“Of course, I’m alive.” I was weak, but I tried to sit up.
He gently pressed a hand to my back. “No, stay for a second, and tell me what just happened.”
“I fainted. I’ll be fine. It happens sometimes. Sorry if I scared you.”
He looked around wildly, like something was going to attack us. Then, with the most serious face I’d ever seen on him, he sprang up and charged into the lavender field. When he returned, he looked at the lavender in his hands, then back at me like something inside him had just snapped into place. “I can’t do that again,” he said quietly. “I can’t watch you be unconscious like that. Not even for a second.”
I froze.
He looked down and started fumbling with the lavender in his fingers. Twisting it, knotting it, hands still shaking. I didn’t realize what he was doing until he reached for my hand.
“I don’t have a ring,” he said, “and this is probably insane, and we’re literally sitting in the dirt, but—”
He slid the lavender loop onto my finger.
“Marry me,” he said, eyes locked on mine. “Till death do us part. But like—way, way later. Not today. None of this sudden death stuff. That’s for the hockey rink.”
My breath caught. Not because I was overwhelmed. Not even because I was surprised. Because at that moment, with crushed lavender on my finger and dirt on my jeans and a boy who looked like he'd nearly lost everything, I’d never been more sure of anything in my life.
So I kissed him. And when I pulled back, I whispered, “Yes.”
And he held me like he never, ever wanted to let go.
“I found it the morning after you left. It was on your bedroom floor.” Elijah’s voice floats from behind me. Turning on my heel, I find him with one shoulder propped against his doorframe, watching me. “I couldn’t believe you’d left. Frantic to find you, I snuck into your room, scouring it for clues. Part of me felt like it was an accident, but the other part of me wondered if you had been careless with it on purpose.”
My throat cinches even more, so much so I drop my jaw to get more air.
I hold the ring in my hand, heart skipping a beat. “I thought it was in my Bible, but I left in such a hurry, it must have fallen out when I went to read the verse one more time.”
He steps forward until he gets to his bed, and he sits on the edge. “I couldn’t bring myself to get rid of it.”
Tears well in my eyes as I slip the ring onto my finger. It’s so dried and fragile, I hold it together with my free hand. I don’teven care that it’s basically destroyed. My heart fills with so much joy, my tears fall freely. “I was going to marry you.”
“I know.” Elijah reaches for my hands, folding them gently in his. “And we are going to get married.” He smirks, tipping his head toward me. “I’ll get a new ring. One that lasts. One with metal. One with forever in it.”
I don’t even care about the ring. I never really did. It was never about that, as it was always about us. Now as we move forward, both vowing to be even more intentional about keeping each other at the core of our relationship, I’m overcome with emotion. His hand is still holding mine, and I pull him to me, and kiss him. It fuels my heart with all the love we have coming. When we break apart, I let out a breath and say, “Thank you for keeping it safe for me.”
“Always.” He winks at me, and it sends a shiver right through me. It’s a simple reply, but I believe him.
eighteen
Elijah
The locker room is loud when I return Monday morning. I stride past Axl and Jackson, who are in a heated conversation about Wing Night.
“Hey, look who survived the wedding weekend, Romeo,” Tyson claps my back as I walk past him.
I keep a straight face as I drop my hockey bag onto a bench and unzip it. “Why wouldn’t I survive?”
Axl hollers from across the room, already halfway into his pads. “You’ve still got the just-made-out-on-a-porch-swing’ glow.”
I roll my eyes even as the corner of my lips threatens to lift. “You all need hobbies.”
Before anyone else can chime in, the locker room door flies open. Coach Carlson stomps in with a clipboard in one hand, and his whistle already clenched between his teeth. “Enough gossip, girls. Get on the ice. Now.”
Chatter drops like a switch being flipped. I grab my helmet and skates and rush toward the ice. We are all quiet. Coach doesn’t need to remind us what this week means. Friday night is not only the last game of the season, but it’s the rematch.
We’ve been stressing about this game since we forfeited last time. It’s against former teammate and rival Noah’s team. This one isn’t just about points or standings. This one is personal to the team owner. We’re all on the line and not the kind that scores hat tricks.
