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Olivia nodded. “Yeah, I get it.”
Paris smiled. “So when are you popping the question?”
“We’re—”
“O’Shea! Good to go!” Phillip damn near shouted across the pool. I gave him a thumbs up.
“I guess I’m doing it now. Come on.”
Janice stood on a chair with a megaphone. “Hello, everyone! I need everyone to go line up at the fence for a little presentation with the horses!”
Ashton put down a tray of meatballs, looking around in confusion. “What’s going on?” she asked when she approached me. I locked my fingers with hers and shrugged.
“I don’t know. Something about the horses,” I said, trying to keep the nerves out of my voice.
We followed everyone across the grass. Everyone spread out along the fence, allowing Ashton and I the center spot. The beautiful colors of the sunset provided a perfect background for the romantic occasion. I looked over to Phillip and nodded.
“We’re ready for you, Savannah,” he said into a walkie talkie. I put my arm around Ashton’s waist, kissing her cheek gently. Everyone watched as Savannah and four of her friends came riding onto the field on horses, each of them holding a flagpole. They ran around the field a couple of times before lining the horses up side by side. I reached into my pocket, taking the ring box into my hand. The girls released their flags and rode closer to us, holding the flags up to wave in the wind.
Ashton squinted, reading the words out loud as the girls passed. “Ashton….will….you….marry…m—AH!” she screamed and looked me as I got down on one knee in front of her. “O’Shea! Oh my God!”
I took her hand into mine as I smiled at her. “Last year you brought me here for the first time. It was in the barn loft that I knew for a fact that I was in love with you and knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you. This has been the best year of my entire life and having you as my partner in life would make me the happiest man in the world. Thank you for trusting me with your love and your heart. I’ve never been so grateful to find the perfect piece for my life puzzle, so…” I opened the ring box. “Will you complete my puzzle by becoming my wife? Will you marry me?”
Her body shook with sobs, unable to speak. She nodded and smiled through her tears.
“Yes,” she finally managed to get out. I kissed the back of her hand and slid the ring on her finger. She hugged me tight as everyone around us clapped for us. “I love you so much.”
“I love you too, baby.”
Everyone came over to congratulate us. Janice hugged me tight, tears streaming down her face.
“Oh, I’m just so happy!” she exclaimed, hugging me again before turning to Ashton. “And that ring is gorgeous!”
Alex and Ava came over and jumped on me, damn near knocking me on the ground. “Now you’re officially stuck with us!” Alex exclaimed as she hugged me. I chuckled.
“I kind of figured that when Ashton and I started dating,” I teased.
“Let’s see that ring, girl,” Ava said, bouncing up and down. They marveled over the ring, giggling and gushing amongst themselves. Phillip came over and put an arm around my shoulders.
“Welcome to the family, son,” he said.
I smiled. “Thanks, Phil. And thanks for your help with putting this together.”
“Anytime, anytime. Anything to make my little girl happy,” he said, his gaze moving to Ashton.
“Congrats, baby!” my mom said, hugging me. My sisters also hugged me.
“This proposal was a shit ton better than your proposal to Kayla,” Paris said.
“Yeah, because he wasn’t proposing to Kayla,” Olivia joked.
“That’s very true,” Paris said and they both laughed and moved over to Ashton, where she’d gained a group of people to look at her ring.
Phillip let out a wild whistle to get everyone’s attention. “Now that the good news is out, let’s eat!”
∞∞∞
Ashton laid her head on my lap, her legs hanging over the side of the porch swing as we lazily swung back and forth. The crowd started to disperse as it became late. Those that remained were inside the house watching TV, playing games, or just having good conversation. I ran my fingers through my fiancée’s hair.
