Let Me Burn (Angel Sands 1)
“Not even when you woke up and I wasn’t there?” She looked up at him, her face shining brightly. She was so beautiful, he couldn’t help but brush his lips against hers.
“Nope, not even then.”
She stepped back and grabbed his hand, pulling him over to greet all of their guests. As he hugged his mom, somebody turned on the music, a low beat coming from the speakers.
“Happy birthday, son,” Deenie whispered in his ear. “Enjoy your party, you deserve it.”
For the next few minutes he was surrounded by people, all of them wanting to congratulate him. He hugged and high-fived old friends and new colleagues, still smiling at how well Ember had managed to surprise him. Every few moments his gaze pulled over to where she was standing with Ally and Brooke. He found himself admiring how beautiful she looked in her white summer dress. The one he was still intending to peel away from her when they were alone in the apartment.
How the hell did he get this lucky? It was something he asked himself every day.
“She’s a catch, man,” Griff said, as if he could read Lucas’ mind. “Did you know she called every guest here to personally invite them? Didn’t want to write out the invitations in case you saw them around.”
“She did?” A smile played around Lucas’ lips. That’s exactly the kind of thing she would do. It made his chest feel full to think about all the effort she’d gone to for today. Not just the guests and the food, but the emotional energy she must have put into organizing this.
“Yeah. We had to swear on our lives not to tell anybody,” Jackson said, his voice
full of humor. “She can be scary as hell when she’s giving you a warning.”
“You think you’re gonna stick around with her?” Griff asked.
Lucas licked his lips – dry from the combination of the heat and the breeze. “Yeah, I’m pretty certain I’m gonna stick around,” he said, his voice low. Even after a relatively short time together – months, rather than years – he couldn’t imagine his life without her, and he didn’t want to. She was like the sun, lighting everything up, making him feel warm. He never wanted to let her go.
“Glad to hear it,” Jackson said, approvingly. “She’s cute, she’s funny, and for some crazy reason she’s totally in love with you.”
“Crazy’s the right word,” Griff agreed, elbowing Lucas. “She’s gotta be to want to be with you.”
“Thanks, guys.” Lucas shook his head. “I can always count on you to speak the truth, even on my birthday.”
“Especially on your birthday,” Griff told him. “You’re not getting any younger, my friend. Time’s not on your side. You need to settle down, find somewhere permanent to live, maybe start a family. Before you get old and grey.”
“I’m thirty-one,” Lucas pointed out. “And you’re the same age as me and you’re still single as hell.” Not that Lucas cared what age he was. As far as he was concerned, all the things Griff had just listed off – the settling down, the apartment, and even having a family one day – didn’t scare him one bit. It was the opposite. The thought of having all those things made him want his future to start right now, and he wanted to do it with her.
“I think you’ll find I’m two months younger,” Griff said. “Plenty of time for me.” He grabbed a beer from the table Ember and her friends must have set up earlier. “And in the meantime, I intend to sew all the wild oats that I can.” Griff looked over to the other side of the refreshment tables, where a group of Ember’s friends had gathered, and wiggled his eyebrows. “See you later, guys. There’s work to be done here.”
With that, he was gone, leaving Lucas and Jackson laughing.
“He’s never gonna grow up, is he?” Jackson murmured.
“Nope. And we wouldn’t have it any other way.”
* * *
The sun was almost below the horizon by the time the last guests had left, and they’d cleared the debris from the beach. Lucas stacked the final table inside Ally’s café, then walked out and turned the key, slipping it into his pocket.
He could see Ember standing at the water’s edge, her body silhouetted against the burnt orange sunset. She was as still as a statue, staring out at the ocean as the water lapped against her feet. Even with her back turned to him she took his breath away.
He grabbed the bottle of champagne and two glasses he’d stashed away earlier and walked down the beach to where she was standing, feeling the grains of sand slip between his toes.
“Would you like a drink?” he asked her.
She turned to look at him, her skin lit by the setting sun. “I thought all the champagne was gone,” she said, looking confused as he held the bottle up.
“I saved this one for us. I figured it’s my birthday, nobody’s gonna complain.”
She smiled. “Well I’m not going to. Although I’ll only have a glass, somebody’s got to drive you home.”
He led her back to a dry spot on the sand, and she sat down as he poured out the champagne and passed her a glass. Lucas sat behind her, his muscled legs on either side of hers. She leaned back into his chest, her head resting against his shoulder.