For a moment, Riley just stood there, her smile so wide it had to hurt. Then she dropped to her knees in front of him and grabbed his face with both hands.
"Yes," she said, kissing him. "Yes, yes, yes!"
The room exploded.
Cheers and applause and whistles filled Hannah's living room as Grant slipped the ring onto Riley's finger with shaking hands. It fit perfectly, glinting in the party lights.
Riley threw her arms around his neck, and Grant held her tight, both of them laughing and completely oblivious to the chaos around them.
"I love you," Riley said against his shoulder. "I love you so much."
"I love you too." Grant pulled back to look at her. "So that's a yes?" he teased.
Riley laughed. "That's a definite yes."
Grant kissed her again, and the crowd cheered louder.
When they finally stood up, they were immediately swarmed. Hannah was squealing with excitement, Emily was already babbling about wedding plans, Jenna was taking credit for the whole thing, and the guys were clapping Grant on the back.
And then from the kitchen, Riley's parents and Thomas emerged, all of them grinning and excited.
"You knew?" Riley gasped, looking at her mom.
"Grant asked us two weeks ago if we wanted to be here," Carol said, pulling Riley into a hug, careful not to crush her. "We've been hiding in the kitchen for twenty minutes. I thought I was going to burst!"
"Dad!" Riley turned to her father.
"Wouldn't have missed it for the world, sweetheart." David pulled her into a hug, then shook Grant's hand. "Congratulations, son. We're so happy for you both."
Thomas clapped Grant on the shoulder, his eyes bright. "Well done, son. Your mom would be so proud."
Grant's throat tightened. "Thanks, Dad."
"I knew it!" Hannah said, pulling Riley into another hug. "I knew he was going to propose tonight!"
"How?" Riley asked.
"Because he asked me to help him pick the ring two months ago." Hannah grinned. "And he's been texting me every day for two weeks asking if I thought tonight was a good idea."
"You all knew?" Riley looked around at their friends, who were all grinning.
"Grant swore us all to secrecy," Emily said, beaming. "It was so hard not to tell you!"
"The hardest two weeks of my life," Jenna added. "Do you know how many times I almost ruined it?"
The rest of the evening passed in a blur of congratulations and celebration. Riley kept looking at her ring, her smile never fading. Grant kept catching himself just watching her, still amazed that she'd said yes.
As the party wound down, Grant pulled Riley outside for some air. The night was cold and clear, the stars bright overhead.
"How are you feeling?" Grant asked, wrapping his arms around her from behind.
"Happy." Riley leaned back against him, her left hand resting over his, the ring catching the light from inside. "Excited. A little overwhelmed."
"Good overwhelmed or bad overwhelmed?"
"Good." Riley turned in his arms to face him. "Definitely good. I just can't believe this is real."
"It's real." Grant pressed his forehead to hers. "You're stuck with me now."
