The Magnolia Chronicles: Adventures in Modern Dating(82)

"What do you see when you climb over them?"

She hesitated, tapping a finger against her lips. "This wasn't how I imagined it would go."

"What did you imagine, love?"

She pursed her lips to fight off a smile. I loved it when she did that, as if schooling her mouth could hide her smiles when they blossomed in her eyes more than anywhere else. "I imagined I'd ask you." She tipped her chin toward my palm. "I thought I'd beat you to it."

I barked out a laugh, closed my fingers around the ring. "That's not how this is going to work, Magnolia."

She reared back. "Excuse you?"

"No, my love. I'm sorry but you don't get to propose to me."

Her eyes narrowed, brows furrowed, lips parted. I loved the look of outrage on her face. It was adorable. "And why not?" she asked.

"Because I've waited," I replied. "I've waited since—since the very start. Then I waited all summer and into autumn. I've wanted to do this so many times and I've waited. I wanted it to be right for you, for me, for us."

She dragged her teeth over her bottom lip. "How much longer did you intend to wait?"

I slumped back against my seat, rubbed my forehead. "Not long. Your mother told me I wouldn't be welcome in her home if I didn't hurry up."

"Oh my god," she whispered, bringing her fingertips to her temples. "My mother."

I reached for her hand. "Do you remember how I researched magnolias when you first told me your name, MizMaggie? I was sure I'd seen one but I didn't know off the top of my head what a magnolia looked like and I had to see for myself. I found photos but I also learned magnolias are nothing like other flowers. They blossomed before bees appeared on earth. They waited a long time for the world to understand them and that time made them tougher. More independent. So much stronger." I pushed the ring past her knuckle. "You don't have to wait any longer, Magnolia."

She blinked down at her hand. "We've both waited."

"Hey. Russo, hey."

"Yeah?" I asked Ben, shaking off the memory of that morning. "What's up?"

He held out a slim platinum band with a rough-cut blue stone seated at the center. "What about this one? It's a sapphire. It's kind of pretty and small, but it's also gnarly. Maybe a little scary. Just like Killer. Right?"

I peered at the ring. Not unlike Grace, it was delicate but undeniably gnarly. "For once, we agree."





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Want more from Magnolia’s best friend Andy Asani? The Space Between is available now! Turn the page for an excerpt.



A brilliant, alpha architect. A smart, sultry apprentice. What could possibly go wrong?





Patrick

That hair.

That fucking hair.

It was everywhere, always, and I wanted to tangle my fingers in those dark curls and pull.

And that would be fine if she wasn't my apprentice.





Andy

An incredibly hot architect with the most expressive hazel eyes I ever encountered and entirely too much talent in and out of the bedroom wasn't part of my original plan.

With Patrick Walsh leaving love notes in the form of bite marks all over my body, it seems my plan was undergoing some renovations.





If you’re ready for more of Riley Walsh, Preservation is now available!

Two lonely hearts.

Just once, Alex Emmerling would like to be someone's first choice.

She's strong-willed and spunky, but she's left picking up the pieces from her ex's lies and manipulations, and daydreaming about taking a scalpel to his scrotum.

Flying under the radar is what Riley Walsh does best.

He's laid-back and loyal, but he wants the most off-limits woman in his world, and nothing will ever make that a reality.





An arrangement of mutual benefit.

Two months, four dates.

Five, if things go well.

Five at the most.

But possibly six.

Definitely no more than six dates.

Only the appearance of a romantic relationship is required, and they expect nothing more from their time together. There will be none of those benefits involved.





One wild weekend.

After waking up in bed together—very naked and even more hungover—the terms and conditions of their arrangement no longer apply. Now they're faced with something riskier than exposing their fake relationship: letting go of the past and zipping up the future.





Some things have to fall apart before they can be put back together.





Preservation is available now. Turn the page for an excerpt!