Page 55 of Infinite as They Come (Sinful Trilogy #3)

Holly

One Year Later

You couldn’t pay me to stop smiling.

Leaning on the doorframe of the dining room—our dining room, mine and Sawyer’s, and I wouldn’t ever get over that—I took in every last detail of the scene before me, wanting nothing but to remember it forever.

The room was somewhat chaotic, but it helped make it all feel special.

Streamers here and there, the dining table topped off with food galore, people wedged in every which way.

The birthday cake sitting towards one of the edges of the table while the birthday boy sat in front of it was what made it truly perfect, though.

That and the party hat on top of his head that was doing its best to hide all of that dark messy hair that I loved so much, some of the strands poking out at the sides.

We were in the middle of one of the most awkward events a person could experience—when you were on the receiving end of it, at least. My husband was having Happy Birthday sung to him for the first time ever, his hand rubbing at the back of his neck during the whole process, everyone’s voices mixing in together.

His mom’s. Kurt’s. Spencer’s. Brodie’s. Annie’s.

My parents’. Mine. It was so nice to sing it to him—and a tiny bit funny to watch his cheeks go a little red when it all came to an end and his mom grasped his shoulders, pulling him in for a kiss to the cheek.

“You gotta make a wish,” Brodie called out next to me.

Sawyer’s brows raised. “I don’t know what to wish for.”

“Whatever you want,” his mom said, hand squeezing at his shoulder. “And whatever it is, I hope it comes true.”

Sawyer’s eyes met mine, our gazes locking.

It was like the full room was suddenly empty and it was just us two.

I wondered what he was thinking, what he was wishing for.

Just like his mom said: whatever it was, I really did hope he got it.

His green eyes stayed on mine as he blew the candles out before the sound of cheers and clapping met my ears.

His mom got to work on cutting the first slice, leaning down to chatter away with Sawyer.

“Man, that cake looks good,” Brodie said, giving his stomach a pat. “Chocolate, right?”

“What else?” I said.

“Yum. I’ll grab some in a minute. You know, I really love this,” Brodie said, voice suddenly a little wistful. “His mom and Kurt and everyone. This whole thing. He really deserves this.”

I smiled at that. I loved it too. “It wouldn’t have been complete without you here. Thanks so much for coming.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t have missed this. Sawyer’s first birthday party.” He leaned in close to me, his voice lowering to a whisper. “I got him a new toaster. Don’t tell him yet.”

I held a finger to my lips. “I won’t.”

“I got the same one for my move. Stainless steel. Can’t go wrong with that.”

Brodie had just finished up his final year of college after completing his Master’s at Boston, scholarship and all. I hadn’t been surprised in the slightest when they offered it to him. He had earned that and the official offer he had just been given to work full time for the New York Gazette.

“How exciting. This time next month you’ll be in New York.” Taking a sip of my soda, I held my cup up at Annie who was moving over to me with a little paper plate filled with chips and dip. “You and Annie can bond over the cold weather that I absolutely do not miss.”

Annie gave me a scoff. “Ugh. Don’t talk about it. Thanks again for letting me stay at your place, by the way. I’m gonna save so much money on rent. ”

“Well, you don’t need to be worrying about rent when you’re gonna be doing all that dancing.” I stole a chip from her plate and scooped up some dip, letting that smooth cheesy flavor hit my tongue. “Ooh, I can’t wait to see you on stage again.”

“I gotta get more socks,” Brodie deadpanned suddenly.

My eyes flickered to his. “You know, you can stay at my place too, Brodie. You’ll have one less thing to worry about.”

His eyes widened a little. “I can’t live with a girl. I don’t know how to live with a girl.”

“Hey, I’m easy to live with,” Annie said.

“I meant my other place in Manhattan. My dad’s penthouse. It has such a beautiful view of Central Park. It’s just sitting there empty if you want it,” I said, and both their heads turned to each other at the same time, their eyebrows raised.

“Sometimes I forget how much money you have,” Annie said before munching on a chip.

Brodie raised a hand, giving it a wave. “I can’t live in a penthouse either. I’ll break something. If there’s glass, I’ll break it.”

