The Escape Clause (5 page)

Avery sank back in the seat and her father was forced to move his arm from around her shoulders and readjust in the chair next to her.

Pete.

She’d thought of him. Of course her father would too.

“I’m going to ask him to go with me,” she said softly and then looked up at her father. “Daddy, I love him.”

A small smile curled up the corner of his mouth. “I thought maybe you did.” Her father patted her hand with his. “You think he’ll want to go with you? He has a lot of family here and a good job.”

She looked away again and studied the swirls in the cement at her feet. “I’m hoping that I mean more than his job.”

Her father sat back in his chair and tilted his head up as if to catch the sun on his face. He didn’t have to speak. She knew what he was thinking. Pete had a lot of ties in Nashville. Why would he want to pack up and leave with her without a guarantee of return?

Avery only hoped that maybe he did in fact love her as much as she thought he did. It was all she had to go on.

Chapter Five

Dinner was set on the table and Pete lit the sleek white candles in the center as he watched Avery’s car pull up.

Oh, tonight was going to be a night she’d never forget. The day had been glorious and everything was going to be perfect right up until he scooped her off her feet and carried her to bed to make love to her.

He watched her walk from her car, through the yard, up the back steps, and right into the kitchen where he stood.

The candlelight and dinner had caught her off guard that was obvious by the way she looked at him.

He reached for the two glasses of wine he’d poured and handed her one. “This one is for you, my dear.”

Avery took the glass. “What’s all this?”

“Dinner.”

“You’re in a suit,” she said grinning.

“I wanted to look nice for you.” Pete moved in toward her and kissed her gently, but there was hesitation behind the kiss. He’d thrown her off balance. She’d warm up.

“You cooked and set the table in a suit.”

“I plated very fancy carry out, in a suit.”

The laugh that had mesmerized him since childhood broke from her and her shoulders eased.

“To be fair, I stole the wine from your reserve too. So I stand before you a great big phony trying to impress you.”

Avery moved in closer to him. She trailed her hand up his chest and around his neck. “Peter Grant, you impressed me that day you held your hand out to me on the gravel of the playground when I fell off the monkey bars.”

“You wouldn’t have fallen off the monkey bars if I hadn’t thrown the football at you.”

Her lips tightened and her eyes gleamed in contrast. “Are you saying you knocked me down on purpose?”

Pete shrugged his shoulder. “Malcolm wanted to look up your skirt. I didn’t want him to do that.”

“You risked my life to save my pride?”

“You skinned your knee. It bled for an hour,” he reminded her. “I don’t think I helped matters much.”

Avery moved in until they were tightly pressed together. She rested her forehead against his. “And where is Malcolm now?”

“He owns a telecommunication company. He’s worth millions.”

Avery laughed, but grew quickly serious again. “I must have gotten over the pain you caused me. I’m right here in your arms.”

Pete wrapped his arms around her, careful to keep the glass in his hand upright and not spill it down her back.

“Dinner is ready,” the words croaked from his throat as she pressed kisses to it.

“Is it?”

“We should eat.”

“Mm-hmm,” she moaned against him.

The kisses she was strategically placing on his neck had the blood quickly draining from his head. He moved so he could set his glass down on the table. Pulling back just far enough he took her glass and set it down too.

Avery licked her lips and the very motion had him dragging her back to him to cover her soft mouth with his hungry one.

She gripped him tighter until there was no space between them.

He picked her up and she wound her legs around his waist.

“Microwaves are the greatest invention ever,” he said as he carried her to the stairs. “Dinner will wait.”

~*~

Avery rested her head against Pete’s chest and listened to his heartbeat quicken under her. His breath still came in pants just as hers did.

She hadn’t expected him in her house, but she found that she was happy he was there. She was always happier when he was there.

“You had me fooled all this time,” he said when his breath had come back to him. “I thought you liked me in my suit.”

Avery shifted so that she could look at him. “I do like you in your suit.”

