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“Of course I can,” Dad says grumbling a little. “You know, hearing that you two want to settle down and have kids, actually makes this whole thing a lot less worrying.”

He pauses, and then goes on, “Before, I was worried that Aaron might be manipulating you. Older man, rockstar, younger woman… it’s an old story. But I couldn’t truly believe that not when I grew up with him. I know the sort of person you are, Aaron. So fine, not that. But maybe it was a fling, and it was going to end terribly…”

He glances at Aaron, cutting off his next words.

“Because of my crush,” I say. “Is that what you mean? If it ended, I’d be destroyed, because I’ve had a crush on him for so long?”

Dad nods. “Yeah. I wasn’t sure Aaron knew.”

“She told me,” Aaron says. “And, truth be told, I didn’t have much of an opinion on it. Like I said, the past doesn’t interest me. Only the future. Only the life we’re going to live, the joy we’re going to share.”

“I’ve got to say, it’s a strange thing,” Dad says, “hearing you talk about joy.”

“Billie’s changed me,” Aaron replies. “She let me see there’s a whole other way to be, one where I don’t have to wall myself away, one where I don’t have to feel alone, so alone, all the damn time. Only Billie could do that. Nobody else.”

“So, Dad, what’s it going to be?” I ask. “Can we have your blessing?”

He frowns, looking around the room, and then his frown transforms into a broad smile.

“It’s either give you my blessing or ruin your life, and I love you too much to do that. Yes, Billie, you have my blessing. But you have to know, you can always talk to us, me and your mother. About anything. If you ever have any doubts about the path your life is taking, we’ll always be here.”

I understand what he’s saying. If I ever want to leave Aaron, they’ll support me.

I ignore that part, knowing he’s only saying it because he cares about me so much.

Instead, I hold onto the yes, the fact that we have his blessing.

I turn to Aaron, my cheeks glowing, my heart alight.

Nothing is standing in our way now.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

Billie

I take off my apron and place it on the hook.

It’s my last shift at the restaurant. I gave my boss two weeks’ notice, and now I’m free to go on and live the rest of my life. Aaron has been talking about college, asking if I want to go, or suggesting I could simply work on my craft instead.

“What about money?”

He smirked when I said that, pulling me into his arms, his lips pressed against my forehead. “You never have to worry about money again.”

I know some women would be too proud to accept this, but after years of listening to mom and dad struggle over their bills, wondering where the next rent payment is going to come from, I don’t have any of the pesky pride holding me back.

I want to start our future, follow my passion, and I refuse to feel guilty about it.

Well, except when I emerge from the storage closet to find Penny making coffee.

I wait until she’s done serving her customer, she walks around the counter and throws her arms around me. I hug her in return.

“Don’t be a stranger,” she whispers.

“What are you talking about? I’m seeing you tomorrow.”

“I know, but after that.”

I giggle. “We’re friends as well as colleagues. Don’t worry. We’ll see each other all the time.”

“Promise?”

“Promise.”

She smiles as she pulls away. “I’m so happy for you. You have no idea. I can’t believe how well this has all turned out.”

“I know. It’s amazing.”

The past two and a half weeks have been like a fantasy, spending the evening with Aaron, either in bed or at a restaurant or simply watching a movie together. Sometimes, we’ll sit side by side as we write songs, and once I even started to sing spontaneously and he joined in.

We created a whole song like that, our eyes locked, our souls fused, our voices rising around us.

“Oh, I need to give you this,” Penny says, reaching into her pocket and taking out a small envelope. “It was waiting for you this morning.”

I take it.

On the front, it says, For Billie, after her shift.

“Who left it?” I ask.

She grins. “Let’s just say I think you’ll like what you find in there.”

After giving her another hug, I leave the restaurant, opening the envelope.

Go to the roof of the apartment building directly across the street.

My stomach swirls and my whole body gets that needy hot feeling, as I focus on keeping my footsteps steady, walking across the street. A doorman stands outside the apartment building. They’ve never had one before.

“Ma’am,” he says, as I approche. “If you’ll follow me…”


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