by Elle Spencer
And she did.
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
Lacey woke up around midnight, still in her clothes. She took them off and climbed back into bed in just her underwear and slept for another four hours. She woke with a start, knowing they had to be at the studio at six. She could hear the shower running, so she decided to go out to the guesthouse, where she had clothes and toiletries.
Quinn was telling the truth when she said she’d left everything just as it was in the guesthouse. The photo of Lacey and her mother was still on the wall. Her go-to flip-flops were still by the door. The book she’d bought to read by the pool was right where she’d left it, on the kitchen counter. It was comforting somehow, knowing the place hadn’t been wiped clean of her existence. She tidied up a bit and then got in the shower, letting the hot water run on her back.
After her shower, Lacey threw on a pair of running pants, a t-shirt and flip-flops, and wrapped her wet hair up in a bun. It was just starting to get light outside as she walked the length of the pool. She couldn’t help but smile, remembering all the times she’d done this in the past.
The fancy coffee maker got a kiss. “Hello, my friend.” She made the coffee and filled two travel mugs, then buttered a toasted bagel, wrapping it in a napkin. Quinn made her way down the stairs. Lacey smiled at her. “Good morning.”
“Good morning.”
They were running a few minutes late, so Lacey wasted no time handing Quinn her favorite travel mug. They headed for the garage – Lacey’s keys to her Range Rover were hanging on a hook by the door, right where they always were. She grabbed them. “I’ll drive as long as you don’t bitch about how fast I’m going.”
“I won’t bitch if you stay in your lane.”
“Fine.”
“Fine.” Quinn stopped short when Lacey turned around at the door. “Is something wrong?”
Lacey hesitated, her eyes locked on Quinn’s lips. “No. We’ll kiss later.” She tried to turn back around, but Quinn caught her arm.
“We’ll kiss now.”
It was a sweet kiss. They both tasted like mouthwash. Quinn hummed her approval and deepened the kiss as much as she could with hands that were full with coffee mugs and handbags. Lacey’s were full too, so they fought for dominance for a moment before Lacey pulled back. If she kept going, coffee mugs would eventually crash to the floor and clothes would be tossed aside and desperate, hot sex would be had, but none of that was a good idea with an 18-year-old brother in the house, not to mention a call time in less than an hour. “Later,” Lacey said, her chest heaving and her heart so full it wanted to burst wide open.
Quinn nodded. “Yeah.” She licked her lips and sucked in a breath. “God, you turn me on. Always have.”
“From day one.” Lacey said as she pushed the garage door open with her bum. She set the travel mug on the roof and opened the car door, but didn’t get in. She looked at Quinn across the hood of the car and raised an eyebrow.
“Fine,” Quinn acquiesced. “From day one. Are you happy now?”
Lacey bit into her bagel and grinned. “Ecstatic.”
***
Amy pulled up to Lacey’s car in her little cart, surprised to see Quinn in the passenger seat. “Good morning, ladies.”
“Morning, Amy,” they said in unison. Quinn sat next to Amy in the cart and Lacey sat in the back.
She eyed them both closely and then took off at full speed. “Trent is taking Braxton surfing this afternoon. He thinks your brother is awesome.”
“Oh, yeah? Brax will love that, I’m sure,” Quinn said.
Amy gave Quinn a look, her eyes wide as she motioned with her head at Lacey. Quinn smiled and patted Amy’s leg. They pulled up to Quinn’s trailer and Lacey jumped out of the back of the cart. She had to get to hair and makeup as soon as possible. She turned around and walked backward, winking at Quinn. “See you later.” As soon as she was in the building, Amy squealed.
Quinn sat there, grinning from ear to ear. “I think maybe we’ll be okay.”
Amy grabbed Quinn and hugged her. “I can’t believe it!”
Quinn patted Amy’s arm. “I’m not going to risk losing her again.”
“What?” Amy pulled back. “What does that mean?”
Quinn hadn’t slept much. Not at all, really. She was scared to death that she’d wake up and Lacey would be gone. Change her mind. Come to her senses. Whatever. About an hour before the alarm went off, she got out of bed and sat in a chair watching Lacey sleep. She looked so beautiful with her hair splayed all over the pillow. Quinn’s pillow.
She’d fallen in love with Lacey so slowly, she didn’t even realize it was happening. Every day, they’d laugh a little more and argue a little less. Touch a little more, just because they could.
Her broken arm did that – forced them to be together 24/7. It was a blessing in disguise.
On set, they’d found a rhythm, just like they’d done at home. It was magic, how well they worked together. The best of both worlds. How many couples could say that?
And then, tragedy struck. A death. A funeral. Inconsolable grief. And that’s when Quinn knew that her heart – as hard as she’d tried to fight it – belonged to Lacey.
A gift she threw away.
That would never happen again.
Quinn turned to Amy and looked her in the eye. “I’m going to ask Lacey to marry me.”
