Love With Me (With Me In Seattle Book 11) Page 14

  “Deal.”

  “Now we have Levi to take care of, at least for today. And believe me when I say, he’s going to be a dick when he wakes up.”

  “Not good at being injured, huh?”

  “No.”

  “He wanted me to take him home, but I refused. I didn’t think he should be alone on the medication.”

  “Good call.” He sighs and rubs his eyes. “I got a call from the hospital.”

  “And?”

  “I have a meeting with them on Monday morning.”

  “That’s, like, a week away.”

  “No, it’s a few days away,” he says with a laugh. “You lost a few days there from being sick. It’s Friday afternoon, sweetheart.”

  “Oh.” I frown and shake my head. “Well, that sucks that you have to wait all weekend to find out what’s going on.”

  “What’s two more days?” he asks with a shrug. “If you’re feeling up to it, I’d like to take you out to dinner tomorrow night.”

  “Sounds good. In the meantime, I’m fixing tacos tonight.”

  “Sounds great.”

  “Real food actually sounds good. I’m taking that as a good sign.”

  “Me, too.” He pulls me in and kisses me soundly for the first time all week. “I’ve missed you.”

  “You’ve been with me every day.”

  “Not the way I want to be.” He tugs me closer and slides his hand over my ass as he presses his erection to my belly.

  “Your brother is injured in the other room.”

  “He’s asleep,” he reminds me. “Knocked out cold. And we have plenty of time before dinner.”

  I smile, take his hand, and lead him upstairs. “How will we ever fill the time?”

  “I have plenty of ideas, sweetheart.”

  ~Jace~

  “I can’t believe my car died,” Joy grumbles next to me, scowling out the window of my Audi as I drive her to work.

  “I don’t know why you haven’t replaced it yet,” I say lightly. “You’ve had that car forever.”

  “Six years,” she says with a sigh. “I was trying to eke out every drop of life it had.”

  “I’d say you accomplished that. I can go with you to buy a new one tomorrow.”

  I have plans for tonight. Big plans. Well, I will have big plans after I drop her off.

  “I guess I don’t have a choice,” she says and swallows hard. “Also, isn’t this flu supposed to be gone? Why am I still a little nauseated?”

  “It can take up to two weeks to make its way through your system.” I frown over at her and press my hand to her forehead. No fever. “Maybe you should stay home.”

  “No.” She shakes her head adamantly. “No way. I need to work. I’m sorry, I don’t mean to hurt your feelings because of your work situation—”

  “I get it,” I reply. “Trust me, I get it.”

  “I’ll be fine. I asked Susan to pick up some ginger ale yesterday, and I’ll just sip on that. Are you going to be okay with the puppies?”

  “Of course.” I pull into the parking lot of her clinic and smile at her as she unclips her belt. “Have a good day, dear.”

  She snorts out a laugh. “I’ll call you when I’m ready to come home. It’ll probably be around seven.”

  “Sounds good. Don’t forget we’re going out for dinner tonight. I love you.”

  She smiles softly, the way she always does when I tell her I love her. “I love you, too. Have a good day.”

  And with that, she hurries inside, and I shift into planning mode.

  I call Noel, listening to it ring through the speakers of my car as I pull away from the clinic.

  “Hello?”

  “Hi, Noel, it’s Jace.”

  “What’s up?”

  “I need your help.” I take a deep breath, trying to keep the butterflies at bay. “I need to come up with a plan for this evening.”

  “For what?”

  “I’m going to propose to Joy.”

  There’s silence on the other end. It makes me frown. “Noel?”

  “Well, I just think that’s the sweetest thing.” She sniffles. “I’m so happy for you both. And I’m relieved that you finally came to your senses and realized that you were made for each other.”

  “Focus,” I say with a smile. “I need you to help me come up with a plan.”

  “Okay. Come over to my house, and we’ll figure it out.”

  “Thanks.”

