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“Wouldn’t miss it for anything,” Dad replied, raising a beer. He and Sam clinked their bottles against each other.
One minute.
We gathered in a circle. Sam and Dad on the sofa, Mum and Ruby on armchairs, and Hannah and I standing between them.
Ruby started calling out. “Ten, nine, eight…”
I reached into my pocket and wrapped my fingers around the small velvet box inside it.
“Seven, six, five…”
I turned to face Hannah and dropped to one knee.
“Four, three, two…”
She stared at me with wide hazel eyes. My heart brimmed with love for her. She’d danced into our lives a little less than a year ago and made everything so much better.
“Hannah,” I said, flipping the box open as Ruby’s countdown ended. “Will you marry me?”
“Yes,” she whispered, taking the box from me. Her smile wobbled. Was that a good thing? “It’s beautiful.” She closed the box and wrapped a hand in mine, pulling me to my feet. I swept her into a kiss, but kept it brief since Ruby and our parents were watching avidly.
“I love you.” I brushed her hair off her forehead and held her beautiful gaze. “Stay with us, forever.”
“I’d love to.”
Ruby pounced on her, breaking the thread of tension between us. “I helped choose the ring,” she said. “Do you like it?”
Laughing, Hannah opened the box again, took the ring out, and slid it onto her finger. The band was platinum, and a little quirky, like her.
“It’s beautiful,” Hannah said. “I love you guys. Thank you for making me part of your family.”
Family.
The word settled in my heart and warmed me from the inside out. That’s what we were, and what we always would be. I had faith in our love lasting a lifetime. We may not always be perfect, but together, we were strong enough to get through anything.
THE END
