Lincoln brought their clasped hands to his mouth and kissed the back of hers. He pulled his phone from his pocket and stepped closer to the edge of the sidewalk. “Snap for the ‘gram?”
“I feel like I shoulda made a TikTok or something, but sure.”
They squeezed together, cramming both their faces, Cleo’s newly tattooed arm, and the storefront behind them into the small space. Cleo beamed as he snapped multiple shots.
“Now for the next life-altering moment of the day.” He slipped his hand back into hers and squeezed. This was the much scarier part.
The coffee shop was only a few blocks away, but he tucked her against his side as they walked through the cold.
“You sure you don’t want me to come in with you?”
She chewed on her thumbnail. “No, it’s okay. I need to do this myself.”
He rubbed small circles at the base of her spine, her apprehension unknotting under his touch. “She’s lovely.” He kissed her cheek. “I’ll just be down the street. Call me when you’re done, okay?”
She nodded and took her book bag from him. Pushing open the door to theSugar Bean, she took a deep breath. It smelled just like it had a few days ago when she left after her last shift. A woman sat alone clicking on a laptop with an empty mug beside her.
“Mrs. Stewart?”
The woman lifted her head, swept her glasses from her face and plopped them onto her laptop before standing and extending her hand. “Natalie, please. Russell has told me all about you. It’s so nice to finally meet. Let’s order some drinks, and we can start talking about your path to becoming a self-published author.”
Epilogue
Two years later
Lincoln
“You ready?”
An unshakable, hundred-pound weight of ice-cold dread sat in his gut. “No, Russ. I’m not. At all.”
“We can always come back another time. There’s no rush. You’re not asking her today, right?”
“Right.”
In just about every romantic movie he’d ever been forced by his sisters to watch, the terrified guy, ready to propose to his forever girl, ambled into a jewelry store with his fluffer best friend. The sensible, “you can do this,” “no, that’s too expensive,” best friend to help keep him from passing out. It had always seemed fictitious, until Russ reached back and grabbed Linc by the arm, dragging him into the store.
“Come on, big guy.” Russ smacked an open palm on his shoulder. “We can’t get her to say yes if you stand out on the street staring at the window for the rest of your life.”
A strangled half-laugh erupted from Linc’s chest. Yes. That was the only possible path in front of him. They were destined for each other. Their souls were tied together forever. There was nothing he was more certain of.
Then why was he so close to pissing his pants in public like a potty-training toddler?
He rubbed at his chest. Was he having a heart attack? His vision blurred at the edges.
“Fuck, man. Pull yourself together, Linc. I can’t have you passing out. I’m a terrible liar, she’d never believe me if I told her you fainted for no reason. And unless you’re going to propose to her from a hospital bed, we need you to stay upright.”
Linc swallowed down his anxiety and nodded. “She’ll say yes, right?”
“Dude, I have never seen two people better suited to each other. She adores you, of course, she’ll say yes.”
“You’re my best friend – you’re supposed to say that.” Linc rubbed the bridge of his nose, sliding his thumb and forefinger across his closed eyelids. Diamonds sparkled in every display case. From every angle, the light reflected off the precious jewels. “So… many… diamonds.”
Russ nodded. “Do you at least know what kind of metal she’d like?”
Linc leaned over the cabinet, nodding. “Yeah, that one.”
“That specific ring? Just like that? You stood outside shaking for fifteen minutes before you let me open the door. We’ve been in here three seconds, and before anyone has come near us to hit us with a sales pitch, you just… picked one?”
