Page 43 of Pucking Snowed In With My Ex

My entire body began to shake as I pulled out the box and stared at the black lid.

“Cal?”

“Go on, open it.”

The announcer took the wrapping from me, and I sucked in a ragged breath as I cracked the lid and opened the box. There, nestled between the satin, was a stunning engagement ring. A swirl of diamonds surrounded a large blue sapphire. I looked up at Cal, and all brain function ceased to exist as he lowered himself to one knee.

“Oh my god, oh my god.”

Cal laughed and grabbed my shaking hands. “Skye Windsor, I have loved you my entire life. You stole my heart the first time you smiled at me, and I’ve never been able to picture a life without you. I was going to ask you to marry me the moment we finished high school, but it wasn’t our time. Fate had other ideas and tested our love for one another, but all I’ve learned in the last three years is that I never want a life without you by my side. There hasn’t been a single night that I haven’t fallen asleep thinking about you. So many times, you danced your way into my dreams, and I never wanted to wake up. But, we are getting our second chance thanks to one miracle and a conniving sister.”

Tears streamed down my cheeks as Cal pulled the ring out of the box. The shock made the quaking in my body worse as my brain tried to keep up with what was happening.

“From now on, I never want to be without you again. I want to wake up every morning by your side and go to bed with you in my arms. I cannot express how much I love you, but I’m praying you’ll say yes and make me the happiest man alive. Sugar, will you be my wife?”

My mouth dropped open as I stared into eyes that had captured me so long ago, and I choked on the tears of joy clogging my throat.

“For God’s sake, say yes!” I heard Hales yell, and I burst out laughing as Cal shook his head but smiled wide.

“Yes,” I said, nodding. “Of course, I’ll marry you.” The crowd erupted, and the players banged their sticks off the ice as Cal slipped the ring on my finger. Rising to his feet, he kissed me, not caring that there were thousands of people watching.

“I love you, Skye. I always have,” Cal whispered.

“I love you too.” I wiped away the rest of the persistent tears. “Now go kick ass,” I said, making him laugh. I would dream of this moment for the rest of my life.

* * *

10 MONTHS LATER

CALLUM

The Halloween decorations and lights were put away, and I was replacing them with the Christmas ones before it got too cold. I was making good time until this batch for the bushes.

The front door opened, and I looked over and smiled as Skye walked out with two steaming mugs. “Ah, my lifesaver.” I kissed her cheek as I took the drink. “Thank you. I was reaching the end of my patience and needed this.” I took a sip of the hot chocolate loaded with little marshmallows. Skye never skimped on the little balls of bliss.

“It looks great,” Skye said as she walked out on the lawn and looked up at the mass of lights.

“Yeah, now, if I could only figure out how these things get so tangled. I made sure to roll them all up and tie them so this didn’t happen.” I pointed to the ball of chaos at my feet that needed a physics professor to figure out. “I don’t know what color to use either. On the one hand, the red matches the candy cane theme, but they don’t stand out in the bushes. But if I use white, it may be too much, and you won’t notice the pattern. Am I overthinking this?” I looked at Skye, who was smirking at me over the top of her mug. “I am, aren’t I?”

“Maybe a little,” she said as she wrapped her arm around my waist. She stood there staring at the mess I’d created. The rest of the lights were strung out until there wasn’t a square inch of porch or front lawn that wasn’t covered. “You know you could always go with blue,” Skye offered.

I looked at her, then up at the house. I’d already decorated it in a stunning red and white pattern with glowing candy canes standing by the garage. Then I looked back at her again.

“Blue?”

She shrugged and sipped her drink again. “Yeah, blue.”

“It’ll ruin the theme, and I don’t have any blue lights.” I looked down at my pile, and my heart sank. Was I going to have to rethink the entire look? “If you really want blue, I’ll do blue.”

“You might have blue lights in nine months.”

“Nine months, well, that’s no good. I mean, I guess I could use them next year, but….” I paused as my brain caught up to what she said and looked down at the cheeky expression on her face.

“Well, I guess blue or pink.”

My heart sputtered in my chest. “Do you mean? Am I? Are we?”

Skye laughed as she rose on her toes and kissed my cheek. “Yes, you’re going to be a dad,” she whispered.