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“Oh, I am. You see, a lot has happened in the last couple of hours. Once Richard Buchanan officially fired Travis and offered me the job at Gracie’s, Travis knew he had no leverage left in our divorce and that he’d been beat. He agreed to sign the paperwork to make it official as soon as possible. Which, as it turns out, is the day after tomorrow. So, that’s why I’m going to New York, but I’ll be back Tuesday night.”
“But what about the job at Gracie’s?” Jackson’s blood chilled. “Do you not want me to move with you?” Oh, hell. Maybe that was too much for her. After all, trust wasn’t earned overnight.
“Oh, no. I mean, yes.” She stopped, rolling her eyes and then wincing at the movement. “What I mean is, while I’d love to move in together, I’m not leaving Pine Mountain.”
All the oxygen in Jackson’s lungs turned to sand. “What?” he gasped. “But the meeting…”
“I wanted Bellamy and Gavin to know I’d been offered the position in New York, in case they heard it through the grapevine. But I also wanted them to hear straight from me that I turned the job down,” Carly replied.
“Why would you do that?” Jackson breathed, not sure he’d heard her correctly.
“Because ever since Travis left me, I’ve been terrified to trust. But what I didn’t really get until last night was that I had to trust myself first, before I could put my faith in anybody else. So, I finally listened to my gut, but it just told me what I’d known all along.” She stopped and gave a tiny shrug before continuing. “I belong here now. Pine Mountain is my home.”
Jackson’s inner voice burst to life, and he grinned as he pulled Carly close. “You know what my gut is telling me?”
She laughed. “That you’re hungry?”
But right then and there, Jackson finally got what all the fuss was about, and he answered honestly.
“That we should get married.”
“Wait…did you…are you…” Carly blinked, but he brushed a finger over her stunned lips.
“I want to feed you PB and J when you’re hungry, and I want to hold you in our bed when you’re sad. I want to be as serious with you as serious gets. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, if you’ll have me. What do you say?”
“Yes. Yes, yes.Yes.” She circled her arms around his shoulders, and he lifted her seamlessly into his arms just as she jumped to meet his embrace. As he leaned down to slant his lips over hers, there was only one thought in Jackson’s mind.
He and Carly were a perfect fit.
EPILOGUE
Six months later
Sloane Russo stirredthe steaming bowl of minestrone in front of her, propping one elbow over the table in La Dolce Vita’s empty dining room as she watched the jewel-toned vegetables swirl through the broth like New Year’s confetti in Times Square.“Thanks for letting me come straight here. I don’t think I could’ve handled going back to the bungalow just yet.” She cast a look at her best friend, noting that Carly’s chef’s whites already bore dribbles of whatever she’d been working on in the kitchen even though the restaurant wouldn’t open for another few hours.
“Like I’m going to turn you away. Plus, the dinner staff won’t get here for another hour or so, and Adrian can handle getting the tasting menu started.”
Carly waved toward the propped-open doors leading to the kitchen, where the burly sous chef in question was already creating both some incredible smells and a holy racket. Strains of Sinatra oldies filtered in around the metallic clatter of pots and pans, and although Sloane was tempted to smile, she just couldn’t work it up.
“I hate to say it, but I was wondering when that wanderlust of yours was going to catch up with you. Greece, huh?” Carly cocked her head, sending her dark braid over one shoulder.
Her friend’s amusement wasn’t lost on Sloane, who wiggled her brows even thought it was mostly a defense mechanism.
“Yup. One more place to cross off my bucket list. As soon as I can figure out how to finance the trip, anyway.” Each idea she’d come up with on the drive back to Pine Mountain had been worse than the last, to the point that despair threatened to seep past the bravado she normally wore like a suit of armor. But if she wanted to write this book, she needed to head out of the country, stat.
And her agent had told her in no uncertain terms that this one needed to be a blockbuster, so yeah. Sloane needed money, and fast.
“Your bucket list reads like a cross between a world-tour travel manual and a stunt double’s daily agenda.” Carly waved a breadstick with an accusatory flourish before taking a bite. She wasn’t embellishing. Sloane had a bucket list as long as her leg, and she added to it as often as she crossed things off—which was to say, as frequently as possible.
A tiny smile found Sloane’s lips, and she let it stay for a brief moment. “Yeah, but you’ve gotta admit. I’m the only person you know who’s hiked to the top of an active volcanoandlearned how to drive a motorcycle all in the same month.”
Carly brushed the breadcrumbs from her fingers, casting Sloane a measured glance. “I know that when I moved in with Jackson, it left you without a roommate, and I wish I could help you with the money to make up for it. But even small, intimate weddings are bank-breakers these days.” Her fingers moved absently to the engagement ring hanging on a gold chain around her neck, a definite safety precaution considering Carly’s profession.
Sloane’s gut twanged at the remorse on her friend’s face. “Don’t even think about apologizing for moving in with the love of your life. Plus, I’m not worried,” she said, feeling instantly guilty at the lie. But what kind of friend would she be if she burdened Carly with a sack full of issues a week before the woman’s wedding? “Something will come up to get me on my way.”
Carly set her jaw in thought. “Well, let’s see. Maybe you could teach another online class?”
Sloane shook her head. “They take months to organize, and that’s time I don’t have.” She swirled her spoon around the bright pops of carrot and zucchini in her bowl without taking a bite. “Believe me, I’ve thought of everything.”
