The Best Friend Bargain (Kisses in the Sand) Read online

  Liv took the cake and turned for privacy to read the note.

  Nothing is as sweet or delicious as you, Maybug…except maybe this.

  On the other side of the notecard it said “Honey Bun Cake.” Liv sucked in her bottom lip. The memory of falling into Midge’s birthday cake and Danny flirting with her danced through her mind.

  Someone tapped Liv on the shoulder. She turned. “Derek is waiting,” the hostess said.

  Olivia hurried back to the car.

  Their next stop came an hour later in the quaint town of Los Gatos, still more miles away from San Francisco. Derek parked in front of a floral shop where ironwork and flowered vines decorated the storefront. Liv walked into the store and before she could say hello, a young woman presented her with a giant bouquet of yellow, pink, and white daisies.

  A notecard sat nestled in the middle of the flowers.

  They say flowers are sunshine and make people feel better, happier. But you are my sunshine, Olivia, the light when I see only dark.

  Liv wiped at the tears in the corner of her eyes.

  God, she wanted to see Danny already. If his goal was to make her yearn for him it was working. She got back in the car and sent a text. Tell me I’m close.

  Not close enough. Relax and enjoy the ride. I’m not going anywhere.

  Derek continued southbound on highway 101, heading somewhere halfway between San Francisco and White Strand, she guessed.

  But halfway came and went. Derek stopped to get them sandwiches and bottles of water, which they ate while driving. She fell asleep for a little while. Her next “clue” came from a lovely older man who owned a gift shop in Solvang. He presented her with a large snow globe that held a yellow half moon, sparkling white stars, and the planet Earth inside it. On the bottom of the base were the words, You mean the world to me.

  Her thoughts took flight. With each passing hour and each amazing, thoughtful sentiment, her heart pounded harder and faster.

  And she felt more certain she knew where Derek was taking her: back to White Stand. The anticipation made it hard to sit still.

  The time neared four o’clock when Derek pulled off the freeway in Santa Monica to get gasoline. Liv looked at her gifts and could barely breath. Excitement, gratitude, love filled her and she hoped the next hour went quickly.

  Someone tapped on her window. She turned her head to find Derek holding a lovely ornate silver mirror. She opened the door and accepted it from him. Written at the bottom of the glass in Danny’s neat writing was, Who is the most beautiful person I’ve ever laid eyes on?

  Liv looked at herself in the mirror. His choice of words meant everything to her. A text sounded on her phone. You.

  When Derek got back behind the wheel Liv said, “Would you mind breaking the speed limit? I’m in a hurry.”

  He looked over his shoulder and grinned. “Not at all.”

  She smiled and rested her hands on her stomach, hoping to alleviate the queasiness. The nervous, crazy-about-you kind of queasy she felt only for Danny.

  Butterflies kicked into high gear when the car pulled up in front of his house and she looked out the window. It had taken almost nine hours to get to the man standing curbside.

  He’d brought her back home.

  She took a moment to stare at his familiar, gorgeous face while her insides melted. When he opened the car door and helped her out, her hand shook. “Hi,” he said.

  “Hi,” she said back, finding it hard to locate her voice. He was so handsome in a white button down, loose at the neck and black dress pants. His hair had that magazine cover style going on and his eyes…his eyes were warm, vulnerable, and yet wolfish, too.

  “God, I’ve missed you.” He cupped her face with his warm hands, gave her a second to pull away, and when she didn’t, smashed his mouth to hers. No hesitation, no sweetness. This kiss said to hell with just being friends. The way he parted her lips and pushed his tongue inside took hot and animalistic to a whole new level.

  She wrapped her arms around his neck and answered his kiss with her own longing. He tasted like mint and man, and she wanted to suck face with him until morning. He had other ideas and pulled back. His all too appealing smile beat every other smile in the history of smiles.

  “You look beautiful.” He took her in from head to toe, lingering a few extra seconds on her abdomen.

  “Thank you.”

  “Of all the things I’ve seen in my life, the greatest and best thing by far is you.”

