We rarely took the elevator, although Dexter had insisted on buying a house with one. He said we’d need one when we had kids. But we used it now to go down the four floors to the kitchen.
“Gabriel,” I cried, pulling him into a hug. “Thanks for coming.” We were having the gang around for a “casual Friday supper” as Dexter referred to it. To me that meant a bowl of Cheerios and a night in front of America’s Got Talent, rather than a seated dinner for ten with a private chef and a server. I was still getting used to life with Dexter. At least no one was dressing up.
“Did I tell you Autumn is coming over next month?” I said to Gabriel while Dexter answered the door to the next arrivals.
“Really?” he asked. I could have sworn I saw a hint of pink in his cheeks. She’d never mentioned anything but there was definitely something between them when they’d met during her birthday visit.
“She’s on a graduate trainee program that has international assignments. She’s going to spend six months here.”
“That’s great,” he said, nodding. “She’s staying with you guys?”
“I nodded. How sweet is my fiancée to have her here?”
Dexter’s arms came from nowhere to circle my waist. “She’s family. Of course she should stay with us.”
I greeted Beck and Stella and noticed that Stella was wearing the earrings I gave her. They looked beautiful on her. I was still getting used to people actually wearing my jewelry; the thought that Vogue might be featuring me was just surreal.
“We should get married while she’s here,” I said.
“If that’s what you want,” Dexter said. “But we can get her a plane ticket over anytime. And your parents.”
“I just want it low key. Like, you and me and, you know, your gang—”
“That better include me,” Stella said.
“You’re in the gang,” Beck said as he placed a kiss on Stella’s head.
“I don’t care how we do it as long as I get to marry you,” Dexter said.
“Bethany has said she wants to be a bridesmaid,” Gabriel said. “I’m warning you because she’s probably going to ask you. Don’t worry, I’ll be the one to shatter my four-year-old’s dreams. I seem to do it on a daily basis at the moment, so I’m well practiced.”
“Bethany’s part of the gang,” I said. “We can pick out a pretty dress and a posy,” I said. “It will be nice.”
I glanced up at Dexter to check he didn’t mind but he was just beaming at me.
“So, we’ll go to the Knightsbridge courthouse?” I suggested. “We’ll pick a Saturday and just have a casual supper back here?”
Dexter grinned at me. “You’re wonderful,” he said.
“What did I do?” I asked. Dexter seemed to find the wonderful in everything I did, and I was still getting used to being someone’s priority. I felt constantly spoiled by him—not just materially, but simply by getting to share my life with a man as special as Dexter. Married or not, it didn’t matter. He was the man who saw the light in everything, including me. There was no one else I wanted to spend forever with.