Definitely, Maybe in Love (29 page)

“What’s that?” I asked, though I was barely able to hear anything besides blood whooshing behind my ears and his sweet breathing.

“I’ve been a vegetarian for three months.”

“Nooo!” I laughed, hugging him even tighter. “I have a confession for you, then.”

He pulled back, balancing on his elbows, gazing down in a way that made my body temperature shoot through the roof. “Yes?” he asked.

“I… Sorry, wow, this is hard to say.”

His expression turned somber. “Spring, baby, you can tell me anything. I promise.”

“Okay.” I took in a deep breath. “I ate a hamburger last month. Two, actually.”

Henry rolled off me and covered his eyes, crumpling in laughter.

I couldn’t help giggling as I watched his eyes water.

“See, Honeycutt,” he said at last, gathering me to him. “We’re more compatible than we thought.”

I kissed his cheek, his nose, his eyelids, his cranberry mouth. “And so it begins.”

Acknowledgments

This story has been around for a while, and every person who has touched it has made it better, shinier, and smexier.

Stacy Honeycutt Shakespeare-Abrams: thank you for taking a chance on a story that wasn’t quite ready, for trusting me and for asking me the right questions to make it ready. As always, your insight is invaluable. I love that you know when Spring is in a good mood and when Henry’s clothes aren’t
that
important. You deserve a pair of argyle “stockings” with your name on them.

Erica Chapman: thank you for stepping into this project, for your enthusiasm and excitement and for messaging me in the middle of the day when we both should’ve been working. And for loving sexy Henry as much as I do.

Karen Grove: I’m beyond thrilled to be writing for Embrace. The new adult genre is such a fun age to write. Thank you for giving me the okay and for making me think all deep and hard and stuff. Dang you!

Sue Winegardner: thank you for always being around to talk me through when I’ve written myself into a corner and for telling me when my characters need to be just a little bit more likable. Oh, and thanks a ton for getting me hooked on British fruity malt loaf.

Nancy Carr: Remember that night we were driving back from the opera (and we’d worn jeans…
faux pas
!) and you helped me finally come up with a way to fix that huge plot point? Yeah, that was pretty awesome. Thank you, bunny, for meeting me for custard after VM and VB and for being the best beta reader ever to walk the face of the earth.

Susan Smith: Remember when this used to be a stage musical and you wanted so badly for Henry to bust out a little Sister Hazel? To this day, every time I hear that song I think of you…and Henry…and a bunch of Bingleys dancing across the stage to Gershwin. Frack, that would’ve been cool.

Jen Long:
merci beaucoup
for your lightning-fast French proof, and for helping me with those tricky swear words. And sorry you accidentally sent that one email to your boss…

Thank you to my publicity team at Entangled, to Jessica Cantor for creating a cover that causes my heart to pound, and to all the other Entangled authors who make writing for EP such a freaking joy.

Thank you to my family and friends who are always so patient and understanding with me when I’m tucked away in my writer’s cave. And to my mother who gave me the gift of Colin Firth in a wet shirt. I haven’t been the same since.

Most of all, thank you to Jane Austen. Girl, two hundred years later, your words and characters still rock our world.

About the Author

Ophelia London
was born and raised among the redwood trees in beautiful Northern California. Once she was fully educated, she decided to settle in Florida, but her car broke down in Texas, and she’s lived in Dallas ever since. A cupcake and treadmill aficionado (obviously those things are connected), she spends her time watching art-house movies and impossibly trashy TV, while living vicariously through the characters in the books she writes. Don’t call when
The Vampire Diaries
is on. Ophelia is also the author of
Playing at Love
and
Speaking of Love,
part of her Perfect Kisses series, and
Abby Road
. Visit her at
http://ophelialondon.com.

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