“Speaking of your hockey hunk, where is he tonight?” James asked.
“He has a game.”
“Oh.” Brian’s eyes widened. “Are you missing it because of this?”
“No, it’s fine. We had kind of a . . . discussion yesterday so I think it’s best that I’m not there.”
“Oh, no,” James said, refilling his and Brian’s wineglasses. “You want to talk about it?”
I traced a finger from my left hand over the pearl ring on my right. “I guess it was mostly me being me.”
“How so?”
“He mentioned getting married.” I sighed softly. “It scared me. I don’t know where it came from. Why can’t we just be what we want to each other?”
“Maybe that is what he wants,” James said, sipping from his wineglass.
“What, because society says you shouldn’t have babies out of wedlock?”
“Is that what he said?”
I shook my head and looked down at my plate. “Actually, he said he loves me.”
There was a pause before James spoke again. “And you said . . . ?”
I gave him an aggravated glance. “I don’t remember exactly what I said.”
James made a face. “Then it definitely wasn’t ‘I love you, too.’”
“I don’t even know what love is. I was raised by a woman who thought love was any man who’d have her.”
“You’re much smarter than she is.”
“I’m crazy about him, don’t get me wrong.”
James arched his brows in agreement. “As well you should be. He’s like a mythical creature. Hot, sexy, and sweet. That’s a tough combo to achieve.”
“Not hard for you,” Brian murmured. He leaned over and kissed James softly.
“You two are adorable,” I said, smiling. “I guess what I’m saying is I don’t want to rush things. I love things between Bennett and me. We’re happy. We need to enjoy this.”
“Did you tell him that?”
“No. But I guess I need to.” I stood and started collecting dishes from the table.
“You sit down,” Brian said. “We’ve got the cleanup. It’s the least we can do after you made us such a great dinner.”
“She made apple pie, too,” James said.
Brian smiled and finished off his wine. “You’re too much, Charlotte. I adore apple pie.”
They loaded the dishwasher together, trading kisses every minute or two. A sudden pang of longing for Bennett made me pick up my phone and check the game score on his team’s page.
They were down 3–2. I wished I was there watching. It felt awkward to fangirl over my own boyfriend, but I really, really wanted to. I typed out a message to Bennett.
Me: I should be there watching you play right now. I miss you. Can’t wait to see you tonight. xoxo
Brian slid a plate of apple pie in front of me.