And… was that… was that a littleblushthat was staining his cheeks?
“Do you like it? Cass helped me pick it out. I’ve never worn a suit before.”
“Do I like it?” I croaked, stepping forward so I could help him with his tie. “Callum, I’m five seconds away from saying fuck this service and begging you to bend me over your knee.”
He barked out a laugh and smiled down at me as I got to work on his tie, taking my sweet time slipping the silk tails into a neat, clean knot.
“That good, huh?” He smirked at me, watching my fingers as they deftly tightened the tie under his collar. I swallowed hard and nodded.
“How’s that? Too tight?” My voice was raspy and strained, causing his grin to widen.
“No, it’s perfect, baby,” he purred, leaning forward to ghost his lips over mine.
I closed my eyes and inhaled his scent, relishing in the mint on his breath as it mingled with his musky bergamot cologne.
“What’s this all about?” I whispered, and he brushed a thumb against my jawbone, pulling back to meet my eyes.
“I thought… Well, if you would let me, I thought I could help you with Fairview.”
My heart skipped a beat, and my eyes widened in surprise.
“You want… to help?” I breathed, and his eyes shone. He nodded.
“Yeah. I wasn’t kidding when I said I wanted to help you achieve your dreams, Ryan. If this place is what makes you happy, then I want to be a part of it.”
An overwhelming rush of emotion washed over me so suddenly that the choking sound that escaped my lips surprised me.
My eyes burned as tears welled, and my hand flew to my mouth, a wet laugh babbling out of my mouth.
“Really?”I asked, so fucking touched by his words I felt like I needed to pinch myself to make sure this moment was real.
He wrapped his hands around my hips and tugged me into him, dropping a kiss on my forehead.
“Yes, really. I want to be a part of everything you do, Ryan. Like you said, we’re in this together.”
I leaned back and met his eyes, shuddering as he gently brushed one of my tears away with his thumb.
“Forever?”
He nodded, chuckling. “Yes, baby. Forever.”
Cal’s suit was not the only surprise he had up his sleeve. After the initial shock had worn off, the familiar fingers of anxiety had latched back around my heart.
Cal followed me as I scurried downstairs to double-check that everything was ready. We were at t-minustwominutes before the grieving widow of Mr. Whitlock was due to arrive.
“Shit!” I cried out loud. “I still need to put out the programs!”
Cal chuckled behind me. “I did that already. I was also thinking I could hand some out to people as they arrive.”
He flashed me the deck of papers and grinned.
“I also turned the slide show on before I got dressed, so it should already be playing,” he informed me, looking rather pleased with himself. My mouth hung open in shock.
Jesus Christ… I was going to marry this man.
“How do you know about all this stuff?” I asked, still struggling to process the fact that Cal not only wanted to help me with my business, but he was already pretty fucking good at it. He shrugged, shooting me another dazzling grin.
“Theo.”
