Briggs nodded. “Yes. Both of us built houses on our parents’ land.”
“You have a house here?” She stared at him in surprise.
“I do,” he said.
“Did you and Lucille live together?” she asked.
She didn’t know why she asked. Obviously, they would have. They were engaged, for God’s sake. And being jealous of that was super immature of her.
“We didn’t,” Briggs said.
“What? Why not?” she asked before grimacing. “Sorry, I’m being nosy.”
“You’re my mate, you can be as nosy as you want,” he said with a small smile. “We didn’t live together because Lucille didn’t like my house, but she felt her apartment was too small for the two of us.”
“What were you going to do when you got married?”
He hesitated. “We hadn’t agreed on what we would do. And it didn’t seem that big of a deal until after we were engaged. But we were only engaged for a month before I found out she was cheating on me.”
“Jesus.” She squeezed his hand. “I’m so sorry, honey.”
“I’m not,” he said. “I was mistaken about Lucille. Not about my feelings - I did love her, but she wasn’t meant to be my mate, and I should have listened to my bear.”
“Your bear didn’t think she was your mate?”
“He had his… doubts,” Briggs said, “but I believed those would fade eventually. They didn’t, and his doubts were confirmed when I realized Lucille was cheating.”
“She’s stupid, and I hate her,” Cece said.
“Looking back, I’ve realized that Lucille and I were together partly because of a lack of other options,” he said honestly. “I never wanted to leave Wellington, but I’m happy I did because I met you. My true mate.”
She smiled at him. “I am so glad you moved to Ashdale, honey.”
Staring out the windshield, his voice low, Briggs said, “How I felt about Lucille pales in comparison to how I feel about you, Cecelia. I want you to know that.”
“Thank you for telling me that, honey,” Cece said.
“We’ll probably run into her at some point. It’s inevitable in a town as small as Wellington.”
“That’s fine,” Cece said. “I assume she’s with the guy she cheated with?”
“No,” Briggs said. “Brooke told me he broke up with her.”
“Serves her right,” Cece said before grinning at Briggs. “I’m not usually such a dick, but she hurt my man, so I get to hate her and be a total C U next Tuesday about her.”
He laughed. “Well, just know that I have zero feelings for Lucille, and I want to be with you and only you.”
“I know,” Cece said before lifting their clasped hands and kissing his knuckles. “Don’t worry, honey, I’ll behave when I meet her.”
“It’s not you I’m worried about,” he said.
She shrugged. “I can handle your ex-girlfriend, even if she is a polar bear.”
Briggs turned into a driveway and shut off the truck. “My house is first on my parents’ land. Brooke’s house is about half a mile down the road, and my parents are about two miles from her.”
They climbed out of the truck, and as Briggs grabbed their suitcases, Cece studied the house. It was a two-storey covered in grey vinyl planks. It featured a two-car garage and large windows with pretty blue shutters.
She could sense Briggs’s nerves as she followed him into the house. Talking faster than he normally did, Briggs said, “It’s about eighteen hundred square feet, three bedrooms, two and a half baths, and two fireplaces. Hardwood flooring throughout, there’s a big soaker tub in the primary bathroom, and the backyard has a Trex deck and a fire pit.”
