by Lucy Lennox
OZ
I’d just finished the interior re-design consultation at the Haven Inn when I decided to duck into the supermarket to pick up some flowers for Jake. He and Xander would be leaving in a couple of days for their first week-long youth expedition trip of the summer, and I wanted him to know how much I was going to miss him.
On my way to the front register, I passed a display of various squeeze bottles of hot fudge for ice cream sundaes.
Hmm, maybe Jake and I could have fun with this. How many calories are in a Jake-sized portion of squeezy chocolate?
I laughed to myself as I reminded myself for the millionth time I no longer had to be so worried about every little thing I put into my mouth.
Squeezy chocolate it is, then. Maybe I should look for a tarp too, for easy cleanup…
“Oh my god, Oz! Have you seen it?”
I glanced around and recognized my friend Frieda and her eight-month-old daughter.
“Annie-belle,” I cooed at the fat-cheeked princess in the cart. “Look at you sitting up in the cart like a big girl.”
Frieda waved a magazine in my face. “Oz, since when is Anna Kendrick wearing your freaking designs? I thought you said since you missed Fashion Week, they wouldn’t be produced until next year?”
I tried to see what she was pointing at and finally had to grab her wrist to steady the magazine. “What? I don’t even know what you’re talking about.”
A cashier named Nina hurried around her station to join us. “Oh! I’ve been dying to ask him about it. Oz, it’s the actress from Pitch Perfect! She’s wearing a gown you designed. The one that looks like a killer version of an Armani suit crossed with a sexy-as-heck ball gown!”
I found the page and, sure enough, there on the red carpet was Anna Kendrick wearing my suiting gown.
“Huh. I didn’t think Trina had shown anyone yet,” I muttered, flipping through to see another shot of it on the next page. “A movie premiere. Not bad. Aiden was right about that woman having connections in the business.”
I shrugged and handed it back to Frieda before making faces at the baby again.
“Who’s a chipmunk-cheeked cutie-pie?” I teased, reaching out to touch the tip of her nose with my finger. Both women continued to titter with each other about being friends with a celebrity fashion designer. There was no use in reminding them that I was just the guy with the sketchpad. My business partner, Trina, was the one who made shit happen in New York and around the world. Once Aiden had asked for her help finding me a partner, she’d flipped out and signed on with me immediately. Thankfully, Aiden and his team were managing most of the details of my side of the business.
I accepted both ladies’ words of congratulations and then shot Nina a wink. “Hey, can you check me out, please? I have a hot doctor waiting for me up the mountain.”
Right before taking the last curve to the cabin, I realized the road was blocked by a large pickup truck. I stopped my Jaguar and looked closer.
The hottest, sexiest, smartest man on the planet was standing with his back to the truck and his arms crossed in front of his chest.
“Car trouble, mister?” I drawled, stepping out of my car.
“I seem to have forgotten how to work my vehicle. Someone suggested I needed to have my winter air changed out for summer air in the tires.”
I strode closer to him.
“Mm, I think air is air, but what the hell do I know? Want me to give you a ride somewhere?”
“Nah, I was kind of hoping since it’s an air problem… well, you’re really good at blowing.”
I couldn’t help myself; I snorted. “That is so bad. Please tell me you didn’t spend a long time coming up with that one.”
He grinned and shrugged before opening his arms for me. I threw myself into them and kissed him full on the lips. His mouth was as familiar as it was sweet and delicious. His tongue teased mine until I was breathless and rutting against him like a damned horny teenager.
“Home. Wanna get naked,” I breathed.
“Can’t. People over,” he managed to get out between nips to my neck.
“Fuck. What people? Why?” I moved his hands from my hips down to my ass and squeezed, encouraging him. He took the hint immediately and began pulling our hips together in rhythmic thrusts.
“Celebrate. Oh god, baby. We have to stop. You feel so fucking good.” Jake pulled back and gazed at me with glassy eyes. His lips were deeper red than normal and slick from our kisses.
