Lizzie let out a soft, delicious moan and lay her head against his chest.
“What’s the second request?”
Lizzie lifted her head and looked at him again, but this time with hungry eyes. “Can you please kiss me?”
Will thought he could feel dopamine being released as he heard her utter those words. He grabbed the fabric at the back of her dress and pulled her in as he met her lips. She fit perfectly in his arms, on his mouth; kissing her felt as natural as breathing air. She was the missing part that he needed to be whole. And here, in this moment, finally being made whole, Will thought he might be the happiest he’d ever been in his life.
Chapter 21- Yours
It took a literal explosion to pull them apart. Fireworks were going off overhead. For a moment, Will arrogantly thought they were meant to commemorate the moment, then realized they were for Christmas. A tradition his family didn’t practice growing up, but on Christmas Eve, in Miami, you could see Fireworks litter the night sky.
“The rooster is crowing,” Lizzie said, referring to theMisa del Gallo, the fireworks marked that it was Christmas.
Will watched as the Fireworks shined off of Lizzie’s flushed face. “Merry Christmas,” he said.
Lizzie answered by giving him a sweet, tender, quick kiss. “I have something for you. Just wait one second.”
Will watched as Lizzie quickly trotted away. The drinks had been flowing for hours now, and the festive mood was high. People were starting to bring out gifts and hand them to each other. Lizzie was heading back with the wrapped gift in her hands.
She handed it to him and said, “Merry Christmas.”
Will unwrapped it, exposing a pinkcafetera. “When I saw it, I remembered how much you liked Pink, and I thought I could use it to teach you how to makecolada. Of course, that was before I uncovered that you were a master barista.”
Will chuckled and looked at it appreciatively. “This is perfect,” he said. The little, pink coffee pot, with its narrow middle and flared out bottom, reminded him of the first time hehad seen Lizzie, in her pink blazer. The fire behind her eyes was incongruous with the softness of her curves. He hadn’t realized how hard he’d fallen for her then, but he knew it now, as he held a trifle that was available for $8 at the local Sédanos, but it felt as precious to him as the holy grail because it came from her.
“I have a gift for you too, but… would you like to go back to my place? I want to give it to you there.”
Lizzie smiled and nodded. “Sure, just let me do the exchange with Abuela and Lidia.”
Will watched as Lizzie and Lidia exchanged gifts: a new ring light for Lidia and, for Lizzie, the hot new trending miracle balm, which Lidia said was terrific and was going to make her look ten years younger. Lizzie gave Abuela a coffee serving tray from La Carreta, and Abuela gave her the same gift Lizzie got from her every year, some new underwear.
Lizzie opened it, not thinking how embarrassing it would be for Will to see the cotton, full-bottom underwear with little flowers that Lizzie was partial to. But also the fact that even at 26, Lizzie’s grandmother was choosing her undergarments.
Lizzie kissed Abuela on the cheek and tried to hide the package from Will as they went inside to drop off the gifts before leaving, but it was too late.
“Sneak peek of what I can expect to see in the future?” He teased.
“Oh no! These are the new ones. I save these for church, or other special occasions,” Lizzie replied cheekily.
Lizzie grabbed her purse, and Will indicated the people outside with a jerk of his chin. “Don’t you need to say goodbye to all of them?”
Lizzie looked incredulous. “Have you ever tried to say goodbye to a massive Cuban family? Do you want to spend an hour on goodbyes for a group that won’t remember anyway? Better we just sneak out, and if anyone complains, we just say wetold them, and they were either too drunk or old to remember.” And with a conspiratorial wink, they headed for the door.
Brickell, the area near downtown Miami where Will had his apartment, was quiet this time of night on Christmas Eve/ Christmas morning. Lizzie had never been here except when business dictated it during daylight hours, and it was weird to imagine people living there.
The penthouse apartment had a view that took Lizzie’s breath away. The whole city lay before her in its neon glory, with an ocean and palm tree backdrop.
“Pretty amazing, huh?” Will said, coming up behind her with a glass of wine.
“Yeah, it’s even better than the view from the rooftop at Pemberley.”
Will handed her a small box with a tight little bow on top. Lizzie set down her wine, opened the box, and pulled out a delicate gold necklace with coordinates, similar to Will’s tattoo but not identical to it. Lizzie screwed up her face trying to figure out where the coordinates led.
“It’s the location of Pemberley Pharmaceuticals HQ. I know it’s not the most romantic place, but it’s the place where I met you. The place where I… I fell in love.” Will held his breath, and Lizzie beamed.
“It’s beautiful,” Lizzie said, and then, handing him the necklace, added, “Do you mind?” She turned around and lifted her hair so that he could easily clasp it on.
Will moved his arms around her, the soft curve of her hips pressing back into him; the smell of honeysuckle from her hair was intoxicating. He was almost trembling as he helped put on her necklace.