  Her legs shook so badly at his sweet words she needed help staying upright. He put his hands on her waist.

  “Danny,” she said, breathless. A cool breeze fanned over her cheeks, the smell of the sea and wood burning in a fireplace teased her nose. Her eyes drifted shut to take everything in.

  She felt him staring and pictured that dimpled, confident expression of his that rendered her defenseless. Gah. Did he have to be so beautiful, too? Even behind her eyelids?

  “Look at me, Maybug.” She did. “I want to stare into your eyes when I say the rest of what I need to say to you.”

  Oh. Liv released a deep breath and held eye contact. “Okay.”

  In her periphery she was vaguely aware of activity near the open side gate to the backyard. Voices. Bits and pieces of color and movement that didn’t belong. “But first,” she added, “thank you for getting me here like you did. I loved almost every minute of it.”

  His impish grin told her he knew his game had worked its magic on her, but that it took a damn long time to get here. Sliding the back of his hand along her cheek, he dropped the playful attitude and said, “I’ve been going insane all day.”

  “Well, now that you’ve got me here, please tell me what’s going on.”

  He took a deep breath, lifted both her hands into his. “I love you, Maybug. Your smile, your frown, your messiness, your humor, your body, your accents, the list goes on and on, and I don’t want to fight these feelings anymore.”

  Goose bumps sprang up on her skin.

  “I’ve been looking for my happiness for a long time and it wasn’t complete until you. I don’t want to miss another day of seeing you, looking at your beautiful face and knowing you’re mine. With every sunrise I want to watch your eyes open to greet the day, and when I can only feel, I want to kiss you awake and whisper how much I love you.”

  A tear slid down her cheek. “Oh, Danny. I love you, too, so, so much, and I promise I’m going to be by your side for every sunrise so I can whisper back that I adore and cherish you, too.”

  “That’s an awfully big promise when—”

  “Shh.” She lifted his hands and put them on her face. Held them there beneath her own. “You already see so much, Danny, and you’ll always, always be able to touch me whenever you want.” A flash of lust sparked in his eyes, and she was pretty sure he saw the same in hers. “Besides, I kind of like the idea of you not seeing my wrinkles. You’ll always see me as youngish.”

  He moved his hands to her belly. “I love this baby, too, and I want to have more with you.”

  “I would love that.” Holy shit, this was really happening. “But we—”

  He cut her off with a finger pressed to her lips. Then he got down on one knee and pulled a small velvet box out of his pocket. Her heart raced.

  “Olivia May Lincoln”—he opened the box to reveal the prettiest diamond ring Liv had ever seen—“will you marry me?”

  She nodded. She grinned so hard her face hurt. She refrained from tackle hugging him so he could lift the ring out of the box. “Yes! Yes, I’ll marry you.”

  Danny slid the ring onto her finger. They both stared at it as she flexed her hand for a good look. “It’s beautiful.”

  He swept a strand of hair away from her face. “The most beautiful thing in my world is you. So, you ready to do this?”

  “This?”

  “Close your eyes?”

  She complied without thought, linked her arm with his.

  After a few steps, Danny paused, t
urned her, and tipped her chin up with a soft press of his fingers. His lips brushed hers. “I love you.”

  “Love you back,” she said, eyes still shut.

  “Ready for one last clue?”

  She sensed him lifting his arm and waving over her shoulder. Was he signaling someone? “Very ready. And Danny?”

  “Yeah?”

  “I love you, and I’m apologizing now because those are my new favorite words and I think I’m going to be saying them a lot.”

  “How about for the next sixty years?”

  “I like that plan.”

  “Excellent.” He tucked her into his side and walked her toward the backyard. They stopped, by her estimation inside the gate, and he said, “You can open your eyes now.”

  What she saw made her heart sing a symphony. She glanced at him, glanced back at the incredible sight before her, glanced at him again. He’d planned their wedding! The most perfect, most beautiful wedding she’d ever seen.

