“I’ll think about it,” Derrick sighed.
Patrice gave him a small smile before she left.
Derrick slumped down onto the couch and closed his eyes. Olivia joined him, entwining her fingers with his.
“Are you okay?” she asked.
“Yeah. I’m just glad it’s over. They’re leaving,” he whispered sounding relieved. “Do you think I should call?”
Olivia kissed his head. It would be easy to tell him to ignore Patrice, but she was a better person than that. And no one should be at odds with his or her family if they didn’t have to be. “She reached out to you. Apologized. If you feel up to it, I’d give her a call. She’s your mother, and that’s never going to change,” she answered honestly. “The same with Elliott. It’s your family and your choice.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Four weeks later…
Olivia set the table with Rachel. The other girl smiled brightly as she positioned the silverware on the napkins. Every few seconds, Rachel peered into the front room.
Marc cradled Ava in his arms as he spoke to Derrick and Jace.
“I can’t believe she is finally home,” Rachel sniffled. “I’ve been waiting a month for this night, and I can’t believe it’s finally here.”
“Rachel,” Olivia hugged her friend. After a month of driving to and from the hospital every day, Ava was finally home. Olivia squeezed her friend tighter. It had been a hard month and it was finally coming to an end.
“What if I don’t wake up when she cries? I’ve gotten used to sleeping through the night. Or what if I don’t do something right?” she worried.
“You’ll be fine. You and Marc are doing this together. You have this,” Olivia assured.
Rachel blinked and dabbed at her eyes. “I guess I’m still a little emotional.”
“It’s perfectly acceptable. You just brought your little girl home from the hospital. She’s getting to meet her uncles and be a part of the family. Cry if you want to,” Olivia laughed.
“Okay,” Rachel said waving her hands in front of her face.
Olivia picked up the plates and set them around the table. Rachel went to the oven and stirred the rice. “It will be done soon,” she commented, changing the subject.
“Should I get the guys?” Olivia asked.
Rachel leaned against the counter and twirled her hair around her finger.
“What is it?” Olivia asked joining her friend.
“Marc asked me to marry him again,” she stated.
“And?” Olivia smiled.
“I said no.”
“Why?” Olivia asked quietly. Why did Rachel keep telling Marc no? They seemed perfect together and Marc had done a wonderful job of stepping up to the plate with Ava.
“I don’t want him to marry me because of Ava. I want him to marry me for me,” Rachel explained.
Olivia bit her lip. “Rachel, he’s been really supportive and with everything that has happened, I don’t think you could ask for more of him. He’s not going anywhere. Maybe you should accept it.”
Rachel released her hair and sighed. “You think so?”
“Yeah. I do,” she replied.
Rachel scrunched up her face. “I wonder how long I’ll have to wait for him to ask again?”
“Why wait? Ask him,” Olivia suggested.
Rachel grinned. “Hmmm, maybe I’ll take you up on that.”
***
Derrick tapped his mother’s business card on his dresser. Should he call her? She hadn’t attempted to contact him, but then again she’d left the ball in his court. Just do it.
He picked up his phone and dialed in the number before he lost his nerve. Placing the phone to his ear, he held his breath as it rung in his ear.
“Hello?”
“Hi,” he answered.
“Derrick?” his mom whispered her voice catching in her throat. “I didn’t think you would call. I’m so glad you did.”
“I wasn’t sure I would either,” he admitted.
“How…how are you?” she asked.
“Good. Ava’s home.”
“I heard. I can’t wait to meet her,” his mother gushed.
“You’re coming back?” he asked, closing his eyes. He was not ready for another visit.
“I don’t know when yet. Your father and Elliott are still busy with a case. I hope soon,” she said wistfully. “Perhaps I could plan a trip just myself.”
“Okay,” he said shifting on his feet. What else could he say to her?
“How are things with Olivia?” she questioned.
“They are good.”
“Just good?” she questioned.
“What do you want me to say, Mom?” he asked, resting his elbow on the dresser and his face in his palm.
“I like her. I was just curious if and when you would take it to the next level.”
“You like her?” Derrick asked confused. His mother, one of the pickiest people in the world, liked his girlfriend? Not that Olivia wasn’t likable. She was one of the best people he’d met. He was just surprised his mom was giving her approval.
“I do. She is a one-of-a-kind girl,” she sighed heavily into the phone. “I have to get going, but think about what I said and call me again?”
“All right,” he agreed.
He hung up and set his phone on the dresser. He thought about what his mom had said. Take it to the next level. That wasn’t such a bad idea. In fact, he would do just that.
Chapter Twenty-Two
"So you're really going to do this?" Jace asked as they looked at the variety of rings in the jewelry case.
There were thousands of rings in the cases, but he could only choose one. It had to be perfect, just like the woman that it would belong to.
"There isn’t a doubt in my mind," Derrick stated as he looked at the various sizes and cuts of the diamonds. "I love her and I can't imagine anything else. I want to do this. I want to show her how much she means to me and commit to her for the rest of my life."
"Well, at least I'll be able to have a favorite sister-in-law," Jace joked.
