Total pages in book: 126
Estimated words: 121916 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 610(@200wpm)___ 488(@250wpm)___ 406(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 121916 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 610(@200wpm)___ 488(@250wpm)___ 406(@300wpm)
“Honestly, I’ve wanted you two to get together since high school,” Titus confesses. He flashes Kai a snarky look. “When I found out she had a crush on you, I thought, ‘Wrong Cook brother, Ruby, ya dumbass!’”
We all burst into happy laughter.
“Trust me, if I could rewind the clock, I would,” Ruby says, squeezing my hand. “But in my defense, I did try to right that horrendous wrong pretty early on. Unfortunately, it didn’t go as planned.” She tells the group the story of her coming to surprise me at school, and everyone reacts with gasps and pained body language, the same way I did when Ruby told me.
On and on, we talk about everything with our best friends. Our found family. And every time I lock eyes with any of them, whether it’s Savage, Kai, Titus, or Laila, their smiles and body language tell me they couldn’t be more thrilled for Ruby and me. For our whole band. Because at the end of the day, our happiness is theirs. Our love, theirs to share. The truth is, we all want what’s best for every person in this room, in whatever form that takes.
After a while, Ruby looks at her watch and gasps. “Shit. Guys, we really need to get to work. Let’s write a hit song.”
“Actually, sorry, before we do that,” Savage says. He looks at Laila, and she beams a smile at him that he apparently perceives as permission. “As long as we’re sharing good news with the band, Laila and I have some we’ve been waiting to share in person with all of you.” He looks at Laila again, looking like a kid on Christmas. “Tell ’em, Fitzy.”
Laila’s practically bursting with excitement. “I’m pregnant,” she shouts. “Four months along!”
The room erupts with congratulations and cheers. And in short order, we’re all up again and group-hugging with Savage and Laila this time.
When it’s my turn to hug Savage, I squeeze him tight and tell him I’m thrilled for him. “I must admit,” I say, “I’m surprised to see how happy you are about this news.” As long as I’ve known this boy, he’s always said he’s got no interest in becoming a father, thanks to his own difficult childhood. At age twelve, his amazing grandma, Mimi, saved him from the hell of his early life in Phoenix by moving him to live with her in Chicago. But before that, to put it mildly, those first twelve years of Savage’s unhappy, neglected, and abused life left more than a mark on the poor guy.
“I’m surprised, too,” Savage admits. He looks at Laila across the room. “But Laila makes everything fun for me. I want to do everything there is to do in life, now that I’ve got her. Every damned thing.”
I look across the room to where he’s gazing, to where Ruby and Laila are chatting happily, and it’s just in time to witness Ruby doing a little happy dance while laughing with Laila. “I know what you mean, my brother. When you find the right person, it changes everything.”
Savage follows my gaze. “Can you imagine yourself having babies with her one day?”
“Hell yeah.”
He returns to me with a beaming smile on his face. “Does that mean you’re planning to pop the question, or are you two just gonna live together and—"
“Hell yeah, I’m gonna propose to her. As soon as possible.”
He gasps. “Holy shit, KC. Congrats.”
“Not so loud, dude.” I look around to make sure nobody’s lurking too close to overhear. “I just need to get the—” I covertly point to my ring finger, and Savage’s face lights up.
“If you ask her during the finale,” Savage whispers, “I know for a fact Nadine would buy you the—” He points to his ring finger. “That’s what she offered to do for me during our first season. I turned her down, but you wouldn’t have to do that.”
I remember that from when it happened. Savage said he didn’t want to propose on TV. He wanted to do it in private. Plus, he didn’t want anyone paying for his future wife’s engagement ring. He wanted to spend his own damned money on that.
“The idea wasn’t for me,” Savage continues, cutting through my wandering thoughts. “But that doesn’t mean you can’t go that route, if you want to get her a big, fat you-know-what for free.”
Savage makes a whole lot more money than I do, thanks to the show and all the side gigs that have flowed from it, and I greatly appreciate him being non-judgmental about the disparity in our financial situations. Compared to the world at large, I’m a baller, thanks to the success of our band and my various sponsorships and endorsement deals. But the fact remains, Savage’s bank account dwarfs mine. Hence, his sprawling, beachside home in Malibu that didn’t cause him a moment’s pain to buy with cash vs. the modest, three-bedroom home I stretched to buy in North Hollywood with a mortgage.