“What?” Amy was frozen, gripping the steering wheel as she watched Quinn walk away. “WAIT!” She got out and slowly made her way over to Quinn. “Hon…are you sure that’s the best…”
“I refuse.” Quinn pursed her lips together as her eyes misted over. “I don’t care if it seems reckless, or too soon, or whatever other reasons you come up with, Amy. I don’t want to live another second of my life without her.”
Amy nodded. “Okay.” She slid her arm through Quinn’s. “We’ll pick out the ring together. It needs to be big. I prefer a solitaire. Or maybe emerald cut.”
***
Saturday morning came, but not soon enough for Quinn. They’d had late nights and early calls all week. By the time they got home, they were both too tired to do anything but spend a few minutes with Braxton and then fall into bed. The same bed.
Quinn had bought a new toothbrush and set it next to her own. When Lacey saw it, she smiled, but she had yet to use it, always going out to the guesthouse in the morning to shower and dress.
Quinn had put in writing what she wanted to see happen with Jordan’s Appeal. After one more season, she hoped they’d be open to a spin-off with Lacey’s character as the lead. Quinn would agree to several guest appearances per season if they kept Jordan and Selena in a happy, committed relationship. She was ready for something different. Something that would give her more time to spend at home. When the time was right, she’d email her desires to the producers and hope for the best.
“You hauled me out of bed at the ass crack of dawn to do this?” Lacey bent over, trying to catch her breath. “There better be a gourmet breakfast at the top of this damn hill.”
Quinn giggled. Lacey looked so cute in her spandex shorts and racerback top, her skin glistening with sweat. Quinn literally had to pull her out of bed by both arms. Lacey hadn’t stopped moaning about it since. “We’re almost there.”
“That’s what you said two hours ago.”
“You were still in bed two hours ago.”
“As it should be.” Lacey motioned with her hand. “Give me that water.” She took a long sip and gave Quinn a stern look. “Are you trying to kill me? You know I’m not a mountain girl.”
No. I’m trying to marry you. Quinn could see the little piece of red fabric Amy had tied on a tree, indicating where she should get off the trail. They were close. She took the water bottle back and slapped Lacey’s butt. “Come on. We’re almost there.”
They hiked several hundred more feet and came to an opening that looked out onto the valley. Lacey stopped, putting her hands on her hips. “Well, this is gorgeous.”
Lacey gasped. “I was kidding about the gourmet breakfast! What the…”
It was the perfect spot. Completely private. Beautiful view. Quinn tried to get her breathing under control, but it was hard. She was out of breath from the hike, but she was also nervous as hell.
“How did you get all of this up here?” Lacey asked, looking at the champagne bottle sitting in the ice bucket and the pillows strategically placed on the blanket.
“I had help.” Quinn handed Lacey a cold bottle of water from the basket. “Are you hungry?”
Lacey gulped the water down and wiped the sweat from her brow. “What’s going on? It’s not my birthday. Or, your birthday.”
“No, it’s not.” Quinn kicked at the dirt with her toe. Maybe this was the worst idea she’d ever had in her whole life. On a list of a million bad ideas, this would be number two, right behind Jack’s let’s-get-you-a-fake-girlfriend idea.
Lacey pushed her sunglasses on top of her head. “It must be something special for Amy to haul her ass all the way up here with an ice bucket.”
Quinn laughed. “Yeah. She’s already texted to let me know she’ll be getting a bonus for that one.” She kept her eyes on the rock she was working hard to dislodge from the ground.
Lacey stepped closer, putting her finger under Quinn’s chin and meeting her gaze. “I’d love to crash on one of those pillows and drink champagne, but I’d prefer to know what we’re celebrating.”
“You’re beautiful,” Quinn whispered, saying the first thing that came to her mind, her voice a little shaky.
“That’s what we’re celebrating?” Lacey ran the back of her fingers over Quinn’s cheek. “Because I think we’d be celebrating the wrong face.”
“You didn’t let me finish.” Quinn took a step back and reached for Lacey’s hand. Her own hand was shaking but she held on tightly. “I know what it feels like to love you. I also know what it feels like to lose you. I prefer the first one. Because the second one almost killed me.” She took a breath, trying to calm her nerves. Her words were coming out too fast now and she needed to slow down. “I want to love you forever. My whole life. And I want to do it knowing that you’re mine and I’m yours and no one can take that away from us.”
She reached into the small pocket in her spandex shorts and pulled out a very large diamond solitaire ring. She tried to read Lacey’s expression. Surely, she’d stop her if the answer was going to be a negative one, but Lacey’s expression was only one of disbelief. Her mouth was slightly open and her brow was furrowed, but Quinn had no idea what she was thinking. She didn’t want to say the words if they would be rejected. It would hurt too much.
“Aren’t you going to…” Lacey pointed at the ground.
“Oh, right.” Quinn got down on one knee. She had no choice. She’d have to say the words, come what may. She reached for Lacey’s hand again and tried to breathe, but her chest felt like it was slowly being crushed.
Lacey squeezed Quinn’s hand and whispered, “Say it.”