“You saw the magazine?” I assumed it was actually Zoey who’d found out, since she lived in town and seemed to know everyone. It would be just like her to gather up the usual suspects for an impromptu celebration cookout at the cabin.
Jake tilted his head at me. “Magazine?”
“Yeah. The dress. Anna Kendrick. Remember? The reason we’re celebrating?”
He seemed to gather his wits. “Oh, right. Yeah. That. C’mon. Everyone’s waiting.”
As I got back into my car and drove the final curve to the cabin, I saw more than the usual construction trucks that were normally parked in front of our new home site. We’d bought my little cabin from Xander and Bennett and had torn down Jake’s cabin to build a family-sized home.
We’d offered for Wade, Zoey, and the baby to move into our cabin when we moved to the bigger house, but they’d opted to stay in town at Wade’s place. I couldn’t blame her since the little one-bedroom cabin was hardly big enough to raise a child, but I still missed having her with me on the mountain.
She, on the other hand, was thriving in town. She’d gotten a job in one of the adorable clothing boutiques in Haven, despite Wade begging her on a regular basis to let him support her and baby Atticus. They’d finally compromised on her only working at the boutique part-time so she could spend these precious early days with Atti.
I recognized Wade’s truck and couldn’t wait to get my hands on that baby. I’d have to pry the little guy away from Wade, if history was anything to go by.
Before I had a chance to get a driveway kiss before heading into the cabin, Jake leaned back into the truck for something, mumbling over his shoulder.
“Oh, by the way, my family is here too. They flew in this morning.”
I looked up at him then and realized this wasn’t about my magazine discovery.
“Why? Jake, what’s going on?”
He reached into the truck and pulled out Boo. “Princess Cujo missed you this morning.”
I thought it odd he hadn’t handed her to me down the road when I’d kissed him against the truck. As soon as he tried to hand her to me, Boo turned and jumped back into Jake’s arms.
We both stood there, staring at the crazy girl. Had she really just chosen Jake over me?
Jake narrowed his eyes at her. “Six months. Six fucking months of you snubbing me and now is when you choose to love me? We had a deal, woman. We talked about this.”
He handed her back to me and this time she came. I noticed she had a T-shirt on, which was strange because it was June and plenty warm enough for her to go without.
I began pulling it off her until Jake’s hand stopped me. I looked up at him with a questioning glance.
“Read the shirt first, sweetheart,” he said in a soft voice.
I looked back down again, wondering if it was the one he’d gotten her a while back that said “Penguin Hunter” on it. The man thought he was hilarious. I straightened out the fabric so I could read the words.
Can I have two daddies?
Confused, I looked at Jake, then read the shirt again.
And again…
Oh my god.
JAKE
When I saw him get out of the car on the mountain road, I couldn’t help but remember the day we’d first met. Even though he wasn’t wearing all white this time, he was still dressed like the international supermodel he’d once been.
His skinny jeans were expertly slashed and distressed, rolled up to capri length and paired with a funky pair of boots that looked like
they were made out of gold foil and black patent leather. I shook my head in disbelief. It never failed to amaze me. No matter what Oz wore, he was the sexiest, most beautiful creature alive.
My stomach was in knots, and I heard Boo yipping to get out of the truck and go to him.
Not yet, baby girl.
I thought about proposing right there on the road. My mom and Zoey had sent me down to stall him until they could finish getting everything ready for the party. But I knew the minute I put the ring on his finger, I wouldn’t let him out of my reach for the rest of the night. And I sure as hell wouldn’t let him get in a separate car to drive up the rest of the hill.
I couldn’t even pay attention to what he was saying–something about a magazine and an actress. Who the fuck could focus when they were about to ask someone to marry them?
It took just minutes to make the rest of the drive up the mountain, but it felt like a lifetime. I couldn’t stop looking at Oz in his flashy red car behind me and remember the moment I’d dismissed him so many months ago as some naïve kid who knew nothing about life.
God, how wrong I’d been.
