I let out a relieved breath and smiled. “She is. I’m very lucky. To be honest, I was really unsure about going into business with an investor. But she’s given me so much more than financial backing. I feel like I have a partner who cares as much as I do.”

Mason nodded. “She does.” He looked over my shoulder at her before lowering his voice. “She went through a funk after her dad died last year. The only thing that seemed to get her out of it was planning our wedding. So I was a little concerned about what would happen when it was over. But then you happened, and I feel like I’ve gotten my old Liv back lately. So while you might think you owe me an apology, it’s really me who owes you a big thanks.”

Wow. I shook my head. “I don’t know what to say—actually, I do. You two were made for each other. You’re both amazing.”

He smiled and again glanced over my shoulder. “I see her searching in her bag for money for a tip. She never carries a dollar, so I don’t know why she’s looking. In about ten seconds, she’s going to call my name so she can rummage through my wallet. So what can I get you to drink? A mixed drink, beer, wine?”

“I’d love a glass of wine. Merlot, if you have it.”

“You got it.”

Olivia yelled from the kitchen. “Mason?”

He grinned and pulled out his wallet. “I’ll be back with your wine after I tip the delivery man. Make yourself at home.”

I could have stood at the windows and looked at the view of the City all day, but the mantel over the fireplace caught my eye. There were half a dozen framed pictures on it, so I walked over to be nosy and take a look.

The large silver frame in the center featured a photo from their wedding day. Olivia was bent over laughing as she stood next to a multi-tiered wedding cake, a piece of which she’d obviously just smashed in her husband’s face. Mason’s tongue was out as he tried to lick the cake from his face through a smile. I loved that they’d chosen that photo to frame, rather than some perfectly posed one. It really showed their happiness, and their smile grew contagious as I looked at it.

To one side of the wedding photo was a picture of an older couple. They were standing in the rain wearing yellow rain slickers, but the smiles on their faces radiated sunshine. They had to be Olivia and Hudson’s parents, because the man was basically an older version of Hudson. Next to that photo was a shot of Olivia and Mason at the beach—sporting backward baseball caps and drinking beer. Again, the smiles on their faces were positively contagious.

I skimmed over a few more photos of the happy couple with various friends, and then my eyes landed on the last framed photo at the end. That one I picked up to take a closer look at the two kids—a young Olivia and Hudson. The little boy was probably about nine or ten, but his gorgeous, bright blue eyes were unmistakably Hudson’s. He also wore a smirk I’d become all too familiar with. He leaned forward, hovering over a birthday cake, about to blow out the candles. Olivia sat to his left, and his arm was extended, one of his hands covering her mouth.

A deep voice over my shoulder startled me. “Some shit never changes.”

Hudson. “Jesus. You scared me. Didn’t you learn your lesson about sneaking up on people? I didn’t hear you come in.”

“Rode up with the food. By the way, be thankful she ordered and didn’t try to cook today.”

“I’m sure she’s not a bad cook.”

“Last Christmas she made two trays of shrimp parmesan. We all got a big crunch when we bit in.”

“She overcooked the shrimp?”

He shook his head. “She followed a recipe that called for shelled shrimp. She thought shelled meant to leave the shell on.”

I laughed. “Ohhhhhh...”

He nodded his chin toward the photo in my hand. “I still feel like doing that at least once a week.”

“Why were you covering her mouth?”

“Because she thought everyone’s birthday cakes were for her and blew out the candles. My parents thought it was cute and let her do it. But that year, I’d made a wish I really wanted to come true, and I wasn’t taking any chances.”

I laughed. “What was your wish?”

“I wanted a sheepdog.”

“Did you get one?”

He shook his head. “Nope.”

“Well, it’s an adorable picture.”

“My mom had it framed on her nightstand. She said it summed up our relationship perfectly, and she wasn’t wrong. My sister must’ve taken it when we cleaned out my parents’ things.”

Mason walked over and handed me a glass of wine. He passed Hudson a beer. Raising his own bottle, he tilted it to us. “Good luck today, you two.”

Hudson clinked his beer, so I followed his lead. “Thank you.”

The rest of the guests piled in shortly thereafter, and Hudson and I were pulled in opposite directions. I saw a couple of people on the marketing team who I knew had worked on things for us, but I hadn’t gotten to spend much time with them. So I made sure to seek them out and say thank you for everything they’d done.

A few times, while Hudson and I were both talking to different people, my eyes caught with his. His lip would twitch and his eyes sparkled, but neither of us made any attempt to talk again. A few minutes before three o’clock, Olivia pointed the remote at the TV above the fireplace and then used it to clink against her glass.

“Alright, everyone. It’s just about time! This is so much more exciting than a dumb Superbowl party, isn’t it? Who needs a refill before kickoff?”

I was really damn nervous, so I headed to the kitchen to take her up on the offer before I had to see my face on her giant TV. Mason was standing near the wine and lifted the merlot when he saw me coming.

“You look like I felt when they started playing ‘Here Comes the Bride’.”

I opened and closed my hands. “Did your fingertips go numb from nerves?”

Mason filled my glass to the brim and handed it back to me with a smile. “Head-to-toe numb. Pretty sure that’s why the person who gives away the bride lifts the veil, and the best man holds the ring. The groom’s hands are too shaky to do anything.”

I sipped my wine. “Well, I hope I can fake it as good as you did. Because you looked cool as a cucumber.”

An arm hooked through mine. “Come on,” Olivia said. “I want to sit next to you!”

I guzzled as much wine as I could as we settled into the couch together. Immediately after we sat, the music at the beginning of the show started, and the host, Robyn, strolled out, waving to a live studio audience. It was pretty funny to watch, because I had been there when she’d done that walk, and the only people in the audience were Hudson and his friend Jack. Yet now the camera panned to a clapping crowd.

Olivia laced her fingers with mine and squeezed. “Here we go!”

She turned up the volume, and the noise in the room settled down. Robyn did her usual introduction from the side of the stage, and then walked over to the counter where she always stood. Signature Scent boxes and samples were piled all over. It felt completely surreal. Adrenaline rushed through my veins, leaving me a little lightheaded.

For the next few minutes, Robyn did her best Vanna White impression, lifting the boxes and waving her manicured hands around, which I now knew was to keep the viewers’ eyes on the product rather than the host. When she began to introduce her guest co-host for the day, I held my breath.