If I Didn't Know Better (The Callaways #9)(84)

He shook his head. "No way. I'm not letting you go at the end of the summer. This is not a fling. This is a relationship."

Her eyes sparked at his words, but there was still wary caution in her gaze. "We've known each other a week, Jeremy."

"It feels like a lifetime. And I mean that in a good way. But I can't wait to get to know you even better." He took a moment, wanting to get the words exactly right. "I'm falling in love with you, Mia. Wait a second. I take that back."

"You do?" she questioned, her brows drawing together in a frown. "So fast?"

"I'm not falling for you; I've already fallen."

"Are you sure you don't have a concussion or something?"

He grinned. "I know what I'm saying. And I don't think I'm alone in the love department. Am I?"

She sighed and slowly shook her head. "No, I'm right there with you."

"That's a good thing, babe."

"There are still all those reasons we shouldn't get together: Ashlyn, your job, my job, the fact that I'm going back to San Francisco and you don't know where you're going. Should I go on?"

"We'll knock the obstacles down one by one. I'm not afraid of a challenge, and I don't think you are, either."

"Not of a challenge, no, but I am a little afraid of love," she admitted. "I want to get it right this time. This—you—feels too important; I don't want to screw it up."

"The only way you can screw this up is by not giving us a chance, Mia. I love you. Now you say it."

"You do like to give orders."

"And I expect them to be obeyed," he said lightly, needing her to say the words.

She offered him a warm, helpless smile. "I love you, too, Jeremy."

"Thank God. I think I just got my first Angel's Bay miracle."

"Or I did," she said. "We're really going to do this?"

"We really are, but there's one last thing. When I commit to someone, I go all in—forever. I want you to know that."

"Forever sounds perfect and exciting."

"I'll show you some excitement."

"Will you? Because you seem awfully interested in talking right now."

He laughed at her teasing smile. He didn't just love this woman; he liked her. Mia had quickly become his best friend, his lover, and one day he would make her his wife. He grabbed her hand and took her upstairs, so they could start the rest of their lives together.





Epilogue


Three weeks later…



"I hope you're ready to meet the family," Mia told Jeremy as they pulled into the parking lot of St. Mary's Church in Santa Barbara, California. Her cousin Burke was about to marry the love of his life Maddie Heller, and Jeremy was about to meet her entire family.

He'd met her mom and dad a few days earlier. They'd stopped in Angel's Bay to check out the house before driving farther south to spend a few days in Santa Barbara prior to the wedding.

Mia had never felt so proud or so eager to introduce her parents to the man in her life. Sharon and Tim Callaway had liked Jeremy immediately and they'd loved Ashlyn even more.

Her mom had pulled her aside and told her that she'd never looked happier and that Angel's Bay had obviously worked its magic on her. She'd told her mom that it wasn't magic; it was Jeremy. Her mom had laughed and said, "Finally, one of my kids falls in love. Who would have thought my baby would be the first one?"

Of course her mom had then quizzed her about a wedding, and she'd had to tell her to slow down. They were moving fast, but not that fast.

Jeremy turned off the car and said, "I think I can handle your family. Your mom and dad are okay; I expect the rest of the clan will be just as great."

"I think you'll like them," she said.

He turned in his seat to look at Ashlyn. "What about you, Ashlyn? Ready to say hello to Mia's brothers and sisters?"

Ashlyn beamed in her pretty new dress. "Do you think they'll like me?"

Mia smiled at the hint of vulnerability in her eyes. They'd gotten very close the last few weeks, but there were still times when Ashlyn worried that all the good stuff was going to vanish, that her life would change the way it had before. "They're going to love you, because I love you, and because you're wonderful."

"What about me?" Jeremy asked.

"They're going to love you, too."

"Because you love me."

"Because I love you," she echoed.

When they got out of the car, she said, "There's Mom." She waved to her mom and dad who'd just pulled into a spot a few feet away.

They walked over to the car to greet them.

Her mother wore a beautiful emerald green dress that set off her pretty green eyes, and her dad had on a dark suit. They were a striking couple, she thought, never having really considered her parents as a couple, but they were certainly a good example of the power of love and the strength of a marriage. They'd started their love story thirty-five years ago and were still going strong.

"Hello, Mia," her mom said, giving her a hug and then moving to Jeremy and to Ashlyn.

Her father followed suit. "How's everyone doing?" he asked.