Late August
I checked the ring box.
Again.
Twentieth time today.
The sapphire ring inside cost more than my first car, but that didn't matter. What mattered was that it matched Sadie's eyes perfectly.
Ten months. It had been ten months since I'd walked into Palisade's clinic for court-ordered community service. Nine months since I'd discovered Casey was my daughter.
The October confrontation felt like a lifetime ago. We'd weathered every storm together, including the media frenzy,the captaincy crisis, and the paparazzi at the clinic. We'd built something solid, something real.
I wanted forever with her.
Spring had brought the end of hockey season and deepening certainty about us. Summer brought lazy lake days and Casey starting hockey camp. And now, as August wound down and Casey prepared to start second grade, I was ready to make this permanent.
The media's suffocating attention had eventually shifted to more recent scandals, allowing us to rebuild our lives in relative peace.
"Stop fidgeting," Holly scolded, adjusting the thousands of tiny lights we'd spent all afternoon stringing across the arena ceiling. "You're making me nervous, and I'm not even the one proposing."
"Sorry," I muttered, moving to help Beck secure the last strand of lights along the boards. Behind us, Nathan and a handful of teammates were positioning white roses around the rink. "I just want everything to be perfect."
"It will be," Beck assured me, stepping back to admire our handiwork. The empty arena had been transformed into something magical. A thousand twinkling lights created the effect of skating under stars, the ice gleaming beneath them like polished silver. "Unless she says no, of course. Then it'll be the most elaborately documented rejection in hockey history."
I shot him a glare, and he raised his hands in surrender, laughing. "Kidding, man. She won't say no."
"She might," I admitted, voicing the fear that had been gnawing at me all day. "We've only been officially together for a few months. Maybe it's too soon."
"Too soon?" My mom's voice came from the tunnel entrance, where she and Coach Honors were setting up chairs for thefamily viewing area. "You two have been dancing around each other for seven years. If anything, this proposal is overdue."
Coach Honors chuckled in agreement. "Margaret's right. You share a daughter; you're living together. The only thing missing is the paperwork."
Holly stepped down from her ladder, dusting off her hands. "See? Even the parents agree."
Brenna emerged from the sound booth with Nathan, giving me a thumbs-up. "Music's all set. We've got your playlist queued and ready to go."
Before I could respond, the arena door creaked open. Casey poked her head in, her eyes widening at the transformation. "Wow! It looks like Christmas and magic and stars all mixed together!"
I couldn't help but smile as my daughter skipped toward us, her excitement infectious. At seven years old, Casey was practically bouncing out of her skin with the secret she'd been keeping all week.
"Remember, it's a secret," I reminded her, crouching to her level. "Mom thinks she's meeting me for a private skate."
Casey nodded, her eyes huge, miming zipping her lips shut. "I won't tell. I promised with a pinky swear, and those are unbreakable."
"That's my girl," I said, ruffling her hair. "Are you ready for your part?"
Casey nodded enthusiastically. "I hide with Aunt Holly until you give the signal, and then I come out after Mom says yes." Without warning, her expression turned serious. "But what if she doesn't say yes?"
The innocent question landed like a punch to the gut. I'd been so focused on my own fears of rejection that I hadn't considered how Casey might interpret a no from her mother.
"Your mom loves me," I assured her, hoping I sounded more confident than I felt. "And even if she's not ready to get married yet, we'll still be a family. Nothing will change that."
Casey's lips curved into a smile. "I think she'll say yes. She looks at you the way Princess Tiana looks at Prince Naveen after they turn back into humans."
Holly snorted behind me, and I shot her a warning look before turning back to Casey. "That's… good to know."
My phone buzzed with a text from Aaron, who was stationed in the parking lot as our lookout:She just pulled in. Two minutes.
