Chapter Thirty-Five

Chapter Thirty-five

One Year Later

"Oh crap, I forgot to take the arancini out the oven."

Theo smiled over at Lexie from the other side of the kitchen as she came in, having disappeared briefly to sort her hair out. "I got them out."

"OK." Lexie smoothed down the dress she was wearing—pure sparkle, in honor of New Year's Eve. "And do you think we have enough Prosecco in the fridge? I couldn't find any more space, but I think we have ice so—"

"Lex." He closed the gap between them, took her hands in his. "We're ready, don't stress. Besides, it's not like any of them will care if the arancini are a bit burnt or we run out of cold Prosecco at some point."

Lexie nodded, thinking of the burnt Yorkshire puddings they'd had at Christmas at her mum's house just a week ago, and smiled a little. It had been Theo's idea to have a small New Year's Eve party at their new flat. They'd moved in a few weeks ago, just in time to put a Christmas tree up—signing both of their names on the lease. Surprisingly, it hadn't made Lexie break out in hives—she kept waiting for the panic to hit, but so far she'd felt nothing but the buzz of excitement. Harry was now renting out the apartment over the office—at a discounted rate, of course. It had made sense for Lexie and Theo to go for somewhere a bit bigger, and Lexie had wanted something that felt like theirs from the get-go, something shared—and Theo had been all for that.

Her mum and Jacob—her mum's boyfriend, though her mum routinely blushed and waved it away whenever Lexie called him that, claiming she was too old to have a boyfriend—were the first to arrive. It was the first time they'd been to the flat, and Lexie's mum had brought a houseplant as a moving-in present. And look at that, Lexie thought. An apartment lease and a houseplant to take care of, it doesn't get more settled than that. Jacob kissed Lexie on the cheek, shook hands with Theo. He had silver-gray hair that suited him and blue eyes to rival even Rachel's, and he had an easy way around him, which made him instantly likable. He and Lexie's mum had met at a book club, of all places, both of them having been invited by a mutual friend—like something out of an actual fairy tale. Lexie and Theo had gotten them a trip on the company as their Christmas present—the Madrid trip, which to Lexie felt like as much a gift to herself as to her mum, given she was able to share something she was proud of creating. They'd still do their regular tradition of spending a day with each other later in the year—Lexie was pretty sure she'd convinced her mum to try skydiving with her.

Ange and Harry arrived within minutes of each other—Harry in a black tie with gold champagne glasses on it and Ange wearing her signature red lipstick and cocktail-glass-shaped earrings. Because of the successful year they'd had, Lexie and Theo were planning to promote Harry in January—give him more responsibility and let him start leading some trips on his own. Lexie had wanted to tell him this before Christmas, but Theo had insisted they had to get the paperwork sorted so it was all official. Still, it was something to look forward to. Theo took them both on a tour of the flat at Ange's insistence, while Lexie resisted the urge to squeal when she opened the door and saw Fran there—her boyfriend, Chris, in tow. Fran had been strict about a year's no dating policy, figuring out what she wanted to do—and she'd met Chris completely by accident, a few months ago, at a party. They'd taken things slow, and it was still very new, but Fran just seemed different this time—and Lexie was holding out hope. It may also have had to do with the fact that Fran was less stressed. She was in the middle of a teacher training course, changing careers completely, and while Lexie thought this sounded rather stressful in and of itself, Fran seemed to be genuinely enjoying it.

"Chris, Lexie, Lexie, Chris," Fran said, gesturing between the two of them as she came in, hanging up her coat on the coat stand Lexie had put together earlier for this exact purpose. Fran looked a little nervous, tugging at her black dress, so Lexie worked up her best warm smile for Chris.

"It's so lovely to meet you."

His eyes creased at the corners as he smiled. "Likewise. I've heard you may be able to give us tips on the best place to spend Easter this year." Lexie did not miss the us there, but did not react.

"Oh, I so can." She led them to the kitchen to get them a drink each, and swore she heard Fran let out a quiet exhale behind her.

Rachel and Lana were the last to arrive, apologizing profusely—Lana blaming Rachel for not being able to find a shoe. Lana's black hair had been cut short recently in a way that suited her perfectly, and Rachel was in a knockout red jumpsuit that, Lexie thought, only a few people would be able to pull off.

