Chapter 25

Six Months Later

"S hh," I whisper against Amelia's hair. "My God, Clyde, your breath smells like as—butt." I catch myself before I owe my kid another quarter.

She cranes her neck, giving me an adorable look of warning as Clyde continues to pant in my face, making me want to puke.

"She's walking inside!" Maci's mom, Melinda, says from the window before hurrying around to duck behind the counter.

It's been six months since we officially became a couple. In those six months, she let her apartment go and completely moved in with us. And life couldn't be better. But today, her book came out. And even though I pretended like it was just a normal day when we got up, I've had a surprise book-release party planned for her for weeks.

Seconds after the doorknob turns, she pushes the door open, and we all jump up, probably scaring her half to death based on the look on her face.

She looks around the room, and once she finally realizes we're not killers or anything, her eyes grow wide, and she grins, covering her mouth with her hand. "You guys, really?"

Her sister rushes toward her, throwing her arms around her. "I'm so proud of you, sis."

Melinda joins in, wrapping her arms around both of them.

"Dad is looking down, so proud." Melinda kisses the top of Maci's head. "Love you so much, my girl."

Amelia is next to bolt toward her, wiggling her way through the three women as they release each other.

"Congratulations, Mommy." Amelia says the words but quickly covers her mouth, and her cheeks go red.

I move closer to the two, watching Maci's eyes fill with tears. We've never once told Amelia to call Maci Mom. I guess because we assumed she'd do it if and when the time felt right to her. After all, she's only four years old, and I'd never want her to feel pressured to do anything.

I stand a few feet back, letting whatever is about to happen play out as Maci picks her up and holds her in her arms.

"Can I call you that?" Amelia says so softly that I barely hear her.

She nods, tears flowing down her cheeks. "I would love nothing more."

Taking the few short steps to them, I wrap my arms around them both and put my mouth closer to her ear. "I'm proud of you, Boston. So proud that I think I need to make an announcement."

She rears her head back, her green eyes staring up at me, and then she gently sets Amelia down. "Oh, dear Lord, what are you about to do? You know I hate being the center of attention."

I press my lips to hers, smiling. "Yeah, but today, you deserve it. After all, your book went all the way to number ten in the Kindle store."

Her eyes widen. "What? Are you serious?"

"Hell yeah, baby." I turn, waving my hand around the room, which is full of all the people who came here to support her. "All these people are here for you."

I make my voice louder as I say, "Hey, everyone! My girl's book is number ten in the whole damn Kindle store!"

Everyone begins to cheer.

As she takes in the familiar faces in our house, her eyes fill with tears. My family, her family, friends from her past, friends from the author world … they all traveled to Maine to celebrate her book release today. Because they knew how much of a struggle it was for her to get here after all she'd been through. Finally, she wrote a book she loved. For the first time in almost four years, she wrote a book without her past weighing on her, and she typed the end with a smile on her face.

"Make that number seven!" Maci's friend, Winter, calls.

When Maci spots her in the crowd, she bursts into tears as Winter beelines it toward her.

As they hug, squealing and crying and everything else, Winter's husband, Kye, walks over and clasps his hand on my shoulder. "You're a good man, Sterns."

Kye is a wide receiver for the 49ers and an all-around great guy.

"Thanks, brother." I bump my fist against his. "I guess when you have a good woman, it's easy, huh?"

"That it is." He nods. "But these author chicks, they can be pretty crazy." He looks at me in disbelief. "The way their brain creates these stories … fucking mind-blowing."

"Hey, at least we can give them some inspo, right?" I wink. "Hell, why aren't we on their covers?"

"If it doesn't work out with football, I might have to see about that." He chuckles. "I've seen Winter drop thousands on those dudes on the front of her books." He waves at himself. "The fuck is wrong with me? I mean, I'm sure someone would offer at least a hundred or something."

"Oh, at least two, my friend." I grin.

