Everyone stands up again as the entourage leaves the stage. Before I can do more than lay my lips to Libby, they’re announcing nominees for the Pinnacle Award.
“Oh, God,” Libby whispers.
I take the frame from her and just hold her hand.
“Our first nominee, CMML, Baltimore, MD.”
“Their design is amazing, Cal,” Libby hisses. “I drove by it the other day.”
“Why would you do that?” I mutter back.
“I was curious.”
“You wanted to scope out the competition.”
“Maybe, but…” She doesn’t get to finish as the next nominee is announced.
“B+B, Arlington, Virginia.”
“So brilliant! Their design team turned this old hotel into a high-class shopping mall.”
“How much did that recon cost me?”
Libby just smacks me in the arm.
“Simon, Harley & Hurst, Washington, DC,” the announcer proclaims to loud applause.
“They’re the favorite. You should see the corporate headquarters they redesigned.” Libby names the company, and I whistle aloud.
I earn an elbow to the ribs and a turned-up nose. “Next time, hire them.”
“There won’t be a next time,” I murmur into her hair as I inhale the fresh scent of Libby’s shampoo. “Libs, relax. You already won.”
Slowly, her head twists until our noses are touching. “I know. I won the first time you asked me out. I won the day you came back, the night you first kissed me.”
I interrupt. “You told me you loved me first.”
“Semantics. I was under fear of dying if you’ll recall.”
I grin against her lips. “I’ll never forget it.” I’ll never forget any of it.
“I kept on winning the day you proposed, the day we married. So, we hit a losing streak.” She shrugs as if the years our marriage was on thin ice weren’t the worst of both of our lives—when the lies I told almost did us in. “We came back in the bottom of the ninth and hit a home run with bases loaded.”
“You’re watching too much baseball lately,” I chide gently.
“You can’t say that about the Nats, honey. It’s impossible.” But her smile broadens.
As does mine.
“And no matter what, no matter what, as long as I have you, Jax, Leah, and this little one.” She rubs her hand over her stomach. “I don’t need a piece of paper to validate everything we went through was worth it.” Cupping my jaw as her lips brush against mine, she whispers, “I love you, Cal.”
“I love you, Libby. Always.”
“And the winner of the Pinnacle Award goes to Deja Vu DC!”
We’re still kissing as Libby wins the award of her career. We’re too busy reminding each other that for almost twenty years—since the moment our eyes met across a bar and I gave in to what I had been feeling for her—the ripples of awareness have never stopped.
Not once.
“I guess I can’t lose tonight.” Libby’s face is wreathed in smiles when I finally let her up for air.
My lips curve in a smile down at the woman who taught it to me. “Try not to get so mushy this time, okay?”
“Now look at who’s throwing sass?” Plucking one last kiss from my lips, Libby strides her way confidently back up onto the stage but not before I see the tears pooling in her eyes.
And all I can do is stand, applaud, and smile—God, I can do nothing but smile at the woman who taught me how to do it—knowing that our lives may never be completely without storms, but as long as we have each other, we’ll be able to weather them.
As Libby’s eyes find mine, I know what she’s thinking. Our lives haven’t been perfect. They’ve been riddled with the kinds of storms that would have broken a love weaker than ours. We learned to cherish every moment, to ride the waves as they’ve come up. Because in the end, our love has been the end result neither of us would change. I mouth to her, “I love you.”
And I always will.
The End
Also by Tracey Jerald
Standalones
Close Match
Ripple Effect
The Amaryllis Series
Free to Run
Free to Rejoice
Free to Breathe
Free to Believe
Free to Live
Coming Soon
Return By Air - June 2020
Also coming soon, keep a close eye on the Lady Boss Press site! Tracey is honored to be writing as part of the Kristen Proby’s Boudreaux universe!
Title and release date to be announced very soon!
Acknowledgments
To my husband, Nathan, every day I fall in love even more with the man you are. Thank you for being the true strength in our family. Your love is the kind worth fighting for. I love you.
To my son, my dreamer, you always ask me what my favorite part is and quite simply, it’s you. Never lose your curious mind or your incredible capacity to love.
Mom, really, this book is your fault! You and Dad took me on so many cruises as a kid, it sparked my imagination. I can’t thank you enough for showing me the world and telling me I can, even when there were days I thought I couldn’t. You’re the absolute best.
Jen, there’s no way I can travel this journey without you. There’d be no joy, no laughter. And after close to three decades of friendship, no magic of sisterhood. I love you.
My Meows, I can survive anything as long as I have all of you. I love you.
Petr, who would have thought signing up for that class would change my life? Thank you for the decades of friendship and for consulting with me. Until next time, my friend…
To Sandra Depukat from One Love Editing. Hallelujah! I finally gave you one of the sacred recipes! I know, stop writing this and get back to more words. I love you, too.
To Holly Malgeri. My twin, I know the extra effort you used for this story. It means more to me that you did this then you can possibly imagine. I love you.
To my amazing cover designer Deborah Bradseth of Tugboat Design, I am blown away by the beauty and brilliance of this cover!
To Gel, at Tempting Illustrations, you created works of art that still give me the shivers.
To the amazing team at Foreword PR, you continue to astound me with your brilliance. Alissa, thank you for everything! You could ask for the moon and I’d be happy to do it.
Linda Russell, you’re right. No, that’s not the first time I’ve said it, nor will it be the last. But specifically, screw the bat phone. We’re scary together, we’re scary apart, so, let’s just be scary together. I love you, lady!
To Sue Henn, Dawn Hurst, and Amy Rhodes, I can’t express how much you saved me! Thank you for being gracious with your time and wisdom.
To the amazing people in Tracey’s Tribe, MUAH!
To all of the bloggers and readers who take the time to read my books, from the bottom of my heart, I can’t express how humbled I am. I am overwhelmed by your emails, your comments, and reviews. Thank you for your continuous support.
XOXO
About the Author
Tracey Jerald knew she was meant to be a writer when she would re-write the ending of books in her head when she was a young girl growing up in southern Connecticut. It wasn’t long before she was typing alternate endings and extended epilogues “just for fun”.
After college in Florida, where she obtained a degree in Criminal Justice, Tracey traded the world of law and order for IT. Her work for a world-wide internet startup transferred her to Northern Virginia where she met her husband in what many call their own happily ever after. They have one son.
When she’s not busy with her family or writing, Tracey can be found in her home in north Florida drinking coffee, reading, training for a runDisney event, or feeding her addiction to HGTV.
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