Harlan’s smile falters the slightest bit. “Oh, you know, the network mentioned they’d like more star power. And you guys definitely fit the bill.”
“I heard you promised them we’d be on it,” Serena says cooly.
Is that so?
He pulls at the collar of his shirt, gaze darting between me and Serena. “I… um…”
“We’re not interested,” I interrupt, not wanting to listen to him hem and haw trying to come up with an excuse.
“But we came to your benefit,” Courtney says, frowning.
I chuckle, though there’s little humor in it. “From the way I hear it, you asked for an invitation after you found out who else would be here.”
She blinks at me, almost like she’s surprised I called her out on that, but I’m not finished with her yet. “And I don’t believe you ever apologized to Serena for how you treated her in high school.”
The woman’s cheeks redden, even in the relatively dim lighting of the event space. “That was like a million years ago,” she sputters. “Who cares about any of that now?”
Serena stiffens, and I squeeze her tighter to my side. “I care.”
Harlan glares at his wife, wrapping an arm around her shoulders a little too tightly. “Why don’t you just apologize, babe?” he grits out.
She huffs out a breath, nearly rolling her eyes. “Sorry, okay? Is that better? Will you be on our show now?”
Serena’s back straightens as she looks her squarely in the eye. “You can’t give me a half ass apology you don’t mean then expect me to do you a favor.”
“Oh, sick burn.” A dark haired woman joins us, chugging the last bit from her champagne glass. “You should have had that on your show.”
Courtney’s lips tighten. “No one asked you, Claire.”
“Ah, ah, ah,” the woman tsks, waving her finger. “You have to be nice to me. Remember, my husband’s an executive at RealityTV.” Oh, is that how Serena got them to do a behind the scenes exclusive for the shelter?
Harlan glances between the women, then steers his wife away, cutting his losses. “Let us know if you change your mind.”
Yeah, don’t think so.
“Looks like you finally found your voice,” the woman says to Serena, smirking at her.
“Yeah, a decade later,” she mumbles, relaxing into my side again.
The woman stops a server, taking a refill of champagne. “Well, I didn’t mean to interrupt. I just couldn’t help overhear your satisfying takedown. Now, I’ve got to find Ava. When I last saw her, she was trying to convince Jerome to adopt another dog as a friend for Sandy.”
She wanders off and Serena turns in my arms, her lips tilted up in a smile. “Thank you for standing up for me. Again.”
“Always,” I tell her. And I mean it too.
She reaches up on her toes to whisper in my ear, “Let me hear you say it again.”
It takes me a moment to understand her meaning before it clicks. “I love you.”
“I love you too.” She kisses me soundly, no thought to everyone surrounding us, but that’s how she’s always kissed, from the very beginning. With her whole soul, nothing held back.
She breaks away, grinning devilishly at me. “I want you to say that later to me. In bed.”
My dick twitches. “Yes, ma’am.”
She laughs lightly, sobering when Gabriel approaches us, a solemn expression on his face.
“What is it?” It’s not like him to be so somber.
“I have… news. That was Connor.” He motions to the phone still in his hand. “Dad had a heart attack.”
Something in my chest thumps painfully. “Is he okay?”
“Don’t know. Connor’s headed to the airport to fly home just in case. He said Dad’s in the hospital now having an angioplasty done, whatever that means.”
Serena grips my hand, lending me support, and I squeeze it back, too many thoughts running through my head to make sense of it all.
Dad and I haven’t spoken since the blow up at his office. My resignation from the company was immediate, and true to his word, I wasn’t let back in Bishop Plaza to go up to my apartment. Thank God I’d had Lori take everything out she could beforehand. And after Dad fired her, she was happy to resume her position as housekeeper in our new place.
“I… I don’t know how to react. How to feel,” I admit. There’s so much history tied to this news. “How do you feel about it?”
He shrugs. “Am I an awful person if I say I don’t care? I made my peace cutting ties with him a while ago. He’s an abusive jerk.”
“You wouldn’t care if he… dies?”
His mouth firms and there’s silence between us for a few moments. “I don’t know,” he admits finally.
I look over to Serena, but she merely shakes her head. “He tried to convince me you’d left me, then made me homeless. I’m pretty biased.”
I nod, not quite ready to unpack the jumble of this news about Dad. For now, there’s nothing I can do. No one from his team contacted me directly, so I assume he didn’t give instructions to include me in the loop. But I can provide support to Connor at least. I leaned on him during my brief time working overseas. If there’s anything he needs from me, I’ll gladly do it. He’s the only one of us left that still speaks to Dad, even if it’s only business related.
I pull my phone from my pocket to tap out a quick text, asking Connor for an update when he has one, then turn back to Gabriel, his mouth a grim slash across his face. “I’m going to find Mackenzie,” he says, already searching the crowd for her.
“Yeah, of course.”
He walks away and Serena gently wraps her arms around me. “I know people aren’t always black and white,” she murmurs, her voice barely audible over the din in here. “He did bad things, but he’s still your father.” She would know about that. We spent a long time discussing what I’d learned about her father and his gambling debts, and how deceived she’d felt by what he’d hidden and plotted. “I’m here to listen if you want to talk about it when we get home.”
