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“You’re not going to try talking me out of it?”
He looked taken back. “Why would I do that?”
I shrugged. “I just figured you would want to talk me into moving back to California and picking up where I left off.”
He leveled his eyes on me. “You’re not a child anymore, Lennox. You are more than capable of making your own decisions. I know how you feel about Mason and I know how Mason feels about you. Do I wish you would wait? Of course. You’re only twenty-three, but you’ve always known exactly what you wanted. I have complete faith in you.”
Hearing his words put me at ease. I knew he wasn’t trying to talk me out of anything, he just wanted to make sure we had talked about all the important stuff and not just rush into a marriage. I smiled before I moved in for a hug. “Thanks, Dad.”
I sat around and visited with them awhile longer before I made my way back to the shop. The sun was starting to set and I knew it would be closing time soon.
“How was business today?” I asked Mason as I walked into his office.
He was showing Jeremey what to do with the end of the day receipts.
“It was great. We sold out on boats and jet-skis. I don’t ever remember being out of everything at once.” His smile spread across his face, as did mine. It had been a long time since I saw that look on him.
I knew Mason missed the shop and having work to do every day, but I didn’t realize how much he missed it until I saw him back in action.
Mason left Jeremy to finish up the receipts. He took me by the hand and led me back out to the center floor.
“We just wanted to tell everyone thank you for all your hard work these past couple days. We had a great opening day and made more money than we ever have before. To show you our appreciation, we want to take everyone up to the grill for dinner and drinks on us.”
Everyone cheered, ready to celebrate the end of their first day of work.
Once Jessica and I had everything cleaned up, everyone was heading out the door and making the short walk to the bar.
On our walk, I filled Mason in on my day. I told him about finding the dresses and needing him to gather up the guys for their tuxes. We set a date just for us to get some of the wedding planning out of the way.
Mason was in the best mood I had seen him in, in a while. Not only did he get to go back to work, but he had an awesome first day. The shop made more money than we could’ve hoped for and all the employees were getting along great. I knew Mason missed Joey, but I thought that the new people we hired were more than capable of filling her shoes.
After everyone ate, we all ordered a round of drinks. Mason and I hadn’t been out in a long time. Before we went to California, we didn’t want to go out and be caught by Chris, but with him out of the picture, we got a glimpse at how our lives should’ve been. I had never been so happy and so free. I realized I didn’t need to be alone to feel free. All I needed was Chris out of my life and Mason in it.
We danced, holding one another tight as the rest of the group drank, played pool, and hung out.
He pulled back slightly. “I want to teach you how to shoot a gun.”
I was taken back. “Shoot a gun? Why?”
He let out a long breath. “I want to know that you can take care of yourself. I know Chris was taken out of the picture for now, but what if he comes back? What if we think he has given up only to reappear and find you alone?”
I could see how stressed he was about it all. I never thought about learning how to use a gun, actually, they scared me and I never even wanted to. But if that was what it took to ease Mason’s mind even a little, I was completely happy learning for him. “Okay. Tomorrow after doing the wedding shopping, you can show me how.”
“Really?”
I laughed at his surprised expression. He was probably expecting more of a fight from me. “Yeah, I think it’s a good idea. Especially if it helps to ease your mind some.”
His smile widened before he pulled me back to his chest while we danced.
We kept our eyes on one another and forgot anyone else was even in the room. I felt his heart beating as his hot breath blew across my cheek, causing my skin to break out in goosebumps.
We didn’t know if or when Chris would reappear back in our lives, but we were going to enjoy every minute that he couldn’t get to us.
