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“You’re here,” I said, kissing her again.
“Where else would I be?” she said sleepily. “I’m sorry I wasted so much time on what other people think. I care what you think. And what I think, because I’m pretty sure I love you. I’ve loved you all my life. I don’t want to be with anyone else, Luke. You’re it for me. Just like you said at dinner, I don’t plan on going anywhere,” her confident smile was beautiful.
“You don’t have to sell me, sweetheart. You have me already. I love you. And I said it first,” I said, grinning. I kissed her lips softly, tentatively.
“Don’t waste another minute, Luke, please,” she said, pulling impatiently at my t-shirt.
“One thing first,” I said, “come on in here,” I led her into the bedroom.
“You’ve been the only one I wanted for a long time now. I could get used to coming home like this, to you. When I say forever, I mean it,” I said.
I reached into the nightstand drawer. I took out the ring box and handed it to her. She gaped, her mouth an oh of surprise that made me laugh, “So put this on and say yes.”
“I’m sorry, say yes to what? I thought that my All American could ask me the question. Or are you afraid?”
“As long as I have you, I’m not afraid of anything. Sarah Jo, will you be my wife? To have and to hold and to pick the locks at my house and to kiss under willow trees and to wear my coat anytime you want to?” I asked.
“Yes,” she said, her voice soft and rough with tears as she hugged me tightly. “You’re all I’ve ever wanted, Luke. Who knew the first time could be the charm? Because you were the first boy I ever kissed.”
“You were the first girl I ever loved. And you’ll be the last.”
She hardly saw the ring I put on her finger, because we were kissing.
Sarah Jo said something about being thrown out of her house, about being homeless. “You live here,” I said. “You belong here with me. I’ll have to send your dad a thank-you fruit basket for pushing you out the door so I could have you sooner.”
She smiled and hugged me close.
“Are you still going to run the lumberyard for him?” I asked.
“For a while, until I find a new manager. Then I’ll decide whether to get a job someplace or if I want to try my luck at the Langford greenhouse. I kind of like the idea of it—all those seedlings, and teaching people about what plants work together and what’s best for their soil type.”
“I think we can make that happen,” I said with a grin.
“You think so?” she said. “I can sell my car to pay down some of my student loan. Then if I work for a year or so, build up my credit score, I might be able to get a loan to buy it.”
“Sarah Jo, not that I thought I’d be discussing my FICO score during a marriage proposal, but I have good credit. We can get a loan. I’ve got some money saved that’ll take us on a nice honeymoon, and some more besides. I work at the bar a lot, and I’ve always saved what I made there and lived off my fireman’s salary. You don’t need to worry.”
“Are you saying you’re rich?” she giggled.
“No, I’m saying I’ve got money in the bank, and there’s nothing I’d rather do with it than start building a life with you,” I said.
“I love you. Hey, do you think your mom and dad would let me wait tables on the nights you tend bar? So we could hang out together?”
“Yeah. Or they could hire somebody else so I can spend my nights at home.”
“I like that idea, too. Either way. Any way I can get you,” she said.
“Are you even gonna look at that ring?” I teased.
“Yeah, I did, it’s beautiful,” she said, finally looking at it. “It’s not what I expected. It’s better. How did you know I love emeralds?” Sarah Jo tilted her hand in the dim lamplight to see it better, the thin gold band set with a round emerald, a tiny diamond on each side.
“How about the fact I listen?” I said. “Green is your favorite color, always has been. You wore my class ring for four months when you were sixteen, on a chain around your neck, hidden in your shirt. Do you remember what you said when I gave it to you?”
“Thank you?” she guessed.
“No. You said it’s a shame it’s a ruby and not an emerald.”
“Wow. I was bratty. I should’ve just said thanks,” she said, “and I’m surprised you remember that. I mean, I’m a little embarrassed that I said it, and that you remembered it.”
