Page 72 of Spending Forever With You

I grabbed Hollis’s hand, kissing the back before I got out, rushing to beat the valet to her door.

She was quiet as hell as I interlocked our hands, so I got nervous all over again as we walked in.

“Please tell me you don’t have any bad memories here.”

“No, I’ve never been here, just taking this in. This is breathtaking. I’ve always wondered what it looked like in here. Mickey had this as an option for her wedding but opted for the gardens, and well Johnni, she went beach style this time.” While she stared in amazement at the venue, I was taking in her beauty, thinking that nothing in the world compared.

I grabbed her hand in mine as we walked a little further.

We reached the hostess who led us to the private room I rented out for our date. We walked into the butterfly themed room filled with not only butterflies but also yellow flowers and her gifts. I was making up for anniversaries, birthdays, Valentine’s Days, and Christmas, shit even just because.

Hollis gasped as she turned to look at me.

“Luke, what is all this?”

“Happy anniversary, Hollis,” I said as I leaned down and kissed her lips sweetly, before I released her to help her to the chair, pulling it out.

Once the hostess left us alone, Hollis spoke again.

“Luke, this is a lot for a fake anniversary dinner that no one can see, don’t you think? When you said we should do this I thought⁠—"

“Wrong. Ain’t shit fake about this anniversary. This isn’t for nobody but you. Not only am I making up for the missed opportunities to spoil you with all the finer things, I wanted to create a new memory for us. You mentioned before that we’re all over town and those reminders on our timeline hurt. This is me giving you, shit, well hopefully, I didn’t think this all the way though… I’m trying to make new ones that erase the pain in our history.” Hollis blushed as she tucked her bottom lip into her mouth, dropping her head slightly. I reached over, hooking her chin to raise it so our eyes were locked in.

“Since when are you hiding from me, huh?”

“Since you got a girl feeling butterflies that got my cheeks getting warm and stuff. You know I’m too P for that. I can’t be out here losing my card because my husband is being overly sweet.” We shared a laugh before our server came in, bringing the champagne I’d picked out, pouring us glasses. I had our entire meal planned so there was no need for ordering to lessen the interruptions. When I said I wanted my wife to myself, I meant just that.

“Girl ain’t shit P about you unless you mean being a pain in my ass.” She flipped me off as she dug into her purse, producing a velvet box.

“I know I said I wasn’t getting you anything, but looking so gotdamn good after my hair appointment, I stopped by the shops.”

She slid it over, causing me to smirk as I opened it to a designer watch. It was nice as hell, not too flashy. I hated looking like I had money. I let my name be the wealth.

“Damn, Hershey. You did me good. Thank you, baby.”

“Don’t thank me too much. You definitely will see it on your bank statement.” This time my laugh was louder as I shook my head.

“Of course. Do you want to open one of yours before the food comes?” I asked, getting up to get the one I wanted her to open first.

“I guess I don’t have a choice.” I placed the bag in front of her. Her bright eyes peeked over at me as I retook my seat while she dug out the tissue paper. When she pulled out the first small velvet box, I watched her eyes grow wide as she opened it, then a gasp came as she looked from me to the jewelry.

“Oh my gosh, a diamond ring? This is beautiful, Luke. It doesn’t fit my finger though. Is it real?” Hollis tried to put the ring on her index finger herself, which had me taking it from her hand.

“Baby, stop playing with me. Hell yeah it’s real, and it’s not just any diamond ring either. What you think this shit is? It’s your wedding band. I had to redecorate your finger, properly this time, with the size of my love in diamond form. I got you out here naked as fuck and I don’t like that. And your ass better not take it the fuck off or pawn it or I’ma fuck you up this time,” I said as I slid it on her finger with her laughing.

“Never, baby.” I placed a gentle kiss on the back of her hand.

“Here’s to two years.” She licked her lips, shaking her head as she tried to fight the grin that spread across her face before her teeth were on display.

“Two years.” We clanked our glasses just as her second surprise came out. I had our cake remade with the same toppers she’d tossed out.

Hollis frowned until I tossed her a wink.

Once we were alone again, she spoke.

“This better not be the same cake that was in the freezer, Luke. I told you it wasn’t safe to eat and I’m damn sure not playing with you.” I chuckled.

“No, I did think about it, but this is a remake.” I got back up, holding my hand out for hers so we could cut into it.