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Edward kisses the top of my head and pulls me closer to him. “What can I say? Ethan’s contagious.”
“Ethan? You’re the instigator here, Bear,” Cassidy says. “Or do I need to remind you that it was your obsession with silly games that led to all this?”
“Weren’t you seeing someone, though?” I ask Zach, remembering what Edward told me about the busty blonde fawning over him in the club before.
He shrugs, swirling his drink absently. “Didn’t work out.”
“Hey, Edward, maybe Zach should be your next project,” Ethan offers with a devilish grin.
Despite my boyfriend’s recent turning over of a new leaf, his friend’s suggestion has an effect on him. I can feel the way he sits a little straighter, his excitement emanating from him as he leans over the table.
“Now you’re talking,” Edward says, jabbing his finger at Ethan. “There’s nothing a friendly wager can’t fix.”
“No, you’re staying out of my love life,” Zach shakes his head emphatically. “I’ve seen enough drama to last me seven lifetimes.”
The guys start laughing and I tap Edward’s shoulder. “And by the way, you’re a recovering meddler, remember? No more wagers.”
“Fine, I’ll stay out of it,” Edward gives in, sounding a little too disappointed. “But someone has to do something to help this guy out. He’s a lost cause.”
“Hey,” Zach says. “I’ll have you know that just because you guys are coupled up, doesn’t mean everyone else has to. I’m fine on my own. The lone wolf rises above the pack.”
“I have an idea,” Cassidy says, raising her glass to the center of our table. We all lift our own in response. “Zach, you should come by the bakery some time. I have a blind date that might test your lone wolf theory.”
“I’m not drinking to that,” Zach takes back his glass and downs his drink in one.
The rest of us all salute Cassidy’s idea. We share a look and both start laughing at the same time. Because we know better than the guys do, that their hearts are looking for a home just as much as anyone else’s.
“How are you feeling about your first movie premier, Cara?” Ethan asks. “It’s a big night.”
“A little nervous, but it helps having a red carpet pro on my arm,” I reply, beaming up at Edward.
He leans in and kisses me warmly. “They’re going to love you almost as much as I do.”
“Oh, God, can we go already?” Zach says, sliding out of the booth. “I don’t know how much more of this mushy romantic stuff I can take.”
* * *
The carpetat the charity event was nothing compared to what we step out to when the limo stops. The flashes are blinding and it sounds as though hundreds of people are yelling at me at the same time, telling me where to stand, how to pose, riddling me with questions while they’re at it.
“Not a bad turn out for a piece of shit movie, right?” Edward whispers in my ear as he leads me to our next spot on the red carpet.
I can’t help but laugh, thinking back to the day I met him and how I blasted his ego for lack of a better response to his absurd behavior. To think that’s where it started and now look… I would’ve laughed in his face if he’d told me that someday he would be my exclusive plus one to high profile events like this.
“Cara! How about a spin so we can get the back of your dress?”
Edward steps aside, holding out his arm to show me off as I do a slow twirl on the spot. I feel like a princess in a fairytale, living a dream. I pause for a moment with my back to the hundreds of cameras, doing my due diligence for every fashion blog out there. Suddenly the crowd goes wild and the cacophony of voices rises to a fever pitch.
“I think I killed it with the Chanel,” I say to Edward, but he’s strangely quiet. I look for him out of the corner of my eye but find an empty space where he’d been standing just seconds ago.
Feeling suddenly nervous, like I’m floating out here on my own without an anchor, I complete my turn and come back to face the front. And there he is, down on one knee, holding up the most gorgeous diamond I’ve ever seen.
Tears sting my eyes as my hands fly up to cover my mouth. “What are you doing?”
“I’m starting a new life, and so are you,” Edward says, his own eyes glistening in the brilliant flashes. “What do you say we do it together as husband and wife?”
Yes. Three letters, easy enough to say. But my throat’s all choked up with tears and an overflow of love I have for this man in front of me. I nod madly, pulling him to his feet so I can kiss him. But before that happens, Edward sweeps me up into his arms, spinning me around to wave of delighted cries and cameras all around us.
“I love you, Cara,” he whispers against my lips as he kisses me softly.
