“No,” I said in my exhale.
“Come upstairs with me.” Regan held my hand as I slid off the table and walked next to him up the stairs. My pulse thumped in my neck.
He opened the door, letting me in first. The usually bare interior of his apartment was alive. White twinkle lights were strung around the perimeter of the room and framed the picture window at the far end. The couch had been pushed aside, and in the center of the living room sat a small bistro table and two chairs, with a bottle of wine and two glasses sitting in wait.
As if crafted for a script, the timer on the oven dinged just as Regan closed the door. I whipped around to face him.
“How ... what? You were with me all day today.”
He ran his thumb across my cheek and kissed me on the forehead before walking into the kitchen. “Ember.”
“Oh...” I trailed off, watching him remove what looked like chicken parmesan from the oven, and pulling two plates from the cabinet.
“Fantasy is fun, Georgia. It’s how we met ... and fell in love. Being at the Mad Hatter’s tea party day in and day out in the bakery is a joy, and watching you handle customers in character with that theme is fantastic. But,” he brought the two plates over to the table where I’d been standing, “normal is underrated. Sit.”
I looked around, tears forming at the way normal had taken my breath away when I opened the door. White lights, a simple black table, one guy, one girl. I sat and took his hand from across the table. He smiled and squeezed my hand.
“I love you,” I blurted out, letting a few tears roll down my cheeks.
“What’d you just say?” His cheeks reddened, obvious even in the barely lit room.
“The most normal thing I could think of. I love you, Regan.”
Regan sniffed and didn’t try to hide the tears in his eyes, either. “I love you, too, Georgia.”
And there, under the soft glow of perfectly normal twinkle lights, two perfectly imperfect people did the most normal thing in the universe.
Loved.
I’d like to start, a little unconventionally, by thanking Georgia. Yes, the main character. She made me work for her. She didn’t reveal herself easily, which is no surprise to any of you who just finished the book. I started working on this book in April and Georgia and I played a very long and frustrating game of hide-and-seek. I even put this story on the shelf and wrote “Nocturne” with Charles Sheehan-Miles in the meantime. When I got back to it, though, we were finally on the same page. Thank you, Georgia, for making me really find you.
Sarah Hansen: This cover is exactly what I wanted. Thank you!
Erica Ritchie: Thank you for working with me to create a fabulous picture story for the November Blue series. I’m looking forward to the Ten Days of Perfect cover makeover, and the rest of the series.
Lori Sabin: You’re a beautiful soul, and I love you dearly as a friend. Thank you for your sharp and critical eye as you tackle my raw manuscripts. I learn more with each project we work on together.
Ashley Wilcox, ACS Tours and Michelle Preast, Indie Bookcovers: Ashley, thank you for organizing all of the blog involvement for this book, and for keeping me organized as well. Michelle, thank you for the wonderful art that accompanied the blog tour.
My November Blue Series beta readers: Lisa Rutledge, Lindsay Sparkes, Erin Roth, Sally Bouley, Laura Wilson, Pamela Carrion. You ladies rock!
Charles Sheehan-Miles: Thank you for your support every single day. Every. Day. It was, and always will be, the words.