Elizabeth broke the tension with a light laugh and leaned against Tina’s car. “Ridiculous, right? I ignore you for two months, then bam, I show up loaded for bear, demanding to know if you meant it.”
“Then bam, I’m here for it.” He leaned against the hood of Tina’s SUV. “Talk to me, Dorsey.”
Elizabeth sighed as she pulled the tie from her hair so her curls fell free. She raised her gaze toward the October sky.
“First-year students had to write a paper analyzing a work situation we experienced before arriving at Wharton. I chose the TWRA fraud. Man, I was going to knock out the assignment in a week. I dove into research, listened to the lectures, studied coursework, sat in discussions.” She peered at Ryder. “I didn’t listen to your message for several days. I didn’t want to be distracted. Didn’t want the pull of your voice, of Hearts Bend. I didn’t want the pull of you. I’d made it to Wharton, and I loved it. At least, that’s what I kept telling myself. Then, when curiosity got the better of me, I listened. You asked me to marry you, and from that point on, I couldn’t…I wasn’t…me. I bought a bridal magazine from a newspaper stand, Ryder. A bridal magazine. I’ve never even been remotely interested in bridal magazines.”
“Did you see anything you liked?”
Many, many things. “Then I started reading engagement stories online. I could write a book, I read so many. I daydreamed about proposals and weddings during my classes.” She looked over at him. “What other women received a romantic voicemail proposal like me? I tried to forget, put it all behind me. My professor loved my paper on the TWRA fraud case, so I doubled down on my commitment. Until one day, when I was at lunch with my fellow students and one of them asked about my plans after Wharton, I said, ‘Um, what?’ I wasn’t even listening to the conversation. I was thinking about a gown I really loved in Brides magazine.”
“Elizabeth, do you want to marry me?” Ryder slipped his hand into hers.
“Yes, Ryder, as much as it pains me to say.” She squeezed his hand, grinning. But he remained somber.
“Don’t joke. I’m serious. If you want to finish school, I’ll wait. I’ll go where your career goes. I can get a job easily enough.”
“That’s just it, Ryder, I don’t want to finish school.” She peered into his eyes, so intense yet serene. “Last week I was heading home after class—it was a beautiful fall day—and instead of thinking about the lecture and discussion, or what work I needed to do that night, or even what to have for dinner, I was thinking of Dorsey Furniture and the new accounting system, writing an email to Will in my head on things to set up and how to do it. I was thinking of Granny and her homey kitchen. Above all, I was thinking of you, the fire tower, and that kiss.” Sigh. “That one amazing kiss and dreading my next class. Dreading the projects and reading ahead. All the feels from my summer visit were gone. I had no motivation for school. The two years I was sick, all I wanted was to get on with my life and finish my education. Which I did. And in that space, I equated living with education and the acclaim of letters behind my name. Ryder, I do want to get on with my life.” She glanced down at the pavement and kicked at a small stone. “With you. If you’ll have me.” There. She’d poured out her heart and?—
He snatched her in his arms. “I’m going to kiss you, infection or not.”
“I’m not infectious. I had a test before classes started.” She pulled a white note from her pocket. “The doctor gave me?—”
Ryder’s loud and joyful laugh filled her up.
“I love you, Elizabeth Dorsey.” His kiss started on her forehead, then down to her cheek and chin, arriving at her lips with such a burning force she couldn’t feel the ends of her fingers or toes. He tasted a bit of spearmint and bacon, and his skin radiated a warm hint of soap. Elizabeth held onto his thick shoulders, then slipped one hand to the soft skin on the back of his neck and kissed him back.
Her first real kiss was with the man she’d love forever.
When the kissing finally gave way, he whispered, “Meet me at the fire tower. Six o’clock.”
21
Solar lights. Check. Ryder had picked up a set from Sheffield’s on his way home.
Blankets and pillows. Check.
The food basket Tina handed him when he went inside to pay for his uneaten lunch. Check.
“A portable charcuterie board,” she said. “Cheese, meats, crackers, fruit, and veggies. And a bottle of wine to toast your engagement. Nothing fancy, but it elevates things, don’t you think? You are going to propose, aren’t you? A kiss like that says proposal.”
Portable speaker he never used? Check.
Playlist of American Standards on his phone. Check.
Ring hidden in the basket. Check.
He’d never admit it to anyone, but he’d googled “romantic proposal” to spark some ideas. Since he left a voicemail proposal from the fire tower, he knew the in-person moment had to be here too. What better place than where they’d shared their unusual and unforgettable first kiss?
Words to say? Not checked. Repeating his voicemail felt uninspired. Coming up with something Shakespearean felt phony. He’d be himself and trust the right moment would come along.
“I love you. Will you marry me?” he whispered over and over until he heard the sound of her footsteps on the tower stairs.
“Hey,” she said, stepping into the fire tower cabin.
“Hey.” He slapped his hands against his jeans, nervous.
“The tower looks great.” She smiled. “I love the lights and pillows. Is that Tina’s charcuterie menu?”
