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“It was that conversation that made it clear to me that I didn’t want to wait another moment to give her a ring,” I said as we pulled off the highway. “Even if she says no, I want her to know that I’m serious about her and ready to put my money where my mouth is.”
“How do you think you’re going to do it?” Travis asked.
“Do what?” I asked.
“The proposal, you dipshit.”
“Oh...I hadn’t really thought about it,” I admitted. “Maybe dinner?”
“Don’t do it at dinner, man. That’s lame as hell,” he said, shaking his head. “How many people do a dinner proposal?”
“What do you recommend, then?”
“You gotta do something public. In front of all the people who know her and love her, man.”
“I don’t know how we could possibly get all of those people in the same place,” I said. “I mean, we’re talking about people from here to the school, to the gym, to my parents. I want to surprise her. If I throw a big party for her, it’ll be obvious what’s coming.”
“Then don’t plan a party for her,” he said. “Plan it for me.”
“What?”
He rolled his eyes. “Come on, I’m not being an egotistical prick. But think about it—I’m getting the last dose soon, and I have to shift after. It’s a perfect scenario to bring the pack together, and that pack is comprised of most of Marley’s friends. It’s also great for setting expectations for pack members so they know you won’t put up with any bullshit when it comes to your mate. And, it will be super romantic for her.”
“What if she feels pressured to say yes to not jeopardize my standing within the pack?” I asked.
Travis gave me a deadpan look. “Bro, you guys are obsessed with each other. She’s never going to say no.”
“Bro, we’ve been dating for, like, three months. She might and would be well within her rights to say no.”
“Why don’t you just say when you ask that you’d like her to think about it and that you’ll take her answer whenever she’s ready to give it to you? Then, if she knows, she can do the whole ‘a thousand times yes’ thing and wave at her misty eyes before kissing you in front of everyone.”
I pursed my lips as I pulled up to a stoplight, rubbing my chin in thought. “Hmm. That’s actually pretty smart.”
“Don’t say ‘actually’ like you’re fucking surprised, you cocksucker.”
I laughed, accelerating as the light turned green. We turned into a parking lot for a jewelry store that had good reviews and bespoke pieces. “Let’s say we do it this way. When will we need to do this?”
“Next injection is in a couple weeks,” he said. “So, enough time to order a custom piece if you dish out the dosh.”
I snorted as I pulled into a parking spot. “Fine. We’ll throw you a party. I guess you deserve it.”
“So very kind of you,” he said with a roll of his eyes. “I think I would really like to see that place you’re thinking of for HQ, though. Or are we only ring shopping?”
“No, I legitimately want to get your opinion on the place,” I said as we went into the store. “We’ll go after this.”
Travis did his duty as my best friend and helped me pick the best ring and spend the most money. I couldn’t help but notice that he was asking a lot of questions about the rings and even looking at a few. Knowing Travis too well, I didn’t think he was getting ready to propose to Lana yet, but I also knew him well enough to know that he planned big purchases years in advance.
Occupational hazard, what with him being an accountant and all.
When we were finished at the store, I drove Travis to the hotel and showed him around the place. I gave him the rundown about how much had been done to the place versus how much needed to be done. I could see him calculating the expenses in his head as I walked him through it. When we reached the top of the building, a penthouse looking over the shimmering lake, Travis crossed his arms and turned around to face me. His face looked oddly serious with the backlighting.
“So, you’re looking at a pretty sizable injection of capital needed to finish things up here,” he said. “As you mentioned, the wiring and plumbing were already redone, which is great. But even if we do most of the work ourselves, we’re still going to need hundreds of thousands of dollars, and that’s after the purchase of the—what was it?”
“Couple million,” I said.
“Yeah. And it’s not like we’ll be making any profit from this whole deal.”
“So, basically, we need to get that grant from the government if we’re going to make this whole thing work,” I said.
