Tipsy (Take It Off #5)(50)
Author: Cambria Hebert

I grinned as I rushed into my closet. Okay, so maybe I didn’t mind him keeping me up late. I quickly pulled on a pair of navy-blue linen sailor pants, a fitted red top, and added a long necklace with various glittery golden beads on it.

I rushed back out into the bathroom and reached for my mineral foundation and a brush. Red writing on the mirror stopped me in my tracks.

How had I missed that earlier?

Scrawled across the mirror in my very new, very pricey red lipstick was a note.

Good morning, sleepyhead.

Blue made it absolutely impossible to be mad at him.

I grinned the whole time I applied a basic routine of makeup, then snatched up my supplies to finish my face at work, and rushed down the stairs. No coffee for me this morning; there just wasn’t enough time.

Of course, I hit every red light on my way to work. It was annoying, but it gave me time to run a brush through my short, wild mane of hair. It looked more mussed than usual, but I could tame it at work.

When the final light turned green, I breathed a sigh of relief and sped around the turn, pulling onto the street of the salon.

The salon that I owned.

It had always been a dream of mine to open my own shop. To be my own boss. I never thought I could make it happen so soon, but after the Razor’s Edge was shut down and Susan lost her cosmetology license, I decided I didn’t want to try to find a job at someone else’s salon.

Susan was lucky, though, because she avoided jail time. Her testimony along with all the evidence Blue and Slater collected put Dom and his crew away for a very long time. And of course, Dom wasn’t going to go down alone, and he took LeBraun and some of the Myrtle Beach crew down with him. The streets were cleaner and kids were safer thanks to Blue and the hard work of the JPD.

After a couple weeks of time off for both of us (mostly spent in bed), Blue went back to work on the force, and I opened up my own business. Right now there was only me and two other girls working there, but I planned to hire more. Our calendars were filling up quickly.

Pretty soon, Shear Perfection Salon was going to be the hottest place in town to get your hair styled.

The flashing of red-and-blue lights in my rearview mirror caught my attention and I groaned. Up the street, the sign for my shop beckoned, and I momentarily entertained the idea of ignoring the cop and just going ahead to work.

I had a feeling Blue wouldn’t approve.

As I pulled to the side of the street, I wondered if being the girlfriend of a cop would get me a warning instead of a ticket.

Once the car was in park, I turned, digging around in my bag for my license. A knock on the window had me turning around.

I knew that torso anywhere.

I slid down the window. “Is there a problem, officer?” I asked innocently.

“I have it on good authority that you were warned once before about speeding through an intersection, ma’am.”

I bit back a grin. “Normally I don’t speed. But I have this boyfriend who likes to keep me up half the night, and I overslept… I’m late for work.”

“You should get rid of that guy. He sounds like trouble.”

“Maybe I like trouble.”

Blue chuckled and leaned down and rested his elbows on the ledge of the open window. “Hi.”

Even after a year, he still made my insides tremble. “Hey.”

And damn could he fill out a uniform.

He pinned me with a stern look. “You were speeding, Jules.”

I sighed heavily. “You gonna give me a ticket?”

“I’m prepared to let you off with a warning.” He grinned. “On one condition.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Well, by all means, tell me what I need to do, officer.”

Before I could even blink, a black velvet box appeared between us. I gasped and looked up into his face. He leaned a little farther into the window.

“I’ve been carrying this around for a while now…” He began and cleared his throat. I stared at the little square box as my hands began to tremble.

I didn’t want to get ahead of myself, but I couldn’t help but notice that it was the perfect size for a diamond ring.

I held my breath as he slowly lifted the lid.

The early morning sunlight reflected off the diamond, instantly setting it into a glittering fire. I gasped as my hand pressed against my chest.

It was simply stunning.

A large round diamond—at least a carat in weight—surrounded by much smaller diamonds circling the large center stone. It was set in platinum and the band was ultra thin and light.

“Blue?” I whispered, tearing my eyes away from the ring and to look into his face.

“Marry me, Julie.”

My heart was beating so hard against my chest that I couldn’t draw a breath. I just sat there staring… feeling.

He was offering me the thing I wanted most in this life.

Him. Forever.

I must have sat there too long because he cleared his throat. “Julie?”

My eyes snapped up to his. How many times had I gotten lost in those blue depths? “Yeah?”

“Would you rather have a ticket than this ring?”

“No!” I cried. Was he insane?

“So you gonna give me an answer?” He half smiled.

“Yes!”

“Yes, you’re going to give me an answer or…?” His words fell away. I opened my door in a burst of thrilled energy.

Blue groaned and bent when the door hit him.

“Oh!” I cried, slipping out of the car. “Blue!” I grabbed his arm to see if he was okay.

“Speeding and assaulting an officer,” he said, straightening and looking down into my face. “I’m gonna have to take you in, ma’am.”

“Yes,” I said. There wasn’t a hint of doubt anywhere in my voice. I was absolutely sure. Marrying Blue was going to be a dream come true.

“Yes?” Blue said, stepping closer to me.

“A million times, yes.”

He grinned and swept me up into his arms against his solid frame. “I don’t think I’ve ever been so nervous,” he murmured into my hair.

I pulled back to look up at him. “You thought I would say no?”

“Well, you can be pretty grouchy in the morning,” he quipped.

I smacked his chest and laughed. “Give me that ring.”

“With pleasure,” he said, removing its glittery beauty from the black velvet and taking my left hand.

Cars whizzed by on the street beside us, but I didn’t hear them. The only thing I saw and heard was Blue.

“I love you, Julie,” he said, sliding the cool platinum band over my knuckle, placing it exactly where it belonged.