Love Abstract (The Art of Falling Book 2)

by B. L. Berry

  I touch up my lipstick and slip the tube into the pocket of my gray chiffon dress. It’s the same dress I wore at my birthday dinner. The one Phoenix picked out.

  “Okay. Let’s do this.”

  I take a deep breath and give my best friend a tight hug. She sniffles in my ear.

  “Don’t you dare start crying. You’ll make me ruin my mascara.”

  “I won’t, Bitch Tits.”

  She squeezes me a little tighter and we share one final single girl laugh. I’m secretly amazed that we both made it to this moment in one piece.

  Rachel wipes her cheeks and opens the door. I beam brightly at my dad who is waiting for me on the other side. Rachel kisses my cheek and skips down the hall and before disappearing behind a closed door.

  “You ready?” He looks handsome in his charcoal suit. But more importantly, he looks genuinely happy. I melt when I see a single tear escape his eye at the sight of me.

  “As ready as I’ll ever be.” I hook my arm in his.

  He hands me a simple but colorful bouquet full of white lilies tucked with pastel paper cranes before leading me down the hallway, then turns to face me.

  “You know, this isn’t how I imagined your wedding day. I wanted the best for my baby girl. The biggest party money could buy. But the man who’s waiting for you on the other side of this door … that man is the best. And I couldn’t have handpicked a better match for my baby girl.”

  He leans over and kisses my check, and I smile warmly at him.

  “But with that said, it’s not too late to make a run for it. I already staked out the closest emergency exit.” He winks at me and I just shake my head and laugh.

  Dad pushes the door open and we step inside. The room is small, but overflowing with happiness.

  Rachel stands on the right, with Brock flanked at her hip. The pair only met yesterday but are already holding hands. No doubt that pair is double trouble. In Brock’s free hand, he’s holding up a cell phone with a video feed so my sister can watch the nuptials from her apartment back in Chicago. Mr. Wolfe stands proudly to the left beside his only son.

  And there in the center, next to the judge, is Phoenix. His smile illuminates the room. The longer he takes in the sight of me, the more emotional he becomes. He chokes up, bringing his hands up to his face to mouth, his watery eyes never leaving mine.

  The road traveled here to this exact moment in time doesn’t even compare to the road ahead of us. The only thing that matters is the here and now.

  He smiles, showing me my favorite dimpled cheek and mouths the word “you” just like he did during Brock’s show when revealed his three wishes to me. My face flushes with heat at the memory.

  There is no fanfare.

  No bridal march.

  No flower petals cast down the aisle.

  There is only love.

  I walk toward him in silence, to nothing but the rhythm of my heart.

  When I reach Phoenix, I pass off my bouquet to Rachel and we take in the sight of each other. Before the judge begins the civil ceremony, Phoenix takes my hand in his, opens my palm and kisses it softly and closes it into a fist, just like he did in Madison the morning after we first met.

  “Hold onto that until he says I can kiss you,” he whispers.

  And together we stand there.

  Fingers, love, and lives all intertwined.

  FOR MORE REASONS THAN I care to admit, this book nearly did not happen. Since the initial release of Love Nouveau, life threw me an unfair amount of plot twists. So the fact that you are reading the acknowledgments is a huge victory in and of itself. In the words of Liz Lemon, I’m high-fiving a million angels right now. Don’t know the reference? Google it. It’ll make you smile.

  Writing is arguably one of the most isolating things a person can do. There are incredibly long stretches of time where you sit in a room, Googling questionable things and talking to fictitious people in your head. Most days you’re lucky if you remember to shower. You sacrifice a lot ... family time, relationships, personal hygiene (I’m only slightly kidding), and more. But as isolating as it is, it takes an army of people to bring the stories in my head to life. So thank you, to everyone who helped make this duet happen.

  To my husband, Mike. Thank you for being so supportive of me in pursuit of my dream. For playing dad, mom, chef and everything in between. For never complaining all those late nights I sat in bed being a slave to the manuscript. For being open and honest when I crossed lines (and let’s be honest ... I crossed them a lot), but more importantly thank you for never giving up on me. I love you. And to amazingly awesome kiddos, I know you’re too little to understand what I’m doing when I disappear to write for a few hours, but thank you for being such incredible little humans. You can do anything you can dream up if you just put your mind to it.

  To Jennifer Roberts-Hall, my editor extraordinaire ... I think it’s funny how much I miss you when I’m not in editing mode. Thank you for your expertise, but more importantly your friendship. You are a remarkable woman and I wish everyone in the world could know you personally and see the inspiration that you are.

  I seriously have no idea how I would function without Sharon Goodman and the entire SFab family. You go above and beyond the call of duty time and time again. Sharon ... when I hit a low point back in February, your morning phone call/pep talk helped me maintain forward motion. Thank you for your endless understanding and support. Whenever our paths cross, you can expect two things to happen ... one, I am going to hug the shit of out your tiny ass. And two, we are going to take an epic bathroom selfie.

