She winks and slips away.
I glance up to check her parents’ progress down the stands. They arrived late, so sat up top. I hold up a hand in greeting. She was surprised they made it for the last two days of competition. Neither I nor they mentioned that I pushed her dad to rearrange his call schedule, so they could come.
Her mother said they planned to be at her senior-year competition, since that would be her last one. I didn’t respond the way I wanted to, which would’ve been to tell them they should be in the fucking front row ofeverymajor competition. And to follow that up by asking what the hell is wrong with them?
Instead, I said their attending this year would be an important show of support, given all she’s been through. And that I expected to see them. Might as well start laying the groundwork, since I’m not going to tolerate any bullshit from her mother when Arya confesses to them that she’s going to become a professional dancer.
* * *
ARYA
After a giant seafood dinner,the team and our families and friends walk back to the hotel. My parents are big readers, so Erik talks books with them. Despite everything that’s happened the past couple of weeks, I feel happier than I ever have.
When we see an ice cream shop, several of the girls rush over.
“Want ice cream?” I ask, drawing Erik’s attention to me.
“Sure.”
“I need money,” I say. Since I don’t have a purse with me, my hand slips into his pocket, looking for a wallet. Instead, I fish out a ring.
My feet freeze as I stare down at the dazzling diamond solitaire that sits atop a gold band encrusted with additional glittering diamonds.
“What is this?” I whisper. My gaze darts up to his face, and the corners of his mouth curve into a slow smile.
“Let’s talk,” he says, putting a hand on my back to lead me away. Once we’re several feet from the group, he extends his hand toward me, palm up.
My fingers hesitate before dropping the ring into his hand. My heart thunders, and my mouth goes dry as his fist closes around it.
When he doesn’t say or do anything, I feel as if I might explode from the adrenaline rush.
“Whose is that?”
Glancing down at the ground, he exhales and takes a knee.
Oh, my fucking God.
My hand flies over my mouth. I’d hoped maybe sometime in the next year, he’d ask. Once we understood what was going on with the draft and we’d lived together for a while.
“Arya.” His light blue eyes sparkle under the streetlights. “Will you be my wife?”
I nod, speechless for the first time in my life. Tears spring into my eyes as he slides it onto my finger.
I lean forward to kiss him. “It’s beautiful. Exactly what I love.”
“Your friends helped me pick it out.”
“Eden and Tavi didn’t say a thing. Not even a hint!”
“Good. It was supposed to be a surprise.” He rises, and I look up at him.
“My heart is pounding so hard.” My hand goes to just under my jaw where I can feel my pulse jumping. A throaty chuckle escapes. “I can’t believe this.” From the corner of my eye, I see our people moving closer and filming us. I dab under my eyes and look back at him. “We probably should’ve done it for the show.”
He smirks and shrugs. “You’re the one who went digging through my pockets.”
“Thought I’d give you a cheap thrill,” I tease in a whisper as we walk back to the group.
Everyone congratulates us and gathers around to gush over the ring. The girls with ice cream cones spill out of the shop with cries of “What did we miss?”