Once Winter releases Maci and steps back next to her husband, Holly rushes to hug her. The second Maci sees Holly, more tears fall, and she covers her mouth. Today was my first time meeting Holly, but the bond she and my girl have is pretty obvious.

"You came all the way from Florida just for my book release?" I sniffle, hugging my friend, who is also my publicist. "Are you serious, Holly?"

She gives me a tight squeeze, rocking us both slightly. "Baby bird, this isn't just any release, and you know it."

She's called me baby bird since day one. I was one of her youngest and most inexperienced clients, and yet she didn't shy away from the challenge of working with me.

Pulling her head back, she looks into my eyes. "I'm so happy to see you smile again." Her voice cracks, and she wipes her eyes. "This book baby is going to soar, and I can't wait to watch."

Unable to keep my composure, I bury my face against her shoulder for a second, my body shaking with emotion. "It's been a long time coming, but I finally feel like I'm on the other side. The better side."

"I know you are, love. You know how?" She smiles. "Because it's in your words. The second that you sent me your work, I could see it. That they were healing you." She pauses. "It turns out you knew exactly what you needed. Because if you hadn't stepped away from writing and taken this job, you never would have found your own happily ever after."

I sob, nodding slowly because everything she said is so right. "Thank you. For believing in me from the beginning. And for never giving up on me. And for telling me what I didn't always want to hear, but needed to hear. I truly couldn't do this author life without you."

"You'll never have to either," she says. "Because remember, we're lifers."

"Lifers." I whisper the word we've called each other for so long.

Releasing me, Holly glances across the room at Logan. "Now, go love on that man, would you? If my man looked like that, I'd have to sneak him into the closet or something. Heck, I'm not sure I'd ever let him leave my bed." She laughs. "And keep him around. He's not just good for your writing; he's good for your soul." She takes one step back, wiggling her eyebrows. "You know what you should do? Bring him to the signing. Can you even imagine how much the readers would love seeing you and your very own hockey hottie?" she practically squeals.

"I doubt he'd want to go to that. He'd get mauled." I chuckle but chew my lower lip, remembering she's not going to make it to the signing, and this is the first one I'll be attending solo.

She and I have worked together for so long that we have a system. She knows how I want things done, and she knows what works.

"Don't worry about the signing. We will figure something out." She smiles. "Now, go mingle, baby bird." She pulls her phone out, winking. "I'll keep track of rank and page reads."

As she walks off, my eyes find Logan, who is strutting toward me, and for the first time since I came into this surprise party, I actually take the time to read his shirt.

" Proud boyfriend of a spicy romance author ," I read out loud, covering my mouth when I start laughing. "You even ordered a shirt for today?"

"Fucking right, I did." He nods proudly. "I ordered you one too." He pulls his hand from behind his back and holds a shirt out to me. "Extra corny too. And, no, get your mind out of the gutter, Boston. I didn't say horny."

Taking the shirt, I hold it up. " I make stuff up ," I read the words on the shirt with a picture of a typewriter under them. "I love it. You're too good to me."

Wrapping my arms around his waist, I tilt my chin up. "What did I ever do to deserve you, Logan Sterns?"

Bending his head down, he hovers his lips over mine. "Well, it doesn't hurt that you're a dirty, dirty girl. You know, because of those filthy books of yours."

"Those books have gotten ten times filthier since you came into my life," I point out. "The one I just started working on? Pure. Smut."

"Oh, yeah?" he murmurs, his deep voice low and raspy. "Did the boat scene make it in?"

A few weeks ago, when Amelia was with Logan's dad for the night, we went out on the new boat Logan got. Let's just say … the other Sunday boaters got more than they bargained for that day.

I widen my eyes, pulling my lips to the side playfully. "You'll never know."

"Oh, I will," he says matter-of-factly. "I plan to read all of them, Boston. You know, to see where I need to improve and all."

"Maybe you can make a spreadsheet," I say, making fun of myself because I love spreadsheets and Logan knows that.

"The word spreadsheet sends a shock right to my cock because of you, babe." He presses a quick kiss to my lips. "Are you excited for the signing coming up in Boston? Back to your old stomping grounds."