God, I don’t deserve her. How can she be so understanding when he tried to ruin her life? “I actually had something else planned for later.”
She leans away, tilting her head up at me in question.
I retrieve the ring box out of my breast pocket, popping the lid to show her the ring inside, the diamonds sparkling brilliantly even in the dim lighting. “This just came in from the jewelers today.”
She steps back, clapping a hand over her mouth, but she can’t hide her spreading smile.
I take it out, holding it up for her to see. “You said you wanted a ring from me, right? I saw you looking at this in the shop window on one of our walks with Petey.”
“You remember that?” she whispers, her voice catching.
I nod, slipping it over her left ring finger, next to the wedding band already there. “Your fingers are so slim, I had to special order the size.”
“I love it.” She holds her hand in front of her, admiring it. “Oh God, I really love it.”
“We’ll have a do-over wedding sometime soon. If you want to marry me for real, that is.”
She nods before I’m finished speaking. “I do. I want that. I love you, Archer.”
“Love you too,” I whisper in her ear as she crushes herself to me.
I may not know exactly what the future holds with my family, my career, even myself, but I do know I want this woman by my side while I figure it out. Gabriel had no idea how much he hit it on the head when he said I should be thanking him.
Because there’s no one else I’d rather spend my life with. This is only the beginning.
Epilogue
Serena - 1 year later
“So what’d you think?” I hold Archer’s shoulder for balance as I bend down to slip off my heels. “You have an okay time?”
“Yeah.” He shrugs, closing the front door before heading over to the living room. “It was fun.”
I hide a smile, goi
ng over to give Petey a quick pat where he’s lounging in his dog bed in the corner, and join Archer on the couch.
“I’m being serious,” he insists, seeing my expression. “Gabriel and Mackenzie know how to put on a party.”
“Well, they’re professionals.”
“What do you think they’ll do for their wedding? If their engagement party was that big, I can’t imagine what the actual day will be like.”
He chuckles softly. “I don’t know.” He pats his lap, motioning for me to place my feet there. I gladly reposition myself, sighing in relief as he massages my heels. Over the last year, he’s learned his own massage tricks I frequently take advantage of.
“I saw Mackenzie’s mom had you cornered at one point. Sorry I couldn’t save you.” I’d actually enjoyed chatting with a few of Gabriel’s friends who were interested in starting their own nonprofit. New Beginnings is thriving, enough that we’re considering opening another building in Brooklyn.
“It was fine,” he says, digging his thumb into my arch and releasing the tension there. “I just feel bad for Gabriel. He’s the one that’s going to have her as a mother-in-law.”
“Oh God, I overheard her saying the cringiest thing to them earlier. Something about how she better get grandchildren soon. Mackenzie looked about ready to muzzle her.”
Archer stiffens slightly. “What’d Gabriel say?”
“Oh, he laughed it off. Said eventually they’ll have enough kids to make their own baseball team.”
He gives me a smile that doesn’t quite reach his eyes.
“What is it?”
He looks up at me. “Hmm?”
I lean forward and touch the wrinkle between his brows. “You’re worried about something.”
He relaxes his face, but there’s still a lingering tension there. “It’s nothing.”
I give him a look, which he correctly interprets based on his sigh.
“I’m at a new company this week,” he admits, “and this lady made a comment I can’t get out of my head.”
Archer does freelance consulting for businesses now, which is great because he can pick and choose how often he works, and he never lacks for clients because who wouldn’t want advice from the former CFO of a major corporation? After six p.m., though, we have a strict no work policy at home. We value our time together too much. “What’d she say?”
“Well, she was the receptionist there. Super grandmotherly type. She asked if I had kids and I said no, I hadn’t really thought about it before.”
His fingers move to the ball of my foot and I wiggle my toes as I relax further into the couch. “Okay…”
“She went on to tell me I’d be a great dad. I mean, I’ve never even met this lady. I had no clue how to respond.”
Admittedly, yes, kind of weird for a stranger to say that, but I don’t know why he’s so worked up. “I know we haven’t discussed it much, but I’d like to have kids with you one day. I think you’ll be an amazing dad.”
“Not like Gabe. Or Connor.”
I study him for a moment. “What are you really worried about?”
He’s silent for a minute as he continues the massage, his fingers magical as they soothe my tired feet. “You don’t think I’ll be like…” He doesn’t finish his sentence, but I know exactly where his mind is.
“Your dad?”
He nods warily, not meeting my eye. Has this been weighing on him?
“Let me ask you a question. Do you believe I’d treat my child the way my mom treated me?”
His gaze snaps up, looking appalled for a moment before he sees where I’m going with this.
“You are nothing like your dad.” My voice is fiercer than I expected, but it’s only a testament to how strongly I feel about this. “You’re loving, kind, protective-”
“That’s with you, though. It’s easy to be that way with you.”
“And you don’t think you’ll have the same instincts with your kids? I know you will. Don’t compare yourself to anyone else. You’re your own person. And I’m excited to start a family with you one day, if that’s something you want too.”
