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I spent the morning looking at engagement rings and, with my mom’s help, I purchased one. I told her I wanted the proposal to be romantic, something she’ll remember forever, and I wasn’t sure if the Christmas festival was the right place. After some brainstorming, we came up with the perfect place.
“I figured I’d surprise you.” I shrug, trying to appear nonchalant so she doesn’t think anything’s up. “I know you get off soon, and I was thinking we could do something with Jordan this afternoon.”
“Like what?” she asks curiously.
“It’s a surprise.”
“You and those damn surprises.” She playfully side-eyes me. “I’ll be off in twenty minutes. Want a coffee while you wait?”
“I’d prefer you, but a coffee will do.” I smirk, and she rolls her eyes.
But as she turns to grab a mug, I catch the small smile on her lips.
When her shift ends, we drive to Jordan’s school to grab her. Instead of running to her mom, she heads straight for me when she sees me. “Pierce! Guess what? Friday is my day for show-and-tell, and Mrs. Molly told me I could bring anything I wanted to show the class. I asked her if I could bring Cinderella, and she said I could as long as you bring her in. Can you bring her in, please?”
She clasps her hands together and hits me with the most adorable puppy eyes, and even if I couldn’t do it, I’d find a way for it to happen. Because holy shit, how the hell could I ever say no to her?
“Jordan,” Kelsie says, using the mom tone I’ve learned all moms have. “I’m sure Pierce—”
“—would love to bring Cinder to your school for show-and-tell,” I finish. “I get off work Friday morning, so just let me know what time.”
“Really?” Jordan shrieks. “Thank you!”
She throws her arms around my legs, and I glance at Kelsie, whose eyes are glassy.
“What’s wrong?” I ask when we start to walk toward my truck.
“Nothing,” she says. “Everything is perfect.”
“Wow, what is this place?” Jordan gasps as she takes in the area.
I told the girls to dress warmly but wouldn’t tell them why. After stopping for dinner, we drove about an hour north to a little town called Northwood. I purchased the tickets online, so once the woman scans them, we head into the exhibit.
“Mommy, look!” Jordan yells, pointing at the sculpted ice castles. “It’s like a princess castle.”
“Jordan!” Tilly runs toward us with Sara and Beckett on her heels, and Kelsie gives me a look of surprise.
“I didn’t know they were coming,” Kelsie says, walking over and giving Sara a hug. “What a great surprise.”
“Pierce mentioned it, and we thought it’d be fun,” Sara says casually.
“Kelsie,” Beckett says. “Good to see you again.”
We spend the next half hour exploring the ice castles, caves, and sliding down the ice slides, working our way toward the Chilly Alcove. By the time we make it there, the sun has gone down and the castles are now lit up. With them being so high and surrounding the area, it looks like we’re in a winter wonderland.
Taking Kelsie’s hand in mine, I guide her into the alcove I rented for tonight. Unlike the rest of the area that’s open to the public, this area is private, the walls creating a bit of intimacy.
When Kelsie notices that my parents, as well as my other brother, Jackson, and his wife, Allison, and their two kids, Matthew and Anna, are standing to the side and smiling at us, her hand tightens around mine.
Before she can ask what’s going on, I turn her around and drop to one knee—again.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
KELSIE
One minute, we were enjoying the beautiful ice castles, the next, Pierce is on one knee, looking up at me with his family surrounding us. For a moment, I wonder if I imagined the last proposal, but I know I didn’t. Which means he’s proposing again—this time in front of his family and Jordan, in the middle of a magical wonderland.
“Kelsie,” Pierce begins, his eyes filled with so much love and warmth, I want to burrow into his chest and hibernate all winter. “When I built my house, I tried to imagine what it would look like. I visited several model homes and made a checklist of everything I could want or need in my house. When the house was done, I looked around and inspected it. The kitchen had everything I wanted, the bedrooms were exactly how I envisioned them, and the fireplace was built to perfection. I designed every part of the house myself, and it all came out precisely how I imagined it, yet for some reason it felt incomplete.
“My family came over and told me it was beautiful and perfect, except every night, I’d look around and wonder what was missing. Then you stepped through the door, and I knew at that moment, it wasn’t something that was missing, it was someone.”
