d booted one of my personalities.
I might have to talk to Shanti or the whole girl gang about this.
And this delay in learning what big bad Gabe might be harboring so I might be in the position to help him deal with it (or at least stop those nightmares) made me cranky.
Though, I couldn’t deny it felt good he gave it up so easily about that other chick.
And it felt better knowing she was history.
“Now what’s in your head?” Gabe murmured.
“A lot, too much,” I confessed. “But at this very moment it’s the fact I just noticed Mr. Happy is gone, and I miss him.”
For a second, he looked stunned, even startled, so much, his entire body twitched with it.
And then he busted out laughing.
Full on. Full throated. Deep. Rich. Uninhibited.
Spectacular.
I’d known him now for some time, and I’d never seen him laugh like that.
I watched, and it was now me who was shocked, even startled, and feeling a whole lot more.
And we could just say that whole lot was a whole lot, and it was all good.
I’d rounded him with both arms but was only stroking his spine with the fingers on one hand (though, I was considering engaging the other one) by the time he was done.
“Keep doin’ that, cupcake, he’ll come back,” he teased.
Teased!
You know, no one ever thinks the dreamers know what they’re talking about, Dreamer mused astutely in my head. But then they dare to dream, and they find out we were right all along.
Nobody likes a know-it-all, I retorted.
Whatever, was Dreamer’s lame comeback.
“You wanna cook something here?” I said out loud to Gabe. “Go out and get brunch? Or hit a donut place and come back?”
His expression shifted to something so beautiful, it was difficult to witness.
But no way in hell did I turn away.
Nope, I memorized that look in a way I knew I’d never forget it.
You so totally belong to him, sister, Dreamer said.
Don’t make me bring Pessimism back, I warned.
Dreamer shut her trap.
Through my conversation with one of my personalities, Gabe said, “Brunch,” just as there was a harried knock on my front door.
No, not a knock, exactly. More like someone was slapping it quickly and constantly.
And whoever was doing it was going to get the sharp edge of my tongue, because Gabe’s head swiveled in that direction and that beloved look on his face disappeared.
He then angled out of bed, ordering, “Stay here.”
He went to his jeans.
I pushed up in bed.
He put on his jeans, and still buttoning them, shirtless, he stalked down the hall.
I got out of bed and walked to the doorway to watch him move (and, obviously, find out who was at the door).
For your information, it was an awesome show.
He looked out the peephole, opened the door, and Shanti nearly fell through it.
I instantly knew something was up, and it was huge, so I raced down the hall and caught her with both hands.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“Ohmigod, ohmigod, ohmigod,” she chanted, practically skipping in place.
That was so not Shanti, I didn’t know whether to preemptively get excited with her or check her temperature.
“What?”
“Luna didn’t want to disturb you guys because she has this morning in the pool and she didn’t want you interrupted,” she said without saying what she should be saying.
So I screeched, “What?”
“I guess Cap got inspired after the OSRA meeting yesterday, because he proposed to Raye last night, and she said yes.”
I stood perfectly still but I felt pleasure waves coming off Gabe and colliding with us.
God, feeling his reaction to his friends’ happiness, seriously, I had to let go of the final clutch I had on my misguided self-preservation and admit it.
He really was a super good guy.
“They surfaced from the love fest just long enough for Raye to call Luna this morning and tell her,” Shanti explained. “And she said Luna could tell us, but no one is allowed to tell Shirleen yet. She knew it was going to happen, because she helped Cap pick the ring, but she doesn’t know it happened.”
“This is…ohmigod,”—I started jumping, and since Shanti was still attached to me, she jumped with me—“this is so awesome!”
“I know!”
“I’m gonna make them the best cake.”
“I know!”
“I love this!”
“I do too!”
I tipped my head back, both of us still jumping, and screamed, “It rawks!”
Shanti did the same and screamed, “Cap and Raye forever!”
We bounced some more, grinning like fools at each other.
Then Shanti’s attention wandered, and she stopped dead.
She detached from me, reeled back, her hand fluttering to her throat, and gasped, “Lawd.”
I looked to what she was looking at and saw Gabe standing there, half of his mouth hitched up, his entire torso on show, his jeans slung low with the top two buttons still undone and those hip muscle indents on proud display, and I understood her reaction.