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“Next full moon, I’m stripping out of my clothes and saying Beetlejuice three times, hoping he’s desperate. Beetlejuice, Jules. He hangs out in a fucking graveyard and has gross as hell teeth. That’s where I am. I’m so sex deprived I’d let Beet—”
That woman captured my breath, leaving me speechless.
My hand glides up the smooth, hand-carved railing, which is adorned with whimsical embellishments. It’s the small details in this house, the tiny things most people don’t pay attention to. Mom had her own style, and every square foot is her. Each room in the house is quirky in its own way. I could never change it because this property is the only place where my mother’s presence and personality haven’t been erased.
Broken people break people, and I don’t want to do that to her or anyone.
“I want an IOU,” I state, matter-of-factly, testing her boundaries. “I already told you, I don’t give those,” she says, staying firm in her decision. “And that’s exactly why I want one. I want to be your exception.”
“Not quite, sweetheart. You owe me much more than a shitty text.”
He licks the rim and places the lime between his lips. I’ve never been so jealous of a fruit in my whole life.
Have we lived this life together before? I can’t shake that feeling.
There you are again Thoughts of you keep haunting me. How can you be real?
“You feel the invisible tug. I know you do. It’s written on your face.”
It’s easy to imagine a whole life with her.
I replay all that she’s shared with me, mentally cataloging facts about her, but I need to know more. I want to know everything about her: what makes her happy or excited, her favorite foods, and her favorite color. I want to know Autumn at her core.
Time. It doesn’t matter how many numbers are in anyone’s bank account, because it’s the only thing money can’t buy us more of.
Know that when I leave this earth, I’ll go with a happy and grateful heart, because the day you were born, every one of my dreams became a reality.
“I haven’t been in a Jeep since high school,” she admits, looking in the back seat. “This one would be a lot easier to fool around in.” I tilt my head at her. “It was like that?” “It’s always the quiet ones,” she warns. “Always.”
“I don’t give second chances once things are really over. It’s a rule of mine. It ends for a reason.”
“And I selfishly want to read your fantasies about me because it’s only something you can write. Can’t really put a price on that.”
“You’re not fling material. You’re the type of woman that men want forever with.”
“The chase is the fun part.”
Music drifts out of it as her parents dance and laugh. I smile, seeing how in love they are, knowing this is the standard that Autumn stacks her relationships against.
“You’re the first person I’ve ever shared a soul connection with.”
I’d dance with you in Hell,”
“If you were mine, I’d do everything in my power to make you happy. And if I failed, you’d deserve to take half of it all. I wouldn’t care. I’d want the best for you with or without me.”
“You agreed to be mine through the holidays if you could have all of me.” He glances down at it. “Now you do, Pumpkin. You have me physically, mentally, emotionally, and financially.”
“And what if all I want is you?” I finally say. He pulls away, meeting my eyes. “You have me.”
Dominance, I crave his. I look up into his eyes, giving him full control of me.
“Did you mean it when you said you couldn’t imagine a life without me?” I ask, leaning my head on his shoulder. He presses his lips against my cheek. “Can you?” I try to picture a world in which he doesn’t exist before focusing back on him. “No. You’d haunt me in my dreams for the rest of my life.”
“Tastes like shit.” Autumn barely gets the words out before she bursts into laughter.
“Mm. My good girl.”
In a blink, time passed. Days transformed into years.
“It’s only you, Autumn,” he confesses. “It will only ever be you.”
“I don’t want this to end, Autumn. Not in January. I do want to make you my wife. To take the risk. I want the whole goddamn world to know you’re mine, and more than anything, I want to take care of you and go on adventures with you. I’m already bound to you, somehow. And I don’t understand it at all, but in my heart, it’s you. It will only ever be you.”
“You inspire me to be a better man.” My heart pounds a little harder. “Autumn changed me.” “No. She just reminded you of who you truly are.”
You’re my one true love, and I’m madly, deeply, obsessively in love with you.
You can be respectful and firm at the same time,”