Anxiety brews in my gut, but I try to push it down because it's not the time to worry today. "I am. I'm always happy to see my readers. But it's been so long since I've attended a signing. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous."

"Of what?"

"Of getting there and no one coming to my table. I mean, I've been out of the game for a while." I cringe but force myself to laugh through it. "And Holly can't make it because her daughter has a school function—which I totally understand and I would never want her to miss that for me. But … it's just me, and I still need to find an assistant." I force myself to stop talking. "You know what? It doesn't matter. The signing isn't for two more weeks. Today, I'm just going to enjoy this party my hot boyfriend put on for me."

"I am pretty hot," he says, agreeing. "Hey … I'd have to make it a day trip, but what if I was your assistant? I mean, I'll be honest with you; I'll probably make shit harder than easier because I don't have a fucking clue what I'm doing, but I'll provide the muscles to carry shit and keep you fed and hydrated all day." He wiggles his eyebrows. "And if you need a quickie in the bathroom, I'd be happy to tend to that need too."

I stare up at him, frowning. "Logan … this is a big event. With, like, thousands of readers. And a lot of them are going to freak out to meet you."

"Babe, the event is about you. And the last thing I'd want to do is take the attention off of you. I just … want to make sure you know I'd love to help if you need me."

"I'm not worried about you stealing attention, Logan. I just …" I pause, swallowing. "Gavin didn't even want to see pictures when I went to signings. He said they were a waste of time and money. When I got home, he wouldn't even ask me how it went." I shrug. "So, the fact that you'd even offer to go … it's crazy to me."

"Boston, hearing he didn't want to go and watch his woman absolutely slay her career and be in her element is fucking insane to me." He cups my cheek. "I could listen to you talk about writing and your stories for hours and not get bored. Your eyes light up, and there's no mistaking the excitement in your voice." He leans closer, kissing my cheek. "I can't wait to stand beside you at this thing."

"Really?" I whisper, burying my face in his chest. "I used to think I had bad karma, but you are proof, Logan Sterns, that the universe doesn't hate me."

"Did you just wipe your tears on my sweet new T-shirt?" he says as I pull my face away from the material, grinning.

"Maybe?"

"I'll let you get away with it, but it'll cost you a spanking. Maybe two." He winks, bringing his lips to mine. "All right, babe. Time for you to go mingle. Your favorite thing to do."

I roll my eyes but giggle because he knows I am the furthest thing from someone who enjoys crowds and mingling. But luckily, everyone here today is someone I love with my whole heart.

"I love you, book boyfriend." I stand on my tiptoes, brushing my lips against his.

"I love you more, my very sexy, incredibly talented author girlfriend. Turns me on how fucking smart and successful you are." Suddenly, he looks nervous. "I do have one more thing for you."

I frown because … what else could this man do for me today? He's already done so much. Before I can ask any questions, he reaches into his pocket. When he pulls out my dad's watch that was stolen from my apartment, tears flood my eyes.

"Logan," I say, inhaling sharply as I cover my mouth. "How did you get this back?"

He gives me a small, genuine grin. "Let's just say, sometimes, it's good to know the right people." He pulls my hand down, setting the watch in my palm. "I knew how much it meant to you. I couldn't not get it back."

Tears stream down my cheeks, but I don't bother wiping them as I look from the watch to him. "Thank you. There aren't enough words to express how much this means to me."

"There's nothing I wouldn't do to make you smile, Boston."

Cupping my cheeks, he kisses me deeply, and instantly, I melt into him before he releases me and steps back.

"Now, I'm going to walk away because this isn't the type of party where I should be pitching a tent in my jeans." He groans, looking down. "And if you keep kissing me and we keep talking about your career … my cock is going to swell to the point of no return. And it'll be you sneaking me into the bathroom instead."

As he forces himself to walk away, I grin through my tears, shaking my head. And when I look around the house and squeeze the watch in my hand, my heart swells. And it's all because of that man.