Ben comes sauntering into the kitchen with the phone pressed up against his ear. “That sounds great, Dev, and while I’d love to be at the launch, Serafina and I have already booked tickets to Florence during that week.”
He nuzzles up against my side and starts to nibble on my ear. I can hear Dev saying, “Put me on speakerphone and stop kissing each other long enough for me to tell you my news.”
Ben pushes the speaker button and then puts the phone down onto the counter before pulling me into his arms to kiss me properly. Neither of us pays any attention to Dev until he practically yells, “Are either of you listening to me?”
“Sorry, Dev,” I say with a laugh. “What was that?”
“I just heard from NASA that they want Ben at the launch because they are considering him for a spot on the Mars team. That’s the mothership, man! You’ve got to go!”
Ben doesn’t even pause. He just says, “But Serafina lives in New York, so while I’m flattered, I can’t take the job, even if they offer it to me.”
“What?!” Dev and I yell at the same time.
Ben shrugs. “I need to be where you are. You’re my happiness.”
“I’m gonna throw up,” Dev says.
I pull Ben into my arms. “I work from home. I can do that as easily from Florida as I can from New York.”
“But you love New York,” Ben says.
“I love you more.” Then, I add, “Plus, I’d love to spend as much time with my grandparents as I can while they’re still around.”
Holding me tightly, Ben says, “We’re going to have to get a big enough place so they can both have their own bedroom and bathroom … maybe their own wing now that I think about it.”
“Why, Ben Williams, are you asking me to move in with you?” I ask as a wave of delight pours through me.
He drops down on one knee in front of me and says, “I’m asking you to marry me. What do you say, my beautiful, fiery Libra? Do you want to make an honest man out of this Gemini?”
I jump up and down and clap while answering, “I do, I really do!”
Dev speaks up, sounding super choked up. “This is so sweet. Can you send me a picture of the ring? You did get her a ring didn’t you, Ben?”
“Of course I got her a ring,” he says, pulling a small bag of Tempty cat treats out of his pocket.
I narrow my eyes at them, hoping he doesn’t expect me to dig around in the Chicken Delites. But thankfully, instead of handing the bag to me, he shakes it and Mr. Spock comes running. Around his neck is a ribbon with one heck of a glittery diamond ring hanging from it.
“Aww, Mr. Spock? Are you in on the proposal?”
“Tell me you didn’t tie the ring around your cat’s neck, Ben,” Dev says.
“He did,” I tell him, tears filling my eyes. “And I absolutely love that Mr. Spock’s okay with having me as his furless mom.”
Ben tugs at the bow and the ribbon falls off. He deftly catches the ring in his left hand and holds it up to me while Dev says, “Okay, well as long as you love it, that’s the important thing. I think it’s a bit cheesy, but…” When we don’t answer him, because we’ve started kissing again, he says, “I’m going to hang up. This is kind of getting awkward.”
If being an astrology aficionado has taught me one thing, it’s this. When the stars are in the right alignment, there is nothing that can get in the way of your success. Don’t tell Ben, but I had both of our natal charts done and we were absolutely meant for each other. As long as none of our kids are Taurus, we should be good to go.
Coming Really Freaking Soon…
Text in Show: An Accidentally in Love Story, Book 4
It’s a dog text dog world…
Event-planner Autumn Jones has been itching to get out of Boise, Idaho her entire life, but things never seemed to work out. So when her older sister Helen asks her to come to New York to coordinate a dog show for the Manhattan Kennel Club, she’s on a Greyhound faster than ??? a greyhound out of a starting gate. When Autumn arrives, she winds up in the middle of the bizarre world of highly competitive rich women, their neglectful professional husbands, and their ridiculously spoiled fur babies. But not even the nuttiest of show dog owners will deter her from making it big in the Big Apple.
Jack Campbell is the veterinarian of Manhattan’s upper crust. He spends his days caring for pampered poodles sporting diamonded-encrusted collar and placating their highly anxious dog-moms. So when he meets Autumn Jones, she’s the breath of fresh air he’s been waiting to inhale.
This is the best book you’ll ever read by two fucking amazing writers who need to make millions of dollars this year so just buy the fucking book, then tell everyone you know to do the same, mmkay?
GET IT HERE
Afterword
A Note from Melanie and Whitney:
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Thank you so much for taking the time to read Ben and Sera’s story! If you enjoyed it, please take a moment to leave a review. Reviews are a true gift to writers. They are the best way for other readers to find our work.
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Whitney Dineen
Melanie Summers
About the Authors
WHITNEY DINEEN
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USA Today Bestseller Whitney Dineen is a rock star in her own head. While delusional about her singing abilities, there's been a plethora of validation that she's a fairly decent author (AMAZING!!!). After winning many writing awards and selling nearly a kabillion books (math may not be her forte, either), she's decided to let the voices in her head say whatever they want (sorry, Mom). She also won a fourth-place ribbon in a fifth-grade swim meet in backstroke. So, there's that.
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Whitney loves to play with her kids (a.k.a. dazzle them with her amazing flossing abilities), bake stuff, eat stuff, and write books for people who "get" her. She thinks french fries are the perfect food and Mrs. Roper is her spirit animal.
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MELANIE SUMMERS
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Melanie Summers lives in Edmonton, Canada, with her husband, three kiddos, and two cuddly dogs. When she's not writing, she loves reading (obviously), snuggling up on the couch with her family for movie night (which would not be complete without lots of popcorn and milkshakes), and long walks in the woods near her house. Melanie also loves shutting down restaurants with her girlfriends. Well, not
literally shutting them down, like calling the health inspector or something. More like just staying until they turn the lights off.