Page 29 of Meant to be Mine

“He does. He’s a good person, Mom. He’s the kind of person who always makes my day better. He’s steady. Underneath all the Blackwell stuff, he’s just Drew. And Drew has always been one of my favorite people on the planet.”

“I know.”

“That doesn’t mean it’s romantic.”

“It doesn’t mean it isn’t.”

I looked at her in the mirror. She looked back at me and then put the matching necklace on.

“It’s complicated,” I said.

“Everything worth having is.”

We headed downstairs, and when the doorbell rang, my stomach did a full somersault.

Dad opened the door. Drew stood on the front step in a black suit that fit him the way only something custom-made could. His shirt was a pale blue with a silver tie. His hair was styled. The stubble was there, same as always, but it looked very dignified.

“Mr. Blake.” He shook my father’s hand. “Good to see you, sir.”

“Drew.” My dad clapped him on the shoulder the way he always had, like Drew was his own. “You look sharp.”

“Thank you.” He glanced past my dad and found me, and whatever he’d been about to say next didn’t come out. He just looked at me for a moment. One full, quiet moment where neither of us said anything.

Then he smiled. “Kensey, you look beautiful.”

“Thank you.”

Mom stepped forward. “Drew, look at you. So handsome.”

“Thank you,” Drew replied.

“She was so nervous getting ready,” my mother told Drew. “She kept saying she wasn’t nervous. You two make a very handsome couple.”

“Stop,” I hissed.

“She looks beautiful though, doesn’t she?” Mom said, completely ignoring me.

Drew looked at me. “She does.”

I picked up my small clutch from the hall table. “Okay. We’re going now. I love you both. Goodbye.”

When we stepped outside, I froze and looked at him. “A limo?”

“Of course.”

The driver had the back door open and waiting for us. I slid in and Drew followed. Suddenly we were in this small, quiet, blue-lit world.

Mom was standing on the front porch waving like a lunatic.

“I’m sorry about her,” I said.

Drew reached for the champagne chilling in the console between us, poured two glasses, and handed one to me.

“Don’t apologize for your mother. She’s wonderful.”

“She’s a menace.”

He touched his glass to mine. “She loves you.”