  The backyard transformation from simple to simply stunning took her breath away. Family and friends, including her mom and stepdad, sat in white chairs on either side of an aisle decorated with baby’s breath. A striking wedding arch with pink, red, and white daisies, ivy, and tulle, stood at the end of the aisle, and Pastor Michael waited beneath it with a smile on his face. Bryce and Zane, wearing black dress pants and blue button downs, flanked the pastor. Candles were everywhere, casting a breathtaking glow on the yard, and her conversation last night with Honor made perfect sense now.

  She glanced around some more. Everyone who meant something was here to watch them tie the knot.

  “What do you say, Maybug? Ready to get hitched?” Danny asked.

  “Well, I’d hate to disappoint everyone, so I guess so.”

  He brushed a kiss to the shell of her ear. “You’ve just made me the happiest, luckiest man alive.”

  Squeezing his arm, she said, “You make me happier than I ever dreamed.”

  “I thought we’d walk down the aisle together,” he continued softly. “Then later on I plan to accidentally smear buttercream frosting across your mouth and kiss it off you.”

  “There’s no one else I’d rather walk or eat cake with. Oh!” She quickly picked up Danny’s hand and brought it to her stomach. “Someone else wants to be a part of this, too.”

  With his palm flat on her belly, Danny concentrated on where their hands rested.

  Baby Lincoln-Ellis moved again.

  “Holy shit. I felt that,” Danny said, awe in his grin. Lifting his head, his eyes met hers. “Thank you, Liv. For bringing me back to life. I love you.”

  A clear, high-pitched whistle sounded from across the yard. “You guys going to stand there all day?” Bryce called out.

  She and Danny dropped their arms and side-by-side, linked fingers. “You ready to do this?” Liv asked.

  “I’m ready for it all,” Danny said.

  Epilogue

  Seven months later…

  Danny held Olivia’s hand as they waved goodbye to their friends from their front porch. “You killed it with dinner tonight,” he said. “I think you’ve confirmed I should never cook again.”

  Liv turned and put her hand on his chest. “I love these monthly dinners, but you’re still on for pancakes, mister.”

  “I can do that.”

  “And barbecuing.”

  “Hmm,” he said, backing her into the house, closing the door with his foot, and trapping her against it, his arms on either side of her. “That may require a trade-off.” He nuzzled her neck.

  She giggled and ducked under his arm. “Make it worth my while and we’ll talk,” she said over her shoulder.

  Danny followed her into the kitchen. “You know I do my best persuading without words.”

  “I think we’ve reversed how this conversation is supposed to go.” She leaned against the counter and dipped her finger in the tiramisu Honor had brought for dessert.

  He caught her wrist and brought her finger to his mouth. Licked it clean. God, he couldn’t get enough of her taste, her feel, her everything. Would never get enough.

  The splash of gold in her green eyes sparkled like it always did when she liked what he was doing. She dipped her finger again, made an “O” with her mouth, and closed her lips around the entire digit. Slowly, so that his cock had plenty of time to salute in approval, she pulled her finger out of her mouth, the dessert wiped clean.

  He undid his jeans, hoping to have that hot mouth of hers wrapped around something else.

  Hope died when Bella came scurrying into the house from the backyard. Her clumsy puppy paws were unable to put on the breaks so she slid right into his legs. Liv smiled with a sigh and bent down to rub Bella’s head. “Impeccable timing as usual,” she said.

  Danny loved being surrounded by females, but his two youngest fans definitely had a knack for bad timing.

  “So,” Liv said, standing. “How cute were Hannah and Daisy napping side by side?”

  “Very.” He scratched Bella behind her floppy golden ears. Of course, Hannah didn’t hold a candle to his daughter. Far more times than he could count, Danny found himself staring at her precious face in wonder and love, cataloguing every tiny detail. “I think Bryce is hoping Honor will get the baby bug.”

  Liv wrapped foil around the tiramisu and turned to put it in the fridge. “They just got married. I think Honor needs a little more time.”