Quinn took that as a positive sign. Also, the fact that Lacey was still standing there meant something, right? Instead of saying yes, she wouldn’t say that after all they’d been through, they should wait. See how it went. Be a real couple for longer than a day. They’d only had one night together, unless you counted the last week of falling into bed after work. And now, this? Crazy, right? Insane. Worst idea ever.
Except it wasn’t. They’d spent almost a year together. They’d seen each other at their best, and they’d seen each other at their worst. Quinn struggled to think of a person in her life who’d failed to notice how Lacey made her a better person. By the time the craft services guy mentioned it, Quinn was pretty sure they were all on to something. Maybe it wasn’t such a bad idea after all.
Quinn squeezed her eyes shut and imagined their wedding again. She’d been planning it all week. It wouldn’t be small and private. The opposite, actually. She wanted the big wedding her mother would love to help them plan. She would include everyone important to them. She would invite someone from the press to cover it. Give an interview. Tell the world how happy she was. All of this would of course only happen if it was what Lacey wanted as well.
Lacey. She was waiting. Quinn opened her eyes. “Lacey Matthews.” Quinn swallowed hard. “Will you marry me?”
Her voice and gaze were both steady this time as she waited for an answer. It didn’t take long. Lacey gave her a nod and whispered, “Yes.”
Quinn couldn’t get the ring on her finger fast enough. She pressed against Lacey cupping her cheeks. “You said yes.” She kissed her soundly and giggled. “You said yes.”
Lacey wrapped her arms around Quinn and picked her up off the ground, turning them in a circle. “Of course, I did.” She set Quinn back down, keeping her arm around her waist, and looking at her ring. “I’m going to be your wife,” she said, a disbelieving tone in her voice.
“Mrs. Kincaid.” Quinn twisted the ring, making it sparkle in the sunshine.
“Matthews.” Lacey said. “Matthews Kincaid.” She picked Quinn up by her waist again and carried her to the blanket. “I think I’ll have my way with my fiancée.”
Quinn tried to wiggle her way loose. “Not out here!”
“Oh, yes. Out here.” Lacey got Quinn down on the ground and knelt over her. “Unless you’re worried about drones.”
Quinn pulled Lacey to her, holding her face. “Shut up,” she said, right before kissing her fiancée.
***
Jack hadn’t been surprised by the tweet – a photo of Lacey with her arms resting on her knees, showing off an engagement ring, along with a message – She said yes.
Quinn had warned him of her intentions. He didn’t try to dissuade her, even though he’d been somewhat concerned about Lacey’s response.
Margaret was very surprised when she’d received the same message in text form. Surprised and overjoyed for her daughter.
Amy hadn’t stopped crying tears of joy ever since.
They all sat in the front row, dressed in their finest. Amy wasn’t the only one crying anymore. Did Jack always carry a cloth handkerchief in his coat pocket, or just at weddings? Amy took his hand and squeezed it, offering support. She reached over and took Margaret’s hand in hers as well. It was only when Quinn kissed her bride that Amy let go and cheered, louder than anyone else.
***
When the emcee announced the first dance, Lacey stood and held out her hand. “That’s our cue.”
Surprised, Quinn took her hand. “But, we didn’t talk about a first dance.”
“We didn’t?” Lacey led her out to the dance floor. “I swear we discussed it on the way home from dinner that night, remember? You talked about having a cheesy song?”
“But…” Quinn’s jaw slacked as the sounds of a piano filled the air. “I never told you what it was.”
Lacey pulled her in close. “You didn’t?”
“Oh. My. God.” Quinn held on tight and they began to sway. She didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. “Lace, you realize I picked this song when I was 12, right?”
“Shh… dance, baby.”
They swayed a few more moments with the crowd hooting and hollering. Quinn giggled. “TMZ is going to have a field day talking about how cheesy we are. You know that, right?”
“Quinn Matthews Kincaid!” Lacey paused, letting the feel of her wife’s new name roll around on her tongue. “I don’t care what they say. TMZ didn’t see your face when you talked about your wedding song. There’s no way I’d deny you that.”
Lacey pulled back and guided Quinn into a spin, quickly pulling her back into the embrace. “The song is true,” she said. “Everything I do…”
“You do it for me?”
Lacey raised Quinn’s hand to her lips and kissed her wedding ring. “From day one.”
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Quinn’s throat tightened. “Could I possibly love you any more than I already do?”
“Probably not,” Lacey said with a grin. “Besides, we are slow-dancing the fuck out of this song.”
“That we are, honey. That we are.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Elle Spencer is the author of the best-selling lesbian romance Forget Her Not. If you’ve read her work, you probably already know that Elle is a hopeless romantic. She is currently working on her third novel about a dystopian world where straight people compete for love on reality shows. Just kidding. It’s a lesbian romance.
You can find Elle on Twitter @ESpencerWrites or feel free to drop a line at [email protected].
Want more of Elle? Check out Forget Her Not.
A note from Elle:
Thanks so much for reading my book! I loved writing Casting Lacey and I hope you took something away from it. If you did, I’d be grateful if you’d leave a review.