"I'll come to Richland on Tuesdays and Thursdays, if you’ll spend an hour or two after work on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays with me."
"I hate asking you to do that."
"You say that like it's a sacrifice." She put a hand on his cheek. "It's not, Gabe. I would do anything for you and your mother. In fact, whether we get Dr. Stoker's approval or not, I want to set a wedding date soon. With a short engagement.”
"Paige, as much as I would like to have my mother in attendance on my wedding day, I don’t want to rush to get married. I only want to do what's right for us."
She pushed up on her elbow and leaned in to press her lips to his. Cupping her head, he quickly took control of the kiss. Before long, her blood pumped a little faster, and her body temperature rose.
She sucked in a deep breath when the kiss ended. "Still think a long engagement is a good idea?"
"Nope. The sooner we get married, the better."
Laughter bubbled out of her. She couldn't remember ever feeling this blissfully happy.
Hello, happily ever after.
EPILOGUE
Paige's heart expanded, causing it to ache in the best way possible, as she looked around the table at the smiling faces staring at her.
Marisol and her parents had totally hit it off over Sunday dinner. It was such a relief to have everything out in the open. Paige looked forward to introducing Gabe and his family to Ben and Amy and their kids later this evening when they joined them for dessert.
Mom had been great about including Grace in the conversation, even though most of it centered around the wedding. Paige had even caught her mom making notes on her phone whenever Grace expressed her tastes and what she would do if she was the one getting married.
Paige looked at Gabe to her right.
"Don't look at me. This is your decision, mi amor. I'm done trying to please people.” He squeezed her shoulder.
"You're sure you're good with any date I pick?"
"Any date. Although I think you mentioned something about wanting your cousin, Damon, there."
"Yes, we should find out when he's supposed to deploy before we decide on a date."
Damon had said he was leaving this fall, which was only a few months away. It was longer than Paige wanted to wait, but it took time to plan a wedding. Marisol seemed to be handling the new meds well and was doing as good as could be expected, so there was no rush. But Paige had never felt so sure of anything in her life, and she was anxious to embrace it.
She picked up her phone, then paused. She hated ignoring everyone while she talked to Damon.
Mom picked up on her hesitation. "Why don't you and Gabe go into the sitting room to call Damon while we visit?"
"Good idea." She looked at Gabe to ask if he'd like to join her, but he was already standing, ready to pull back her chair.
Less than a minute later, they were settled on the loveseat in her parent's sitting room, Gabe's arm tucked around her.
She lifted her phone, but Gabe gently turned her face toward his. "Damon can wait a minute. I've been dying to do this since I arrived two hours ago." Then he lowered his lips to hers.
She dropped her phone and placed her hand on his chiseled chest before sliding it up into his hair. He'd gotten a haircut earlier this week and there wasn't much there to play with, so her hand soon found its way back to his chest.
He took the time to explore her mouth, in a slow, languorous kiss that simultaneously made her feel like melted butter and utterly energized before ending the kiss.
She sighed and sagged into him. "I will never get tired of that."
"Me either." He leaned his head against hers as he caressed her arm. "I meant it when I said I'm fine with whatever date you choose for our wedding, but I definitely like the idea of a short engagement." Ever since Gabe's talk with Dr. Stoker earlier this week, he'd been eager to press forward with their engagement.
Dr. Stoker had chastened Gabe for initiating physical contact with a patient outside the office, regardless of the pretense. But he didn't believe Gabe had crossed any ethical lines concerning his professionalism inside the office. For propriety's sake, however, he agreed it would be best for Gabe to cease treating Paige. Thankfully, he’dagreed to take her on and decided two visits per week were sufficient.
Dr. Stoker had also told Gabe if he was serious about this relationship, he should commit to it and get married soon. It wouldn't look good for Gabe to trifle with a patient only to end it down the road.
