“Good.”
I offered my hand to her and watched as she rose from the chair to stand before me. With beautiful platinum-blonde hair and baby-blue eyes, she was almost ethereal-looking. Since leaving the hospital with her new heart, she’d gained some much-needed weight, giving her feminine curves and strength. Not a single ounce of frailty seemed to exist in her now.
She was my fierce survivor.
“You are the most beautiful woman on the planet, Lailah Buchanan.”
“Soon-to-be Lailah Cavanaugh,” she corrected.
I pulled her into my arms. Her bare skin sent fire zinging through my fingertips with every touch.
“How many days?”
“Forty-three,” she replied.
“Why did we decide to get married right before Christmas?” I asked, dipping my head toward the crook of her neck.
A low moan escaped her lips as I kissed a path down to her breasts.
“Because I love snow and the color red. Plus it’s in between semesters.”
“You’re entirely too practical,” I whispered before placing a single kiss on the light-pink scar running down her chest from her many surgeries.
“That’s why you love me.” She laughed.
Reaching my hand behind her back, I made quick work of the closure on her bra. I slid the straps slowly down her arms, and the bra fell to the floor.
“I love you, Lailah, for many reasons. Let me show you one right now,” I purred in her ear.
“Yes.”
I carried her to the bed and made good on my promise for the rest of the night.
I LOVED BRUNCH.
Two meals seamlessly blended together meant I could eat whatever I wanted, and I didn’t have to get up at the crack of dawn to do it.
It was one of the best ideas ever—besides introducing chocolate to breakfast foods. Whoever had devised that genius idea deserved a Nobel Peace Prize.
As I happily stuffed another bite of chocolate-chip pancakes into my mouth, I turned to see Zander closely watching me from his high chair. His bright blue eyes followed the movements of my fork as it moved to my plate to scoop up another piece of pancake. A tiny pink tongue darted out and made a wide sweep across his top lip.
“You’re cute,” I said, “but these are mine, buddy.”
He blew raspberries in response and banged his chubby fist down on the plastic tray, sending little round Cheerios flying in every direction.
“I’m going to pretend you didn’t do that,” I commented as I picked sticky cereal out of my hair.
He giggled, which sent the three adults at the table into a fit of laughter.
“He showed you,” Grace said, covering a dainty snort with her napkin.
“So selfish,” Jude interjected, shaking his head. “Unwilling to share food with a helpless poor child. Who am I marrying?”
He grinned mischievously as I glared up at him, carefully plotting my revenge.
With cunning stealth, I raised my hand, still full of half-nibbled Cheerios, and quickly dumped them on top of his head. Some instantly fell back to the table, but others made a new home within the tendrils of his sandy-blond locks.
Youthful laughter followed as Zander watched Jude shake the mess from his hair, sending a cascade of cheerios to the floor.
“Such a mess,” I said, mimicking Jude’s words. “What a lack of respect for the wait staff. Who am I marrying?”
I smiled smugly as I shoved another large bite of chocolate-chip pancakes into my mouth while he laughed.
“You two are crazy,” Grace said, dumping a new pile of finger foods out for Zander to munch on.
“It’s all those years of a lack of oxygen to her brain,” Jude replied dryly.
I turned to him, wide-mouthed. “She said we are crazy.” I laughed. “Not just me.”
“Yeah, I guess I’m a bit mad. But it’s your fault. I was totally normal before I met you.”
I rolled my eyes as I moved the last gooey piece of pancake around on my plate, trying to lap up every last drop of maple syrup. “Totally,” I said.
He chuckled as he sat back in his chair and slowly sipped on a cup of coffee while drawing small circles across my back. The sensation sent chills down my arms, yet the feel of his fingers brushing across the fabric of my shirt made me feel warmer rather than colder because he was touching me, loving me. I never wanted that feeling to end.
“I wish you didn’t have to go back so soon,” I lamented. I made a small pouty face in the direction of my best friend.
“I know, but I didn’t expect to see you at all until the wedding, so just think of this as an added bonus, thanks to your generous man over there.”
I turned, sending him a warm expression of gratitude.
“It was purely selfish on my part,” he confessed. “I knew I’d be in business meetings all day, and I didn’t want her to be alone.”
“The fact that you cared enough to fly me all the way across country just so your fiancée wouldn’t be alone all day shows just how unselfish you are, Jude.”