Page 56 of About to Fall

"Yeah, I am. I'll be out there in a minute."

"Are you sure I can't help you with anything?"

"No. I mean, yeah, I’m sure. I'm almost done. Thanks, though, Jordan."

I had already gotten one swimsuit wet, and I was glad I had a dry one. I retrieved my bag from the laundry room and I went into Micah's bedroom to change. I thought about using a spare bedroom, but it just felt wrong. In my heart, I was the lady of the house, and being in his bedroom felt natural to me. Plus, I knew he wouldn't care if I went in there.

I went straight to his bathroom and changed into my dry swimsuit. It was a one-piece blue suit I had worn in front of him before.

I was stashing my clothes in my bag when I noticed a small box on his nightstand. It wasn't just any box, either. It was unmistakably a ring box.

I wasn't usually the type to snoop.

I respected other people's privacy.

But it was a gorgeous ring box that was vintage-looking and ornate, and I felt in my heart that it was meant for me. I tried to tell myself not to open it, but I just couldn't stop.

I picked it up off of the night stand, and when I did, I saw a note. It had been folded into a small square and tucked under the ring box, and the outside of it said, "Claire, open me first."

I looked around. It was definitely Micah's handwriting. I set down the ring box and opened the paper. There was a note on the inside and I read it.

Claire,

I bought you this engagement ring, and I haven't made a plan yet about when or how to give it to you. If you want a formal proposal sometime in the future, just put it back where you found it, and I will ask you to marry me later. I do want to give you the option of having it now, though. It's yours. I bought it for you. I would love nothing more than to marry you and start a life together. If, at any point you wish to skip the formalities, you're welcome to take the ring and put it on your finger where it belongs. If you do that, I'll know you want to marry me, and we can start planning. If this is all too soon for you or you want an official proposal later, all you have to do is fold up this piece of paper and place it under the box where you found it. I'll never know the difference. I'll just assume you never saw it or didn't pick it up.

I love you.

I will always love you.

Micah

Chapter 20

I didn't even have to think about it.

I didn't hesitate at all.

I opened the ring box, knowing that I was going to take out the ring and put it directly on my finger. I was being proposed to, and I was all alone in the room. Honestly, it was perfect. I didn't need anything else, and I would not change a thing about this moment. I let out a tiny squeal, feeling so excited that I could barely contain myself.

The ring was beautiful. It was either vintage or a vintage reproduction, but it was exquisite. There was a large round cut diamond in the center, and it was set on an ornate, art deco style setting with smaller diamonds on each side. I stared at the gorgeous, flawless, shining stone, and I was overwhelmed with thankfulness.

I could not wait to be Mrs. Lacey. There was absolutely no way I was going to fold this piece of paper up and stash it back under the ring like Micah suggested in the note. The ring fit my finger perfectly, and I was relatively certain I was never, ever going to take it off again.

I left everything where it was—the open box, the note, my bag—everything was just left there while me and my new ring headed directly for the swimming pool. I could not stop smiling. I couldn't even dampen down my smile—it was spread across my face, and there was nothing I could do to erase it.

As much as I wanted to walk outside with my hand held straight in the air (fingers pointing up, palm facing in), I did not do that. The perma-grin was enough to show that something was going on. I didn't want to come right out and announce it. I wanted to tell Micah first.

I grabbed a towel from the closet on my way out and I tried to hold it nonchalantly as I walked. There were ten of us at the house, so it was noisy and busy when I got outside.

Micah had a nice diving board with a spring, and Ryan and his friend were jumping off of it and catching passes that were being thrown by Isaac. Micah was sitting close to Isaac on the side of the pool in the shallow end. Ari and the two girls who came with Ryan were standing near Micah, talking to him.

He was looking at them and talking when I walked out there, so he didn't see me at first. He had done a lot of working out as a means of coping with the stresses of fame, and his physical appearance was breathtaking. I had to remind myself to breathe. My husband.That was what the ring had meant, right?He was going to be my husband.

I stared at him, feeling like I could hardly believe it. He had pecs and abs and other muscles in all the right places, and he was sitting there casually. I blinked and I saw a flash of Logan, the boy Birdy found sitting outside the soup kitchen. And then I blinked again and there he was, fully restored, surrounded by a gorgeous home and people who loved him. He was the master of this estate—he had built all this from nothing.

I was humbled that he loved me, and I was feeling overjoyed and confident as I walked to the diving board and got in line behind one of Ryan's friends. "What's up, Cody?" I said, standing next to him and pretending nothing was different with me even though I felt like I was a changed woman as a result of the new item on my finger.

"What's up, Claire, you swimming?"

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