“When do you have to go back to Toronto?” he asked. He was leaning in close so he wouldn’t have to speak loudly, and it felt like they were alone in this busy theater.
“Friday. On Saturday, Shayne and I are throwing Ruby a goodbye/birthday party.”
“Is she leaving already?”
“No, not until January, but she’ll be too busy at Reid’s for a party in December. You know, this will be the first Christmas in ten years that I won’t be working retail… I’m not sure I’ll know what to do with myself.”
He leaned in and kissed her neck. “I have an idea… What if I came home with you and we spent December together?”
Marley looked up at him. “Can you do that? I thought you had a guest spot on that cop show.”
He grinned. “Esther got me out of that. She had some news for me today. I’ve been officially offeredIronis 4. They want me and Serena in it together again. My role will be bigger this time.”
“Nikhil! That’s amazing!” Marley threw her arms around him. This was exactly what they were hoping for. He’d never set out to be an action star, and he’d taken the Bronze Shadowrole mostly for the money. After the pre-production hell he went through, he’d thought he wouldn’t want to go anywhere near the franchise again. But he ended uplovingfilming the superhero movie with Serena. His director was amazing, and he and Serena actually became close friends. Best of all, while he was filming in Toronto, he came back to Marley’s little house every night for all the cozy comfort either of them could want.
Marley was delighted that they would do it all again.
“So, I’ll have to be in Toronto for the Netflix series for a few months, thenIronis 4rehearsals and shooting… I was thinking maybe it’s time for me to get my own place in Toronto.”
Marley tilted her head. “You could. Or… you could always move back into the quilting room. Shayne will probably be moving in with Anderson soon.” Shockingly, Marley’s chronically-afraid-of-commitment best friend had settled happily into a committed relationship with his talk-show-host boyfriend.
Nikhil raised a brow. “The quilting room?”
Marley shrugged, grinning. “Yeah. But actually… that’s where your sister sleeps when she doesn’t want to drive back to Markham after a late class. Wouldn’t want to kick Nalini out. How would you feel about sharing my room?”
Nikhil grinned huge. “That’s what I was hoping you’d say. There is nowhere else I’d want to be. Just you and me.”
“And McQueen.”
“Yes, and McQueen.” He kissed her. “I love you, Mahreen.”
“Love you, too, Nikhil. Now shhh… Watch the movie.”
She squeezed his hand, and he squeezed hers right back.
