My heart drops when I see the fight still in her. In the hint of disbelief still in her eyes. So, I hold up my hand, stopping her objections before she can even voice them.
“I know you don’t believe me. And you have every right to question my staying power. But I’m going to prove it to you. In the meantime, the way I see it, I still have my end of the deal to uphold. So we just keep doing what we’re doing for now. See it through the wedding. But this close to the finish line? We have to up our game, not back off.”
Her brows pinch slightly. “What?”
“You don’t get to back out of our public romance now,” I tease gently. “I will be wining and dining you every minute until the wedding where I will prove I’m the best date you could ever hope to have—the best you will hopefully ever have again.”
I can see the gears turning in her head—processing what I’m saying and what I’m not.
And I see it—the exact moment she lets go.
Izzy exhales and nods. “Okay.”
Chapter thirty-nine
Jaxon
“We.Are.Celebrating!”Iyell as I walk into Izzy’s house on Thursday without even bothering to knock.
Despite what she suggested the other night and the very real possibility that my life won’t slow down—that I won’t be able to come back to Wild Bluffs for a while once this sale is over—I’ve doubled down on the boyfriend thing.
Texting constantly? Done.
Lunch drop-offs at the office? Check.
Kissing her anytime I see her—plus the occasional ass grab? Guilty and not sorry.
But to be fair, her ass is very grab-worthy.
And also, this over-the-top boyfriend behavior is how I happened to be sitting in her office when the email from W&R Mercantile finally came through.
They got it.
Of course they did.
So yeah. We’re celebrating.
Izzy peeks out from the hallway, brow furrowed. “Are you yelling at me or the neighbors at the end of the block?”
“Both,” I say, kicking the door closed behind me. “But mostly you.”
Izzy steps out into the light, hair half-up and eyes wide. She looks flushed and unsure. Adorable. My stomach flips.
“I googled what to bring when someone lands a life-changing contract, and, I’m not going to lie, not one single thing I saw was available last minute in Wild Bluffs. So, I’m taking you out to dinner at Wild Bluffs Country Club.”
All it’d taken was one text to Bryn to get access to the private course twenty minutes outside of town.
“You didn’t have to do that.”
“I didn’t do anything,” I say, grabbing her hand and spinning her in a ridiculous dance move. “You, on the other hand, officially crushed your first solo client pitch.”
She lets out a laugh and walks to the door to slide on a pair of sandals. “It’s not that big of a deal.”
“Maybe not for you. But for mere mortals like the rest of us, it’s a huge deal. So we’re celebrating—hugely.”
Her cheeks pinken, and as soon as we walk outside, I give her a kiss, pulling her fully against me. “The neighbors were watching,” I say, vaguely gesturing toward a house across the street. “We have to keep up the ruse and all.”
Izzy bites her lip as if she’s trying to hold back a laugh.
