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Once we’re alone, Flint pulls me into his arms. With my head against his chest, the strong, reassuring beat of his heart is in my ears. I revel in the feel of his powerful body against mine, wondering how I ever got so lucky.
“I love you, Oriana,” Flint murmurs. “And I can’t wait to be your husband.”
My heart swells and I hold on to him tighter.
“I can’t wait to grow old with you,” he continues, his hand rubbing circles over my back. “I want to do all that soppy shit with you that I never wanted before I met you. The big fucking wedding; the honeymoon. I want the kids, and the dog, and most of all, I want you.”
I lean back to look at him, not bothering to wipe away the happy tears running down my face. “Is this your way of asking me to marry you?” I ask teasingly.
Instead of laughing as I expected, Flint takes in a deep breath and goes down on one knee. I gasp, a hand going to my mouth.
“You’re my everything, Oriana. You make me so fucking happy it’s crazy.” He takes a little velvet box out of his pocket and pops it open, revealing an emerald ring surrounded by a cluster of small diamonds. “Will you marry me?”
Flint
The gravel digs into my knee, but I barely notice it. My attention is fixed on Oriana’s beautiful, tear-stained face, on her eyes still wide with surprise. On her lips curved into a dazzling smile.
“Of course I’ll marry you,” she says, laughing through her tears.
“Thank fuck,” I say, grinning as I stand up.
She laughs again, and with a jolt, I realize that I’ll get to listen to her joyful laugh for the rest of my life. I slip the ring onto her finger and watch as she holds it up, admiring the stones glittering in the sunlight.
“It’s perfect,” she says.
I take her hand in mine and brush a kiss to the ring. “Good. Your mom and Emma helped me with it,” I admit. “I took them with me to the jeweler and everything.”
“I can’t believe neither of them said anything. I mean, Emma can keep a secret for sure. But my mom?” She shakes her head, then snorts. “I feel bad for the people working there. They were probably terrified of you.”
Remembering the panic on the middle-aged woman’s face when we walked in, I grin. “Yeah. But we won her over. Well, your mom and Emma did.”
“Did they know you’d do it today?”
I shake my head. “I didn’t even know I’d do it today. I mean, I’ve been carrying the ring around with me for a while, just waiting for the perfect moment, and—I don’t know. This just felt right, with your father finally getting arrested and all. Like that chapter is finally over and we’re ready for a new one. Unless you want a big romantic proposal at a fancy restaurant or something,” I add, suddenly nervous. “If you want, we can still do that.” I figured she wouldn’t be into the whole dramatic proposal thing. Even though Emma and Sarah agreed, I suddenly fear I was wrong.
She slips her hand in mine and tugs me toward the clubhouse. “No. I don’t want any of that. It was perfect. Because it was real and it came from the heart. And that’s all I ever wanted. And now all I want is to tell everyone about it.”
I laugh, letting her drag me to the clubhouse. Everyone is already sitting at the bar, talking and laughing. We walk in, and Sarah’s eyes go to her daughter’s hand, then to her smiling face. She jumps off the bar stool and runs toward us, Emma following close behind.
“I knew it! I’m so happy for you,” Sarah says, hugging both of us. At the bar, everyone else looks confused.
Emma chimes in, “I’m so excited! I can’t wait for the wedding.”
That’s when everyone else realizes what’s going on. They come up to congratulate us, and they all look so genuinely happy that my throat closes up. These people are my family, my brothers and sisters.
“Let’s celebrate,” Holly says, a bottle of champagne already in her hand.
And we do. We stay up until the early hours of the morning, laughing and talking, just enjoying each other’s company. Oriana stays by my side the entire night, her hand in mine. It’s past three by the time we leave. We walk in silence, my arm around her shoulders. There’s no need for words.
And when we walk through the doors of our home, I can’t help but smile. This is the place where we’ll build a life together; a future. We’ll laugh here and cry. We’ll fight and make up. But most importantly, we’ll be together.
We fall into bed, both of us exhausted. Oriana snuggles up close to me, our noses almost touching, and I put an arm around her waist, holding her tight. Her eyes flutter shut and her face is serene. She looks like she’s already asleep. Still, I speak. “I love you. And I can’t wait to do this with you, sweetheart.”
“Do what?” Her voice is hoarse with tiredness.
“Life.”
She opens her eyes and gives me a sleepy smile before brushing a kiss to my lips. “Neither can I, Flint. No matter what happens, I know you’ll keep me safe. I know you’ll make me happy.”
She rests her head on my chest and I hold her tight, marveling at the trust she places in me; at her complete conviction that I can be everything she needs. I don’t know if I can—but I know I’ll try. Because there’s nothing I wouldn’t do for her.
THE END