And how fortunate I’d been that he’d given me so many opportunities to see the real him.
Finally, finally we were parked in front of the cabin. My hands shook as I handed the little traitor over to Oz and waited for him to read the shirt. I’d thought of a million ways of doing this, but in the end, I’d known he’d love Boo being involved.
“Two daddies?” he asked, quirking his head and looking at me in confusion before he read the shirt a second time, then a third. I saw the moment the realization hit him. “Wait, what?”
I stepped back and dropped to one knee, reaching into my pocket for the ring and clearing my throat. I tried not to focus on the tears that sprang to his gorgeous blue eyes.
“You once told the ladies what you were looking for in a man, and I remember thinking, God, I wish I could be that man. The one who keeps you safe, who laughs at your jokes, who loves your dog and supports your dreams. Oz, I see the real you and not only do I think that guy’s okay, I think he’s magnificent. You are kind and brave and smart. You light up the world around you with color and joy. Everyone who meets you is a friend, and the idea that I could just possibly be lucky enough to be by your side for the rest of our days makes me feel like my life is only just beginning. Will you marry me, Ozias Ballard?”
He set Boo down and launched himself into my arms, almost tumbling me over onto the packed dirt of the driveway.
“Yes, oh god, Jake. Of course I’ll marry you!”
I heard a cacophony of cheers and whoops from the yard to the side of our cabin and looked over to see our friends and family approaching with eager congratulations.
We kissed hard and fast, sealing our promise in a moment and making a different, unspoken promise to celebrate more fully once we were alone later that night. I managed to pull back enough to get the platinum band on his finger, and he looked down at it in awe.
“It’s kind of simple. I didn’t know what you’d want and we can exchange it for—”
“It’s perfect,” Oz breathed before looking at me with sincerity in his eyes. “Beautiful and simple and sparkly all at once. I love it. And you’d have to rip it off my cold, dead hand, so don’t even think about exchanging it for anything.”
I laughed and tightened my arms around him. “I love you so much, sweetheart. You make me so happy.”
He leaned in and kissed me again. “I love you too. Forever, no matter what. I’m so fucking lucky.”
Xander’s voice boomed across the yard. “Speaking of Lucky, we left him alone with the grill out back, so let’s get this celebration underway.”
As I moved to follow everyone to the back yard, I felt Oz’s hand slip into mine and hold on tight. I looked down at him and saw him beaming up at me.
“You happy, sweetheart?”
“Mm, more than you could know.”
“I think the real reason behind that smile is because you’re mentally designing our wedding attire, am I right?”
He put a finger to his chin as I heard Zoey bark out a laugh.
“Hm, it might be a little preppier than I normally go, but hear me out. There’s this gorgeous Ralph Lauren camel plaid cashmere coating that would make the most beautiful—”
I cut him off with another kiss. He and I both knew I’d let him dress me up in whatever the hell he wanted, as long as it meant I was able to be with him for the rest of my life. “Only condition I have is that whatever you put me in, it closes at the back.” I shot him a wink and saw him blush as he remembered all the times he’d tortured my naked backside with his touch as I’d modeled the suiting gown for him.
I met Zoey’s eyes over Oz’s shoulder and gave her a wink too. Once I pulled away, I called out to Wade, who was standing next to Zoey with the baby. “Hand my fiancé that boy to give him something else to coo about or we’ll be listening to fabric talk all night.”
Oz turned around in search of his favorite newborn. “Atti-boy. Come to Uncle Ozzie.” He reached out his arms for the sleeping bundle. Just then, my mom and dad came around the corner.
“What’s taking you so long? Get back here and let us pop open the champagne!” My mom rushed to me and gave me a quick hug and peck on the cheek, barely looking at me long enough for a quick congrats before getting her hands on Oz.
