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A sense of peace washed over him, and it had nothing to do with the champagne. It was the same way he always felt whenever she was around. She was oil on troubled water, soothing him in a way nobody else could. He wanted to feel this way forever.
“Thank you for my party,” he said, closing his eyes as he breathed in the floral aroma of her shampoo.
“I hope you liked it,” she said, turning her head to look at him. “We like to celebrate birthdays in style in my family, so you should probably get used to it.”
“Sounds good to me.” He was going to have to work hard to beat this, but he was determined to do it when her birthday arrived. “As long as you’re there, I’ll celebrate anywhere.”
Her expression softened. “It was our first party, well the first one I haven’t had a meltdown at anyway.”
He grinned. “Long may it continue.” He took a sip of champagne, letting the bubbles tickle his mouth. “And it was our first party. I’ll always remember it like that.”
“Not our last though,” she said.
“Definitely not. We’ve got a lifetime of celebrations ahead of us.” Lucas slid his free hand down the side of her arm, his fingers brushing against her soft skin. “And speaking of celebrations, I had a meeting with the chief yesterday.”
“You did?” Ember gave him a half-smile. “What about?”
“Mitch Lakin told her he’s definitely retiring next year. She wanted to see if I’d be willing to lead the Volunteer Force here in Angel Sands. She wants me to upgrade it, possibly recruit some full time firefighters.”
“And what did you say?” Ember asked him.
“I told her I’m ready to be captain.”
“Are you sure?” She twisted around until her whole body was facing his. “I know how much you love working at White City, won’t you find Angel Sands dull in comparison?”
“Once upon a time I thought I would,” he agreed. “But not anymore. I met this girl who made me fall in love with this town all over again, and with all the people living in it.” He smiled at her. “And now the thought of being the captain of the local fire department makes me very happy indeed.”
“It makes me happy, too,” she told him, her eyes filling with tears. “It really does.”
Strange how quickly things changed once love came into the equation. He loved the idea of working locally, of coming home to Ember every night. Not that being captain of the ASFD was going to be easy – far from it – but it was going to be a different kind of challenge to the one he’d had in White City.
The kind of challenge that was compatible with a relationship, maybe even with a family. The thought filled him with joy.
Ember reached for his hand, weaving her fingers into his. “I wish my dad could have been here. He was always crazy about birthdays. He would have loved to meet you, too.”
“Are you sure about that?” Lucas asked her.
“Yes I am. He would have loved you,” Ember told him. “He was a simple kind of guy, you know? He called a spade a spade. He liked people who were straight with him, people who lived good lives. I know he would have been so happy to see us together.”
Was it possible for his heart to feel any fuller? “Not as happy as I am,” he whispered. Then he lifted his glass up in the air, pointing it to the sky. “We should toast him. To absent friends and those we’ve lost.”
“And to those we’ve found, too,” Ember said, raising her glass and taking a mouthful of champagne. He followed suit, swallowing it down, then leaned down to brush his lips against her cheek.
“Shall we go home?” he asked her, his voice a whisper.
“Yeah, let’s go.”
It was time to unwrap the last of his gifts, to show her exactly how much he appreciated her hard work. And maybe tomorrow – his day off – they’d sleep late, their bodies curled around each other until hunger made them get out of bed.
The future was looking bright; in fact, it was looking as golden as the sands they were walking on. And he was more than ready for it to begin.
