AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Percy wasn’t amused, which was pretty much to be expected. “A lie of omission is still a lie. You two should be ashamed.”
He stalked off, and I glanced at Wes, a flicker of guilt rising inside.
“No, you don’t,” Wes said firmly.
“He’s kind of right, though,” I said quietly as we continued to make our way across the room, the weight of half a dozen gazes burning on my skin. Did they all think of us as liars?
Fisher spoke up. “You don’t owe everyone your truth. It’s your relationship, not theirs.”
Wes squeezed me tighter against his side. “He’s right, baby. We didn’t know what the hell we were doing when we came home. We weren’t ready to explain anything.”
“I guess that’s true.”
“But now we are, right?”
I smiled nervously. “Yeah.”
“Good.” He grasped my jaw and pressed a soft kiss on my lips, right there in front of everyone. “Let them all see you’re mine.”
“I think you mean that you’re mine,” I argued.
A whistle cut through the room. Then a catcall and some laughter, breaking the tension of our arrival. Percy’s accusation and the few unsmiling faces we passed lost their significance. We would find acceptance with the people who were worth knowing, and the rest could kick rocks.
I wished I could go back in time and tell the freaked-out Beck I’d been at the beginning of this journey that everything would work out. But knowing me, I wouldn’t have believed myself. And I supposed the journey, with all its ups and downs, made the ending more satisfying. After all, if we never took risks for each other, if we never had to bet on one another over everything else, then would we even really know what it meant to truly love?
We reached the table where Tucker, Laurie, Hunter, Clark, Bobbi, and Augustus had taken their seats.
“Hey, everyone, this is Beckett’s cousin, Fisher. He’s going to hang out with us tonight.”
“Hi, Fisher,” several of our friends said. “Glad you could join us.”
I gave a quick round of introductions as we took our seats, and Wes went to grab us some drinks. Fisher got stuck with a soda, since he wasn’t drinking age yet.
“So I guess the secret is all the way out, huh?” Clark said when Wes had returned and we’d all gotten settled. “Congrats.”
“Yeah, thanks,” Wes said. “We told the family, so it’s official now.”
“How did that go?” Laurie asked, his tone a little concerned, which made sense given his family’s reaction to his marriage to Tucker.
“Good,” Wes said.
“Reallygood,” I added. “We’re taking over Potter Landscaping as soon as all the paperwork is done.”
“That’s great!” Bobbi said. “You guys have worked hard for it.”
“Yeah, we have. But that’s not the biggest news.” Wes grinned and flashed his ring finger. “Beckett proposed. We’re getting married!”
Everyone exchanged confused looks.
“But I thought…” Clark said.
“You’re already married, aren’t you?” Augustus added.
But Tucker and Laurie just smiled as if they totally got it, which they probably did.
“Well, yeah,” Wes said, “but now we get to do it on purpose!”
Everyone laughed, and I slapped his chest, trying to pretend I was exasperated with him but too damn happy to drop my smile.