“Don’t be silly. I don’t care if you break something. Think about it, though,” I said, taking another sip of my drink. “You won’t have to stress about finding a place to stay.”

Brodie shrugged. “I don’t know how I feel about living in a penthouse. They’ll probably think I’m breaking into the place and kick me out.”

My eyes rolled. “That won’t happen. Why don’t you give it a think?”

“I will.” He nodded before his eyes lit up. “Ooh, they’re handing out the cake. I’ll be back.”

Brodie took off in the direction of the dining table, giving me and Annie a chance to sidle up together against the wall.

“This is sweet,” she said, giving me a little nudge. “This whole thing. I’m glad he has this.”

“Yeah, me too,” I said with a smile. “Thank you for coming.”

“Wouldn’t miss it,” she said, her hand finding mine. My left one. She raised it, giving her tongue a click. “I needed to see this ring up close again. It’s been a while.”

“You saw it at the wedding.”

“That was almost half a year ago…”

It felt like yesterday, like if I closed my eyes, I could go right back there and walk down the aisle to become Mrs. Westbrook all over again.

I could have blushed at just the memory alone.

Me and Sawyer had picked a small location back in Dallas.

A little chapel, perfect for just a dozen guests or so, and it couldn’t have been more perfect.

Just a little old building, the two of us whispering “I do” as the sun set in the distance, him sliding that ring on to my finger that I would never take off.

My eyes lingered on the pretty silver on my left hand. “It doesn’t feel like it.”

“Time moves slowly here. I get why you and Sawyer wanted to move here.”

“This thing’s digging into my skin,” a voice grumbled beside me. Turning, I saw Sawyer pulling at the string of his birthday hat.

“You can’t take it off,” Annie said. “It’s illegal to take off your birthday hat on your birthday.”

Sawyer hummed. “Not sure if I believe that.”

“Well, your birthday wish won’t come true if you take it off,” I said.

Sawyer pressed his lips to my cheek, giving me a soft kiss there that lingered. “Pretty sure it already did.”

Blushing, I tried to tuck my face into his neck, only for the birthday hat I had on nearly take his eye out, so we settled on him keeping his arm wrapped around my shoulder.

I wondered if he was taking in the scene like I was, at all the people who were here for his special day.

His mom, who had kept her promise and was still very much in his life.

Kurt, who had become as close to a father figure I knew Sawyer had ever had.

His brother, who was currently in the corner with Brodie sharing a slice of cake as they chattered away.

My own parents who were talking to Linda, the three of them getting along so wonderfully like always, and it never failed to warm my heart to see my parents accept her with open arms. It was warm. It was home. It was love .

Sawyer slipped something into my hand, forcing my eyes to lower.

It was a napkin all neatly folded up, and I knew there had to be something on it.

Maybe a message or a little drawing, and I was eager to take a look, but Spencer was suddenly pulling at my other hand, a big grin on his face as he asked me to show him some of Sawyer’s new art, and I couldn’t ever say no to him.

I slipped the napkin into one of the drawers nearby and led Spencer down the hallway and into Sawyer’s studio, his smile never fading as I showed him the newest pieces his brother had been working on.

The day carried on and we eventually moved into the backyard as the heat started to fade away, my eyes, like always, falling to the lemon tree that was growing day by day.

It was bigger now, standing at a good five or six feet tall, and one day it would loom over me and Sawyer.

In fifteen years. In twenty years. In all the years that came after that, and God, I couldn’t wait for it.

To be here with him in this life forever.

I kept my eyes on Sawyer as I took a seat on one of the chairs on the back patio, nestled up next to Annie as we shared a plate of barbecue that my dad had made.

Sawyer was with Spencer, showing him around the garden even though he had been over so many times now.

A few of the flowers sprouting around the garden had been planted by Spencer himself, and whenever him and Linda and Kurt would come over, Spencer always liked to do a little tour of the place to see how his plants were doing.

I let my eyes study Sawyer for a long moment. There was a smile on his face, that party hat still wedged there on his head. I knew it was uncomfortable. Mine was too. But he kept that thing on, and I was pretty sure it was because Spencer had slid it on his head in the morning.