He looked out the peephole, opened the door, and Shanti nearly fell through it.
I instantly knew something was up, and it was huge, so I raced down the hall and caught her with both hands.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“Ohmigod, ohmigod, ohmigod,” she chanted, practically skipping in place.
That was so not Shanti, I didn’t know whether to preemptively get excited with her or check her temperature.
“What?”
“Luna didn’t want to disturb you guys because she has this morning in the pool and she didn’t want you interrupted,” she said without saying what she should be saying.
So I screeched, “What?”
“I guess Cap got inspired after the OSRA meeting yesterday, because he proposed to Raye last night, and she said yes.”
I stood perfectly still but I felt pleasure waves coming off Gabe and colliding with us.
God, feeling his reaction to his friends’ happiness, seriously, I had to let go of the final clutch I had on my misguided self-preservation and admit it.
He really was a super good guy.
“They surfaced from the love fest just long enough for Raye to call Luna this morning and tell her,” Shanti explained. “And she said Luna could tell us, but no one is allowed to tell Shirleen yet. She knew it was going to happen, because she helped Cap pick the ring, but she doesn’t know it happened.”
“This is…ohmigod,”—I started jumping, and since Shanti was still attached to me, she jumped with me—“this is so awesome!”
“I know!”
“I’m gonna make them the best cake.”
“I know!”
“I love this!”
“I do too!”
I tipped my head back, both of us still jumping, and screamed, “It rawks!”
Shanti did the same and screamed, “Cap and Raye forever!”
We bounced some more, grinning like fools at each other.
Then Shanti’s attention wandered, and she stopped dead.
She detached from me, reeled back, her hand fluttering to her throat, and gasped, “Lawd.”
I looked to what she was looking at and saw Gabe standing there, half of his mouth hitched up, his entire torso on show, his jeans slung low with the top two buttons still undone and those hip muscle indents on proud display, and I understood her reaction.
He came to me, slung an arm around my shoulders, curled me into his side and said, “Good news.”
I looked up at him. “The best.”
He took in my face, his eyes roaming over it leisurely, and he didn’t hide his happy, or the fact he wasn’t just happy about Cap and Raye (super good guy), before he turned to Shanti. “We’re goin’ to brunch. Wanna come?”
“Abso-fuckin’-lutely,” she replied.
Having reclaimed the true Shanti, she strutted to the open door, stopped, turned and aimed her eyes at me.
