“Can’t remember my own name right now.”
He smiled, pressing one more kiss to my lips, then reached beside him for a wrapped package I hadn’t noticed. The wrapping was elegant, and the bow was perfect.
“This, it was delivered to your house.” His voice had gone cold. “While you were at church.”
“What is it?”
“I do not know.” He turned the package over, and I caught sight of a card. “There is no return address. Only your name.”
Something in his tone made me look at his face more carefully. His jaw was set, eyes hard.
“Who is sending you Valentine’s gifts?”
“Are you jealous?”
“Yes.” His eyes met mine. “I spent our children’s entire wedding watching your stomach, believing you went back to your ex. Then today this pastor, he decides he should have been the one to put those babies in your womb. And now someone, they are sending gifts to your house.” He muttered something low in Greek.
I stared at him. “What did you just say?”
“Nothing important.” His hand tightened on my hip.
“Let me see it.” I reached for the package, turning it until I could see the handwriting on the card. The moment I recognized it, I had to bite back another laugh. “It’s from Tia.”
The tension drained from him. “Open it, yes.”
I opened the box, and inside was a delicate necklace. The pendant was a piece of sea glass in soft aqua, wrapped in silver wire. A note in Tia’s handwriting was tucked beneath it.
Mom, found this on the beach during our honeymoon in Hawaii. Made me think of you. Happy Love Day! - T
My throat tightened. She’d been thinking of me during her honeymoon and took time to turn a piece of beach glass into something beautiful.
“It’s lovely,” Aris said.
“She made it herself.” I traced the smooth glass with my finger.
“Tia, she has her mother’s eye for beauty, yes.” His hand found mine. “You are ready for your surprise?”
I nodded, clutching the necklace. “As I’ll ever be.”
22
The private riverboat glided down the Mississippi as New Orleans glowed in the distance. Dede stood at the railing, her hand resting on her belly, watching the city drift by.
I came up behind her, wrapping my arms around her waist. “Happy Valentine’s Day, agápi mou.”
“So happy.” She leaned back against me. “I can’t believe you did all this.”
The afternoon had been perfect. We’d wandered through the Garden District hand in hand, laughing at my attempts to pronounce “beignet” correctly. When we passed a boutique on Magazine Street, I caught her eyeing a burgundy leather purse in the window. She’d protested when I bought it for her, but the smile on her face had been worth it.
While I’d been handling a work call, she’d slipped into a shop and emerged with a small bag, handing it to me with a secretive grin. Inside was a leather wallet containing a strip of photos from the photo booth we’d stumbled into earlier. Four frames of her grinning while I kissed her neck.
The Michelin chef I’d hired for the riverboat had outdone himself with course after course that made Dede close her eyes and moan with each bite. She’d savored the pralines for dessert, eyes closed, completely content.
Dede turned in my arms to face me. “I wish we could stay here forever.”
“We could, yes.” I lifted her chin up to meet my eyes. “Let us marry, Dede. Make this permanent, yes?”
Her smile faltered before she kissed me instead of answering. “Let’s just enjoy tonight,” she whispered.
