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My pulse sped up at that thought.
As I turned out all the lights except the tree and the twinklers, casting the living room and kitchen in a cozy warmth, I added to the list of things I loved about Quincy. She was full of joy and sunshine, loved to laugh, didn’t take herself too seriously, and the way she’d worn that little dress tonight… A low growl rumbled out of me at the memory. What the holy hell had I done to have such a gorgeous woman fall in love with me?
If I didn’t have detailed plans for the rest of the night, I’d be in the bedroom with her, peeling that dress off and loving the body beneath it. The loving-her-body part would have to wait just a little longer.
I’d shed my khakis and button-down and pulled on my flannel pj pants and a sweatshirt, then checked on Juniper, who was sleeping soundly.
The last of our guests—Seth, Everly, Cash, and Ava—had gone home nearly an hour ago after insisting on helping us clean. My dad, Faye, Hayden, Zane, and Harrison had left earlier so they could make the drive back to Nashville before the snowfall became heavier.
There’d been no tension tonight, not with Cash or anyone else in my new family. There’d been only love, teasing, laughter, and goodwill. Everyone we’d invited mixed well, from Max and Chance to Quincy’s younger siblings to everyone in between. The holiday spirit had been a tangible presence in our home. I couldn’t remember ever feeling so blessed.
I wasn’t done with this night yet, not even close. I had plans, but as I peered out the door to the deck, I was mentally pivoting.
The snow was coming down in large, beautiful flakes now. The ground was covered, though it wasn’t yet sticking to the deck. The night sky was lightened by the white reflection and the strings of lights along the deck railing.
In light of my altered plans, I shoved my feet into my boots, went out onto the deck, and moved the welcome mat out by the railing. As I glanced up to the sky, the effect of billions of flakes coming at me was mesmerizing. Magical. Just as I’d hoped.
I hurried back inside and found Quincy’s boot slippers and puffy jacket. When she emerged from our room, she wore a thermal pajama set with polar bears wearing Santa hats. There was supposed to be nothing sexy about them, but her wearing them? My blood was stirred.
“I thought we were going to cuddle on the couch and look at the tree?” she said when I held up her jacket.
“Change of plans. You have to see this snow. It’s magical.”
Without questioning, she spun her back to me and let me slide her coat on. I pointed at her boots, and she stuffed her feet in, then faced me with a “what now?” look.
I picked her up bridal style, carried her out to the mat, and set her down.
With her pretty eyes looking up at the heavens, she let out an awed gasp.
“It’s breathtaking,” she said, holding her hands out to her sides as if trying to catch all the flakes. “Like a snow globe.”
Instead of looking upward, I couldn’t take my gaze off Quincy. As she did a slow half circle, her neck craned back to take it all in, I laced both our hands together. Her pretty blue-green eyes sparkled. Her expression was full of wonder, childlike, and that was just one of the two billion things I loved about her.
“I love you, Quincy.” The words burst out of me in a cloud of steam.
She lowered her gaze to meet mine. “I love you too. And you were right. This is absolutely magical.”
“Good.” Still holding her hands, I lowered myself to one knee, then dug in my pocket for the box. My hands shook as I opened the top, removed the cushion-cut diamond engagement ring, and held it up among the falling snowflakes.
Quincy’s eyes went wide, and her smile morphed to a gape. A few strands of her blond hair blew in the breeze as her cheeks pinkened from the cold. All the love in me gathered in my chest like a physical explosion waiting to happen. I had to work to swallow.
“Quincy Yates, will you marry me?”
With a squealing giggle, she rushed into me, throwing her arms around me, nearly knocking me backward onto the wet deck. I wrapped my arms around her and held on for all I was worth, not caring that my pants were already getting wet in the knee.
“Oh, my God,” she said into the side of my head. “Yes. Yes! Yes, I’ll marry you, Knox. I’ll marry you right now if you want.”
I stood, afraid I’d drop the ring.
Bouncing up and down on her feet, she turned her attention to the ring and held out her left hand.
Still shaking, I grasped her hand and slid the ring on her finger. As soon as it was all the way on, a rightness, a contentment washed over me unlike anything I’d ever experienced.
“It’s perfect,” she whispered. “I love it. I love you.”
When she looked back up at me, tears filled her eyes, happy tears.
“I love you more,” I said, grinning hard.
