Total pages in book: 115
Estimated words: 111980 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 560(@200wpm)___ 448(@250wpm)___ 373(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 111980 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 560(@200wpm)___ 448(@250wpm)___ 373(@300wpm)
“Me neither,” Jay says.
“I wouldn’t dream of asking either of you to,” he says, then kisses my mom’s hand once more.
Life is good in Darling Springs.
Really good.
But I also want to get out of here with my dog and my man. After we say hello to his sisters, then chat with his dad and mom, as well as Latanya, my heart is full, but I’m so ready to go. We retrieve Captain from Levi, then escape the theater, and I draw a big breath of the warm night air, a little sea salt in the breeze.
“I love it here,” I say.
“Me too. Almost as much as I love you,” Sawyer says, then he tilts his head, an apology in his deep brown eyes. “I’m sorry again about the other day. I should have told you then. But I was convinced I’d let everyone down at the event. I was spiraling because of that. I thought I had handled it all badly.”
“You don’t have to do everything the right way all the time. What matters is that you see it and try again,” I say, trying to reassure him.
But he’ll have none of that. He reaches for my hand, squeezes it. “I’m not sorry I accidentally knocked your ex into the pool. He had it coming.”
I laugh. “I am definitely not sorry about that accident either. And you say choreography isn’t your thing. Please.”
He smiles, but then it fades, replaced by a vulnerable look in his eyes. “But mostly I pushed you away because I was afraid of being hurt.”
He sounds so raw and vulnerable. My heart aches.
“Me too,” I say. “I’m afraid of the same thing. And I didn’t give you much of a chance to say anything at your car. I didn’t tell you how I felt. But now you know. And I suppose we can be afraid together,” I say.
“We can be brave together,” he adds.
“I like that.” I tap-dance my fingers up his chest, stopping at his neck and standing close, very close to this sexy man. “But can we just fuck now?”
* * *
“Yes, yes, yes.”
I’m answering the question over and over again at his home.
“Say it one more time. Can we fuck every night?” he asks—or really, demands—as he drives into me, filling me all the way.
I’m bent over the bed, clutching the sheets, and Sawyer’s giving me one of my favorite things.
A good, hard railing.
I can feel it in my toes. In my belly. In every damn cell that’s lighting up and singing as he fucks me to pieces.
Until I fall apart, crying out in pleasure. And seconds later, with a grunt and a moan, he follows me there. Collapses on me. Wraps his arms around me and kisses my neck.
While a dog whines.
I glance down. It’s Mister Dog, thumping his tail.
“I guess someone needs to learn his sex manners,” I say as Sawyer eases out.
“Good thing my girlfriend is the best dog trainer around.”
I beam at that word. “So I’m your girlfriend, Sam?”
“You are. You’re mine. All mine.”
I like the sound of that. “That’s music to my ears,” I say, then I glance down. “Shower time. Also, you never sang in the shower for me.”
“I’m not going to sing with you.”
“I have to discover you singing?”
“That’s the way it works, Chloe.”
And in the morning, I find him crooning in the shower. He’s singing “Let’s Stay Together.”
Yes. Let’s.
EPILOGUE: BIG THINGS
SAWYER
“And that’s a wrap.”
The crew cheers at the director’s words, along with the actors—and the dog star emits a joyful bark—as Happily Maybe After finishes its first season, with the final scene being a kiss at the pet supply shop.
AKA—my business.
I cheer too. “Well done!” I shout. Since I’m trying to be more…effusive. Well, only occasionally. I still have a boss rep to maintain.
Levi’s eyes widen. “Look at you go.”
“I guess you do have it in you,” Hazel says with a smile.
“He’s full of surprises,” Zuri remarks as the crew starts breaking down the set as fast as they can.
Understandable. We have a fun night out planned to celebrate the season—but also the partnerships. The dog runway show was a big hit, with Shortcake making an appearance wearing a bow tie while Dandelion modeled a vest, and Baxter a jean jacket. So many more of our four-legged friends also strutted their stuff. Jubilee wore a T-shirt with a Sam Silversmith logo on it. It was designed by my girlfriend, who’s been having a blast making my merch. The Sam Silversmith shirts sell out at every show, and she hawks them herself at a table she sets up at the front of Pour Decisions.
Didn’t see that coming. But then again, she’s always been supportive. Next week, she’s bringing some temporary tattoos.
Tonight, though? The whole crew is going. I turn to them in the dog play area. “I need to go get ready. See you all at Pour Decisions?”