Page 43 of Never Stop

I reached for her hand but then thought better of it. I didn’t want the PDA Police after me again. “It is normal, and we have you to thank.”

“Stop thanking me. You’ve done plenty for me too.”

“I will always take care of you.”

She sat, smiling at me. I guessed she wanted to kiss me. I wanted to kiss her, too. Instead, I stood and walked toward the group.

“Who’s ready for marshmallows?”

They all agreed, and I left to grab the bags and stuff to make s’mores. Brooke had already passed out sticks, and after a quick demonstration, we returned to our chairs in the grass, and the first ghost story began.

The girls finally called it a night. Instead of going to bed, Brooke and I sat next to the fire pit. She leaned up against my side and my arm draped around her shoulder.

“Do you hear that?” I asked.

“What?” Brooke asked, leaning up.

“Exactly. Nothing.”

“It wasn’t that bad.” She chuckled and leaned back down.

“It’s enough to give me a headache for a week.”

“Oh stop!” She jabbed her finger into my side. “You’ll have to do it again when we have a kid.” Her body tensed against mine as if she realized what she’d said.

In my gut, I knew she didn’t carry the FAP gene. Brooke was in the rare group. “We better have a boy.”

“Yeah,” she sighed.

“Nope, we’re not going to do this.” I stood, grabbed my phone from my pocket and started to quietly play the music I had stored. Then I reached my hand out to her. “Dance with me.”

She blinked. “Dance with you?”

“Yeah.”

“I thought you didn’t dance?”

“I only slow dance. Anyone can do that.” I thought back to our first and only dance on the cruise. I never thought I would be settling down again but this girl—I’d do anything for her, even dance to get her mind off of all the bullshit life was throwing at her.

“We can practice our first dance,” I continued. “You know, whenever we get married,” I teased.

She stood and took my hand. “About that… What if we get married the third weekend of April?”

I tried to hide my smile. “You mean on the anniversary of when you left me without a goodbye?”

She slapped my chest playfully. “No, the anniversary of when I knew I’d love you forever.”

My smile appeared. “Is that so?”

She nodded. “If you don’t want to—”

“It’s perfect.” I leaned down and gave her another feather-light kiss.

The music changed to a song that always reminded me of her;You Had Me From Helloby Kenny Chesney. Under the hot August night, I took her in my arms, pressing our bodies flush and swaying our hips to the rhythm of the words. The glow from the fire flickered in her eyes as she peered up at me, smiling. The look she was giving me made me want to devour her.

Once again, I kissed her soft lips. This time, I didn’t let it end with only a faint touch. Instead, I took it deeper, tasting her and wanting to portray the words being sung. That I’d never had a chance tonotlove her because she’d had me from day one. She said that, on the cruise, she realized she would love me forever. I would always love her too.

For many years, I was guarded and never wanted to love again. Brooke snuck in and grabbed my heart from the moment I looked into her emerald green eyes on the Promenade. I never realized how much her love would change me. I no longer needed the various broads at Halo.