Graduation and Gifts (Untouchable Book 8) by Heather Long (best books to read for beginners TXT) 📕

Not until she came.

One more time.

I might have blacked out when it hit, or maybe we both did. But I was right where I always wanted to be—with her.

Subject: ARE YOU SERIOUS?

Sorry about the all caps, but are you serious about us doing a cover of one of your songs? I mean, I know all the words to every single one. No lie. The guys love that about me. Which is good, because I sing along to every album when they come out.

I’d offer to pinch myself, but I do not want to wake up. If you mean it, then hell yes, I would love to cover one of your songs. How does that work? Do I just tell you which one? How do I choose?

Also, down girl, I will happily share Ian’s voice with the world, but the only panties he gets are mine.

Have I mentioned how awesome you are?

We’re in paradise at the moment, on vacay, see the pictures attached, but we should be heading back to civilization soon. Actually, I’m not even sure if this email will go through until we’re back, but I didn’t want to forget to respond.

F.

P.S. Ian said I’d never forget. If I was going to leave them for anyone, it would be you three, but I think Rachel would disagree.

Chapter Nineteen

Farewell to Paradise

Frankie

Dawn of our last full day on the island, and I sat out on the deck watching the sun rise over the water. We’d all been up super late, but as the guys dropped off one at a time, I’d stayed awake. My body was sore in all the right ways. It had been an amazing week. I thought we were only going to get five days, but Archie stretched it out somehow and we ended up with an extra three.

I didn’t ask him how he did it. Just thanked him. A light shawl landed around my shoulders, and I glanced up to find a shirtless Archie gazing down at me. Smiling, he dipped his head and pressed his lips to mine before he set a tall mug with an even taller cone of whipped cream on top of the table next to me.

He added a second one that he’d left just inside before moving around to tug me out of my chair and then down he sat and pulled me into his lap. I stretched my legs out on the lounger and leaned back against his chest.

The air was chillier than I’d realized, but the shawl was warm. Archie was warmer still. We didn’t talk, he just passed me my foamy coffee with the crown of whip. The chocolaty goodness had been made to perfection. When I tilted my head, well aware of the whip cream mustache I had, he grinned and cleaned it off before kissing me slowly.

Peppermint. Coffee. Chocolate. Archie.

I sighed.

“What’s wrong, babe?” Archie asked in a low voice as he drew his finger down my cheek. “Why so pensive?”

“Hmm…not pensive.” Well, not really. I took another sip of the coffee and glanced down to where the ocean rolled in, the white caps of foam suggesting more agitation than normal. There had been a storm offshore the night before. We’d gotten to watch the lightning show for a while before we’d gone inside. “Maybe a little… I don’t want to leave.”

The last might have come out a little petulant. I winced.

“I mean…I love it here. I love us here. But I loved us in the lodge in Colorado. And in my apartment in Texas.” Head tilted back. “And your house…”

“Our house,” he corrected, then gave my hair a little tug. “The lodge will be ours too. I already told Grandpa I wanted it kept in our family.”

A shiver went up my spine.

“You want an island, babe? I don’t know if Grandpa’s friends will sell this one, but I can make them a hell of an offer.”

“How much would one even pay for an island?” The question popped out, and I twisted to look at him. He gave me a faint grin and a shrug.

“A few million, I’m sure. Probably have to clear it with the government, since I think this island falls under Fijian law, but we’d figure it out.”

“A few million?” I was pretty sure I blanched.

“We can go halfsies…but I kind of like the idea of our very own fantasy island.”

With a groan, I stared down at my coffee. “You’d do it too. Even if it would cost some ridiculous amount of money.”

“If it made you smile? Hell yes, I’d do it. Though…as nice as this one is, maybe we get one in the Caribbean or the Mediterranean. Something a little closer to us.”

Laughter fluttered through me. “Maybe later.”

Was I seriously saying that?

“Yeah?” Archie teased, tugging the shawl down to bare my shoulder so he could kiss it. “How much later?”

“We’ll revisit it…after college.”

“So, bachelor’s degrees in three and a half years? We can probably do a couple of really nice investments with high yield returns that would build that nest egg.”

“Archie…”

“Come on now, babe, you’re the one getting the business degree. An island retreat, particularly if we use a country with good banking laws, like the Caymans, means we can secure our investment capital offshore and then get what we want.”

“Always thinking five steps ahead. Five days. Five weeks. Five months…”

“Five years,” he murmured against my ear. “Fifteen. Fifty.”

Fifty years. I snorted. I couldn’t help it, and Archie chuckled before drawing the shawl back up and tugging me back against him.

“Five minutes after I met you, I knew you were something special. It wasn’t five days later that I knew you were the girl for me. That you’ve always been the girl for me. I was planning a future with you before you even realized I wanted to date you.”

The unadulterated love in those words warmed me.

“Maybe I don’t tell you enough how much I love you and maybe I obsess