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“Baby?” he asked.
Peyton held up a finger as he struck another match and finished lighting all the candles he’d set up on the shelf. When he was done, Hudson was able to see his sofa and the low coffee table laid out with pillows, flowers, and a bottle of wine.
Shit.
Fuck.
Oh God…he knew what this was. He’d created a scenario in his head far too similar to this one all the time before panicking and shutting it down. And Peyton had beat him to the punch?
Hudson lucked his lips. “Baby, what—”
“I know you don’t like celebrating anniversaries. I know it makes you nervous,” Peyton interrupted softly as he took a few steps closer. “And I know this is a few days late. But this year has been the best thing that ever happened to me.Youare the best thing that ever happened to me.”
Jesus Christ, this was almost like Peyton was reading off the mental script Hudson had written for his own proposal.
“If this is what I think it is,” he started, his voice choked.
Peyton shrugged and offered a sheepish grin. “You always tell me I have zero ability to hide my intentions, so… yeah. It probably is what you think it is.” He worried his bottom lip between his teeth, his fingers twisting together in front of his body. “Will you sit? Um…on the sofa, I mean.”
Hudson hesitated, then held up a finger before giving his wheels a hard push and gliding across the floor toward his desk. It took him all of ten seconds to find the box and tuck it into his pocket. He was also being pretty fucking obvious, but a small part of him was hoping that Peyton was too caught up in his own nerves to notice.
He almost laughed when he realized his hands were shaking. And then again when he realized that he’d tried to wait for the perfect moment, and Peyton was creating it for him.
God, Hudson loved him so damn much.
He gave his wheels another hard push and headed to the sofa. He made the transfer in seconds, shoving his chair over so there was room for Peyton, who looked at the space next to Hudson, then at the floor.
Hudson said a silent prayer Peyton wouldn’t kneel. He didn’t want that kind of proposal between them. He wanted them to look each other in the eye, face to face, on equal ground.
Peyton chose to sit, and Hudson’s eyes got hot.
“I don’t have a speech,” Peyton blurted, then let out a quiet laugh and shook his head. “I mean, I did have one, but I kept forgetting to write it down, and now the only thing in my head is jumbled words. I’m sorry. I—I think—”
“Peyt,” Hudson murmured softly, reaching for him. “My love.”
Peyton’s face bloomed pink. He flourished under soft terms of endearment and praise the way plants did under a warm spring sun, and Hudson wanted to spend the rest of his life being that for him.
“I love you,” Peyton said, and he reached for something on the table. Hudson noticed his hands shaking too and he almost laughed because they were such jackasses, but in the best fucking way possible. “I love you so much and I’m just going to ask.”
“Yes,” Hudson said.
Peyton blinked, then rolled his eyes but surged forward, grabbing one of Hudson’s hands while kissing him furiously. “At least let me get through the question,” he said against Hudson’s lips.
“Fine. But um. But only if you let me ask one of my own,” Hudson whispered.
Peyton’s whole body froze, and he only pulled back enough to be understood clearly. “How long were you planning that?”
“A few months,” Hudson grumbled, feeling suddenly embarrassed. “Five. Six,” he corrected after a beat, because yeah. He had no fucking chill and it had definitely been six.
In fact, he’d started ring shopping the day Peyton picked him up from PT and his mom was waiting for him for the first time. Hudson was sure the drama of it all would send Peyton running for the hills. Especially when his mom got racist and loud.
Instead, Peyton had just laughed in her face—literally—bought them both burritos to take home, then spent the afternoon helping Hudson make sure that his mom was blocked on everything so she couldn’t access him again.
Hudson had shown his appreciation that night by laying Peyton out and fucking him until he swore he saw the man’s soul try to leave his body. Peyton did not complain.
Hudson wondered if maybe he’d complain now, though, knowing that Hudson had been ready to leap so damn early.
“I would have said yes six months ago,” Peyton told him, shattering the wall of anxiety that had risen in front of Hudson’s heart. “Why did you wait?”
