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“Youareworthy. And I love you, Colin Hathaway, so you’ll need to accept it.”
“I love you so fucking much. And I don’t have a big speech prepared to drive that point home. It’s just a fact. And facts exist on their own without needing to be proven.” He smiles and I remember the first time he said those words to me at the lab.
“Someone brilliant told me that once.”
“He didn’t realize it at the time, but he was talking about you.” Colin takes my hand and kisses my knuckles. Intertwining our fingers, he rests our hands on the table. We each take a sip of wine.
I blush, not because I’m embarrassed but because Colin Hathaway warms me from the inside out.
“So this is it. Just us two, having dinner. In love.” It’s impossible not to smile when I look at him.
He grins back at me. So easy now. “I remember the first time I saw that smile. It had something to do with squirrels.”
“Who knew that was a family of squirrel matchmakers? We owe them at least a burrito or two.”
The easy jazz music spills over from the other part of the rooftop, and the dinner chatter and clink of silverware on plates add to the music.
A server comes by with an appetizer of prawns and chilled avocado, setting the plates down wordlessly before moving off. Beatrix is good at her job. I make a mental note to thank her—and the rest of my family—later on. For now, I only want to be with one person.
“How did you know this was exactly what I needed tonight when I didn’t even know it myself?” I ask, looking into Colin’s eyes.
“Because I know you, Junebug. You’re all I want. I look at you and I see the future.”
His eyes are locked on mine. This man, who gazes at stars every day of his life, thinking about the possibilities of what’s out there, is looking at me. It suddenly seems so simple.
“I see it too.”
Love feels so complicated when you can’t find it. So elusive. But when it’s here, staring at you from across the table, it’s…simple. It’s perfect.
Epilogue
PJ
Three Months Later
It’s become a bit of a tradition for Colin and I to have dinner alone on the rooftop of Butter and Rosemary before migrating to the larger outdoor dining area to hang with my family. Colin hasn’t missed a single Sunday in three months—always arriving right on time by helicopter—and our commuter relationship is stronger than ever.
As soon as Colin loosened the reins on himself and cut back on his hours, I saw the smile return to his face. He began taking hikes again, even from his place in Palo Alto, And I loosened my own set of strictures once I began to see that my siblings have full faith in my ability to do my job. It’s amazing how much more energy I have now that I’m no longer fighting a battle that was mostly in my head.
“He’s not here yet?” Archer asks, looking over my head as though he can see past the potted plants to the private dining area.
“I’m early.”
Archer was the one who suggested the dinner tradition. “Good. Just glad you two are still putting in the effort. It’s important to make time for each other,” Archer says, grabbing a breadstick wrapped in prosciutto from a charcuterie board on the table in the corner. He’s acted like a doting father since learning of our relationship, and it warms my heart, especially since our own father didn’t recognize me the last two times I visited.
It’s a cooler night, so most of the guests at the restaurant are dining inside. We have the whole patio to ourselves.
“You don’t mind us showing up late for dinner?” I pour myself a glass of wine and lean against the patio rail. I showed up a little early because Dash said he had some news.
“Nah, I think it’s good. Important to set boundaries with meddling family members.” He doesn’t seem to include himself in that description, which makes me laugh.
“Hey, oh good, you’re all here.” Dash catches his breath after running up the stairs to the rooftop. His face is flushed like maybe he ran here from his house.
“What’s the big news?” Jackson has his arm around Ruby, who holds up her glass of chardonnay to toast with mine. Our glasses clink, and I look past her to see Fiona busily picking all the pitted olives from the charcuterie platter and putting them on her fingers. Ruby and I share a look, both besotted with that girl.
Beatrix comes over from where she was admiring the sunset over the vineyards. “Yeah, don’t keep us waiting. Are you here with industry gossip or personal gossip?”
Dash gives her the playboy surfer smile that’s won the hearts of women countywide, and even my sister blushes a little at his charm. “It’s both.”
