Page 175 of Insincerely Yours

“Same,” he admits. “Not about the kitchen set. The guilt, I mean. I wanted to splurge a little, so I actually booked them a honeymoon in September.”

Derek and Lauren had originally planned to go on one at that same time, but when the cost of the wedding ballooned after everyone else’s input, my brother admitted to me that they’d be postponing the trip until January when it would be cheaper to go.

Jase takes out an envelope from the inside of his tuxedo jacket and hands it to me.

Sure enough, I pull out two plane tickets and see the destination. “Venice? I thought Lauren and Derek had their hearts set on Maui.”

He points at another crucial part of the boarding pass I evidently overlooked. “These aren’t for them. It just got me thinking a couple of weeks back when booking their trip.”

Holy shit.

“That’s my name.” I know I sound like an idiot for stating the obvious, but… “That’smyname. Andyours.”

“And the flight leaves first thing Monday morning,” he says, his hands skimming down below my waist until he’s gripping thebase of my thighs. “You’re not going back to school for another month, and I have the luxury of working remotely, so time won’t be an issue.”

“You do know that most of Italy shuts down in August, right?”

He still isn’t deterred. “That still gives us this whole next week to enjoy the country, and then after that, we can go wherever you want. Barcelona, Amsterdam, Athens. You name it.”

I tap my chin, as if I really need to think about it. “Isn’t it the rule of thumb that you shouldn’t go away on vacation with someone you’ve been seeing for less than three months?” I tease.

“Fuck the rules. I say it’s about time we get the trip we were always supposed to have.” With no effort, Jase hoists me up so that my eyeline becomes level with his. “What do you say, Birdie? Will you fly with me?”