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“Thong?” I gave him an innocent look. “Oh, you think I’m wearing underwear?”
Lucas stopped abruptly. “Vince, the duck isn’t worth it.”
Vincent had to carry me out of the house over his shoulder, like a dangling carrot for the others to follow. Jason drove, Vincent took the passenger seat, and I sat in the back between Manson and Lucas. They each rested a hand on my bare thigh, and those hands kept wandering as we drove. Soon, they had teased me into such a frenzy that not even the music could cover my whimpers.
“Don’t fuck up her makeup before we’ve even gotten there,” Jason said, grinning at us in the rearview mirror.
“Counterpoint:dofuck up her makeup and let her squirm in front of the waiters,” Vincent said, peering over his seat with a wicked grin.
They’d told me the restaurant was “nice,” but it was far more than just that. We were seated near the windows, where we had a beautiful view of the sunset over the trees. A pianist, seated at a massive grand piano beneath an elaborate chandelier, played Chopin as two bottles of champagne were brought to our table.
“I don’t think I’ll ever look at a champagne bottle the same way again,” I said, earning myself four smoldering looks.
We raised our glasses in a toast, clinking them together as the flickering candlelight made the bubbles sparkle like tiny fireworks. The food was delicious, and I thought I was too full to consume another bite until I caught sight of the dessert menu. It didn’t take much convincing to get Vincent to split a slice of Tiramisu with me.
The moment the waiter turned away from delivering the slice, the boys all exchanged a look.
“So what do you think?” Manson said. “Do we ruin her makeup now?”
“I still think we should have done it earlier,” Vincent said. “Trying to be patient is torture.”
“She’s ready for it,” Lucas said, giving me a wink that made my entire body tingle.
“Let’s do it,” Jason said.
“What the hell are you doing?” I hissed, trying to keep my voice down. “We can’t mess around in here!”
“Who said anything about messing around?” Manson said.
He reached into his jacket and withdrew a small black box tied with a silver ribbon. He set it in front of me, tightly clasping his hands together as he said, “No messing around, Jess. This is serious business.”
“What’s the occasion?” I said, looking between them as I loosened the ribbon. Vincent looked like he would literally burst out of his seat. Jason’s leg was tapping repeatedly under the table, and I swore Lucas was holding his breath. I laughed. “Is this some kind of prank? Is a snake going to jump out at me the second I open —”
The ribbon drifted to the floor as I opened the box.
Inside was a key...and a ring.
The key was shiny, clearly new. The ring had five gems set in a platinum band, with two diamonds on either side of a pear-cut pink sapphire. It was stunning. It caught the light beautifully, casting shimmers as the box shook in my hands.
As I lifted my head, I found them all staring nervously back at me. Manson cleared his throat.
“We got that house, Jess.” My eyes were stinging with tears as I gasped. “It was a hell of a fight to get a high enough bid in but we closed on it yesterday. We told the realtor not to give it away. That’s your key.” He cleared his throat again. “There’s a note in there. I figured, uh...well...I figured we’d all end up a bit tongue-tied so...”
My hands were shaking so hard I could barely unfold the note neatly tucked above the ring.
Jessica,
We’ve been pushing each other’s buttons since we were hardly more than kids. You’ve seen us at our worst, and been there to see us become our best.
This key opens your haven: a place where you can be who you are, where you can grow, change, and live how you want to without fear. We want to share this place with you, we want our home to be your home. Even one more night spent without you would be too much.
Our family may not be ordinary or easily understood, but we want you to be a part of it.
We know marriage isn’t exactly an option for us, at least not in the legal sense. But that doesn’t change what this ring means to us — we want to be with you, loving you and supporting you. Our lives are intertwined like the stones in this ring. They may be brilliant alone, but each supports the other. If any of them were missing, the balance would be off.
You took a chance on something you didn’t believe you should have, and we did the same. That chance was worth it in every possible way, so we decided to take another.
We love you, Jessica, far more than words could encompass. We’ve spent all our lives reaching for the light, and you burned through us like fire. We’re the luckiest men in the world to have you in our lives, and you’d make us even luckier if you accepted this.
