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“Yeah,” Nils replies, nodding. “I think I’m going to be cleared to play soon.”
Smiling, Arden tells him, “That’s fantastic.”
“That is great,” Willow says, jumping in.
She stands and comes over to hug Nils, then me.
Stepping back, her hands still on my elbows, she says, “And you, I heard the great news that you’re staying here in Atlanta. I’m happy you’re not leaving town, Ellie.”
“I am too,” I reply honestly. “It just feels right to stay.”
“No second thoughts, then?” she asks.
I shake my head. “Not a single one.”
She glances over at Nils, almost kind of knowingly, as she says to me, “Almost like it’s meant to be, huh?”
Nils and Arden are busy talking as they take their seats, so I catch her gaze and say softly, “I think it is.”
“Hmmm,” she hums noncommittally.
I sense she’s onto us.
You know, women’s intuition and all that.
Willow and I take our seats, and, after we’re settled, we all begin perusing our menus.
When the waiter comes over to take our orders, we’re ready.
We each order the salade Niçoise and a large coquille appetizer to share. For our entrées, I choose chicken cordon bleu, Nils orders beef bourguignon, which is a kind of French beef stew, and my brother and Willow both go with poached salmon with Hollandaise sauce.
With our orders in, the conversation flows freely. We all laugh and have a good time.
The courses arrive one by one, and we end up sharing bites of our entrées with one another.
“This salmon is amazing,” I remark.
“It is good,” Willow says. “And I’m in love with your cordon bleu.”
The guys jump in with their own commentary, and the consensus is that everything is beyond delicious.
After we’re done with our meals, we decide we’re too full for dessert, but we do opt for coffee.
There are more comments about how wonderful dinner was and how we’ll have to do this again, but I can’t help but notice that Arden and Willow keep smiling at each other like they have something to share.
Finally, Arden clears his throat, then, with a big smile, announces, “Hey, we have something we want to tell you guys. We discussed it on the way over and feel like tonight is a good time to share our news.”
From Arden’s big smile and the way Willow is blushing ever so slightly, I have a feeling she’s either pregnant or they’re getting engaged.
I’m humming with excitement at the prospect of either—or both!—when I say, “Well tell us!”
Laughing, Arden says, “It’s not official-official—’cause we’re having the engagement ring designed and it’s not ready yet—but I asked Willow to marry me.”
“And I said yes,” Willow blurts out excitedly.
“Oh my God!” I’m practically bouncing in my seat. “I am so freaking happy for you two. This is fantastic news!”
I truly am beyond ecstatic for my brother and Willow.
