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“Whatcha making?” I ask as I finish picking at my plate until it’s nearly empty, but I literally can’t take another bite, or she’ll have to roll me up the stairs.
“Grandma’s Southern chicken salad sandwiches.”
My eyes go wide. “With homemade sourdough bread?”
“Yep.” She nods and laughs. “I’ll make extra for you.”
“You love me so much,” I tell her, standing.
We exchange a hug. “I do, and it’s not just because we’re gonna become nuns together.”
I roll my eyes, thank her for listening to me, then head upstairs. When we were kids, we’d get lost playing in the B&B. It holds so much history and happy memories. We’d use to take our Barbies in here and pretend it was our house. It’s almost fitting that it’s the only room available at the moment.
I walk inside and lie on the tall four-poster bed. My heart hurts, and I’m not sure anything could heal it at this point. After rolling over onto my side and staring out at the blue sky for nearly an hour, tears well and then fall in streams. I really thought we had a future together, but I was so wrong. My eyes feel heavy from crying, and somehow, I eventually fall asleep. When I wake up, I smell the bread Maize’s baking, and though I’m still full from earlier, I could eat her cooking again.
I step into the hallway and immediately hear commotion at the bottom of the stairs. My pulse races when I see Riley reach back and sock Diesel right in the jaw. Surprisingly, Diesel doesn’t try to retaliate against him. Though if I were willing to bet, I think he could take Riley. He’s nearly double his size, but then again, Riley does have some strength behind him.
Before I can break it up, Chelsea walks in and admits what happened this morning. She made a move on him, and he denied her. I must’ve walked away before that happened, too upset to continue spying.
“Is that the truth?” Riley asks.
“I swear. I would never do anything to hurt Rowan, man. I’m in love with her and have been for years. She’s the only woman I’ve ever felt that way for. I love her,” Diesel admits.
All I can do is gasp, then cover my mouth. They turn and look at me before I can disappear. My timing is terrible today. My words and thoughts, everything has completely escaped me.
“Rowan?” Diesel says, walking toward me and searching my face. He feels the same way I feel about him, and I’m so fucking happy that I could cry again.
He stalks toward me, climbing the stairs two at a time until he’s a step below me. “Hey.” He grabs my hand. “I’m so sorry you saw that. It’s not what—”
“Did you mean it?” I whisper, interrupting.
That boyish grin that I love so much sweeps across his perfect lips. “I’ve been in love with you for quite some time now, baby.”
I wrap my arms around his neck, and our lips crash together. At this moment, I want to devour him as we lose ourselves in each other’s touch, taste, and kiss. The only thing that stops us from a full-blown make-out session is a deep clearing of a throat. I pull away to see my uncle John standing there with his arms crossed over his chest, but he’s smiling.
“Do you mind? Some of us are about to lose our stomachs here,” he says from across the room, and I see everyone staring at us.
I laugh as happy tears spill from my eyes. Diesel wipes them away with his thumbs and holds my cheeks with his warm hands. “I love you so much, Rowan Bishop.”
“I love you too,” I confess, and I feel those words in every fiber of my being. Finally, our relationship is out in the open. It’s not how I expected any of this to happen, but it feels like a giant weight has been lifted off my shoulders. No more hiding and no more sneaking. Now we can just be together and openly love each other. It doesn’t mean I won’t get shit from my family—nothing would allow me to escape that—but it’s okay. I just hope Grandma doesn’t start talking about me giving her a handful of great-grandkids anytime soon. I don’t want to rush this and want to savor every second with him.
Diesel laughs, grabs my hand, then leads me down the stairs. Riley scowls, and I lift my eyebrows at him, daring him to say a word. The boys in school weren’t scared of me for no reason. I pack a punch hard enough to knock a man down.
Chelsea walks up to me with Dawson in her arms, and I can see the embarrassment written all over her face. Diesel takes Dawson from her arms for just a moment so the two of us can have some alone time.
