“Today, we have a special request from one of our best friends in the world and an adorable girl who made a wish eight months ago, and it might come true. Grump, can you do me the honor because I doubt I’ll do any justice to this email with my voice.”
“Dear Persy (That’s how one starts these things, right?),
“Ugh, someone needs to teach the guy to write an email. It’s not that hard.”
“Grump, focus.”
“A few months back, I was recording a show when this funny, brilliant little girl emailed the show asking for help. She wanted to find a husband for her mom and a dad for her. The call stayed with me for a week, and there was a second call that pulled me more toward this family of two. Listening about all the sacrifices this single mother made for her child. A child who has a big heart and believes that everything is possible.
“Confession time: I knew this girl. Well, now a woman. She’s my best friend’s little sister. Aiden, if you’re listening to the show, I might have a thing for her. That’s not all. I snuck into the studio where the show is recorded, hoping I’d learn more about this incredible woman and her daughter. That day, she was on the phone, and like her daughter, she gifted me with something I thought I had lost.
“Hope.
“I searched for her. In the process of trying to steal the hope that I thought I didn’t deserve, I got to learn more about her. She’s a beautiful woman. Her kind of beauty sinks into your soul and makes you want to worship her and hand her your heart. Slowly, we’ve been mixing into each other. She didn’t heal me, but she patiently stayed beside me as I gathered the shards of my broken heart. She held me while I processed the pain I denied existed.
“All this time, I believed I was in her life to help her, but no, she came into my life to save me. I believe I was meant to find her again when we were both ready. The beauty of her soul isn’t the only thing she has. She has an extraordinary daughter who I love as mine. Unfortunately, we’ve been apart for the past few months. I want us to find each other again, and this time it’ll be forever. If you could help me find her. I’ll be at the top of the Space Needle waiting for her, and I’ll wait forever for her.
Sincerely,
Restless in Redmond”
“Dear Restless in Redmond, I promised I wouldn’t cry when we read this letter, but I’m sobbing like a baby. I’m glad you finally found the peace you’ve been looking for. Autumn Wickerton, welcome to the family. Now go and find your man.
“For everyone else, this was a special limited-edition podcast. Until next time, Persy Brassard.”
Autumn
“I’ll give you a ride,” Aiden says.
“You knew?”
He nods.
Without wasting any time, we drive to the Space Needle. I get out of the car as he kills the engine. When I arrive at the monitor to buy tickets, a sign says it’s sold out.
“This can’t be sold out.”
“It is for the right price,” a security guard says.
Miranda and Aiden, who’re right behind me, say, “Someone is waiting for her upstairs.”
The man tosses his head back and laughs. “You and all those women.” He points at a group of women who are close to the bushes.
They all listened to the podcast and wanted to get to Zach, but he’s mine. Mine.
“But it’s me, Autumn Wickerton,” I assure him, pulling out my purse and showing him my ID.
He tilts his head toward the entrance, and I almost jog as I go through the security points, show my driver’s license a couple more times, and finally head to the elevator.
The woman next to me explains how we’re traveling at ten miles per hour which means it’ll take us forty-one seconds to reach the top. They’re the longest forty-one seconds of my life. They’re open until midnight, but I hope we don’t have to stay too long. I want us to go home, to stop pretending that we’re not together. I need Zach in my life forever. Not just for a few stolen seconds, but for the rest of our lives. At least, I hope that’s the beginning of us.
When I step out, I can see the glorious view of the city that I love and also the two people who mean the world to me.
Zach and Matilda stand together. Stella is right next to them.
Matilda waves at me. “Hi.”
“Hey, you two.”
“I hope it’s okay that I brought her with me,” Zach says.
“It’s perfect,” I whisper.
He clears his throat and pulls two boxes out of his suit jacket. “For years, I’ve been lost. I had no idea what love was, only believed in the concept of love. I wanted something that I was afraid to have and lose. It took meeting two precious souls to understand the meaning and let myself fall and learn how to fly.
“Autumn Wickerton, the day you came back into my life, I had a feeling about you. I still don’t understand what it is about you, but I know you’re worth loving. I fell in love with you because you understand who I am. You’re the person who creates peace inside my chaotic mind. You’re the most caring person in the world and a wonderful mother to an equally wonderful child.”
He drops onto one knee and opens the small box. It has a small princess-cut diamond with little diamonds around it. It’s not flashy, but it’s perfect for me, for us.
“I know this is too soon, but life is too short, and I want to start the rest of our lives now. Would you do me the honor to be my wife, my life companion, and my best friend?”
“Say yes, Mommy, please?”
He turns to look at Matilda, who opens the large box. It has a heart-shaped locket. “I don’t plan to replace Paxton Blackthorne. He gave you life, but I’d love to be your stepfather—your second father—if you and your mom allow it. I promise to love you, not spoil you that often, and always protect you.”
Matilda’s lip trembles. She looks at me as if waiting for my answer.
I walk toward him and wrap my arms around him. I can’t stop crying. This is so perfect. He’s so imperfectly flawless.
“Yes. My answer is yes. I love you so much, Zachary St. James.”
“I love you both,” he says, standing up. He takes Matilda into his arms and hugs us both. “Thank you for giving me life and letting me love you.”
Something Like Love, the second book of the St. James Family releases on April 12.
Pre-order today
Excerpt
I hope you enjoyed Until Next Time keep reading for an extended excerpt of:
Wrong Text, Right Love (Persy & Ford)
Didn’t Expect You (Nyx & Nate)
Love Like Her (Olivia & Eros)
Something Like Love
Wrong Text, Right Love
Saturday, April 4th
* * *
“I thought you were like the Beast, but you’re Peter Pan without the green leggings,” Martha yells, shoving my pants against my torso.
Ok, the Peter Pan reference I get, but who the fuck is the Beast?
“Maybe I’m wrong and you’re Rapunzel, waiting for some innocent woman to rescue you from your Ivory tower,” she continues her rant, and I think I get it now. She’s trying to compare me to Disney princes—and even princesses. “Enough is enough. I’m done loving you. I tried and I tried, but you never gave anything back.”