  I end the call and drive to Noel’s, which isn’t too far away from Joy’s house. She’s waiting on her porch for me with a sappy smile on her face.

  “You’re going to be my brother-in-law.”

  “Are you going to be mushy about this? Because you’re no help to me like this.”

  “Hey, my sister only gets engaged once every thirty years or so,” she says with a smirk. “Let me enjoy it.”

  “I was thinking that I could rent a helicopter tour over the Sound or something.”

  She frowns. “Joy gets motion sick.”

  “Oh, right.” I push my fingers into my eye sockets and sigh. “I knew that. I don’t know why this is making me stupid.”

  “Because you want to get it right, which I think is fantastic. Do you want some coffee?”

  “Yes, please.”

  She brews me a cup, and we’re quiet as we try to think of the best way to do this.

  “It’s raining today,” she says.

  “I know, which rules out anything outside.”

  “Don’t you have something that you love to do together? Like a favorite restaurant, or something like that?”

  “Yeah, but that seems cliché.”

  “You also can’t be cheesy,” she says as she sets my coffee in front of me with sugar and cream to doctor it up myself.

  I take it black.

  “That’s why I’m here,” I remind her.

  “You could send her on a scavenger hunt all over town to places that mean a lot to you both and then you’re waiting at the end with the ring.” She smiles, pleased with herself.

  “I have today to figure this out.”

  “Why did you wait until the last minute?”

  “I didn’t. I just know that today is the day I want to propose.”

  “You’ve had fifteen years to figure this out,” she mutters and sighs. “Okay, how about this? You get a prescription bottle, and you have them make a label that says the prescription is Will You Marry Me? and that the ailment is love.”

  I stare at her, blinking. “That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard.”

  “No! You’re both doctors! It makes perfect sense.”

  “You said I can’t get cheesy. That’s cheesy as fuck.”

  She sighs, tapping her lips.

  “Okay, you need to get a fishing lure—” she begins, but I stop her, holding my hand up.

  “We don’t fish, and if you say this catch is a keeper, I’ll never speak to you again. Think about how you would want to be proposed to.”

  “Well, that’s easy. I want to go to Paris, spend the day in the spa where I get my nails done perfectly, and then he takes me to dinner, and we walk around Paris at night, discovering little cafés and watching people kiss. And then we’d end up on a bridge with a view of the Eiffel Tower, and he’d get on one knee and ask me to marry him. He would have hired a professional photographer to secretly follow us and take photos, especially of the moment. The ring will be a round cut solitaire, and I’ll cry daintily, and of course, say yes.”

  I stare at her, my mouth open, not sure what to say except, “Shit. I should have planned this sooner.”

  “That’s my dream proposal,” she reminds me. “This is Joy we’re talking about. She wouldn’t need or even want all of that. Hell, you could just lie in bed and say, ‘let’s get hitched’ and she’d say, ‘okay.’”

  I raise my eyebrows, thinking it over. Noel rushes to add, “But do not do it that way. You still need to do something sweet that when people ask her how you proposed, s
he can tell the story and they’re like, ‘awww!’”

  “This is a lot of fucking pressure,” I mutter, rubbing my fingers over my lips.

  “I know you have to have a romantic side,” she says. “It can be simple and romantic all at the same time. What’s she doing today?”

  “Working. I told her I was going to take her out to dinner tonight.”

  “She’s going to be tired,” Noel guesses. “So I suggest doing it at home. Wait! I have an idea.”

  “I think I’ve heard enough of your ideas.”

  “No, this one is really sweet, doesn’t involve a passport, and we should be able to pull it together before she gets off of work.”

  “Okay, I’m all ears.”

  “Hi,” Joy says as she drops into the passenger seat with a sigh. “Sorry I was a bit late. I hope we don’t have reservations.”

  “No biggie,” I reply. It actually worked out perfectly because it gave me time to finish pulling everything together for this evening.

