Kat's Nine Lives
Page 27
Thankfully, neither said anything as they passed through the kitchen.
Evening softened the landscape, and night-blooming jasmine perfumed the air. Kat admired the yard as she always did, noticing the pansies her father had planted. Wendy took her hand and led her down the porch steps toward the pool yard. It was only at the gate that Kat saw Jeremy and Evan’s bridge spanning the water again. “Is this what that look was between you and my dad at dinner?”
“What do you mean?”
“Are he and my mom renewing their vows? Why wouldn’t they have asked me for help?”
“Your parents? No. This isn’t about them. I asked your dad to help me because I had something I wanted to ask you, and this seemed like the best place.” She tried to lead Kat to the bridge, but Kat remained rooted by the gate.
“You didn’t say anything about my lyrics.”
“Lyrics?”
“To the song. I rewrote a whole verse, and it’s like you didn’t even hear it.”
“It sounded the same to me.”
“I used to think maybe you loved me, now I know that it’s true. I don’t want to spend another day, not one without you.” She paused and waited for Wendy to understand. She tried a few more lines. “Now I don’t want you to feel put on the spot, but this love that I have for you ain’t ever gonna stop.”
“I’m sorry.” Wendy looked at the bridge and back to Kat. “Wait. You wrote those lyrics?”
“Yes. I wanted to talk about the rest of your life and whether you’d be interested in spending it with me.” Kat held up her right hand with the engagement ring she’d selected for Wendy. She pulled it off her finger and held it to her. “I thought you’d notice when I was playing the drums. I had it all worked out, that you would hear the lyrics, see the ring and ask what it was doing on my finger. Then I’d ask you to marry me.”
“Oh! I ruined your plan.” Instead of holding out her left hand to receive the ring, Wendy dug in her pocket and extended its contents to Kat. “See, my plan was to bring you out here after dinner and ask if you would marry me.”
“So I ruined your plan!” Kat clapped her hands over her mouth, her eyes glued to the ring in Wendy’s palm.
“I’m sorry I didn’t hear the lyrics. I don’t want to spend another day without you, either. I was so worried about remembering what I wanted to say.”
“Which was…?” Kat stepped closer to Wendy.
Wendy took Kat’s hand. “For starters, we have to be in the middle of the bridge.” She led the way, stopping to face Kat once they reached the middle.
“And then you were going to say…”
Wendy stood there staring into Kat’s eyes. “I only remember the ‘Will you marry me?’ part.”
Kat extended her hand. “Yes, a thousand times yes.” Once Wendy slipped the ring onto Kat’s finger, she admired the set of the simple diamond. “I didn’t know how you’d feel about marrying a girl with a past,” she whispered.
“Your past will always be part of who you are. A mother. An awesome drummer. A sister and a survivor. I counted once and came up with eight lives. Cats get nine lives, right? I wasn’t sure you’d want to share your ninth with me.”
“You weren’t sure? I thought I was pretty clear about how much I want you.” Kat kissed her deeply.
Wendy responded to the kiss, stepping forward and running her sure hands along Kat’s curves. “Haven’t had enough yet?”
Kat loved the way their kisses could make Wendy gasp. She nuzzled Wendy’s neck, enjoying the spices that lingered on her skin. “I’ll always need more of you. I can’t seem to get enough of you. I may never get enough. Would that be okay?”
“I think I could live with that.”
“Me, too. I think I could live a long, long time like that.”
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