"You think she'll say yes?" he asked nervously. That was the one thing that kind of worried him. She'd been here before with Tyler and she had broken it off. Was he any different? They hadn't been together for nearly as long as Tyler and she had. Yet, they lived together now, and she had stuck with him through all his family drama, so that had to say something. Right?
Jace leaned onto the glass counter and stared down at the rings. "Of course she'll say yes, Derrick. How are you going to do it?"
"I don't know," he answered honestly. How was he going to ask? He knew he wanted to and that Olivia was the best thing that ever happened to him. Now, he just had to find the right way to ask her.
“It needs to be something special. You only get one chance at it. So you can’t screw it up,” Jace told. He tapped on the glass. “What do you think about this one? Nice and big. Girls dig big rocks.”
Derrick stared at the large diamond his brother was pointing to. It was too big. Olivia wouldn’t want something that big. And he was sure he couldn’t afford it. “No. What do you think about a weekend trip?”
“I’d love to. When do we leave?” Jace laughed at his own joke.
“For me and Olivia,” Derrick grunted.
“I think a weekend trip is a good idea. Make it someplace secluded,” he instructed.
“I think I know where I’m going to take her,” Derrick said, glancing back into the case.
“Where?”
“I’m not telling you,” he chuckled, knowing his brother, he would show up just to torment them. A round diamond caught his eyes. He walked along the counter and stared at it. This was the one. This was Olivia’s ring.
***
"So what do you think, sweetheart?" Derrick asked as he put their heavy suitcases down and hugged her from behind.
Smiling to herself at their closeness, she leaned into him enjoying his embrace. She was definitely ready for a nice and much needed re
laxing weekend.
Olivia looked around the gorgeous cottage in awe. She had never been someplace so lavish before. They had their own living room with a fireplace, kitchen, and sun deck with a whirlpool. The bedroom was on the second floor, and she could only imagine the upstairs was just as lush as the first floor. "This is nice. We don't have to leave the room all weekend," she answered. That actually didn't sound like a bad idea. After the past few weeks, they both could use some relaxation and to just get lost in each other.
"Whatever you want to do, Olivia," Derrick grinned as she turned toward him. She knew he would be all too happy to accommodate not leaving the room at all. "Here is a list of all the activities at the resort and close by," he said handing her a pamphlet.
Olivia flipped through the pages silently ticking off the things she wanted to do. One of them might take some convincing, but she was sure she could think of ways to be persuasive. "What do you think about this?" she asked flipping the pamphlet for him to see.
Derrick raised an eyebrow probably regretting the, whatever you want comment he'd just made. "You can get a massage, sweetheart. I don't know how I feel about a couples massage."
"It will be fun," she assured kissing him. "Relaxing." She slid her hand up his chest suggestively.
"What about this?" Derrick asked pointing to the horseback riding and hiking trails.
"We could compromise and do both," she smiled sweetly. “I've never done either so it would be a first for me for both."
"A massage?" he asked warily.
"Yeah, relax, unwind." She wrapped her arms around his neck. "Work out all the kinks and then we can come back here and unwind some more," she persuaded, licking her lips.
"All right, but only if we can start unwinding now. A few hours in the car made me really tense," he flirted.
Rolling her eyes, but smiling, she asked. "What did you have in mind?" As if she didn't already know the answer.
"I want to check out the hot tub."
"You told me I didn't need to bring a swimsuit," she frowned.
"I know," he grinned, wagging his eyes at her.
***
"Do you think we should tell Rachel we met before she introduced us?" Olivia asked as she snuggled closer to him.
Derrick couldn't help but smile at her. He enjoyed watching her as the light from the fire danced across her beautiful features. The evening had been perfect, a lovely dinner and now they sat wrapped in a blanket cuddled against each other watching the fire. "Why tell her now?"
Olivia shrugged. "I don’t know. I guess if she hadn’t introduced us I don’t know what would have happened. Would we have found each other again? Sleeping with you that first night was a mistake. The best mistake I ever made. Do you think if we didn’t hookup that night, we would have still gotten together?" she questioned.
"Well, you can't deny chemistry and you definitely can’t deny fate," Derrick agreed.
"No, you can't. This is perfect. Thank you," she said craning her head to look up at him. "I love you."
"I love you, Olivia," he said kissing her.
She entwined her hand with his and smiled brightly at him. "You're perfect."
"I doubt that, but I do try," Derrick laughed.
"No really, everything, you, me, this trip, everything is perfect. We are perfect together," Olivia replied giving him a quick peck.
"Well I think I can live the rest of my life with you thinking that."
"The rest of your life?" she teased.
"Yeah," he sobered knowing they were taking on unchartered territory with this conversation. He had the ring, but still wasn't sure how to ask. Perhaps this was the right time. "I've never been this involved with anyone before and I can't imagine ever falling for someone else like I have for you. I can't imagine not waking up with you every morning. You and I belong together."
"I could see us married someday with kids. Living in a house near the city, but not in the city. We’d have a cute little swing set in the backyard," Olivia said dreamily looking up at the ceiling as she talked. He could see her imagining everything in her pretty little head as she spoke.
