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Even before I asked Ciara the question, I knew it would be a bad idea to propose to her at my siblings’ party. Mack wouldn’t care, but John would hate that we stole his spotlight, even if it were for a moment.
But I couldn’t let Zeke think that he had the upper hand. I couldn’t let him win.
Mission accomplished.Over Ciara’s shoulder, I saw the smirk melt off Zeke’s face. He crossed his arms, a petulant frown adorning his face.
I looked at Ciara again. Her eyes were wide, her face stricken. Pain started shooting up my side, reminding me of how long I had been down there, waiting for an answer.
Even though I didn’t think it was the ideal way or time to propose, I was annoyed that she hadn’t already said yes. We had talked about it, and she had agreed to let it be a surprise. Besides, we were already legally married. So why was she making me wait?
After what felt like an eon, but was really only a few moments, she nodded. “Yes,” she whispered.
I breathed a sigh of relief, getting off my knee and gathering her in my arms. Cheers erupted from all sides of the event space, but over the celebration, I heard John suck his teeth and say, “Man, you couldn’t wait one more day?!”
As I hugged Ciara, I bent to her ear. “Okay to kiss you?” I asked.
“It wouldn’t be a proper proposal without it,” she answered.
I frowned at the off note in her voice. She sounded almost…angry.Maybe I’m imagining things, I thought. She couldn’t possibly be angry that we were announcing an agreed-upon, mutually beneficial engagement in public. After all, that’s what we were doing the whole thing for, right?
I suppressed my apprehension, pulling away just enough to cup her face between my hands. As I looked into her eyes, she nodded as if to say,Go ahead.I steeled myself, wishing our first kiss could be private, intimate. But I had brought it on myself by making this stupid proposal so public.
I brought my lips to hers, closing my eyes at the last second. Her body was stiff at first, but I felt her melt into my arms. I relaxed. Time slipped away as we stood there in our bubble, meeting in this way for the first time, enjoying each other anew. My body yearned to get closer to hers, to discover her sighs and moans and all the secret moments in between.
But instead, our kiss was interrupted by my siblings and father, who came over to congratulate us. They all came to me one by one until the only one left was Mack.
Her smile was lethal, sharp enough to cut steel. She pulled me down for a hug, wrapping her arms around me while whispering in my ear, “You better know what you’re doing, big brother. She’s family now. Hurt her, and I’ll hurt you.”
I widened my eyes as she pulled away, but none of her threat lingered on her face or in her body language. Instead, she grinned up at me like a proud little sister, then went to hug Ciara. And I was left wondering what I was going to do when this sham of a marriage fell apart.
The celebration continued, both for the twins’ birthday and for our engagement. Zeke sulked in the corner with his wife—who spent all her time on her phone—until midway through the party, when they finally left. And I felt myself relax.
Well, mostly.
Ciara had her pleasant face on, but just barely. Every time I came near her, she stiffened and found some reason to slip away. She spent much of the night with Mack and Alex. And I found myself with my dad and brothers, unable to get away.
By the end of the night, I was exhausted from answering questions and spending mental energy strategizing—and failing—to get Ciara alone. Ciara and I bid our goodbyes and hopped in my car, heading toward her house so I could drop her off.
Now that I had her alone, I couldn’t get the words out of my mouth. The apprehension I felt at the party came back in full force, choking off any sentences I tried to start.
The car was silent for the whole drive to Ciara’s, the energy the exact opposite from earlier that day. Ciara sat looking out the window with her back to me, watching the scenery pass by. I tried to put on some Biggie to get her to talk to me but to no avail.
We pulled in front of her house, and she turned to me with a smile plastered on her face. “Thanks for a lovely evening,” she said. “I’ll see you soon.”
“Right,” I said. As she unbuckled her seatbelt and started to get out of the car, I put a hand on her arm. “Ciara, wait.”
She turned back to me, a puzzled look on her face. “Yes?”
“Did I do something wrong? You seem…different. Since the proposal.”
Her eyes flashed for a moment but then shuttered. “No, you didn’t do anything wrong,” she assured. “Everything went according to plan. But I should really get some sleep; I’m exhausted.”
I hesitated; intuition told me that I did do something wrong, but I knew I shouldn’t press her on it.
I moved my hand away from her arm. “Of course. Goodnight, Ciara. Sleep well, and we’ll chat soon.”
She nodded, opening the door. “Goodnight, Nathan. Talk soon.”
She walked up the unkempt front lawn, pausing to find her keys at the door. I waited until she was inside before I drove off, wondering what it was that I did wrong.