  “You look nice,” she says, taking in my dark slacks and white button-down. “Does this mean I have to dress up this evening? Because I have to be honest, I was hoping that we might be able to just stay in tonight.”

  She cringes, and I smile on the inside.

  “Really, you just want to stay home?” I ask.

  “I know you were looking forward to going out, but I’m still not feeling fantastic, and I’m so tired. Does this make me officially old?”

  “No, babe, you’re not old. You’re tired and getting over the flu. It’s totally fine if you want to stay in.”

  She smiles and sighs in relief.

  “You’re the best.”

  She hasn’t messed anything up for me tonight. If anything, this is better.

  I pull into the driveway and hurry around the car to open the door for her. Pulling her to her feet, I walk her to the door, but then I stop her.

  “Wait.”

  “What?” She frowns up at me.

  “Let’s go in through the back door.”

  “Why would we do that?”

  “Because I mopped the floor in the living room,” I lie. “And I don’t know if it’s dry.”

  “You mopped my hardwood?” she asks incredulously as she follows me around the house to the back door. I lead her inside and grin when I see the glow coming from the living room, but I hope she doesn’t notice it yet.

  “I used the wood cleaner,” I assure her. We stop to say hi to the puppies, who are now blocked in the laundry room with plenty of toys and water. Angela roams around the house now, and checks on the pups throughout the day. “Let’s go upstairs.”

  “You’re very weird tonight,” she says, but takes my offered hand and lets me lead her up the stairs. She’s moving slower than she normally does. “I sure wish my hips would stop aching.”

  “I’m sorry you’ve been so sick,” I say and wonder if tonight really is the right time to propose. But when she sees what I have waiting for her in the bedroom, her face brightens into curiosity, and her hand tightens in mine.

  “What’s this about?”

  “I figured you had a long day,” I reply, pleased with the flameless candles lit from the bedroom into the bathroom. There’s a new robe hanging on the door, and a hot bath with her favorite bubbles already drawn for her. “Why don’t you take a bit to soak and freshen up?”

  “Oh, that looks so nice,” she says, already stripping her scrubs over her head. “When I said you were the best, I meant you’re the best. As in ever.”

  I chuckle and kiss her forehead. “Relax and get comfortable, and then meet me downstairs. Don’t fall asleep. I have more surprises.”

  Her eyes widen. “More? Is it my birthday and I forgot?”

  “No,” I say with a laugh. “Just do as you’re told.”

  I kiss her softly.

  “Yes, sir,” she murmurs as I leave the bathroom and hurry downstairs to get dinner in the oven and the other gifts I have for her all set up. Her house is an open concept, so keeping the stages of this process a secret isn’t easy.

  Just as I’m pulling the enchiladas—one of the few dishes I know how to make well—out of the oven, I hear Joy coming down the stairs, so I hurry over to greet her and lead her to the next step in my plan.

  “That was decadent,” she says with a smile. She’s changed from her new robe into some jeans and a pretty blouse, which will be perfect. Her hair is loose around her shoulders, and her face, clean of makeup, is fresh and happy.

  “Feeling better?”

  “Much,” she says with a nod. “And hungry. You made your enchiladas.”

  “I’m glad you’re hungry,” I say as I gesture for her to sit at the island while I dish up our plates. “I have something for you.”

  “Aside from the food?”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  She narrows her eyes at me.

  “Are you trying to suck up to me for something?”

  “No.” I set her plate in front of her and walk around to join her. I take a bite of my food, then reach for a bag sitting on the floor by the island where she couldn’t see it. “Here, open this.”

  “Now?”

  “Now.”

  She smiles, chewing around a bite of food, and pulls the book out of the bag, frowning in concentration as she reads the cover.

  “Jace and Joy. Fifteen Years of Love,” she reads, then smiles up at me. “Did you make this?”

  “I did,” I reply. I don’t ever want to relive the hours I spent today combing through old photos of the two of us for this book. “Let’s look at it.”

  She cracks the cover and laughs at the photo of us from our freshman year of college.

