“Won’t say a word,” Stone said, his hands up in the air.“Swear it.”
I stared at him, then my brother, before nodding.“You better.”
15
Emily
Our bags wereonce again packedand the puppy sleeping in the crate beside our bed.I was sitting up against the headboard, waiting for Rory to leave the bathroom and join me.I had both the clock alarm and my phone’s alarm set, both of us agreeing to get back on the road early before the post-holiday traffic started to get too thick.
Today had been a good day.
Sure, there had been some odd winks and hugs from Conor and Stone, but otherwise it was like any other time the group of us had gotten together.I really missed the O’Gallagher family, the people I calledfamilythe years I was in school and pushing to get by.Even without Rory at my side, these people were just that—
Family.
I guess I’d been so busy with school lately that I didn’t realize how much I missed them.It was because of that that I feared that maybe Rory missed them all too.
I glanced up from my phone when Rory stepped out of the bathroom, turning off the light and fan in there before crossing the softly lit room to join me on the bed.I put my phone down and twisted the switch on the lamp, bringing the light in the room down yet another notch.Rory’s lamp was still on.
I waited for him to turn his off and cuddle down with me before voicing my fears.Unfortunately, he never turned off his lamp.Instead, his hawkeyed gaze was on mine, calculating, as if he was trying to gauge my feelings.
“You ok, Em?”he finally asked.
I nodded and offered him a smile.“Yeah.It was a good Christmas.”
He mirrored my nod and reached an arm out to pull me into his chest as he sat up against the pillows.“It was.”
Needing the contact, I wrapped my arms around his torso, wedging the one behind his back, and resting my head on his chest.I smiled to myself when I felt his lips brush over my head in a quiet kiss.
We sat there in the quiet for some time before I opened my mouth to voice my concerns, when Rory beat me to the punch.
“I have another gift for you,” he stated.
I pushed away from him, frowning.“Rory!You’ve already given me too much!I just got you some stupid socks.”
“And you paid for next year’s legal fees with the business.Andthe website.”
Still, I frowned.Those things had been necessary for him and I was glad to help him out with them.I couldn’t do much for the man but I’d been saving up for those for the past twelve weeks.He didso muchfor me around the house, and then to top it all off, he gets me a fancy snowed-in type retreat and a puppy.I also opened up a pretty orange, casual dress, much like the one I’d been wearing today for the holiday.
He pressed another kiss to my temple before twisting his body away from me.Reaching under his pillow, he grabbed something and brought his tight fist back out.I narrowed my eyes once again.What did he have that could fit in his fist?
“Emily Winters.This is by no means an engagement ring,” he started before lifting his brows.“It can be!I just didn’t want to put that pressure on you.”He turned his fist over and loosened his fingers, revealing a ring with a diamond encrusted band and a blue topaz stone on top, making me gasp in awe.It was beautiful.“It’s more of a promise ring.A promise to you.”He took my right hand, now trembling, and slid the beautiful ring on my ring finger.
“I promise that I will always be by your side.Anything you need from me, I will deliver on.I would gladly do the last two years over again, if I knew that in the end I would still be with you.”Both of my hands were in his now and he squeezed them as he looked into my eyes.“You, Emily, changed my outlook on so many things.I want to continue to be your rock, be your guide.And when the time comes, I want to be your husband.”
I looked down at our hands.The way he was holding them put the ring on display and I loved how it looked against my skin.It really was beautiful.“Can I wear it on my left hand?”I asked him.
I could see as Rory took a deep breath, his breathing slowing way down.“Do you want—”
I tugged my hands from his so I could place them on his cheeks.“I like the idea of a promise ring, Rory O’Gallagher,” I said softly before leaning in to press my lips against his.“I just want it on my left hand.”
He kissed me back and I wanted nothing more than to deepen our kiss, but Rory pulled back.Taking my right hand in his again, he pulled off the ring and moved it to my left hand.“Someday,” he said, “this will be a different ring.”
“You don’t need to get me an engagement ring,” I told him.Seriously, how many rings was this man going to get me?
“Someday, this will be a different ring,” he repeated before bringing my hand to his lips to kiss my knuckles.“And then this one can go back on your right.On your left, it tells the world that you’re mine.”
Which was precisely why I wanted it there.
