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“My parents have a huge dinner. More food than you could ever eat. And they asked that I invite you.”
“To Thanksgiving dinner? I don’t know,” she said, wringing her fingers. “Isn’t that a family thing?”
“You’re part of our family.”
“I know,” she said, rolling her eyes playfully. “I mean, they all seemed to love me at the party. And what’s not to love?” she joked. “But—”
“No buts,” he said, pulling her to him. “They love you. As do I. And you’re coming. It wouldn’t be Thanksgiving without you there.”
“Are you sure?” she asked, studying his face.
“I’m positive.” He kissed her nose. “It’s going to be great.” He pulled away, grabbing another dish and stacking it in the cabinet carefully. She watched him, the man she’d grown so close to in such a short time. He’d invited her into his world, into his family. He’d taken care of her. Protected her. Loved her in a way that no one else ever had. Sure, their start hadn’t been perfect, but he’d made up for it tenfold since then. He was good to her, and for the first time, she was realizing she didn’t want to take advantage of that anymore.
“Asher?” she said, her voice wavering.
“Yeah?” he asked over his shoulder.
“I love you, too.”
He froze, lowering the dish and turning around slowly. His brown eyes were wide with shock as they met hers. Without a word, his arms were back around her waist, lifting her up to sit on the countertop before he kissed her. His fingers tangled in her hair as his kiss grew more passionate, as if his mouth were searching for oxygen only hers could give.
“I love you so much,” he told her. It had been a month since he’d said the words the first time, and never once had he pressured her to say them back, even though he’d said it a few times since then.
Her first experience with love in high school had been awkward and forced. They’d said ‘I love you’ between classes, in a note passed on the first day they’d become boyfriend-girlfriend. It was just what boys and girls did. They were fifteen and had no idea what love meant. With Asher, it was different. The feelings were real. The sentiment was there. Her heart fluttered at his touch, not because a teacher might catch them at any moment, but because he made her feel like no one else could. This was real love. The kind she’d spent her whole life dreaming about.
“I love you, too,” she whispered as she felt cool tears filling her eyes again. The last time she’d cried in this apartment, it had been over a man who she knew hardly anything about. This time, it was because her heart was overflowing with emotion. Asher pulled away from her slightly, his breath warm on her face.
“That’s the first time you’ve said that,” he told her.
“Mhm.”
“I was starting to think you just enjoyed torturing me.”
She laughed softly. “Maybe just a little.”
“Oh yeah?” he teased, lifting her up and carrying her down the hallway with heavy footsteps.
“Yeah.”
“Maybe we need to make that bed first priority,” he said, lifting his lips to find hers again as they reached the bedroom.
“Who needs a bed?”
Chapter Seventeen
The week of Thanksgiving came quickly, though it was a month later. Blythe had requested the entire week off due to their out-of-town trip. Tony hadn’t been happy about it, and she sensed that he was getting tired of her requests off even though she tried to keep them minimal. But he couldn’t deny that she was one of the best workers he had when she was there.
If she lost her job, there would be others Asher had assured her. Better ones even. He had connections. Time and time again, he’d tried to get her to let him set her up at a restaurant, making double what she made as a caterer, and with a better schedule, too.
As much as she wanted to take the offer, she desperately wanted to hang onto the only piece of her life that still felt like hers. She was living in Finn’s apartment. Her days were spent with Asher. Her childhood had relied heavily on her parents, friends, and boyfriend. Her job was the only thing she’d acquired on her own. She’d grown sentimental about that.
On Wednesday, Asher took her to the cabin, though this time it wouldn’t be all theirs.
“My parents will stay at their house, but we’ll have family in from all over, so all of the bedrooms in each of the cabins will be taken. Luckily, we still get the master in our cabin and most of the kids will be in the West cabin, so we shouldn’t be bothered too much.”
“Did I meet most of your family at Grandmother Lorene’s birthday?”
He chuckled. “Not even close. My family is pretty big.”