  “Probably, but there’s no such thing as too much practice.” He moved quickly and quietly to wrap his arms around Liv, kiss the side of her neck. Her back melted against his front. Not wanting to break their connection, he reached over and hit play on the surround sound. Music poured out of speakers in the wall. “Dance with me,” he whispered.

  “I’d love to.” She turned and rested her head underneath his chin, her arms over his shoulders.

  They swayed to the slow beat like they’d done several times before, but this time Danny sensed something different in her. “Is everything okay?” he asked.

  “It’s perfect.”

  “But?”

  “No buts.”

  He pulled away and looked down at her. She didn’t meet his eyes and chewed her bottom lip like she was nervous. “Liv?”

  Daisy chose that moment to wake, her cries coming through the baby monitor on the kitchen counter.

  “Would you mind getting her?” Liv said, still avoiding eye contact. What was up with her all of a sudden?

  “Of course not.” He relished being the one to lift Daisy from her crib and hold her close to give comfort; especially happy to do so when Liv was tired from a full day consulting for her clients while caring for Daisy, too. Taking the stairs two at a time with Bella on his heels, he hurried to Daisy’s bedroom. Liv had laid her down about an hour ago, and he missed her baby smell.

  “Hey sweet stuff,” Danny crooned, flipping on the light switch. Three long strides and he stood at the crib, ready to reach inside and pick her up.

  Only he froze mid-reach. Narrowed his eyes to comprehend the words on Daisy’s onesie.

  Only child expiring in March it said it bright pink letters.

  Only child expiring in March.

  His heart pounded, his mouth spread into a big-ass grin. He and Liv hadn’t planned to get pregnant so quickly, but they hadn’t exactly not planned either, considering the minute they’d gotten the okay from Dr. Silver Danny had her naked and beneath him. He lifted Daisy into his arms and spun around to go find his wife.

  Liv stood in the doorway wearing a smile to match his.

  “We’re having a baby?”

  She nodded.

  “Daisy’s going to be a big sister.”

  “Yes.”

  Bella barked.

  “So is Bella apparently,” Liv said, her voice light and happy.

  With Daisy quietly cradled in his arm and her big blue eyes on his face, he eliminated the distance between him and Liv. He wrapped his free arm around her and brought her in for a deep, thoroug
h kiss. They broke apart only when Daisy fussed.

  “I’ve been dying for Daisy to wake up.” Liv played with their daughter’s tiny hand. Daisy’s gaze immediately went to her momma’s at the sound of Liv’s voice.

  “I loved getting the news from her.” Danny didn’t think it possible, but staring at the two most important people in his life, he fell even more in love with his wife and baby girl.

  “I wanted to do something creative. Special.”

  “It was.” He kissed her again. As soon as they put Daisy back to sleep he planned to kiss her everywhere.

  “Are you happy?” She palmed his cheek, her touch and soft tone a one-two combination that rendered him almost speechless. But he mustered the strength to answer…

  “More than you’ll ever know.”

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  Acknowledgments

  I so loved writing this book! Thank you times a million to my editor Wendy Chen, for being patient, thoughtful, and always knowing how to help me dig deeper into my characters. You are a wonderful partner and I’m so grateful to have worked with you. Thanks also go to Stacy Abrams for helping to make this story better and for being all kinds of awesome. Love you both!

  Huge thanks to the entire team at Entangled. I’m so lucky to be part of the EP family and I appreciate everything you guys do more than I can say.

  To Samanthe Beck and Hayson Manning, thank you for being the best writing pals a girl could ask for. It’s an honor to call such generous and talented ladies as yourselves, friend. Thank you to my friend, Leslie Alexander, who shared with me her cat’s name and when I promptly said I loved it and asked if I could use it for Danny’s childhood dog, she smiled and said yes.

  Thanks and love to my amazing family for being the best parts of my day and for always supporting me and cheering me on. My heart is yours forever.

  A gigantic hug and thank you to the readers and bloggers for reading my books. It means the world to me to have your support. Thank you, thank you, thank you!