Finding Our Way Back (A Well Paired Novel)
Page 29
“I don’t paint naked.”
“Shh.” He covered her lips with his finger. “Don’t ruin the fantasy for me.”
“You’re ridiculous,” she laughed against his finger.
“I warned you. You’re never getting rid of me now.”
“Okay, but fair is fair. When you’re cooking, I’m going to follow you around and ask about every ingredient you use.”
“Follow me around? Works for me.”
“And I’m going to sneak in tastes and add extra salt and pepper when you’re not looking.” Tristan scowled at her. “That’s not funny.”
“And open the oven door when your soufflé is baking.”
“You wouldn’t dare.” He gripped her sides and squeezed, knowing how ticklish she was there.
“And replace your marinara with jarred sauce.”
“Enough.” He tickled her ribs. “Take that back.”
She giggled and squirmed but was unable to break free. “Take back the stalker husband bit.”
They both froze, eyes locked on each other, then Tristan broke out into a grin. “Stalker husband?”
Yes. Husband. She didn’t want to waste any more time without him in her life. All the time. “Sounds better than stalker boyfriend.”
“It does, doesn’t it. Crazy wife sounds better than bat shit crazy girlfriend too.”
Jenna gasped. “Bat shit crazy?”
“Girlfriend. Not wife. My wife would never sabotage my cooking just like your husband would never sabotage your artwork.”
“Good point.”
Tristan dropped to his elbows, resting his naked body above hers. With each passing second, she could feel him growing harder and harder for her.
“So, what are we going to do about it?” She raised an eyebrow in question.
“I’d say we have a wedding to plan.”
“I know an okay caterer.”
“I think he’ll be busy that day.”
“We could always order subs like last time.”
Tristan brushed his lips across hers. “I don’t care about the food. It’s the bride who matters.”
“Hmm,” she murmured against his lips. “Sounds like she’s getting a fresh ketch.”
EPILOGUE
“I can’t believe you’re ditching me too.” Mia propped her leg up on the coffee table and pointed her pretzel rod at Jenna. “There’s too much gushy, emotional crap in this room. I’m gonna have to find myself some new friends.”
“Stop being so dramatic.” Hope sat next to Mia and draped an arm around her shoulder. “We’re going to live vicariously through you and your tales now.”
“Hell no. Now that you guys are married and popping out babies, you’re not going to want to hear my dating fails. I’m not ignorant to how things are going to go down. I’ll be the favorite aunty. The one you call to babysit, but slowly your days and nights are going to be too busy to think about your single friend with no life.”
“Wow. You can cut the melodramatic act any time now.” Grace held her champagne glass up toward Alexis for a refill. “It’s so out of character for you, Mia.”
“You’ll find someone to settle down with.” Hope patted her knee.
“Gross. You guys can have the settling down crap. I just want the sex and my friends. But not at the same time. Again. Gross. No offense.”
Grace was right. Mia never cared about relationships or kids. In fact, she’d balked at them for as long as Jenna had known her.
“Tristan is always booked on weekends, so I’m free to hang out anytime. You’ve always been there for me; I’m here for you. Always.” She held up her glass for a refill.
“I can handle that as long as we swap sex stories. I can only imagine what that husband—or do I call him ex-husband-slash-fiancé—is like in bed. Meanwhile, while you ladies are stuck with the same old song and dance every night, I’ll be whooping it up with a different variety every weekend.”
They knew she was kidding. Sort of. Mia talked the talk, but from what Jenna had seen, she wasn’t as wild and crazy as her mouth made her seem. The rest of the night was filled with laughter and stories of bad dates, annoying things their significant others did, and plans for Jenna and Tristan’s wedding.
Her friends had come out in full force once they heard of her engagement. Tonight’s book meeting had turned into a surprise engagement party with champagne, chocolate, and strawberries. With Christmas right around the corner, everyone was busy decorating, shopping, and baking, yet they still made time for her.
It had been a long time since she’d felt the holiday spirit, not since she was pregnant with Anna. This year would be different. While she and Tristan could never have children of their own, at least they’d found each other again.
Last week they visited her grave, celebrating her anniversary together and promising to do something fun every year to honor Anna. Together, they would continue to mourn the loss of their daughter, and together they’d face each day with the love and support of each other.
She recognized the fake contentment on Mia’s face. Jenna had been staring at it in the mirror every morning for the past five years. She had so much to be thankful for, and she wanted to give back to her friends for always being there for her.
Because everyone deserved to find true love.
THE END
Acknowledgments
This never gets old. I have to pinch myself to make sure what I’m doing is really real! Writing is my passion, my escape, and I’m so blessed to be able to do it. Granted, finding time to write gets harder and harder as my family’s schedule gets busier and busier.
Thanks to my editor, Silla Webb, who never fails to make my books better, and is so much fun to work with. To JM Walker who is incredibly patient with my indecisiveness when it comes to creating the cover. The struggle is real, but the end result is always fantastic. Bella J, blurbs are hell, but you are an angel. Thank you so much for your input and insight. Hugs, girlfriend.
My Ricecake gang, I love you all so hard! You guys are amazeballs! Thank you for your constant support and always cheering me on. My readers, you’re what keeps me going. I love hearing from you all whether it be in PM, email, or on social media.
And last but never least, my family. Life would not be complete without you. Thank you for being you. Hugs and love forever.
If you enjoyed Jenna and Tristan’s story, please consider leaving a review wherever you purchased the book. Reviews help spread the word to other readers!
I love hearing from my readers. Tell me what you think of Jenna and Tristan’s story (don’t worry, Carter will be getting his own book too!) and what you’d like to see from me in the future! You can email me at mariannericeauthor@gmail.com. I do my best to reply to every email within a reasonable amount of time.
You can read more about the people in Crystal Cove in the Well Paired series:
At First Blush
Where There’s Hope
What Makes Us Stronger
Here With You
Be sure to check out more books by Marianne Rice at: www.mariannerice.com/books
Other series by Marianne Rice:
The McKay-Tucker Men:
False Start
False Hope
False Impressions
The Wilde Sisters:
Sweet on You (it’s permafree!)
Then Came You
Wilde For You
The Rocky Harbor Series:
Staying Grounded
Strawberry Kisses
Wounded Love
Playful Hearts
Wilton Hills Christmas:
Marshmallows & Mistletoe
Snowflakes & Sugarplum Fairies
Dallas Firefighters:
Smoke & Pearls (free when you sign up for Marianne’s newsletter at: www.mariannerice.com)
About the Author
Marianne Rice writes contemporary romantic fiction set in small New England towns. She loves high heels, reading romance, scarfing down dar
k chocolate, gulping wine, and Chris Hemsworth. Oh, and her husband and three children. You can follow her all over social media, and keep up to tabs with her latest releases on her website: www.mariannerice.com