Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 86335 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 432(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 288(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86335 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 432(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 288(@300wpm)
“Then, you’re going to have to stay,” she says, her eyes filled with love. “Because this is my home now too.”
“Wh-what?” I stammer because she can’t possibly mean…
“I love you.” She lifts her other hand to the side of my face. “And I love your family.”
“I know,” I tell her. “But they understand that you want to live in Rosemary.”
“But I don’t.” She shakes her head. “While I was fighting to keep my house, to remain in Rosemary, to hold on to my job, I didn’t realize that I was fighting for all the wrong things. When, the entire time, what I was craving was the magic that I’d felt when my mom was alive. It had disappeared when she passed away, and I couldn’t seem to find it again until I met you.
“I thought you’d helped me find it again, but what I didn’t understand at the time was that the magic wasn’t London. It’s not the house or the job or the location. It’s the person. It was my mom…and now, it’s you.
“And that magic, it’s not actually magic. It’s the feeling of love…of being loved. It’s in the way you care about me and take care of me. The way you always put my wants and needs first. And now, it’s my turn to do the same for you.”
Fuck, this woman. She’s everything I’ve ever wanted and more, but I can’t let her do this.
“Paige, I appreciate you putting me first, but I don’t want you to do that. I want to live where you want to live.”
“And I want to live here with you and your family.”
Dustin clears his throat, reminding us that him and Carmine are still here. “Not his family,” he says. “We’re your family too.”
Paige smiles a watery smile. “Thank you.”
“What about the house?” I ask, trying to wrap my head around all of this.
“I’ve contacted a realtor to put it up for sale. The movers have been hired to get my stuff and bring it here so we can sort through it all, and since you left your key card to your hotel room at the house, we stopped by there and got all your stuff.”
“And the baby?” I ask.
“I spoke to my doctor, and she’s transferring my file to Penny’s OB.”
“Her doctor is awesome,” Carmine adds.
“People move all the time,” she says. “The important thing is that we have the baby somewhere safe, and Dallas Regional is a good hospital with an amazing birthing center and pediatric unit.”
“Holy shit, you looked into everything.” And then I remember one thing she didn’t mention. “What about your job?”
“I planned to take time off to be home with the baby anyway. I spoke to Ana and I’m going to finish everything remotely, and then Jill, one of the marketing team leads, will be taking over. Eventually, I’d like to work again, but I’ll cross that bridge when the time comes.”
“You could always work for the family business,” Carmine says with a smile. “You’d be a damn good asset to our marketing team.”
Paige’s eyes glisten as she looks at my brother, and she sniffles back a sob. “Thank you. That’s definitely something I’ll consider. That is, if the CEO would be willing to hire me.” Paige winks at me playfully, and I bark out a laugh.
“You’re serious?” I ask because I can’t fucking believe it. “You really want to live here in Dallas?”
She nods.
“You have no idea how much this means to me.”
“Actually, I do,” she says softly. “Because this is all I’ve ever wanted since the day my mom died…to be part of a family. And thanks to you and your family, I finally have one. Rosemary is just a place. But my heart is with you. This whole time, I thought the magic was gone, but it was only because I was waiting on you.”
epilogue
PAIGE
Five Months Later
“I can’t believe we’re back,” I say to Nate as I look around at the people below us from the top of the Tower Bridge. “Do you see that?” I ask Finn, our three-month-old son, who’s strapped to his daddy’s front. “That’s London.”
We named him Finn in honor of my mom, Finley. She would’ve absolutely adored her grandson, and I hate that she’s not here when he gets to see London for the first time, but thankfully, Finn and I have an entire family of people who love us.
“And this is where I knew your mom was the one,” Nate says to Finn, causing me to tear up.
We aren’t naive enough to believe that Finn has any idea what we’re talking about, let alone know where he is. But when Nate suggested we take a trip to London, I couldn’t say no. I have every intention of coming back often. After all, it’s the place where I met Nate, the love of my life. London and Bath will always be special to us. And it’s also where I feel close to my mom.