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“Are all the presents unwrapped?” Nancy asked, eyeing the colorful massacre on the floor. “Did we miss anything?”
“I don’t think so.” Ned patted his belly happily. “Unless you want me to crawl under that tree and check.”
“There is one more thing,” Logan announced, jumping to his feet.
He tugged at his knit sweater and tried to hide the nervous shake of his hands. This was it. The big moment.
Rachel turned her brown eyes toward him, amusement lighting them up. “Don’t tell me you have Mary Prescott herself wrapped up under that massive tree?”
He chuckled, running the palm of his hand across the side of his head. “As much as she would love that, no, I’m afraid I don’t.”
He crossed the floor and gently stuck his arm into the tree, feeling around for the present he’d hidden there only yesterday. His fingers enclosed around a little box, just big enough to fit in the palm of his hand. A tiny jolt of adrenaline coursed through him. He pulled it out and approached Rachel, her eyes growing wide at the sight of it.
“Logan?”
“Open,” he said, swallowing hard.
She tentatively took the box from him, examining the shiny silver wrapping and the tiny white ribbon. With shaky hands, she slowly pulled back the paper and unveiled a black box.
Logan kneeled before her, enclosing her hand and the box in his. “Rachel Knight, it was here that we first professed our love for each other. And it was here that we also learned that someone could love us, flaws and all. I think it’s only appropriate that this is where we make another kind of promise.”
He took the box from her and gently opened it to reveal a stunning princess cut diamond in a miniature diamond surround on a silver filigree band. All the women in the room gasped at the same time, Rachel’s eyes filling with tears.
“I love you,” he continued, watching her face intently. “I can’t imagine my life without you. You have made me into a better man. And I want nothing more than to share a lifetime with you. If you’ll let me, I will love you until the day I die, with all the fierceness and tenderness that you deserve. Say you’ll marry me.”
There was an achingly silent moment that followed his proposal. The only thing that punctured the quiet was the pounding of his own heart as it tried to escape his ribcage. Rachel’s gaze flitted from his face, to the ring, and back again.
“Oh, Logan,” she said, tears filling her eyes.
He swallowed hard, hoping those were good tears.
She slid to her knees in front
of him, taking both his hands in hers. A serene smile lit up her glowing face. He couldn’t help but imagine her as an angel in that moment, her whole body radiant with a love so fierce it couldn’t be contained. She blinked softly and then nodded her head.
“I want nothing more in this world than to love you forever,” she said, breathing deeply. “Yes, yes. I say yes a billion times. I love you, Logan.”
He pulled her into a lung crushing hug, inhaling the scent of her shampoo as he buried his face in the crook of her neck. Complete and utter happiness, like he’d never known before, burst inside him. He released her quickly to tug the ring from the box and place it on her left hand. All around them, the room burst into applause and cheers. Rachel held up her hand to the increased squeals from the ladies. He smiled so hard, he thought his cheeks were going to crack.
“Congratulations.” Michael held out his hand to him and they shook firmly. A smile played on his lips. “I guess I can finally give my consent to you dating my baby sister.”
“I hadn’t realized I still needed it,” Logan said with a laugh, watching his mother ogle Rachel’s ring. “But I’m glad to know I’ve got it.”
“If you hadn’t, you would’ve known,” Michael said, hitting him playfully on the back. “But I guess I was right after all. I really am a great matchmaker. It just wasn’t the type of match I was intending.”
Emily appeared at his elbow, her eyebrows arched. “I guess this is a reminder to match responsibly, then.”
“As if you could’ve predicted this outcome,” he protested.
“I did.” She smiled deviously, clapping her hands together. “I saw the potential from day one and I was hoping it would play out exactly like this. Don’t try to outmatch the matchmaker, darling. You’ll only hurt yourself.”
Michael laughed and kissed her soundly, until her cheeks burned bright. Logan smiled at the scene, glad to see his best friend wrapped up in a love just as fierce.
All was right in the world. Rachel Knight loved him and he was prepared to never let a day go by without reminding her of his own love for her. She deserved that.
“Merry Christmas, babe,” she said, coming back to gently kiss him on his lips. The sweet sensation lingered on his mouth long after she’d pulled away.
He wrapped his arms around her and sighed happily. “Merry Christmas, my love.”
