“Everything is going to be fine. XoXo.”
“Okay,” I say with a wobbly smile. “OxOx.”
My brother escorts me across the stage, keeping me steady. Once Ben hands me off to Xavier, I lean toward him, my heart thundering in my ears. “What’s going on?” I whisper.
Xavier drags his knuckles along my cheek. “I’m asking.”
I scrunch my face in confusion. “What does that mean?”
He reaches into his gown pocket, pulling out a black and gold ring box with a bird engraved on the lid. When he opens it, the lights above shine on the diamond, casting prisms of color across the stage. Several gasps from the audience flit through the air, but I can’t look away. I can barely breathe.
Xavier steps forward and cups my face, bringing the microphone close to his mouth. “I promised myself I wouldn’t propose to you until you’d graduated. But I can’t wait any longer. I want everyone out there to know that you’re my girl. Thatsomeday you’ll be my wife. That you’re mine. Delilah Scott, will you do me the highest honor by becoming Mrs. Donovan?”
I blink up at him. “Yes,” I mouth, my throat dry.
He smiles, his eyes crinkling at the corners. “You didn’t say anything. Is that a ‘yes?’”
I nod, not trusting my voice.
“Use your words, Delilah.”
“Yes, I will marry you.”
Xavier pulls the ring out and shoves the box in his robe pocket. Taking my left hand, he slides the ring on my finger.
“Holy shit,” Raven screeches from the crowd. “That’s my roomie!”
June is standing as well, covering her mouth with her hands. The crowd bursts into applause as Xavier hands the microphone back to the announcer. Then he takes my hand.
“Fuck,” Xavier mutters. “I could come just from looking at my ring on your finger.”
“Oh, my God. Please don’t.”
He laughs and tugs me forward until I’m flush against him. “I love you, little raptor.”
“Always?”
“Always,” he says. “Now say it back before I spank you in front of all these people.”
“Shit. I love you. Fuck,” I stammer.
His smile widens before he leans down and kisses me. The crowd claps, whistles and catcalls, but the sounds glide past me. My pulse kickstarts, and my blood rushes through my veins as I lose myself in him.
Xavier eventually ends the kiss, leaving me sucking in gulps of air. He glances at his beeping watch and then me. “You good?”
“I think so.”
Xavier takes my hand and leads me from the stage. Ben gives me a thumbs-up, the gesture making me smile as I return to myseat with Xavier’s arm still around me. Eventually, most people stop staring. But not all.
Out of the corner of my eye, I notice a middle-aged woman several rows over, her gaze fixed intently on us—or more specifically, on Xavier. She’s beautiful. Her blonde hair is perfectly styled in a sophisticated manner, and her attire is tasteful yet undoubtedly expensive.
Despite her polished exterior, there’s a hardness in her eyes, a coldness that’s at odds with the joyous atmosphere. Every now and then, she shifts, her gaze never wavering. It’s disconcerting, the way she watches him.
“Do you know her?” I whisper, nodding subtly towards the woman.
Xavier follows my gaze, his expression shifting to something neutral. Detached. He nods. “That’s my mother.”
“Do you want to go sit with her?” I ask.
