Total pages in book: 74
Estimated words: 71651 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 358(@200wpm)___ 287(@250wpm)___ 239(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 71651 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 358(@200wpm)___ 287(@250wpm)___ 239(@300wpm)
And anytime Finn and I stopped by the Hard Spot, I swore it was like I’d stepped into my own little version of Cheers.
I liked being in a place where everybody knew my name.
I belonged. For the first time in my life.
I was allowed to be different, to be myself, to show up in clothes that looked different from the local cowboys in flannel, or to put on fun club music, even here.
In fact, I’d gotten Finn and some of the other Hard Spot regulars to enjoy electronic music recently. It all started with a club remix of Johnny Cash’s “Ring of Fire,” which got everyone dancing one night, and now they were open to more dance music when I put it on.
Mason was one of our most fun friends, now, too.
“I put twenty dollars on Hot Mess having sex by the end of tonight,” I told Finn, and he grinned at me.
“Pretty good bet.”
“You two don’t believe in me,” Mason joked, shaking his head.
“Put me down for forty bucks on that one,” Kane told us.
“Look at this,” Max told me, leaning across the bar and showing me some card game on his phone. “I think for the next game night, we should have a table for this—wait, what was that?”
Max looked over behind us toward one of the tall alcoves, surrounded by bookshelves. Something gold fluttered down from one of the top shelves, floating toward the floor.
“Don’t say it,” Kane told him, but Max was already ahead of him.
“Cat ghost,” Max said, coming around the bar and walking over to grab the thing that had fallen off a shelf.
He came back and held it up, and I remembered it instantly.
It was the big, gold glittery bow that had come on the bottle of champagne that I’d gotten for Finn.
It was from the first day I’d returned to Bestens.
“That fuckin’ thing,” Finn said, a smile on his face. “Got glitter all over us.”
“We still haven’t opened that bottle of champagne,” I said. “It’s in the cabinet at home.”
“We’ll save it for a super special night,” Finn assured me.
“I’m convinced the ghost in here is, like, a love ghost,” Max said. “I’m sure of it, now. It’s like a little Cupid or something.”
“Cat Cupid?” Finn asked.
“The ghost knocked it down to tell you two a message,” Max continued. “Like, a sign that your love is real.”
“Maybe it’s a sign that Hot Mess is going to fall in love, too,” I offered. “Like you shouldn’t swear off sex.”
Mason laughed, shaking his head. “I don’t know what I need. Someone more steady than me, I guess.”
“Yeah,” the rest of us agreed, all in unison.
“Who could tame you, though?” Finn asked.
“I really don’t even know,” Mason said.
Soon the rest of the guys got distracted, talking more about what games to have for the next upcoming game night.
But as I looked at the glittery bow on the bar top, thinking about that unopened bottle of champagne, a little inkling of something was in my mind.
It had been innocent.
The other day, Finn told me to look something up on his phone—he wanted to know when it was best to plant a certain flower in the backyard.
But when I’d opened the search engine on his phone, something shocking had been on it.
Finn had been searching for “cool engagement rings for guys.”
My heart had skipped a beat when I saw it.
I knew if Finn was hunting for something like that, it would probably be a while before any proposal actually occurred. Finn was happy to take everything slow with me, still operating under the thought that I was afraid of commitment.
But for the rest of that night, after seeing the search, I was on cloud nine.
I actually wanted it.
For the first time ever.
The idea of being engaged to Finn—or married to him, one day, sent me over the goddamn moon.
He was someone worth committing to.
And the most surprising thing was that I didn’t have any fear about it, at all.
I hadn’t said a word about it to him. But the idea rested in my mind, like a surprise I might get one day.
With Finn, I’d realized, commitment felt like freedom.
And that was all I’d ever wanted.
Danielle met up with us an hour later. She joined me, Finn, and Mason, the four of us swapping off between rounds of pool.
When Max came around to refill our pitcher of beer, I watched Finn taking a shot on the billiards table, leaning over.
“You know,” I said, leaning over toward Max’s ear. “I kind of like the idea of the ghost being like a little Cupid.”
“Right?” Max said, smiling and nodding at me. “It just makes sense, doesn’t it? It’s not a creepy haunting ghost, it just… wants people to be happy.”
I puffed out a laugh, looking back over at Finn.
His eyes met mine, and in just one glance, I felt like we were completely connected.