Total pages in book: 60
Estimated words: 58090 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 290(@200wpm)___ 232(@250wpm)___ 194(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 58090 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 290(@200wpm)___ 232(@250wpm)___ 194(@300wpm)
I pull into her driveway, and stare at her house. It looks exactly how it always has. White paint, blue shutters, pink flowers filling the flowerbeds under the windows. It’s so perfectly Hartford.
Unsure how to approach this, I grab the bag and jump out of my Jeep. My heart pounds harder in my chest with each step I take closer to her door. I can’t think of a time in my life I’ve felt this nervous or excited.
I knock on the door, and she opens it. My chest squeezes when I see the sadness in her eyes, but I’m about to fix it all.
“Can I come in?”
She opens the screen door and I step inside.
“What do you want?” she asks, walking over to the couch.
“Hartford Jamison, stop.” She halts her steps and slowly turns to look at me. I hold up the bag of Pad Thai. “Did you drop this off for me?”
She puts her hands on her hips and lifts an eyebrow. “You know I did.”
“Did you go to the back and overhear me talking to Brock and Tripp?” She shrugs, dropping her eyes to the ground. “So you did.”
“Yeah, I heard you confirm we’re friends. And that’s what we are,” she says, trying to act unfazed.
I place the bag of Pad Thai on the coffee table and close the distance between us. “Hartford,” I whisper, wrapping my arms around her. At first, she stiffens, but then she eases into my embrace, her arms encircling my waist. I search her brown eyes, figuring out the perfect words, but there’s only one way to say it. “I’m in love with you, Hartford. I’ve always loved you, but I’m in love with you.”
Her eyes widen slightly as tears glisten in them. “What?”
I press a soft kiss to her lips. “I’m in love with you.” I tighten my hold on her. “I’m desperate, head over heels, smitten, love sick. You’re my favorite person in the world.” I kiss her lips again. “I’m in love with you, Hartford Jamison.”
“What?” she breathes out.
“Stop saying what. You heard me,” I say, rubbing my hands up and down her back.
A tear runs down her cheek and I kiss the spot, feeling like my heart is going to explode in my chest if she doesn’t say something besides what.
“I’m in love with you too, Paxton Atwood.”
I crash my lips to hers. In this moment, my entire world has just shifted and righted itself. Everything I thought was just a fantasy is now real.
She feels the same. She’s mine. She’ll always be mine.
I break the kiss and rest my forehead against hers. “Fuck, Hartford. I’m going to make you so happy.”
“So, what does this mean?” she asks.
I pull back and trace my thumb down her cheek. “What it means is our friendship has always been my favorite thing in the world and it was the perfect segue to us being in a romantic relationship. Boyfriend and girlfriend. You’re mine, and I’m yours, for the rest of our lives. You want to get married and have kids, I’ll book the church. You want to move in together, I’ll put the deposit on the house. I’m all in, Hartford—forever.”
“I feel the same,” she says, smiling up at me. She giggles and I raise an eyebrow. “Everyone will flip out.”
I chuckle. “Apparently, everyone knew but us, so I don’t think it’s going to be much of a shock for anyone.”
“Seriously?” she asks, tilting her head.
“Yeah, seriously.” I kiss her lips again and grin. “You know, I’ve wanted you since high school.”
She tosses her head back. “You’re full of it.” When she notices the seriousness on my face, her laughter dies out. “You’re for real?”
I nod, searching her gorgeous face. “I’m for real. I buried the feelings, but they were always there. I was serious last night when I told you that you’ve been teasing and tempting me.”
“I wish you would’ve said something,” she says, touching my cheek.
“Thank goodness for your BDSM assignment,” I say, covering her hand with mine.
“Yes, exactly.”
Just thinking about it makes my cock harden. “Just because you finished your article doesn’t mean we need to stop exploring. How about you get my handcuffs and we’ll go back to my place and play out another fantasy of mine?”
Her eyes heat as she stares at me. Damn, she’s stunning. I just became the luckiest bastard in the world and I will never forget it.
“This is going to be a lot of fun,” she says.
“Oh, baby, you have no idea.”
Epilogue
Hartford
Have you ever experienced everything falling into place so perfectly that you can’t recall how you reached this point in your life? This spot where you’re truly, and utterly happy.
I’ve always had Paxton by my side as my best friend but having him as my boyfriend is a million times better.
We’re sitting in Pour Some Sugar On Me and laughing at the story Harrison is telling us.