by C. C. Wood
Unless Landen gave it all away tonight by repeatedly grabbing my left hand and running his thumb over the ring he’d placed there.
“Hey.”
Lucy’s excited voice caught my attention. I turned my head toward the sound. She hovered behind my chair and reached out to snatch my left hand out of Landen’s grip.
“We’re going to the bar for a special shot. Grier knows the bartender and he made a special one just for Yancy.”
Before I could pull my fingers from her grip or even respond aloud, Lucy pulled me out of my chair and tugged me behind her toward the bar. The rest of my friends followed, the men watching us with various expressions of amusement on their faces.
It wasn’t until we reached the gleaming surface of the bar that Lucy seemed to realize that something on my hand was poking her palm.
“Damn, Chelsea. Where’d you get the ring you’re…” Her voice trailed off into silence when she lifted my left hand to eye level and spied the engagement ring on my finger. The oval center stone was at least two carats and twining platinum vines, dotted with diamonds, wrapped around my finger.
“Oh my God!” she screeched, tugging my hand so close that I could feel her warm breath on the backs of my fingers. “Why didn’t you tell us?!”
I tried to jerk my fingers from her grip, but she was freaking strong. “Lucy, I wanted to wait until—”
Grier bumped my hip with hers as she approached. “She wanted to wait until after Yancy got married, Lucy. She didn’t want to steal attention from the bride.”
Yancy appeared on my other side, her eyes locked on the ring. “Holy shit! That’s an enormous diamond!”
My face flushed and I glared over my shoulder at Landen. He was leaning back in his chair, his arm draped over the back of my empty seat, and he grinned at me.
Tanya came up behind Yancy, nearly six inches taller than the rest of us in her heels. After giving birth to her daughter a little over a month ago, she had immediately reverted back to her stilettos, claiming she missed them during her last trimester. “That is a beautiful ring, Chelsea.”
When the bartender appeared before us and started setting out shot glasses, Yancy cried, “Make that two each! My friend here just got engaged!”
Lucy finally released my hand and I faced Yancy. “I’m so sorry, Yancy. I didn’t want to spoil tonight or tomorrow.”
She stared at me with wide eyes and cocked her head to the side. “Why would it be spoiled? This was already a happy night but now it’s even more special.” She wrapped her arms around me. She swayed slightly on her heels and I knew she was already tipsy. “I’m so excited for you, Chelsea. How could I not be?”
I swallowed the lump in my throat at her words. Damn wine. I must have had more than I realized for me to be such a softie right now.
The bartender finished shaking the cocktail shaker and proceeded to pour out ten shots.
“What’s this called?” Yancy asked as she picked up one of the glasses.
“True Love,” Grier replied, making a face and gesturing toward the bartender. “It was Tamra’s choice for the name.”
Yancy grinned. “I like it.”
Grier handed each of us a shot before taking one for herself.
“To Yancy and Charles,” she said, lifting the glass.
“And the best friends I could ever hope for,” Yancy added.
We clinked our glasses together and drank them down. They were delicious, sweet and light but a little fizzy.
Yancy took responsibility for handing out the second round.
“To love,” she said, her eyes moving over to the table and settling on the handsome man who was smiling and waiting for her.
My own gaze drifted over to Landen, who was watching me with the same expression I’d often seen on Chris’ face when he looked at Lucy. Or Jordan’s face when he studied Tanya.
“To love,” I murmured, lifting my glass to him.
True love tasted like sunshine and sugar on my tongue as I drank it down. But it wasn’t as sweet as the kiss Landen gave me when I returned to my place at his side.
The End
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About C.C.
Born and raised in Texas, C.C. Wood writes saucy paranormal and contemporary romances featuring strong, sassy women and the men that love them. If you ever meet C.C. in person, keep in mind that many of her characters are based on people she knows, so anything you say or do is likely to end up in a book one day.
A self-professed hermit, C.C. loves to stay home, where she reads, writes, cooks, and watches TV. She can usually be found drinking coffee or wine as she spends time with her hubby, daughter, and two beagles.
Titles by C.C. Wood
Novellas:
Girl Next Door Series:
Friends with Benefits
Frenemies
Drive Me Crazy
Girl Next Door – The Complete Series
Kiss Series:
A Kiss for Christmas
Kiss Me
Novels:
Seasons of Sorrow
NSFW Series:
In Love With Lucy
Earning Yancy
Tempting Tanya
Chasing Chelsea
Westfall Brothers Series:
Texas with a Twist
Wicked Games Series:
All or Nothing
Paranormal Romance:
Bitten Series:
Bite Me
Once Bitten, Twice Shy
Bewitched, Bothered, and Bitten
One Little Bite
Love Bites
Bite the Bullet
Blood & Bone Series (Bitten spin-off)
Blood & Bone
Souls Unchained
Forevermore (Contains Destined by Blood)
Cozy Paranormal:
The Wraith Files:
Don’t Wake the Dead
The Dead Come Calling