“Renee Thorne, I fell in love with you the first time I fixed your sewing machine while you cussed at it behind me.”
I giggled and gripped Renee’s hand tighter.
“You and Norah have brought so much happiness into my life. I can’t think of life without the two of you in it. Would you please make me the happiest man in the world and marry me?”
Renee released my hand and got down on her knees in front of Brian. With tears streaming down her face she nodded.
“I need a verbal on this one,” Brian teased, smiling brightly.
“Yes, I’ll marry you,” Renee answered, throwing her arms around him.
The restaurant exploded into applause, while some people had their phones out recording the proposal.
My mom’s hand landed on my shoulder and I covered it with my own. Norah climbed off her chair and hugged her mom and Brian.
After Brian slipped a ring on Renee’s finger he pulled out a necklace and clasped it around Norah’s neck. The happy couple left with smiles on their faces while tears streamed down mine.
“She’s going to be all right,” my dad said, hugging me.
“I know. I’m worried about me,” I told him with a pathetic laugh.
“Don’t be worried about you, McKenna. Out of both my daughters you were the one I didn’t have to worry about.”
“It could be because Renee didn’t become your daughter until our senior year and she was already pregnant. Out of the two of us, worrying about the socially awkward one would have been useless.”
My dad kissed my forehead. “Renee just needed us at the time. But you were the one who brought her into this family. You were the one who found a sister. You’re a kind-hearted person and you always do the right thing. Don’t worry, this will all work out.”
I hugged my parents good night and left the restaurant with warring emotions. My eyes were tired and heavy from crying with Renee and my bed sounded fantastic.
Unfortunately, when I climbed under the covers I couldn’t sleep. My asshole brain refused to shut off. Thoughts of what Trip was doing with Robin burned into my eyelids until I threw off the blankets and stomped into the living room.
Broken Faith, by the JackholeS started to play for the fifth time on my speakers. I swear those boys knew what I was feeling better than I did. My mouth opened wide as I belted out the chorus.
A banging on the door stopped me from singing back up. I winced, assuming it was one of my neighbors complaining about the noise. I wasn’t in my right mind and didn’t think about the racket I must have been causing.
“Sorry, I’ll turn it down,” I started to say as I opened the door.
“Raine, are you okay? I thought someone was killing a cat in here.” Trip’s eyes roamed over my face as he walked past me into the apartment. His lips were pitched to the side as if he was trying not to laugh.
I closed the door and leaned my forehead on the cool wood.
Why didn’t I check the peephole?
Although it would have been impossible to pretend I wasn’t there, especially with me singing at the top of my lungs.
Trip’s hands landed on my shoulders and spun me around. Without saying a word he pulled me into his chest and ran his fingers through my hair.
“What are you doing here?” I sniffed into his shirt, my traitorous eyes filling up with tears.
“Brian called me and told me Renee said yes to his proposal. He was supposed to wait until the next Pappies game and do it on the field. I guess he couldn’t wait. I wanted to make sure you were doing all right since I didn’t have a chance to warn you.”
His words slammed into the wall I’d built up to keep my tears in place. My breath hitched as tears streamed down my face. I grabbed handfuls of his shirt to keep him where he was and sobbed.
Trip held me until my tears subsided. He leaned down, picking me up, and carried me to my bed, tucking me under the covers.
“I’ll be right back.”
I nodded into the darkened room, unsure if he could see me. I listened as Trip moved around my living room, turning off the music and locking the door. I refused to think about the changes life was throwing at me.