  “My God, we were young,” she whispers, brushing her fingertips over the photo. For the next hour, we eat dinner and look through the book, reliving the entirety of our relationship thus far. “Remember when we went on that trip to Disney our junior year?”

  “How could I forget?” I ask, laughing. “You threw up after every single ride, but I couldn’t get you to not go on them.”

  “You love the rides,” she says as if it’s as simple as that. “Of course, I rode them with you.”

  “Yeah, and you were miserable.”

  “It was worth it.” She frowns, her face turning almost sad. “There are fewer photos as time goes on.”

  “We were both in med school and internships. Not a lot of time for photos.”

  “Or anything else,” she adds. “Oh, that gala at the hospital for the new children’s wing was fun.”

  “I think that was the first time you saw Will Montgomery in person.”

  “You’re right,” she says, laughing. “I was too shy to talk to him.”

  “I guess it all worked out in the end, now that you’ve met him a few times.”

  “Lots of things have worked out in the end. Oh, look, you even included the photo from the night of Hamilton,” she says with a grin.

  “Of course, you looked amazing that night.”

  “This is beautiful,” she says after pushing her empty plate away.

  “That’s not the last page,” I reply, feeling the butterflies start to take flight in my belly. She flips the page, then looks up at me in confusion.

  “It just says: There’s more in the living room.”

  “I guess we’d better go in there, then.”

  She hops off her stool and follows me around the corner to the living room and gasps. I step inside the heart that I’ve arranged with more flameless candles and turn to her. Her eyes roam over the room, looking at the fifteen-dozen red roses—one dozen for every year I’ve known her—in small bouquets on the floor and on every available surface.

  I extend my hand, offering it to her, and she crosses to me, stepping inside the heart with me, her jaw still dropped in surprise.

  “Joy, you are the most incredible woman I’ve ever known. You’re funny, smart, and successful and you’ve been my best friend since I was a boy. You’ve been there wi
th me through everything, from our internships, building our careers, the death of your mother. Hell, every important moment of my life includes you, Joy. You know me better than anyone.

  “You’re the brightest part of my day, every day, and frankly, the idea of not having you by my side is an agony I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. I’m standing before you now, asking you to not just be my friend, but to be my partner in all things. To have a family, to go through all of life’s ups and downs, and to love with me for the rest of our lives.”

  There’s a red velvet pillow in front of me. I kneel on one knee and pull a small box out of my pocket. I open it, offering her the ring I’ve had waiting just for her.

  “Will you be my wife, Joy Thompson? Will you marry me?”

  Tears roll down her cheeks unchecked, but she doesn’t say anything. She chews her lip then, suddenly, she kneels before me, cupping my face in her hands.

  “Joy? I need an answer, baby.”

  ~Joy~

  He’s staring at me with so much hope and love, it takes my breath away. Isn’t this how every woman wants to be looked at when she’s asked to marry? With adoration?

  “Joy?”

  “Of course,” I whisper, then clear my throat and lean in to kiss him soundly. “Of course, I’ll marry you, Jace Crawford.”

  “You scared me there,” he says, tipping his forehead against mine, then reaches for the ring nestled in the box and slips it on my finger.

  “This is just stunning.” I tear my gaze from the solitaire diamond on my finger to Jace’s face. “Thank you, so much.”

  “No, thank you.” He pulls me to my feet, then lifts me in his arms and carries me upstairs. “You know what the best part of flameless candles is?”

  “What’s that?”

  “No fire hazard.” He winks at me as Carl races ahead of us up the steps. “With all of the animals in this house, I didn’t dare use real candles.”

  “You’re such a smart man.” I kiss his cheek. “You know, I could get used to all these rides I get from you.”

  “Good. I like carrying you.”

  “That bath was a nice touch,” I inform him as he sets me on the floor and peels the covers back on the bed. “I might have agreed to marry you from that alone. You could have proposed when I was sitting in that water, and I would have scrambled to say yes.”