Metal & Lace (An Opposites Attract Novel Book 1) (22 page)

“How long have you been back?” I ask, my stomach twisting into knots. Just the thought of Gunnar makes my pulse race and my palms sweat.

“About a week or so.”

Oh.

“Oh, I see,” I murmur, my face falling.

He didn’t come to me. It must really be over. I’m a goddamn fool for believing that time might fix things, for holding on to something that was never there.

Suddenly, feeling like a third wheel, I uncomfortably glance around the party, noticing all the couples clinging to each other. I realize everyone will have someone to kiss at midnight except me, depressing me further.

I have to get out of here before I burst into an uncontrollable fit of tears and make a bigger fool of myself.

“You know, um, I’m not feeling great right now. I think I’m going to head home early.”

“You’re kidding,” Gwen whines. “You’ll never get a cab on New Year’s Eve.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll be fine.” I kiss her on the cheeks before walking away.

“Lacey, please don’t go,” she calls out to me.

I wave at her over my shoulder, hiding the salty devils coursing down my face, and retrieve my coat off a rack setup in the entryway, putting it on when I enter the elevator. I ride it down and exit the building.

The streets are crawling with cabs, but as Gwen said, they’re all taken. It’s so cold out I actually consider going back inside. I glimpse up at the windows of the lively, inviting loft, listening to the intoxicating laughter and chatter, Banks booming from the speakers, vibrating the glass. But if I go back up there, I’d only be reminded of how Gunnar didn’t come for me.

For an instant, I get a risky idea. Gunn’s place is only a few blocks away. I could go to him and demand he read the article. Then he would know the one he read was written before I really knew him, before I fell in love with him…But he’s probably out or worse with another woman. He probably doesn’t even want to see me. He’s been back in New York for over a week and didn’t come to me.

Subway it is.

As I start walking down the street, in the opposite direction of where I want to be, I swear I hear my name. I keep moving, desperate to get out of this frosty weather.

My ears must be frozen over.

“Lace!”

Ok, now I’m sure I heard that. It almost sounds like…

I whip around and there he is, the man I never thought I’d see again striding toward me.

“Gunn?” I whisper, unsure if I truly see him. Halting in his tracks at the sound of his name, we watch each other for a few beats. “Are you really here?” I ask.

His breath is hard and quick. I see it drift in the air before dissipating into nothingness.

“Yeah, Lace,” he says, appearing hesitant, petrified even. “I’m really here.”

“How did you know where I was?” My voice is breathy, and my heart is drumming in my chest so hard it jolts me.

He holds his phone up. “Dylan called me…I-I’ve missed you, baby doll.”

I bite down on my bottom lip to fight back a sob and run at him, jumping into his arms, holding him with a suffocating grip. He embraces me back, burying his face into my neck with a sigh, his beard scratching the exposed flesh.

“I missed you, too,” I admit, weeping softly, my voice brittle.

He tilts his head back, staring me in the eyes with an absorption that makes me fall apart in his missed embrace.

“I was wrong.” He shifts some hair out of my face and wipes away a few tears that sprung free. “I read the article you published when I got home. I was so wrong, Lace.”

“Why didn’t you come to me sooner?”

“I wasn’t sure you still felt that way about me.” He sets his forehead against mine, gulping loudly. When he speaks again, his voice is shaking, “I thought about you every miserable day, baby. I was terrified you’d forget me.”

“You became a part of me,” I confess, enfolding my arms about his neck. “That’s not something easily forgotten.”

As we embrace each other, the unison cries of counting down to midnight floods the streets…
Ten
…
Nine
…
Eight
…
Seven
. He places his hand on my face, brushing my cheek with his fingertips.
Six
…
My hands go into his hair, fisting and weaving it with my fingers.
Five
…
Our lips creep closer, like a magnet drawn to steel.
Four
… Our breath mingles in the frosty air.
Three
…

“I love you, Lace,” he breathes into my mouth, his beard tickling my chin.

Two
…

“I love you, Gunn,” I purr before our lips finally converge, fusing together in a brutally sluggish kiss, taking our time to drink each other in.

One
…

With the sun setting behind us, I marry Gunnar on a beach in
Malibu, our bare feet buried in the sand. We kept it simple, like jeans simple, and only invited Gwen and Dylan to bear witness. I would’ve invited my mother as well, but she wouldn’t have come anyway.

As I recite my vows, Gunnar holds my trembling hands, tears glistening in his eyes. There’s something beautifully heart-wrenching about my husband, with his tough exterior, breaking down without shame, so overcome with love he can’t hold back.

When he slips the heart-shaped black diamond ring on my finger, the Justice of the Peace finally says, “I know pronounce you husband and wife. You…”

Before he can finish, Gunnar scoops me up in his arms and dips me, slamming his lips on mine. One hand cupping the back of my head, he melds me to him until I can hardly breathe through our kiss. Gwen and Dylan whistle and clap and hoot, cheering him on.

When we break away, I giggle uncontrollably and tear up. He lifts his marked hands up to my face, cradling it, and stares deep into my eyes.

“You with me, Mrs. Haze?” he whispers, lovingly caressing my cheeks with his callous thumbs.

“Always, Mr. Haze.”

Jules
- What can I say about you that would truly express what you mean to me. Without you, Metal & Lace would still be sitting on my laptop, unfinished. You got me through the rough patches when I was ready to call it quits and just give up on the book and myself. You have been my and this book’s biggest cheerleader. That’s why this book is dedicated to you, sweets. You are my Gwen. #Always

Tessa
- Thank you for coming to me with the brilliant lyrics for ‘Graffitied Walls’ and allowing me the honor of using them. When I read them, I knew they were perfect for Gunnar. You are an incredible friend and woman.

Lana Del Rey
- Again, this woman helped inspire me. The three songs that really brought Gunnar and Lace to life for me were, West Coast, Shades of Cool, and Guns and Roses. If you listen, you’ll understand why. This woman is a genius and sheer poet. Hail Queen Lana.

Ladies in Black
- Thank you, thank you, thank you for all the love and support you’ve given me over the past year. I simply could not do what I do without you ladies. Quite simply, you rock my world!

Josh
- Thank you for sacrificing all you have, so that I might follow my dream. It’s all for you, babe.

Lena Black is the author of A Dominant Series. From a young age, as many writers, Lena has had an itch to write and create. When she isn’t writing, she’s reading, listening to killer tunes, or being a general goofball with her friends. She currently has several projects in the works, but is focusing on finishing up the last novel in A Dominant Series.

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