Glancing around, I see Gemma and Blake with glasses of champagne, watching me. Gemma gives me an eager thumbs-up, encouraging me.
Closing the distance between the two of us, I’ve overwhelmed by Simon’s scent. That lemon and tea scent—so uniquely British. Uniquely him.
“I lost myself, Simon. After I got divorced, I didn’t know who I was. I went so far into a shell to be the woman everyone else wanted me to be, that I forgot who I was. It took a long time for me to find her again. So many people in this town looked down on me. For being single. For owning the business that I do. They didn’t think it was ‘right’ that I made and sold lingerie.”
I suck in a breath. Grabbing the lapels of Simon’s suit, I pull him closer.
“You never once made me feel less than. Or different. I felt safe to be the real me with you. You signed up for this entire, crazy scheme to help me and you barely knew me.”
Simon’s lips quirk up. The barest hint of a smile.
That has to be good, right?
“You accepted me as is and I’ve never felt so safe or loved by anyone in my entire life. I got scared,”—my voice starts to shake—“when I thought I was losing everything.”
“And did you? Lose everything?” Simon asks, leaning closer. His hand cups my jaw. The warmth seeps through me, giving me the courage to tell him everything I’m feeling. I’ve missed his touch more than I ever thought possible.
I shake my head, leaning in to his touch. “No. Because I realized if I have you, I can take on whatever or whoever stands in my way.Ourway. Because all of this means nothing if I don’t have the man I love by my side.”
Simon’s thumb brushes the apple of my cheek. “There’s the girl I fell in love with.”
“Yeah?” My breath escapes me in a whoosh.
“Fuck yeah. I love you, Layla.” Simon’s lips take mine in a soul-stirring kiss. It has every piece of my heart flying back together.
It’s the feeling of coming home. Of finding the person who I am meant to spend my life with. It took some bumps and detours for me to get here, but there is no man better suited for the job than Simon.
“Get a room already!” someone shouts.
“I reckon we should, don’t you think?” Simon whispers against my lips. His hands drift down, pulling me closer to him.
“Later.”
“Later? Christ, love, you and this later. You’re going to drive a man mad. Haven’t I suffered enough?”
I drag a finger along his lips, taking in every feature on his face. Memorizing it. “As long as I get all your laters, I’ll make sure you won’t suffer again.”
“Later it is.”
ChapterThirty
SIMON
“You’re the worst dancer I’ve ever seen!” Laughter bursts out of Layla as I do another crazy dance move.
“You know you love it.” I smack a wet kiss on her cheek.
The party is in full swing. The minute the wedding ended, the reception began. Gemma and Blake didn’t want anything fancy. No spotlight on them for the first dance. No cutting of the cake.
Just drinks, dancing, and all the cupcakes you could ever want.
Much to the excitement of all the kids at the wedding.
The song changes to a slower one and I pull the woman dancing with me into my arms.
“Care to dance with me, love?”
Layla beams up at me. “Show me what you’ve got, Belvy.”