"I don't know if I want kids, sweetheart," he answered honestly. After his childhood, the thought scared him. Hell, Ava terrified him the few short minutes he'd held her. It wasn't that he didn't love his niece, he did, but being responsible for another human was scary. As much as children horrified him, the thought of living without her was even more frightening. Derrick didn't want anything to come between them, and he'd seen relationships fall apart for far less. A little Olivia wouldn't be too scary, right? "But if it's something you want...we could uh...talk about it."
"I know your childhood was not so great, Derrick, but I think you could be a good father. You're a good person. Anyway, I don't want kids for at least a few more years. I want to get my business really going with a few employees to help with the work and be in a house and married before kids."
"So maybe we should get married and take the rest from there," Derrick suggested without thinking. He hadn't intended to propose quite like this, but now that he'd said it there wasn't any going back.
"Are you asking me to marry you?" she stammered turning to look at him wide eyed.
Her brows rose up in question, and he would give a million dollars to know what she was thinking. Pulling the ring from his pocket, he popped the box open. "I love you, Olivia. Marry me?"
She was silent for a few more seconds before she threw herself at him and kissed him. They fell back onto the carpet as her tongue swirled around his as she straddled him. "I love you."
"So is that a yes?" he asked optimistically.
"Yes," she beamed happily.
"Good," he smiled as he took the ring out and slid it onto her finger. He hadn't known her exact size and was thankful that it looked to be a near perfect fit.
***
"Have I told you how perfect this is?" Olivia asked as they spread out a blanket. They had gone horseback riding this morning and had their couples massage this afternoon. Though Derrick would probably never admit it, she was pretty sure he had enjoyed himself. Now, they had hiked to a remote spot to have a picnic for dinner.
"It only helps to boost my ego," Derrick teased.
"So you really did teach Jace everything he knows,” she jested.
"Not everything. He's annoyingly flirty and horny on his own."
Olivia laughed as Derrick set the basket and themselves on the blanket. Reaching into the basket, Derrick took out some champagne and two glasses. Olivia watched as he popped the cork and filled their glasses. Taking the glass that he offered her, she clinked it against his. "To our future," she said as she lifted it to her lips.
"I'll toast to that," Derrick agreed taking his own sip.
They were quiet for a few moments as they both prepared their meal. They started eating in silence, both watching the sun as it began to dip down behind the trees. The sky filled with pink and orange streaks. The sight was breathtaking, and she couldn't help but think back to how this all started between them.
"We should have tacos at our reception," she mused.
"Tacos? You sure that won’t be too messy for you? You’ll be wearing white," Derrick said sipping his champagne.
"I know, but we could recreate our first date," she suggested.
"Sounds romantic,” he grinned. “I’m always up for tacos.”
She clapped her hands together excitedly. "I get to plan our wedding.”
“You’re just now realizing that?” Derrick chuckled.
“Yeah, I guess so,” she giggled.
"You're not going to be a bridezilla are you?" he asked warily.
"No," she said rolling her eyes. At least she hoped not. "When were you thinking we’d get married?"
"I don't know. We already do everything a married couple does anyway, it's just making it official now," he shrugged. "We could do it whenever you're ready. If you want to plan a big wedding, make it happen. If you want something simple and swee
t, do it. It’s our day and it will be epic, regardless of the when, where, and how."
Olivia sighed. She wanted to get married tomorrow, but she also wanted the whole giant wedding with the perfect dress. "Well, in order for it to be my dream wedding, it might be a year or so. We will need time to plan. Rachel will want to help too, and I think she'll secretly hate the fact that I'm getting married before her."
"Correct me if I'm wrong, but hasn't my stubborn little sister been asked at least once, possibly more than once, to become Mrs. Adams?" Derrick asked looking at her pointedly.
"Three times," Olivia said as she held up three fingers. "I don't know what she's so afraid of. I mean like you just said, they already act as a married couple and they even have a kid. The first time was because she had just told him she was pregnant. Nobody wants to be proposed to just because they got knocked up, but I don't know what she is thinking now."
"I don’t think Rachel knows what she’s thinking sometimes,” Derrick said taking a long swig from his champagne glass and refilling it.
"Hey, don't drink too much. I want to use that hot tub again tonight."
"I thought you were complaining about not having a swim suit."
"And I thought that was part of the turn on," she smiled seductively.
"I think we should finish eating."
"We should buy a place with a hot tub," Olivia mused as she took another bite of her food.
"We'll need a privacy fence," Derrick smirked. "If we have a hot tub, we will not be using bathing suits in it," he said eyebrows rising suggestively.
"So where are we getting married? In the city…my home town…a beach in Hawaii?" Olivia inquired.
"I like the last option," Derrick replied. "Just our close friends and family. Unless of course you want something big."
"I don't know. That does sound kind of appealing. I'll admit I've kind of always wanted a big wedding though." A big wedding would be nice, but then again, something small and intimate would be romantic, too.
Pretty Young Thing: a new adult romance box set Page 50