"Are we all here?" Ange asked, breaking off from her conversation with Lexie's mum in the living room. The Christmas tree was still up, lights glowing in the corner, and Lexie had put fairy lights around the window too. The flat was on the second floor, high enough that you could still make out Bath's sandstone buildings sprawling below, streetlamps lighting up the winter darkness.

"Well, I think we should all toast to a brilliantly successful year, don't you?" Ange asked, raising her glass. "We may be a smaller team even than before, but we have proven we are mighty. To R&L, and to Lexie and Theo." Everyone echoed the sentiment with a "Cheers," clinking glasses with those nearest them, while Lexie felt the smile tighten her cheeks, even with the faint flush of embarrassment at hearing her name like this. But it really had been the most successful year—they'd put another two new trips into rotation and had managed to put Theo's idea of investing into local businesses into action. For the first time, perhaps ever, Lexie felt like she had purpose—and like she was doing something she could be proud of.

Theo came up alongside her, clinking his glass against hers, his sandalwood scent wrapping around her. "And to another year, just like this one," he said, quietly enough that the others couldn't hear.

She met his gaze, marveling at how even after a year, the way he looked at her like that could still make her skin tingle. "Well, I don't know if it'll be just like this one," she said, her tone playful. "There might be a few more conversations about the washing up, now that we're living together."

He laughed just as Rachel came up, tugging Lana along beside her. Theo excused himself, heading to get a Prosecco bottle and top everyone up.

Rachel took a deep breath. "So, before I drink too much and mess up the invite, I wanted to ask you what you're doing on September the twenty-seventh?"

Lexie raised her eyebrows. "How incredibly specific of you. Why, what are you…?" She looked between Rachel and Lana, who were both beaming at her. "Oh my god! You've set the date?"

Rachel grinned, her blue eyes shining. "We've set the date."

"Well, I don't know, I might have plans that day…"

Rachel hit her lightly, and Lexie laughed, then hugged her tightly.

Theo came over with the Prosecco, topped Rachel and Lana up, then swung his arm over Lexie's shoulders. "What's going on over here? I feel like I'm missing out on something exciting."

"They're getting married!" Lexie exclaimed, gesturing to Rachel and Lana.

"Amazing! Congratulations. I mean, I sort of thought you guys were already engaged, but…"

Lexie elbowed him in the ribs. "They've set the date. September the twenty-seventh. Keep it free, you can be my plus one."

He raised one eyebrow. "You say that like I wouldn't have been invited anyway." He turned to hug Rachel, then Lana. "Can't wait. So happy for you guys."

"We're happy too," Rachel said, smiling as Lana put her arm around her. "And actually, Lexie, I wanted to ask you…" She bit her lip, glancing at Lana before saying, "Would you want to be a bridesmaid? I mean, my friend from school has already claimed maid of honor since the moment I met Lana, but I would love it if you…I mean, you absolutely don't have to, it's just—"

"Rachel. I would be totally and completely honored to be your bridesmaid." And actually, she felt her throat closing, her eyes stinging a bit even as she blinked to try to cover it up. Theo clearly noticed, because he gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze. "Just swear you won't do some awful color for the dresses, OK?" The attempt at a joke was marred a bit by the hitch in her voice, but Rachel nodded in a fake somber way.

"I swear."

Rachel hesitated, then added, "My mum is going to be there."

Lexie couldn't think of a single thing to say other than "Oh." Then she cleared her throat. "I mean, that's great!" Her voice was a bit too high.

"It's just, we've met for coffee a couple of times recently and things are…Well, she's apologized, tried to explain some stuff to me."

Lana's lips were tight, like she was not so willing to forgive and forget—but she didn't say anything. Lexie worked up a smile for her sister—because if anyone could understand the desire to move beyond the mistakes of the past it was her.

She reached out to squeeze Rachel's arm. "That's great, Rach."

The rest of the evening passed in a whirlwind of chatter, laughter, and dancing—they did, in fact, run out of cold Prosecco, but Theo had been right and no one seemed to care. And as Lexie watched them all, having to pinch herself that they were all really here, in her flat—in a flat that she was renting with a man she loved, in a relationship that she was no longer scared of—she had that sense of pure contentment, something that only settles on you every now and then. Because she felt sure, as they began the countdown to midnight, that even if she and Theo ever did sell the company, even if they left Bath, she'd never lose what she had here. Because these people were, thanks to her dad, her home. And really, it didn't get much better than that, did it?