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He stepped forward, his hands on my hips. “I’m not sure it’s wise to let you out of the house in this dress.”
“And why’s that?” I tipped my head to the side and smiled at the familiar glint in his eyes.
“You’re irresistible.”
I smiled, high on the effect I had on him. “Are you going to keep me here all night?”
Regret lined his face. “I want to, but this is your night.”
With those words, my shoulders tensed. “I’m not sure I’m ready for it.”
His hand cupped my face. “You were born ready for this. You have an amazing vision, and people will love it.”
“You think so?” I asked, even as my nerves dissipated. It was great to have Ben at my back.
“That reporter is here to do an article on the rebrand, and she wants to feature us.”
“Our relationship?” I wasn’t sure how I felt about that.
“She loves the story of our competing lemonade stands, coffee shops, and how we got together.”
“I don’t think that story is exactly PG.”
“The version we’ll tell her is. I can see the framed article on our store wall, right next to the lemonade stand pictures.”
“It’ll be a great story to tell our kids one day.” I hadn’t meant to say that out loud. Each day with Ben made me see the future more clearly. And I saw us together, having more children, maybe even getting married. Instead of filling me with dread, the prospect excited me.
“Our kids?” Ben pulled me against him so that we touched from chest to hip.
I swallowed. “I think of Cammie as ours.”
He tipped his head lower, his gaze locked on mine. “You’d consider having kids with me one day?”
“I’ve always wanted kids.” And I could see myself having kids with him. A little girl or boy with perhaps his brown hair or my blonde, but our combined determination.
He smiled so big and wide that it took my breath away. “I love you.”
I smiled, feeling giddy. “I love you, too.”
He kissed me like he had all the time in the world to savor me.
After a few moments, he pulled back, breaking the kiss. “We’d better head to your store before Gia shows up, wanting to know where we are.”
I smiled. “She’s a shark when she’s planning something.”
He stepped back, but interlaced his fingers with mine. “She’s good at her job.”
“Let’s do this.” I felt stronger than I had coming out of the bathroom. I was confident that my vision for Market Tavern would be successful.
Ben smiled at me, pride in his gaze. “Tonight’s going to be amazing.”
“I think so, too.” We’d planned for a huge crowd. At first, I wasn’t so sure, but then the paper and the local TV station said they were stopping by, and Gia wanted to go all out.
I knew some of the attention was because someone had been breaking into local shops. They’d been out of the spotlight for a while but had returned with my break-in. Combined with Ben’s and my backstory, it made for a tantalizing story.
I was smart enough to see the publicity as good for business, and Ben did, too.
Although, he’d made sure my security alarm was top-of-the-line and working shortly after the incident.
