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With her arms loaded with nachos and sodas and hot dogs—everything that Cruz had once told her made the experience—Payton returned to her and Kate’s seats.
“Are we seriously going to eat all this?” Kate asked, taking a cheesy covered nacho chip and biting into it.
“It’s part of the experience.”
Kate licked a glob of cheese from her finger. “And I thought you were fearless before. Now you’re just downright frightening. Tell me, what did your mother say when you told her that you’d registered for the LSATs? You were going to tell her at dinner last night, right?”
“You mean after she stalked up to me in the middle of the first course?” Payton smiled. She’d expected such a reaction, what she hadn’t expected was what followed. “There I sat, thinking I was going to be eating my butternut squash bisque alone—because, of course, Daddy was working late—but not two minutes later, she came back. And handed me an envelope.” She shook her head, still stunned at learning that her mother had once had her own hopes and dreams for herself. “It was her admission letter to business school, dated thirty-five year
s ago. She never went, of course, because her parents wanted something different for her. And we know how that went.”
Kate’s eyes bugged out. “Emily Vaughn entrepreneur? It’s unbelievab—no. Never mind. I could totally see her running a company, even a third world country with an iron fist.”
“I know, right?” Payton said and laughed. “Anyway, she didn’t want to talk about it, just wanted me to see and understand and then ordered Annie to bring in the roasted chicken and put the soufflés in the oven. And like that, our moment was over. Although, when I left, she did ask me to keep her updated with my application.”
“That’s about as close to approval as you’re going to get from Emily.” Kate slurped from her soda, giving Payton a sideways glance before asking not so nonchalantly, “What about Cruz? Anything?”
Payton knew that he was going to come up at some point in the conversation tonight. She was just surprised it had taken her friend this long. “No, and after seeing him with what’s-her-name, I really don’t expect to. In fact, you’ll have more chance of hearing from him than I would, seeing as how he’s your new brother-in-law.”
“I’m afraid if I saw him right now I would probably not only smack a vase into his head, but I’d break it over his head.”
“Just get it on camera,” she said, smiling. But to tell the truth, as hurt as she was that he had already moved on, she didn’t want to inflict any real pain on him. She hadn’t been enough for him, important enough to him, for him to make her a priority. At least he’d been honest.
Another scuffle seemed to be breaking out between the players on the ice, and she and Kate craned their heads, trying to figure out what was going on, something made more difficult since neither of them had ever watched a game before.
“Payton.” The voice came from behind her, so strong and familiar. She froze instantly.
What is he doing here?
He climbed down the last two stairs so he was standing in the aisle right next to her. The nacho she’d been about to shove in her mouth, still hanging midair.
There was a small grin on his face as he stared at the feast of junk food displayed on her lap before he met her gaze. “You know, if you were going to do this thing right, you’re supposed to have beer, not soda.”
“I—I’m driving.” Were they really having this conversation? “What are you doing here, Cruz?” She looked behind him, realizing that he could be there on a date. The thought made her want to hurl the nacho chips.
“I’m here because I was given the great pleasure of receiving an early copy of this big deal contractors magazine that featured Sorensen Construction, something that should have had me flipping cartwheels and popping open the Champagne. But I got home and looked around and realized the only person I wanted to celebrate this coup with wasn’t there. Not only was she absent from my condo, but she was also absent from my life. And it was all because of me. Because I had my priorities all screwed up. See, I thought that I had to have the success first. That once I had success everything else would fall into place. That I’d gain the life, the self-confidence, and the woman that would make it all complete. But I realize now, that I had it backward. Success should follow all of that—so when you finally have it, you have someone who can share that moment with.”
Kate nudged her and Payton was barely aware of her friend pulling the nachos and hotdogs and drink from her lap, and finally tugging the nacho chip still clutched in her fingers.
The clashing sound from the ice and the crowd’s uproar told her that something had happened that didn’t look good for the Salt Lake Grizzlies. But she was unable to pull her gaze from the man in front of her, who had somewhere during that long litany, sat down on the step next to her so she could hear him better. So she could look into his face, touch it if she wanted.
“Payton,” he continued, having to raise his voice as the crowd’s fury around them grew louder. “I should have gone after you that first night. At the flower shop. I should have insisted on getting your name and your number and we could have avoided all this drama. I should have gone after you that day in Mexico when you walked out of my hotel room. Should have stopped you from leaving. I should have realized then that you are and would be my biggest priority. I should have gone down to brunch with you. I should have taken you to the beach like I promised. I should have made love to you every day. There are so many things I should have done, but I was a fool and I didn’t. Not realizing until now how much…how much I love you. Until it was too late.”
Tears sprang to her eyes and she tried to wipe them away but his hands stopped her, wiping them away himself. It took her a moment, once the blur from her tears was gone, to realize that he was now kneeling next to her. And from his jacket he was bringing out a box, holding it out.
It was happening exactly like she’d described it that day in that hot school bus outside of Tequila, Mexico, when she hadn’t even been sure he was listening to her.
Someone behind her patted her on the back and she finally processed that the people around them weren’t cheering on the game anymore, but were cheering them on…
Cruz was smiling, but there was reserve in his smile, uncertainty. “I am choosing you, just like I should have that day when you asked me to. And I didn’t. When I didn’t put us first. I’ll forever be sorry for that moment, but I promise you now, I’ll put us first every day, every minute, every second of our life. I choose you and sure as hell hope you still choose me. So to be clear, Payton Elisabeth Vaughn. Will you agree to marry me, to love and laugh with me all the days of our lives…again?”
She didn’t really have much choice when he put it like that. All she’d wanted was to hear him commit to her, to hear him promise to try and place them first even if at times life would make it hard. She reached out, running her hand over that bristly jawline. “Of course I’ll marry you.”
When he dropped his lips to hers and kissed her soundly, forgetting decorum, forgetting the hundreds of people around them, she melted into him. The shouts and cries around them finally seeped in after a moment and thanks to Kate, who pointed up to the Jumbotron, Payton realized their private moment was flashing above them.
Just the way she’d told it.
“I’m sorry to leave you like this, Kate,” Cruz said as he brought his arm under Payton and pulled her up against him. “But I think that my fiancée and I have a few more things we need to talk about.”