A grin moved over his lips. “You sure pulled me out of it fast.”

He chuckled and she shook her head as she rested it back against him. “It’s hard to believe it took us this long to get to this point, don’t you think?”

“The having sex part?”

“Uh-huh.”

“You could have convinced me years ago,” he said. “I’m glad you came around.”

She wouldn’t argue that. People had told her for years the man loved her. But even now she was afraid their friendship would never recover if
this
didn’t work out.

Avery rested her chin on Pete’s chest. “Dinner looked good. I’m kinda hungry now.”

He ran his hand over her hair. “Me too.”

“Why did you bring dinner again?”

“I wanted to see you. I knew you’d been to your parents’, so I wanted to be here for you. And…” He rolled her onto her back and kissed her long and hard. “I have some things I want to talk to you about.”

~*~

Pete warmed dinner and poured more wine. His slacks were unbuttoned, shirt open, and his feet were bare as he worked in Avery’s kitchen.

She sat in a chair in a robe. Her perfectly manicured feet were propped up on the chair next to her and she watched him over the rim of her wine glass.

“I think you’re sexy in the kitchen,” she said.

“Could do this for you every night, babe.”

“Babe?”

“Give me a term. I’ll call you whatever.”

She sipped her wine and thought. “I always wanted to be a princess.”

“You always were mine.”

He carried the plates back to the table and she dropped her feet to the floor as she breathed in the scent of the meal.

“It smells as good the second time too.”

Pete cut a piece of the chicken from his plate and lifted it on his fork to her lips. She took the bite.

“It tastes good too,” she said before finishing the bite and washing it down with a sip of wine.

They ate. She watched him and he’d reach his hand to her just to touch her.

“Why are you giving me all this attention?” She caught his hand on her knee.

“I told you. All of this wasn’t just for one night. I love you, Avery. I always have.”

She licked her lips and then bit down on her bottom one. “Pete, something else is going on.”

He’d wanted to wait on it, he really had. But after the day he’d had at work it just wouldn’t wait anymore.  This was his moment. His grand opportunity.

Since he was a boy he’d followed this gem of a woman around. She was engrained in his family and he in hers. They were friends above all else and now they were lovers. Oh, and they did that really well too.

But he needed—wanted—more.

He put his fork down and stood from his chair. Reaching for her hand he pulled her up and into his arms. “Let’s go into the living room.”

“We’re not done eating.”

“I don’t care,” he said smiling down at her. “It just can’t wait.”

Pete led Avery to the living room and sat her down on the couch. He paced for a moment to gather his thoughts. When he knew what he wanted to say, he walked back out to the kitchen to retrieve the box he’d stored in the cupboard.

Avery sat on the couch in her white robe. She pushed at her hair and combed her fingers through it as she waited for Pete to stop being so weird. What was he doing tonight? His mind was a million different places.

She’d wanted to be alone tonight just to think things through. They had a lot to talk about.

On the way home from her parents’ house she spoke to her grandfather and he was sending a plane for her next Wednesday. She had a lot to do before her new life in France started and now Pete was acting all strange.

She heard him walking back through the kitchen. Straightening up, she placed her hands in her lap and waited.

As he walked into the room he was looking down at a white box with a big red ribbon tied around it.

He was giving her gifts? Her birthday was days ago and he’d given her a very nice Pandora charm for her bracelet. What was he doing now?

He raised his head and those dark brown eyes bore right into her heart.

Pete walked around the table and knelt down in front of her.

“God you’re beautiful,” he said reaching his hand to her hair.

“Pete, what’s going on?”

“I’m admiring you.”

Avery swallowed hard. “You’re starting to scare me.”

He smiled, the gleam in his eyes only getting brighter. “Don’t ever be scared of me.”

Moving so his body pressed to hers, he wound his hand into her hair and took her under with a kiss. They’d made love already and yet his kisses could make her head swim.

He lingered his hand on her cheek as he pulled back.

“I wanted to wait on this. I really did.” He looked down at the box. “But when your heart knows what it wants—it knows.”

