Page 219 of The Virgin Romance Novelist Chronicles
“Nope.” I shook my head and held up my hand. “Don’t call it that. For the love of God, do not call it that.” My stomach began to churn again.
“Aw, you’re a sensitive little darling. Well, I will tell you this. I’ve gotten over what happened between us. If you would like to try again, I have time before my next showing.” He casually walked over to me and tilted my chin so I was forced to look him in the eyes.
“Ew.”
I said it before I could even think about what was coming out of my mouth. I blame the kid.
Insulted, Alejandro dropped my chin and walked away. “Your loss. Good luck finding such finesse like myself.”
He wadded up his ones and took off toward the front door. Relieved, I looked at Delaney and sighed. It was time to call Derk.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Sniff, Sniff, Kiss, Kiss
HENRY
Once Derk got the signal from Rosie to come peel his fiancée off the ground, he bolted out of her apartment, ending our poker game immediately. That was an hour ago, and Rosie was nowhere to be found.
Sir Licks-a-Lot and I now sat on the couch together, waiting for the lady of the house to return. I was shocked when Rosie left this morning without saying goodbye, and equally shocked that I slept through it all. I hadn’t been sleeping well, because I’d been worried about the job, worried about Rosie, and worried about our future.
Last night, knowing the job was secure, I got some much-needed sleep.
Once I realized she was gone for the day, I called Derk, and we met at the jeweler. I had no idea what size finger Rosie had, so I made sure to get something a little bigger in case she had to size it down. She didn’t have sausage fingers by any means, but I still didn’t want to chance it.
Derk wasn’t the best at picking out rings. His picks were all modern, things that would suit Delaney well, but not Rosie. My girl was old school, she appreciated vintage jewelry. Luckily, the jeweler had a line of engagement rings that were perfect for Rosie’s style. I ended up picking one that had three stones, representing the past, present, and future with filigree on the side, a design I knew Rosie would love.
Within an hour, I had purchased an engagement ring, and needed to figure out the perfect time to propose. Knowing Rosie, she would assume I was only proposing because of the baby, if I proposed after we talked about it, so I needed to figure out something soon.
“Where is she?” I asked Sir Licks-a-Lot, who’d found his way onto my lap. I was scratching his head, wondering when this relationship had started. “Do you think she’ll like the ring?”
Pretty sure if I gave him a chance, he would shit on the ring.
“Yeah, I think so. She’ll love it. Now, how should I propose? I’m guessing strapping it to your collar for a cute pet proposal wouldn’t go over well.” He sneezed and I took that as a no. “I could do it here in the apartment. I could ask her out at the beach where her parents live, or back at campus where we first met. Going on vacation is always an option as well. Give her a little distance from you.”
His ears drew back in discontentment.
“Hey, it’s your own fault. You steal her bras, hack up hairballs on her shoes, and beat her at games she wants so desperately to win. She gives you opportunities to be friends, but you don’t take them. I honestly don’t understand what your issue is. Are you gay? Is that why you love me so much? If you’re a homosexual feline, we will be one hundred percent okay with that and support you in any way we can. I don’t mind going to gay bars for cats, seems like it would be a good time. And I know Rosie would be supportive, but if that’s the case, you have to let us know.”
He looked at me as if I was crazy. I held up my hands in defense.
“You come out when you’re ready. No pressure. I’m just saying, it’s a little obvious, buddy. Your infatuation with humping my shirts and licking your own balls; there’s no hiding it. Just know, when the time comes, we will be there for you. That includes Rosie.”
I was losing it. I was talking to the cat, encouraging him to be his own person. I really had spent too much time at work in the last month.
I took a sip of my beer and was about to text her when I heard the jingle of her keys against the lock. I tried to shoo Sir Licks-a-Lot away from me because Rosie didn’t really like it when we got along, but he was set in stone. He wasn’t going anywhere.
“Henry, are you home—” She stopped when she saw me on the couch. “I guess you are.”
“Hi, love.” I smiled brightly. Fuck, I’ve missed her so much.
The last month had been non-stop, so now that it was over, I felt like I could finally take a breath and enjoy my once-simple life of holding my girl every night while we watched movies.
“How was the party? Did you drink?”
“No, why do you keep asking that?” She seemed irritated.
“Just wondering. Wanted to make sure Delaney was able to get home safely. I can only imagine what she was like at the party.”Inwardly, I relaxed. I was a little worried about Rosie drinking, knowing that she was pregnant.
