Page 38 of Flawless Aria
After changing, I slip under the covers, and it feels like heaven. There’s nothing like a comfy bed at the end of a long day. It’s like a warm hug. The only one missing is Jax.
I startle awake when my phone buzzes beside me. It feels like I’ve slept for hours, but after checking the time it’s only been forty minutes. I swipe and when I hear that sultry voice, my toes curl.
“Sorry, baby. It was a long day, and I fell asleep on the sofa when I got home. How was your meeting?”
“I totally get it, we didn’t get much restful sleep last night. I went to bed at nine tonight.”
“Oh no. I woke you up. We can talk tomorrow.”
“It’s okay. I can sleep in. The meeting went well. Silas let Maggie go on a technicality and Rex looks like he’s on borrowed time, too. I’m hoping it’s soon so I can go back to work. How did the video go?”
“Oh, baby. I can’t wait for you to watch it. Seeing is believing as the old saying goes. It’s epic! Jeff’s the best video producer that we’ve ever worked with, and believe me, we’ve worked with some of the best. Going in, we thought it would take us all week to shoot but we did it in a day. Jeff’s going to run through the edits and let us know if he needs to make any adjustments. If not, then Caleb will schedule the premier, and it will go live. We’re so psyched.”
For the next few hours, we catch up on our days. He warms up lasagna since he’s starving, and I grab a glass of wine. I’m all toasty warm in my bed sipping my fruity goodness while talking to the man I love. When I mention going to Mom’s to talk about the wedding, he talks me out of it.
“Promise you’ll wait for me. I want to be there when we tell them. She’s been through enough. I want her to know that I appreciate all her hard work, but it’s not what we want.”
“I promise. Maybe we should iron out some of the big issues first before talking to them. Get all our ducks in a row. I’d hate to go through all this if it doesn’t work out.”
“Agree. We might be running with an idea that just won’t work out. I’ll make a few calls tomorrow and see what I can do on my end. Then we’ll take it from there.” I try stifling a yawn, but I don’t succeed. “I slept like the dead and I’m being selfish. Go to bed, baby. I’ll stop by tomorrow after work. I know I’m madly and deeply in love with you since the hardest thing is saying goodbye.”
“Well, I can’t top that, but I love you, Jax Carter. More than words can say.” On that note, we hang up and I curl up in bed. Wide awake. I could have another wine. That might do it, but I don’t want to move. So, grabbing my spare pillow, I turn on my side and snuggle. His scent is no longer there but I find solace in the fact that he’ll be here tomorrow.
Now if I could only shut off my brain and fall back to sleep. After an hour of tossing and turning, I fling back the covers and go sit in the living room.
Grabbing my notepad, I start jotting down a bunch of notes and ideas for the wedding. For some, it will be disappointing. This I know. For us, it’s going to be perfect. I did mention it to Silas today, in passing. He agreed it would be great PR, but we left it at that. I’m sure he thought I was joking, but I’m dead serious. Once I have all the kinks worked out, I’ll run it by him again. He might need to run it by the board and that’s understandable. But they’d be fools to pass up a chance to cover a wedding of any kind. Especially one involving a big rockstar like Jax and a sweetheart who works for their magazine. Maybe Silas will let me write the article since it’s perfect for a Love and Relationship column. Don’t you think? I’ll choose an eye-catching headline.
Time passes by rather quickly and the next time I check the clock it’s almost two in the morning. Just because I’m all caught up on work and not punching a clock doesn’t mean I don’t need my beauty sleep. Setting down my notepad, I walk into my bedroom and jump back into bed. This time, I have visions of Jax and me getting married while our families cheer us on.
23
June
JAXON
The months are flying by,and as much as we’ve been postponing telling the parents about our upcoming nuptials, today’s the day. I’ve invited everyone over for a cookout, and after everyone has had dessert—get your mind out of the gutter, not that kind I can assure you—we will drop the bomb. I’m hoping once their bellies are full and they’ve had a few cocktails, they won’t take it as hard.
Aria promised to bring a potato salad and dessert. Fuck! We’ll need to change that up when other people are involved. Otherwise, it just sounds weird. Pastry! Yeah, she’s bringing pastry. That’s so much better.
Our moms insisted on bringing something and wouldn’t take no for an answer. We’re going to have a shit ton of food and I’m not sure if I’ll be able to swallow a bite. Funny how I’m still afraid of getting scolded by my mother at my age. It’s that look that gets me.
I’m sure Aria’s appetite will be nil too since she’s been fretting about this for weeks on end. It makes us second guess our decision. Are we just being selfish? I guess we’ll know today when we get their reactions.
Wish us luck. We’re going to need it.
It’s still a bit too early to fire up the grill, so I walk around the backyard making sure that everything’s in place. It’s looking good so there’s not much I can do until they all get here. Why does it feel like I’m forgetting something? If I am, maybe Aria will point it out to me once she gets here. I look in the fridge to make sure the meat’s marinating. Check! Then I make sure I have all the drinks chilled. Check! And last but not least—Oh no! Do I have enough propane to even cook the damn food?
Running back outside, I check my tank. Luckily, I bought one of those gauges last year, so I know how much gas I have left. Fuck. Just what I thought, I’m almost empty. Won’t be enough to cook everything. Should I run out now to pick some up or give Jim a ring hoping he has a spare? I’ll try giving him a shout so I’m home when everyone arrives.
I let it ring a few times and let out a breath when he picks up. “Jaxon, are you canceling the cookout?”
Oh how I wish I could. “It might be a bust if I run out of propane. You wouldn’t happen to have a spare I could buy off you?”
“I do have a spare, but it’s on me. We’ll pop over a tad earlier so you can fire it up.”
“Thanks, you just saved me from having to run out. I’ll see you soon.” After I hang up, the doorbell rings. Perfect timing, but it’s too early for guests.
“Aria, you don’t need to…”