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She tilted her head with a questioning frown. “Okay.”
I blew her a kiss and drove off.
Instead of going home, I needed to talk to someone about what I was about to do. I chose Ben because Alex hated marriage. Just that word alone made him rant and rave. Whereas with Ben, it was always a gentle landing. Because not marrying Ivy wasn’t an option.
I had to get married. Period.
Predictably, at the mention of the word beer, Ben sang, “I’m on my way.”
He was the only person I knew who could drink leftovers for breakfast guilt free. That had been in our college years, when the sport of killing brain cells was all the rage.
Twenty minutes later, I was perched on a stool at our favorite daytime bar, which was tucked away in a quiet alleyway.
Just as I ordered a beer, Ben waltzed in, wearing his life’s-good smile.
“Hey, dude. Long time,” he said.
“I know. It’s been—what? A week?” I asked. “Between Ivy and my new job at the agency, I just haven’t had much time. How’s Alex?”
“Cynical as usual. But he’s met a girl,” he said, nodding with eyebrows raised.
“Like, a girl?” My fingers mimicked quotation marks.
“Yeah. He’s got it bad. He even called me last night for a late drink after she couldn’t see him.”
“Alex in love.” I whistled. “Who would have thought?”
“I know.”
“Speaking of which,” I said.
“Ivy?” He sipped from his bottle.
“How did you guess?”
“You always talk about her.”
I pulled a tight smile. “I’m going to pop the question tonight.”
“Marriage?” He looked horrified.
“I’m not about to skydive in a blind person’s chute.”
He laughed. “You might as well.”
“Do you think I’m jumping to my death?” I asked.
“Maybe. When did you last have a girlfriend?”
I stared down at my drink. “I haven’t got a good track record. But Ivy’s different. I like being with her. She’s as close to a soulmate as I think I’ll ever have.”
I couldn’t blame drinking for that extraordinary admission.
“But didn’t your father lay down an ultimatum? Marry or be cut off?”
I nodded slowly. “But I also like her.”
“To have and to hold forever and ever, though?”
