The Taste the Heat blog tour wraps up this weekend, and all I can say is that it’s been a blast. The support and encouragement has been overwhelming, and I’ve had a lot of fun with my Flirt Squad, sharing recipes and cooking-with-loved-ones stories last week, and talking crushes this week.
So far this week I’ve told you about my first diary crush, my four-year-old very first crush, a crush that led to the worse date ever, and my childhood celebrity crushes. Today, I’m sharing a crush that’s extra close to my heart, but first, I’d like to share today’s stops on the tour. If you can support these bloggers by leaving a comment, I’d greatly appreciate it. Book bloggers make my world go round, guys 😉
Remember, you can enter the giveaway at each and every blog stop!!
- Books, Coffee, & Wine has a lovely 4-star review, along with her cast choices for Colby and Jason
- Curious what my favorite part of TTH is? Dying to know intriguing tidbits about me? Head on over to Refreshingly Riki for a fun interview!
And now for the story of my best crush….and my own Happily Ever After.
This is the story of a boy and girl and the many ways they ALMOST met…and how they finally did.
Young Rachel Thibodeaux (that’s Cajun, y’all) went to an elementary school on the West bank of New Orleans from first grade thru eighth grade. She had crushes on tons of boys her own age, and strangely enough, a year younger. But when she was in first grade, she sadly didn’t notice a very cute young man a grade above her own. So sad.
Fast forward a few years and young Rachel is now a high school graduate entering her freshman year at LSU. She gets a room in an all girl dorm with a good friend, right next to an all-boy dorm. Sly Rachel would sometimes walk extra close to that other dorm, hoping a random cute boy would walk out and stars would align. Sadly, that cute young man she didn’t notice when she was in first grade did not come outside whenever she was there. Living in two buildings side by side for a year, and they never met.
A year later, Rachel had gotten tired of the dorm scene so she and that same friend moved into an apartment complex off campus. The apartment right next to hers was rented by guys. They never actually saw these particular guys, only knew it was dudes based on the sofa they kept outside their door, and the frequent parties they always had. Rachel would walk down the sidewalk, perhaps adding a wiggle to her hips, and wait for an invite. Little did she know, they had an open door policy and assumed her and her roommate would know they were invited, so that invite never came. One day, one of the boys who lived there–the same cute boy from before mind you–saw Rachel’s mom lugging groceries to the apartment (yes, her mom was quite nice and would stock the fridge during visits), so he came and offered a hand. He brought them into the apartment and talked for a minute. Sadly, Rachel was still in class.
Two years later, 9/11 happened. Rachel had just broken up with her boyfriend and she spent the day watching news coverage with her friend, shocked that she’d just been in NYC a month ago for her summer internship. She’d assumed everyone would skip that day…but she was a broadcast journalism major, and only her and one other boy skipped. They were automatically paired together for an assignment.
This was not that same cute boy.
But when she came to meet him to hand over the video equipment, her partner was having dinner with his roommates. Rachel was out of it, she’d had dental work that morning and was not in a good mood, so she didn’t pay attention. As soon as she left, one of his roommates suggested the boy ask her out on a date. The partner decided that sounded like a good idea. He called her up, she decided to bring a friend and he would, too, and their double date was planned.
The night of the date came, and Rachel and friend were late. Very late. Like two hours late because they’d gone to another party and lost track of time. By the time they called the boys, they’d already left the club and were headed home, but they suggested the girls go to their apartment to hang out. Rachel and friend went…they put on music and danced….they played cards….and somehow, during the hours that passed, the couples swapped.
Rachel had finally met that cute boy. His name was Gregg.
Although, she didn’t remember his name. That night, they decided they really liked each other and were going to be exclusive. Only she thought his name was Danny. And he thought her name was Rebecca. So when her new boyfriend called the next day, they had the fun conversation of figuring out each other’s true names.
You can’t make this stuff up.
A week later, they were en route home to New Orleans where they both grew up. It was her aunt’s wedding, and he got to meet her entire family practically in one big swoop. A family picture was taken and while he was invited to be in it, Rachel suggested he not be…this would be in a frame, and they’d only been dating a week. Gregg likes to bring this up often.
A few days after that, they were again traveling to New Orleans to meet HIS family. He was driving her car. They got in a wreck. Her car was totaled. Since her dad was a lawyer, he likes to joke he was stuck with her so he wouldn’t be sued. But after that, while waiting for insurance money to get a new car, Rachel and Gregg shared his for over a month. They grew very close, very fast. In fact, they fell in love.
He moved to North Carolina a couple months later after he graduated in December. They visited often during the next few months until she followed in May. On their one year anniversary, Gregg proposed to Rachel, and a year later, they were married.
Their love grows stronger every single day. They have two beautiful children, and Rachel thinks she is the most blessed woman in the history of forever. He’s got it pretty good, too.
Rachel became an author, writing about other couples finding their own happily ever afters. Gregg reads these books, helps her plot them, and even goes over all the manly dialogue parts to make sure they actually sound like dudes. He supports her, he’s her rock, and every day gives her inspiration for her love stories.
There you have it. My very own HEA, and the best crush I’ve ever had. I love hearing true love stories…and I’d LOVE to hear yours!!
