"Grant Lawson, you're a terrible liar."
"It's a surprise."
"For who?"
"You'll see." Grant pulled into Hannah and Mark's driveway, relief flooding through him when he saw they weren't the first toarrive. Mark's truck was there, along with Ryan's car and what looked like Chris's SUV.
"You're being weird," Riley said, unbuckling her seatbelt.
"I'm not being weird."
"You absolutely are." She leaned over to kiss him. "But I love you anyway."
"I love you too." Grant kissed her back, his hand going to his pocket one more time.
Riley laughed. "There you go again! What is in that pocket?"
"You'll find out soon enough, woman." Grant climbed out before she could interrogate him further.
Inside Hannah's house, the party was already in full swing—the same decorations, the same chaos, the same energy as last year.
Except everything was different now.
Last year, he and Riley had walked in there pretending. Fake dating to get people off Riley's back about being single.
This year, they were the real deal. A couple who'd built a life together. A couple who were about to take the next step.
Grant caught Jenna's eye across the room and gave her a small nod. She grinned and gave him a thumbs up.
He glanced toward the kitchen where he could just barely see his dad and Riley's parents lurking, trying to stay hidden until the right moment. They'd all insisted on being here for this. Hannah had set it up perfectly—the whole friend group in the living room, the parents waiting in the kitchen.
Everything was in place. Now he just had to not panic.
"Attention, everyone! Attention!" Jenna's voice rang out as she climbed onto a chair, waving a piece of paper. Ryan pretended to try to convince her to get down, but Grant knew he was in on it too.
"As is tradition," Jenna announced, "I have this year's Naughty List!"
The crowd erupted in cheers and groans.
"But this year," Jenna continued, grinning, "we're doing things a little differently. Usually I send this out ahead of time, but someone made a special request to do it in person tonight." She winked at Grant. "So here we go!"
Riley laughed and leaned into Grant's side. "Here we go again."
Grant's heart was pounding, but he wrapped his arm around her waist and tried to look casual.
Jenna cleared her throat dramatically and Ryan gave her a fake drumroll on the counter. "This year's 'Most Likely To' Christmas Naughty List!"
She started reading, and Grant only half-listened, too focused on the weight of the ring box in his pocket and the way Riley fit perfectly against him.
"Hannah: Most Likely to Cry at a Hallmark Movie."
Hannah raised her glass in acknowledgment.
"Mark: Most Likely to Fall Asleep Before the Ball Drops. Again."
Laughter rippled through the crowd.
"Emily: Most Likely to Have Already Bought All Her Gifts in July."
