She blushed. “Hell no. Let’s go. I’m always down for a cheeky pint.”
We departed Windsor in good spirits, stopping at Kensington Palace to change and redirect the press. I knew the routine by now. Duck the press by leaving out a back gate to a waiting car. It was the nature of the game. Our little interlude gave me a boost with its clandestine vibes.
In the car, I squeezed Betty’s hand, smiling. “You were right.”
“About what now?” Betty asked.
“I’d have regretted turning the honor down. It’s silly, okay? I won’t deny it, but it was nice to do something to impress your family and I don’t know, but my mother would have been over-the-moon to see me get honors.”
“You regret the things you don’t do more than the ones you do,” Betty said. “At least that’s what I’ve found.”
“No, you’re right. I’d have missed everything with you. And all this past year. I’m hesitant, but I’m learning.”
Betty rested her head on my shoulder.
“Bets?”
“What?”
“I think I’m ready to buy the house,” I said. “What do you say about looking at them next weekend?”
Betty’s head popped up, a beaming grin crossing her face.
She kissed my hand. “Yeah. I’d love that. It would beat all this back and forth. Are you really ready?”
“It’s not about you. I know it’s you,” I promised. “It’s been you for longer than I wanted to ever admit. It’s about believing I can buy a nicer place and enjoy it.”
“Mary, you deserve nice. You deserve privacy. You deserve the damn world—like I’ve always told you.”
I kissed her forehead. “You’re right. As always. Is that what you want to know, my love?”
“No comment,” Betty giggled. “I will only say that I won’t complain about having a home base where I can wake up next to you more than I do now.”
“We’ve got forever, right?”
“I want to believe it. I want to manifest it, yeah,” Betty said.
I did, too. And somehow, I knew it would come to us eventually.
