Page 161 of The Wrong Groom

“This definitely belongs on the wall,” I add, exchanging a glance with Gabriel.

There’s a question in his eyes. His fingers trace the edge of Peyton’s drawing. He taps an empty space on the paper, then tilts his head. I know exactly what he’s trying to say.

And he’s right. Now is as good a time as any.

I clear my throat, leaning forward. “What do you think about making an addition to that picture, Bug?”

She stares at me. “Like what?”

“Well, what if we added someone else to the family drawing? Someone who’s going to be joining us soon. A little brother or sister.”

Her brow furrows slightly as she processes the words, and then it clicks. Her eyes widen again, her face lighting up with excitement. “You mean… a baby?”

“That’s right,” I say, relieved that she’s happy. “A baby.”

She sucks in an excited breath, then turns to face her father. “Does this mean you did the thing?”

Immediately, heat rises in my face. What? She doesn’t mean… I glance at Gabriel, who’s clearly struggling not to laugh.

“No,” he says, shaking his head. “I didn’t do the thing yet.”

“Do it now!” she insists.

I stare at Gabriel, bewildered, as he rises from his seat. Then he drops to one knee, and my confusion evaporates.

He reaches into his pocket and produces a small, velvet box, which he pops open to reveal a ring set with a rectangular-cut emerald. The stone is a vivid green, my favorite color. The ring itself is white gold, inlaid with small diamonds that make the band glitter when he moves the box under the light.

It’s gorgeous. Perfect. Perfect for me, unlike the generic ring I wore for our first wedding.

“Alexis,” he says softly, meeting my gaze, “will you marry me again?”

“Of course I will,” I whisper, my voice thick with emotion. I throw my arms around him before I can start sobbing, and he holds me tight. I bury my face in his shoulder, my eyes stinging with tears.

Beside us, Peyton lets out a shriek of enthusiasm, clapping her hands together. The danger of bursting into tears passes, and I release Gabriel. He holds out his hand to slide the ring onto my finger.

“Yay!” Peyton shouts, bouncing on the balls of her feet. “When’s the wedding? Can I be the flower girl? Can Pepper come?”

As if on cue, Pepper, still riled up from her earlier trials with the felt fish, darts into the room like a ballistic missile let loose in the house. She leaps up onto the table, snatches a particularly large piece of fish from one of the tacos, knocks over my water glass, then scurries to the floor with her prize.

The room erupts into chaos as all three of us scramble to catch the criminal. Peyton’s laughter rings out as she tries to cut off Pepper’s escape route, but the cat is too quick. She makes a beeline for the basement, Gabriel and Peyton hot on her heels.

I hang back as the two of them hunt down the fugitive, admiring the deep green emerald on my ring finger. This is the proposal we were meant to have, I think to myself, my heart feeling full. Messy. Imperfect. But perfect for us.

A proposal of our own design, surrounded by our family. There was more love in this room today than I’ve ever felt in my life, and Gabriel’s promise from earlier echoes in my head. I’ll love you more every day. It’s only going to grow.

I pick up Peyton’s drawing, which was mercifully spared from the spilled water, and stare at it for a long moment. The crayon figures smile back up at me, reflecting my joy.

My family.

Epilogue

Gabriel

The restaurant glows around me, filled with warm light and low conversation. When I bought Liora, I truly had no plans for it other than wanting to have Alexis all to myself in that moment. But tonight, it’s full of my family, and I can’t stop staring at the scene around me.

Tristan sits at the far end of the long table with Chloe tucked under his arm, the two of them laughing at something Reid just said. Dominic and Beckett have their heads bent together over a bottle of whiskey, arguing about it the way they argue about everything. My mother sits near the head of the table, regal as ever, watching all of us over the rim of her glass. Even Ivy and Jackson are here—two honorary members of our family—and the sight of all these people I love in one room makes a grin tug at my lips.

Okay, maybe most of the reason I’m smiling is because Alexis and I eloped today.