Page 115 of A Girl and HER Prince

“Huh?” Achilles sounded genuinely confused. “You haven’t asked her yet…?”

Venice hung up on him, his muscular shoulders lifting as he steadied himself. Peeking at Livvy from the corner of his eye, he let out a helpless laugh. “Sooo um… I have something to ask you.”

Livvy clamped her fingers over her mouth before she could do something crazy like scream.

Venice jumped with a yelp when something fuzzy and adorable poked him in his neck. “There you are!” he cried out. “You’re a little late, Steve. He’s always trying to ruin things for me.”

Livvy could barely believe her eyes. “You… brought Steve… here?” She couldn’t stop herself from touching the soft tufts poking out from the rounded crown of her favorite donkey’s head. They’d adopted Atreus Mnon’s donkeys as their own.

What the tyrannical despot didn’t know wouldn’t kill him. And besides, he’d started it. All was fair in love and war… and well… she’d fallen in love with the little guy. She followed her caresses with a kiss on the donkey’s head that made him bray and wriggle around happily.

“Steve!” Venice called out. His dimple was out of control with his smiles. “I know what you’re doing—stop trying to kill the mood.” He dug his fingers into the pack on the donkey’s back and pulled out an elegant… charm for her bracelet.

She covered her gasp with her hands. It was a cute little Tirrojan horse—no, a donkey! Venice found her wrist and began undoing the clasp of her bracelet, so he could slide it on.

“So, I was thinking, Luvvy…”

“Yes!” She wrapped her arms around her prince, upending his work on the bracelet and kissing him silly.

He laughed between her exuberant displays of affection. “I guess this makes this a little anti-climactic then.” Reaching through her arms, he found Steve’s pack again and pulled out a diamond ring this time. He ducked his head against hers before meeting her eyes. “Things aren’t going to be easy in Tirreoy, and of course, you’ll have the drama of your in-laws and… my friends and maybe on our trips if we don’t bring enough security, but um, well… you ready for an adventure of a lifetime?”

She nodded, almost making herself dizzy with it. She’d accept the man behind this crown. “I’ll have no one but you, Aeneas. I love you so much that there aren’t enough stanzas inThe Aeneidto talk about it.”

He beamed with relief and perhaps a little confusion. Funny guy must’ve actually doubted she’d say, “Yes.” He worked on getting the beautiful diamond onto her finger with his shaky ones. He was out of breath. “I haven’t talked to your brothers yet, but I think I can win them over with a basketball game.”

She laid her head against his rapidly beating heart. “I’ll show them the charm on my bracelet and then they’ll understand.”

His arms squeezed her closer. “Welcome to this weird, chaotic family, Princess Lavinia,” he whispered. And then they were kissing again.

The End