  Najla Qamber ... your talent makes me want to write a million and one books just so I can have you continue to design the most beautiful covers on my behalf. I wish I could bottle your talent and professionalism so I could spread it throughout the indie community. You are one of a kind and I love your creative prowess!

  Alexis Durbin of Indie Girl Proofs ... your eagle eye is incredible. Thank you for making sure my baby was polished and ready to publish. You are incredibly talented. To anyone looking for a fantastic proofreader to make sure your manuscript is clean, you need to reach out to Indie Girl Proofs!

  And Julie of JT Formatting ... your interior work continues to amaze me. Thank you for your patience and answering my never ending stream of questions.

  How did I get to be so lucky to score a friend like Angie Albertson? You have seen the roughest, ugliest, most ridiculous stuff I’ve written and you still haven’t run away from me. The “Pony” reference in this book is for you. Thank you for keeping me focused and motivated throughout it all. Drinks are on me the next time I’m in town.

  Courtney Stocker-Coulter ... my dear, sweet Courtney. Where do I even begin with you? It feels like we’ve been friends for a lifetime and I hate that we’re separated by such distance. Who ever could have guessed that the quirky, chipper woman who reached out to me after reading Love Nouveau would turn into my muse for Brock. Thank you for all of your ideas and suggestions as you beta read and for being so incredibly passionate about this series!

  Erycka Thesing, for all of your support through everything. I miss you terribly and love you to bits! Never forget that you can’t have a rainbow without a little rain.

  Marisol Herrera for being my last set of eyes on this sucker. You did a lot on a little time and I am forever appreciative. Thank you for your awesomeness.

  Stephanie Rose ... my sounding board, my cheerleader, my favorite mob wife accent. Oh, how I adore you!!! Thank you for being my source of sanity throughout this crazy process. You let me whine, sometimes cry, and listened to me unload whenever I got frustrated. You truly are the best!

  To all of my indie chicks ... thank you for motivating me day in and day out, for keeping me focused, and for celebrating the tiny victories that come with writing each day. I love your faces dearly and each of you help make me a better writer. I would be so lost if it weren’t for our little family. And I want the world to know that Jade Eby gives the most in
credible bedroom eyes. #FYW #HAM

  A huge thanks to the incredibly talented Lisa De Jong for allowing me to incorporate her characters Alex and Dane in the beginning of the book. Her books, Plastic Hearts and Glass Hearts were some of the very first indie books that I read and loved. If you haven’t checked out Lisa’s books, you need to get on that stat!

  Over a decade ago my sister Cathy gave a wedding toast which would end up serving as the premise for this book. Thank you for all of your wisdom, love and awesomeness through the years. And to my entire family, your continued support means the world to me.

  To Claire Williams for giving me the visual for the last line and for being a badass. I miss your face daily. And Heather Markey for your ridiculous, crass sense of humor.

  All of the bloggers who rallied around this series ... thank you simply isn’t enough. You have no idea just how much I appreciate you. The support you give indie authors always amazes me and you are such a critical part of this process. I wish I could wrap Phoenix up and hand deliver him to each of you.

  To my favorite people in the universe over in The Berry Brigade—this book is as much a part of you as it is me! Without even realizing it, you gals helped me brainstorm ideas and helped shape this story in so many ways. Thank you for your infinite badassery!

  And, of course, thank you to you...the reader. For taking the time to read this duet. I sincerely hope that you came across some lines that hit home and that this story stays with you. You are a large part of the reason I write and I appreciate you taking this journey with me.

  Finally, thank you to Ivy and Phoenix. For speaking to me so clearly and being such a part of me for the past two years. I’ll miss you dearly.

  B.L. BERRY IS MANY THINGS. A New Adult author. A self-proclaimed music whore. A long-course triathlete. A marketing savant. And a full-time working mom. While there are never enough hours in the day, she does the best she can to get things done and hopes for technological advances in human cloning.

  When she’s not hiding behind her computer writing, you can find her spending time with her family or catching up on her favorite TV shows. Rumor has it she’ll sleep when she’s dead.

  She is Canadian by birth. Mexican by marriage. Chicagoan by heart. Kansan by choice. Jayhawk purely by common sense.

  Residing outside of Kansas City, she lives with her husband, two children and black pug. Each day her family thanks the makers of e-Readers, because without which they would be living amongst stacks and stacks of romance novels. Conversely, each day B.L. Berry thanks the makers of e-Readers for hiding her book-hoarding tendencies.

  I’d love to hear from my readers … let’s connect!

  blberrywrites@gmail.com

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  Blog – https://blberrywrites.wordpress.com

  Twitter: @blberrywrites

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