“What happened?”
I raised my brows and rubbed my temples. “You’re not gonna believe this when I tell you.”
When Mickie delivered my mug, I took a big swallow, then recounted the whole story to him. Even the part about Leland.
“Half a fucking million? Have they thrown his arse in jail yet?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. I’m sure they’ll let me know when I need to appear in court. I just hope it doesn’t fuck too much with my return to America.”
I took a big swallow of my beer. “I can’t even tell you how at home I felt there. The team, the coaches, and the friends I made. It never felt like I was in the wrong spot.”
Owen put his hand on my shoulder and squeezed. “I hope this mess doesn’t take long to sort.”
“Me too,” I said. “How’s Carrie?”
Owen grinned and started telling me about their plans. “We just found out she’s pregnant. So we’re gonna move up our plans to get married.”
My smile was so big. “That’s great, O. I’m so happy for you.”
As he told me all about his plans, my phone rang. I turned it over to see that it was Carson video calling.
“Oh shit. I gotta take this.”
Owen chuckled as I swiped to answer. “Hello, love. I’ve been trying to call you. I’ve got so much to tell ya. Where ya been?”
Carson’s big smile and love-sick expression greeted me. “Hey, babe. I’ve been taking care of some things. Where are you?”
“At the pub with Owen. Where are you?”
He looked around, then back at me. “On the beach. You won’t believe this view.”
I smiled as he flipped the camera and panned around. My heart started to pound in my chest as my eyes filled with tears.
“Carson?”
He panned the phone until he stopped on the outside of my building. “Yeah, babe? We were hoping you might want some company.”
I jumped up off the stool. “We? Who iswe?”
He turned the phone down to Allister and Bella. “Me and these two.”
Frantically, I looked up at Owen. “I gotta go. He’s here. Carson’s here.”
Owen clapped me on the back. “Go, I got this.”
Heading for the door, I pushed it open and took off down the street. “I’m on the way. Don’t you move a muscle.”
Carson laughed and smiled into the phone. “I’ll be waiting right here.”
When he disconnected the call, I wanted to call him right back, but this made running easier. The five blocks to my apartment building felt like a mile even though I ran as if my arse were on fire.
My face split into a grin, and my eyes began to well up.
He was here. He’d crossed our ocean with our fur babies. Carson had come to Australia for me.
When my building came into view, I ran down to the shore where he stood waiting for me. Bella barked, alerting him. I watched as he turned and locked onto my eyes.
I didn’t stop running until I crashed into him. Carson’s arms tightened around me as our mouths met, as I poured my love and soul into the kiss, telling him I never wanted to be without him.