His face softens. “As long as you give me some time to get with the program. You remember what I was like at the beginning of our relationship.”
I reach a hand out, stroking it through his dark locks. “Totally clueless,” I grin.
His lips quirk. “I got there eventually.”
“That you did.”
His hand comes up to cover my own. “Thank you. For always having faith in me. For seeing me in the best light possible. Sometimes I need to hear things from you to really believe them.”
Warmth spreads through my chest, creeping up my neck to my cheeks. I’ll never tire of hearing his praise. “I wish you could see yourself the way I see you.”
“And I’ve said the same about you.”
I duck my head to hide my smile. “Touché.” I play idly with his fingers, bringing his hand back down to join mine in my lap, and twist his wedding band, the gold glinting in the lamplight. “Take as much time as you need to think about things, you know, family wise. There’s no rush, but I’m ready when you are.”
“Maybe we could practice tonight?” A wicked grin spreads across his face, his hands leaving mine to smooth themselves up my legs.
“Practice, huh?”
“Yeah. Making a baby and all that.” His palms move past my knees, skimming along my thighs. “Not sure I quite understand how it works. I’ll probably need a lot of practice.”
“Will you now?” I grin back, gasping as those skillful hands hitch my dress up.
I tug him off the couch, leading him into our bedroom, ready for another blissful night with him.
I’ll never get enough of this man. And I plan on it staying that way for a long time to come.
Also by Allie Winters
Want more Archer and Serena? Get a free sweet and sexy bonus epilogue featuring a memorable night between them when you sign up here.
Start at the beginning of the Bishop Brothers series with Resisting the Billionaire (Bishop Brothers #1)
- Gabriel - When I’m forced to make a deal with my father to marry the woman of his choosing for a business deal, I never expected to find someone I connect with. Someone who doesn’t fawn all over me because I’m the heir to a billion dollar fortune. Someone who sees the real me. And someone I can’t get enough of in turn.
There’s only one problem - I can’t have her. She’s the wedding planner.
* * *
- Mackenzie - It’s the chance of a lifetime - plan the wedding of a billionaire’s son that’ll put my event planning business on the map and get me out of debt. A no brainer, right?
Except the bride wants nothing to do with this arranged marriage. And as the groom and I get closer, the professional lines between us keep blurring until there’s something there neither of us can deny. With my business on the line and our chemistry off the charts, I’m torn whether I should keep resisting the one person I never expected to fall for.
* * *
Seducing the Billionaire (Bishop Brothers #3) (Connor’s story) is coming mid-2021.
Check out the Suncoast University series – Four steamy new adult romances that will have you swooning.
* * *
Let Go (Suncoast University #1)
- Charlotte - Putting yourself out there? Getting close to others? No, thanks, I’ll pass. It’s safer to keep to yourself. I’ve learned that lesson the hard way. So when I accidentally tell the muscled hunk I’ve been secretly drooling over all semester how I really feel about him, it’s not like I meant for him to take an interest in me. I don’t want a boyfriend. Not even when it turns out he’s so much more than just brawn.
My goal for so long has been simple - get into grad school. And when I get a dream TA position at the beginning of the new semester that will help me achieve just that, I’ll have to forget about him now that he’s my student. Easy, right?
- Luke - I can’t get he
r out of my head - the shy, sexy brunette that’s trying so hard to keep me at a distance. I can be patient, though. Anything to break through that reserve and get under her shields. But just when I thought I’ve succeeded, she’s off-limits. Say hello to my new TA. Even though I’m hot for teacher, there’s no way she would risk this opportunity. Right?
* * *
Watch Me (Suncoast University #2)
- Samantha - I need a place to stay ASAP when my living arrangements fall through before college starts. And I shouldn’t have any trouble resisting my new roommate… despite how much I find myself connecting with him.
- Levi - I have absolutely no interest in the beautiful blonde living in the room next door. She’s not my type. Not even when it turns out she’s nothing like I expected.
She’s only here for the summer, so it shouldn’t be a big deal to act on this attraction before she leaves. It doesn’t have to mean anything, right?
* * *
No One Else (Suncoast University #3)
- Evan - I messed up. I admitted to the girl of my dreams I’m in love with her, only to have her run away. Why don’t they ever warn you things like that happen?
Now that we’re paired up for a class project, I have to figure out a way to keep things from being weird between us. I can’t lose her again.
- Natalie - We shared a kiss the night after I broke up with my boyfriend of three years. A heart-stopping, panty-melting kiss I still dream about. But I wasn’t ready then for anything more.
Now that I am, he’s unavailable. What will it take to get us both on the same page - and stay there?
* * *
First and Only (Suncoast University #4)
- Jake - When my dreams of going pro are crushed by a career-ending knee injury, I have to figure out how to use brains over brawn for the first time to graduate college. Enter Eden, my new Biology tutor. Except she doesn't want to be paid in the usual way. She wants me to give her relationship tutoring to attract a guy she likes. But this shy, awkward brainiac is turning out to be so much more than I expected. In the words of a scientist, will this equal exchange turn out to be more than the sum of its parts?
Marrying the Billionaire (Bishop Brothers Book 2) Page 24