AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Just came in,” Larissa says, scrabbling around on her desk. Finally, she locates the letter and holds it out to me with a triumphant smile.
Shelby may think our night together was a one-off, hell, maybe she even thinks it was a mistake, but I’m going to show her it was meant to be. That we were brought together for a reason, by a force outside ourselves.
Our meeting wasn’t down to chance. Someone was looking down on us, pulling the cosmic strings so our paths would cross because that “someone” knew we were meant to be together. That not only would we heal each other, but we would also make a life together, one filled with laughter and joy. William Jacobs knew I would make his granddaughter happy and spend every day loving her, making her smile, and easing her burdens.
“Clear my calendar for that day, please, Larissa,” I instruct, heading back to my office.
It isn’t unusual for us to attend our clients’ funerals, but this one is personal. Since our tense exchange at her grandpa’s house, Shelby has ignored my calls, but I’m letting her go without a fight.
Being with Shelby could be a risk to my job. William Jacobs was our client, and the executor of the will is Mr. England, Shelby’s father. Still, Mr. Blake is a stickler for technicalities and frowns upon mixing business with pleasure.
Although, being with Shelby is so much more than physical pleasure. It’s the most natural thing in the world. My work was my reason for getting up every morning, but now it’s Shelby. My therapy helped me deal with my sister's death, but Shelby made me realize that I need more than my work to sustain me. I need someone to share my life with, and I knew the moment I saw her that she was that someone. She’s filled all the cracks and fissures I didn’t know were there, and I don’t want to navigate the rest of this life without her.
Mr. Burke offering me a new position should have excited me from a career perspective, but the only thing that excited me was that it would be in Houston.
Where Shelby lives. If that isn’t a fucking sign we should be together, I don’t know what is. Now, I just have to help Shelby see that her grandpa is still working his magic.
I lean back in my chair and cast my eyes toward the ceiling. “I’m working on it, William. I’m working on it.”
* * *
I exit the church,shaking Mr. and Mrs. England’s hands and then Shelby’s. She didn’t think I’d be here today. I watch her regain her composure, and she gives me a polite nod, but she can’t hide the spark of longing in her eyes when she looks at me.
“Thank you so much for coming today,” Mr. England says.
“You’ll join us for the wake?” Mrs. England looks from Shelby to me. The small lines between her eyebrows reveal that she has questions about how her daughter is looking at me.
“Of course.” I nod, keeping my gaze fixed on Shelby as she moves off to speak to an elderly couple with her parents.
I’m not leaving today without her knowing how I feel, without her knowing she isn’t alone and never has to feel that way again.I’ve given her space, but I’m done allowing her to push me away. She’s mine, and it’s time she knew it.
My gaze is pulled to Shelby again like a magnet. She looks effortlessly elegant in a long black coat, her hair pinned at the nape of her head in an unforgiving knot. Her pain is still evident, but somehow, she’s doing better. She seems less brittle. She stands a little taller, a little stronger, a little more able to bear the weight of grief.
Finally, everyone arrives at the England residence for the wake. Low music plays, filling the living room with soft sounds to comfort the living. Food is available, buffet style, with drinks, both soft and alcoholic, at the other end of the kitchen.
“You didn’t have to come,” Shelby says as I finish pouring two short glasses of bourbon and hand one to her.
“Yes. I did,’ I say, keeping my tone firm but friendly.
“Why?” she demands, almost snatching the drink from me.
I clench my jaw. I thought we’d got passed these walls. Thought we’d built our own fortress on the night we spent together.“Because this”—I wave a finger between us—“is what your grandpa wanted. He knew our paths would cross. I don’t know how, but he did. He knew we were meant to love each other.”
Shelby’s eyes shine with tears, and she presses her lips together. She shakes her head before taking a mouthful of the bourbon and squeezing her eyes shut against the burn.
“Tony, my life is in Houston. I’ll be returning as soon as ... as soon as everything is complete regarding Grandpa’s will. How can we be anything other than … than …” The bridge of her nose crinkles.
I smile at how cute she looks.“Than?”
The blush staining her cheeks has my brows rising in amusement.
“You know what I’m talking about,” she finally says in a harsh whisper.
I place my glass down and take hers, placing it next to mine before pulling her into my arms.“I’m being transferred to Houston. Not immediately, but soon enough. Now you just need to give us a chance.”
The ball is firmly in her court, where she prefers it, and I take a deep breath hoping she’ll say yes.
She pulls back and looks into my eyes, searching for any sign of humor or dishonesty. She won’t find it. Since my meeting with Mr. Burke, when he told me he wanted me to head up the branch in Houston, I haven’t been able to think of anything other than telling Shelby, but there was never a right time.