He handed her the box.

“What is this?”

Pete chuckled. “You’re supposed to open it.”

Avery’s hands shook as she pulled the tie from the box. When she lifted the lid and saw a ring box inside her heart nearly exploded in her chest.

Pete reached for the box and pulled the little box out. “I wanted to wait until the baby buzz wore off the family. And then Spencer could tell everyone about him and Julie.”

“They are engaged?”

“I’m still sure they are, aren’t you?”

She nodded.

“Anyway, I got to thinking that I’ve been in love with you all my life. There hasn’t been nearly but a few days when I haven’t seen your face in all these years. And I’m not sure I’ve gone a day without talking to you.”

“Pete…”

He looked up into her eyes. “I don’t want to wait another minute. Avery, will you marry me?”

He pulled open the little ring box. Winking up at her with a sparkle was a solitaire diamond, which must have been at least a carat.

Pete took out the ring and set the box on the table. “I couldn’t find a ring that quite mirrored your beauty.”

Taking her hand he held it in his. She felt it shake against his fingers.

Shouldn’t she be crying? This was the biggest moment in her life and she was nearly frozen with fear.

He looked up at her as he poised the ring on the tip of her finger. “I love you. I always have loved you. So what do you say?”

What did she say? Hadn’t she spoken? No—no she hadn’t. There was only one thing to say. She loved this man more than she’d ever admitted. Perhaps, when she thought about it, it had always been him. Why else hadn’t she held on to any of those other men in her life? Now she knew the answer. It was because she was in love with Peter Grant.

“I say yes.”

His smile widened and she noticed the tear that shimmered in his eye as he pushed the ring onto her finger.

“I’ll make you happy. I promise to always make you happy.”

In one quick motion, he’d scooped her under him and laid her back on the couch. His mouth was on hers, taking her breath away.

Mrs. Peter Grant.

Somewhere she’d written that in a notebook. She remembered now. They were going to be married and live happily ever after in France.

Chapter Six

Avery woke in his arms, again. Certainly she’d never tire of that.

She looked down at her finger where the ring he’d put there sparkled. They were getting married.

As much as it was surreal, it felt just right. This was where that lifetime of friendship had led them—right into each other’s arms.

Once she’d said yes to his proposal, they’d been locked on to each other. They’d made love all night and now woke to the new day—engaged.

Pete’s alarm on his phone chimed and he groaned as he rolled to turn it off.

She studied him, rugged from sleep and smiled. “Good morning, fiancé.”

He hummed and smiled, his eyes nearly closed. “I sure do like the sound of that.” He lay there near her for a moment. “I suppose I should get home and get ready. I only had one suit.”

“You came to propose and didn’t pack a bag?”

Pete gave her a small shrug. “I was too excited to get over here after yesterday. I just didn’t think about it.”

Avery propped herself up on her elbow. “What was so exciting?” She looked down at her finger. “Okay, the proposal, but you said you’d wanted to wait. Why did you do it last night then?”

Pete rubbed his eyes and sat up, pulling her up with him.

Avery turned to him, covering her body with the sheet for modesty sake.

“Aside from not wanting to spend another moment without you,” he said raising his hand to her cheek. “I got some great news yesterday and I knew the moment was right.”

Avery smiled. “What news?”

Pete lifted his chest and pushed back his shoulders. “I got the promotion.”

She opened her mouth to congratulate him before her mind spun it around.

He got the job. The very job she was banking on him not getting.

She let out the breath she was holding. “Congratulations.”

Pete studied her for a moment. His own smile faded away. “You don’t sound very genuine.”

Avery lifted her chin. “Of course I am. You deserve it.”

Pete’s eyes narrowed. “You’re using that debutante bullshit on me. C’mon, tell me what you really think.”

Avery swung her legs over the side of the bed, taking the sheet wrapped around her with her as she stood. “I forgot. I was going to go to a yoga class this morning. I should…”