“My boys,” she cooed, embracing Atticus and Oz in one giant hug. I noticed her eyes overflowing as she gazed at the newest additions to her family. Since reuniting with me at New Year’s, my family had spent almost as much time in Haven as back home in Wisconsin. I knew they still had this irrational fear that something would happen to me and I’d be stolen from their lives again, but they were finally coming to grips with the realization that I was really safe now. Something I myself had only recently started to accept. I’d only recently been able to stop looking over my shoulder, even knowing Barton was dead and his cartel disbanded. The aftermath of the events in the maintenance shed had been a unique form of hell. For starters, all of us involved had been sequestered from one another so that we could give independent accounts of what had happened in that shed.
I’d spent nearly two days meeting with what had seemed like every government agency out there as I’d recounted Megan’s and Peter’s deaths and the three years I’d spent running. Only when all the questions had been answered had I been allowed to see Oz again. By then, pure chaos had erupted as news had broken that a famous model had been involved in a brutal attack by a corrupt government agent. We’d dodged reporters for weeks until we’d been forced to sit down with several news channels to try and lay the issue to rest. Oz had used the opportunity to announce his retirement from the modeling world, which had brought a whole new slew of reporters and paparazzi to our door. But as tough as those days and weeks had been, I’d had my family by my side. And more importantly, I’d had the man of my dreams with me to shoulder the strain of it all. And each night as we’d put another stress-filled day behind us, it had just been him and me planning our future.
A future in Haven.
“Son, get back here and show this boy how to flip a burger,” my dad said as we all rounded the corner and saw Lucky struggling at the grill. “Apparently the kid’s only used to Portobello burgers or something. Needs us Midwesterners to show him a thing or two about meat.”
Xander and Bennett snickered from the other side of the grill, while I caught Lucky shooting them the bird where my dad couldn’t see it.
“Ask Zach to help him. I don’t know the first thing about grilling. Always seem to burn stuff when I try,” I admitted.
Zach came over to the grill to help Lucky and leaned in behind him to reach for the spatula. Lucky’s entire body froze up, which caused Zach to freeze too. No one else around us seemed to notice, but Zach cleared his throat and carefully stepped back, mumbling something about going into the cabin for more cheese slices.
Despite the stack of cheese sl
ices sitting on the table next to him.
I turned back to Lucky and saw his face drop.
Ever since everything that had happened with Barton, I’d noticed Lucky had stars in his eyes whenever my brother came around. I wrote it off to a little hero worship at first, but admittedly, I was beginning to wonder if it wasn’t something just a bit more.
“Lucky, would you mind going inside to grab me…” I scrambled to think of something that wouldn’t already be out here. “Some cocktail sauce?”
The teenager turned and blinked at me in confusion. “Cocktail sauce? Like for shrimp?”
I was an idiot.
“Yeah. I think there’s some in the fridge. My mom likes it on her…” I looked around at the food all over the folding tables. “Potato chips.”
Lucky didn’t even stop to question me, just shot forward into the house behind my brother. I knew Zach well enough to know that he’d see Lucky’s behavior for what it was and hopefully let the teenager down easy. Xander had shared with me that Lucky had ended up nursing a broken heart for quite a while the previous year after a boy he’d liked apparently hadn’t returned his feelings. The last thing I wanted was for him to get hung up on my thirty-year-old brother, especially since Zach would likely be coming out to Haven on a regular basis to visit. I hoped Zach would use the privacy of the kitchen to let Lucky down easy before his crush became something that would be harder to bounce back from. As it was, Lucky was already in therapy dealing with everything we’d gone through, and he didn’t need the added burden of unreturned feelings on top of that.
“Cocktail sauce? On potato chips?”
I turned to see Aiden standing there with his arm around Ash. “It was all I could come up with on short notice. What the hell are you two doing here?” I stepped forward to give each of them a big hug. We hadn’t seen them since Xander and Bennett’s wedding.
Aiden gestured proudly to his fiancé. “Ash has a gig booked at Red Rocks in a few days. He’s opening for Viscount Smash.”
Ash blushed and smacked Aiden. “Stop telling everyone. I’m pretty sure the entire passenger manifest of our flight has the details memorized.”