“I’m going to try.”
“Good. Now, I have something of the utmost importance to ask you.”
“What now? Delos, I can’t handle all these questions…”
“It’s the last one, I swear!”
“Alright, shoot.” I rub my eyes and ruin my makeup. Whatever.
“What do you think about a Harry Potter-themed wedding?”
Chapter 29
I’m currently surrounded by three furry bodies when my phone starts buzzing across Dean’s coffee table. I mute the TV and grab it.
“Hello?”
“Hey,” Dean says. He sounds absolutely wrecked. Maybe now isn’t a good time for this.
Now you’re looking for excuses. “Could you come unlock the door for me?”
“Yeah, be there in two seconds.” I hang up, gently remove Potter from my lap and place him next to his big brother Pongo for puppy snuggles. I move to Dean’s front door and unlock it.
He looks exhausted. His dinner clothes are full of stains as I watch him take off his coat, and he smells like grease and onions fried in butter. His hair’s slipping out of its bun, and there’s a spark in his eyes that’s telling me no matter how tired he is right now, he’s not going to be able to sleep anytime soon.
Perfect.
“Thanks for watching the dogs. You okay if I drive you home now?”
Not so perfect.
“Uh… yeah. Let me get my stuff.”
Shit, what if I’m too late? What if he figures I’m not worth it?
Fuck that, he needs to know what he’s missing.
“Dean, look at me.” I stop putting my heels on, and glare at him. I take in his features, the way they look like they’ve been stitched together with the utmost care trying to hide the truth from me. I’ve hurt him again, but hopefully what happens next will fix that.
“I’ve… I’ve never been nerdy.”
“What?” His head comes up and now I finally have his full attention. The boys come rushing to him after hearing his voice and rush him with all their canine affection.
Don’t they know that this shit is HARD for me? All I need is a little cooperation!
Maybe it’s my bad luck… or maybe it’s a just a series of events that have brought me here, to Dean, ten years after the fact. Maybe all of this brought me here… for a reason?
I’d sure as hell like to think so.
“I’ve never been nerdy. I’ll never be nerdy. I won’t get your references off the bat, and I won’t be able to share a lot of your enthusiasm over a show, or movie or book because I’m not wired that way. I like shoes and nail polish, and puppies.”
Deep breath, K. Here we go!
“I might get your references only about five percent of the time. But Dean, I’m going to be here when you need me to be and I’m going to show up whenever you ask me and I’m going to ask the same of you.
“Because… even though I might not understand you a hundred percent of the time… I want to. I want to make you smile, and I want to make you laugh. I want us to adopt a hundred dogs and you can name whatever you want and I won’t care. I’ll love them anyway just… like I love you.”
Sweet Virgin Mary, he looks like he’s going to pass out. Maybe you shouldn’t have proclaimed your love for him when his brain’s clearly fried after work.
“Cages,” he orders, and I jump at the sound of his voice.
What the what?
Potter, Kal and Pongo all run to their respective cages in Dean’s second bedroom, all whimpering all the while like he’s ruining their lives.
“Dean-”
“Just one second. I gotta check something.”
Well, there you go. Maybe he had a wake-up call this morning. Maybe he’s decided to get over what he feels for you. Or thinks he feels.
Okay, this hurts. This hurts a motherfucking lot, but I’ll be okay. That’s what wine’s for. An anvil is squeezing all the air out of my chest, and my skin feels numb, but hey, I’ll survive.
Bad luck… it’s just bad luck. Or maybe it’s just the flip of the cards. Fate. Whatever.
“Hey, where you going?”
“I’m gonna leave, it’s okay, I shouldn’t have-”
“Kitten, did you think I was going to let you get away after I’ve heard the words I’ve been waiting a million years for you to say?”
“It’s been a lot shorter than a million years, Dean.”
His hands are on my waist, and he’s backing me up against a wall. “Yeah, but exaggerating is a lot more fun. Plus, it felt like a million years. Ah, kitten, you’ve made me pretty fucking ecstatic.”
Warmth infuses my cheeks. “Yeah?”