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As soon as he brought the truck to a stop, she got out, and he met her in front of the hood.
“Don’t you like it?” she asked.
“I do. It’s great.”
Her heart sank. That wasn’t exactly the kind of enthusiasm she’d been hoping for.
~ ~ ~
Xander wrapped his arm around her shoulders and shoved his other hand in his pocket. The ring box was right there. He’d transferred it into the pocket of whatever he was wearing every day since he’d bought it. It was the perfect ring; it was just that he was waiting for the perfect moment.
Was this it? He didn’t know. He might not be sure about the moment, but he knew from the look on Tori’s face that this was the place. She’d told him that while the other girls had dreamed big dreams about big weddings, she wanted to get married in a little chapel. Even he could tell that this was the kind of chapel that little girls would dream about. It was small, had an authentic looking stone façade, and even a bell tower. The setting was perfect with the lake and the mountains in the background.
He let her lead him through the grounds toward the lake. In his mind’s eye, he could see their friends and family milling around the place. He ran his finger over the ring box again. Maybe he should just go ahead and ask her now? Then it hit him – he was a damned fool. He couldn’t ask her yet. He hadn’t spoken to her parents. He didn’t doubt for a moment that Ria would give him her blessing. He hadn’t seen her dad, Matthew, for a few years, but he’d always gotten along with the guy – he didn’t think that he would have any objections, either. But it wouldn’t be right to ask Tori to marry him without speaking to them first.
Tori stopped a few feet short of the bluff that overlooked the water.
“Oh, look! There are even steps down to that little beach.”
“It’s a great little place.” He was aware how hollow the words sounded, but he didn’t know what to say. He wanted to join in her enthusiasm, but if he did, he didn’t want her to think that he was more excited about the location than he was about marrying her. Then again, seeing the disappointment on her face, he had to say something.
“Is this the kind of place where you’d want to get married?”
She met his gaze and held it for a moment before looking away. “Yeah,” she said quietly.
He felt like the biggest asshole on the face of the earth. He drew her closer until he could wrap his arms around her.
“Me, too. Can I ask you a favor, sprite?”
It killed him when she looked up at him, and he saw the doubt in her eyes. “Of course.”
“Just give me a little bit of time?”
He knew that he’d said the wrong thing when her chin dropped. “Of course. There’s no rush. I’m not even…”
He caught her chin in his hand and made her look back up at him. “I want to do this right, Tori. Do you trust me?”
A rush of warmth filled his chest when she nodded without hesitation. “I do.”
He pressed a kiss to her lips. “I’m going to be the happiest man in the world when you say those two words to me here. All I’m asking for is a little bit of time to get it right, okay?”
She gave him a small smile. “Okay.”
~ ~ ~
By the time they’d completed their circuit of the lake, Tori was ready to go home, have some dinner, and curl up to watch a movie. The coming week was probably going to be the busiest one they’d had yet.
She was surprised when Xander didn’t take the turnoff back to Cam and Piper’s house. “Where are we going?”
“I thought we could stop in to see your mom and Russ.”
She made a face. “We’ll see them during the week.”
“I know, we don’t need to stop for long. It’s just that … We’re going to be so busy next week.”
He was right. It wasn’t as though she didn’t want to see them, it was just that she hadn’t been expecting it.
“Unless you don’t want to?”
