Archer Moore was standing there, staring at me like he was waiting for me.
He smiles and I automatically smile back.
I’ve had time to think about where we went wrong, time to realize that while he hurt my feelings, I wasn’t in the right either. I should have talked to him about things before I jumped ship. I got scared.
I forget for a moment that I’m in a photo shoot and figure April will forgive me for this. I make my way up the steps and Archer reaches out a hand to pull me up, holding both of my hands in his, I stare up at my childhood crush in a daze.
“Hey there, honey pie,” he says, a smile stretched across his lips.
“Hey,” I say, smiling back at him. I take in his features for a moment, then shrug. “What are you doing here?”
“Waiting for you.”
His answer is so simple and so sure that I blink and then let my shoulders sag as realization takes over. “There is no photo shoot, is there?”
He laughs and shakes his head. “No. There’s not.”
I shake my head, but a smile sneaks across my lips. “Did you do this?”
“Yes.” His smile dims and a more serious expression crosses his face, though his eyes still hold that tender emotion I love so much. The one I get every time he looks at me. “I did. I set this up because I was ready to put the bullshit behind us and move forward.”
I don’t let myself hope, but I wait patiently while I listen to him explain.
Chapter Fifty-Three
“Falling in love makes people so stupid, man. Like, wow, there’s a person my brain says is attractive, oops, she made me laugh. Let’s get married or something.” – Garrett
ARCHER
She was so damn beautiful. For every step she took toward me, it just reaffirmed my feelings that what I had planned here was the right move.
I take a deep breath and grip her hands tighter in mine.
“I finished the house,” I start and her eyes spark.
“You did?”
I nod, and she smiles at me.
“Archer, that’s amazing! I’m so proud of you.” She sighs and looks at me, her expression resigned. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t more supportive. I should have been. I kept letting doubt and fear suck me in, and I should have trusted that you would figure it out.”
“I know.” I nod. “I’m sorry too. We both made mistakes, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t want to keep fighting for you.” She nods in agreement, a tear slipping form her eye. I reach up and wipe it away. “I need to figure out how to balance work and real life, because you’re my real life. If I can’t have you, then nothing else matters to me. I love you, Viv. I always have.” I squeeze her hands, hoping she can’t feel the way mine grow clammy. “I want to make sure that every second of every day, you feel that love. That you know without any doubt that I will always love you and put you first. I want to support your dreams, whether that’s working at Hansen or doing your own—”
“I quit my job.”
Her words trip me up and I frown down at her. “You… what?”
Her eyes shine but it’s with relief and happiness. “I quit. I wasn’t happy there, and he didn’t treat me well.”
My hands tighten on hers and my voice deepens, “What did he do?” And how fast could I get to the Hansen building to beat the shit out of him?
“Nothing bad, just… didn’t treat me well when he found out we broke up.” I take a minute to breathe through the urge to defend her honor and try to listen. “Anyway, it doesn’t matter. I’m starting my own company.”
My head spins at the one-eighty, trying to keep up. “You are?”
“Yeah, all because you believed in me and told me I could.” She shakes her head. “I never thought I had the chops for it, but your faith in me made me believe I could do it.”
“You can.” I squeeze her hands again. “You so fucking can. You’re the most brilliant person I know, I know you’ll kill it.”