He laughed like I wanted him too, and the butterflies in my gut flew around like they had ten energy drinks. It wasexhilarating.“I couldn’t agree more, Mads.”
“I know you put up a fight about coming with me here, but I’m glad I conned you into camping with me.” I grinned up at him, both of us not letting go or breaking contact. “Best decision ever.”
“I want to fight this but you’re right.” He kissed my forehead. “Now, let’s pack the rest of the stuff up and go.”
And we did, ready to start the next chapter of our relationship, and I couldn’t freaking wait.
Epilogue
Matt
One year later…
My pocket weighed two thousand pounds. Not really, but the ring hit my thigh with each step, a wrecking ball of nerves blasting through me at what was to come.
Maddie had no idea of my absolute inner turmoil. She babbled on about her entire day at work, who was fighting with who, and what she wanted for dinner.
It was our typical Friday night since moving in together six months ago. We’d hang out, just the two of us, have a few drinks, get naked. I was living my fantasy every single day, and I never took it for granted.
“Mims, you’re in your head again. Do I need to do a striptease to help you focus?” She elbowed my side as we walked back from our place. We had a place now. It was a hole-in-the-wall dive bar where we met after work for drinks. The bartenders knew our names, and of course, Maddie charmed the hell out of them.
“I wouldn’t say no.” I fought a smile when she grabbed my ass in public. Turned out, Maddie was even more affectionate when you werewithher. She always hugged and touched me as friends, but now, she had no limitations when it came to ass grabs, spontaneous make-out sessions, and she’d flashed me once.
We’d had one fight since we were together—one about who would move into whose place. We’d bickered almost every day, but every night we went to bed together. I liked to think of it as foreplay.
“What’s wrong? You have yourharrumphface on.” She stopped walking a block from our house. We chose my place since I had a backyard. She yanked my hand so we faced each other, and she let go to run her fingers through my beard. We kept it since the camping trip.
My heart skipped a beat when she frowned and stood on her toes to kiss me right on the mouth. It was a soft, tender kiss, and I cupped her face to hold her there. “Mads,” I said, speaking just above a whisper.
“Mims.” She narrowed her eyes as her lips quirked up. “You soundso serious.”
“I am.”
“You gotta fart or something?” She pulled back, laughing at her own joke, and kept walking toward our house. It was for the best. Becky had texted me ten minutes ago that everything was ready to go, so it made sense to actually doitonce we were there.
The closer we got though, the more I sweated and second-guessed my decision. What if she wasn’t ready? Or didn’t want to get married? Or wanted to break up? Or wanted to go back to friends?
Okay, maybe not the last one, but I knew the idea of marriage freaked her out.
I scratched my chest once she got into our front door and tossed her keys on the table. The tent was visible through our back door, and she turned, eyes wide and a crazy large smile stretching on her face.
“You got a tent! Oh hell yes! Can we stay there tonight?” She flung the glass door open and ran outside. She was making this so much easier than I thought, and I followed her, like I would for the rest of my life. She unzipped it and gasped.
“Matt,” she said, her voice going soft. “You did all this?”
“It’s been one year from today.” I got onto my knees and helped her inside the tent. She chewed her bottom lip, and I went for it. All in. “We went camping a year ago, and this has been… god, the best year of my life.”
“Are you proposing to me?” she asked, her knee bouncing up and down. I sucked in a breath, unsure what to do. Did I admit it? Pretend I wasn’t?
“Um,” I said, my throat getting too tight to speak. “Uh.”
“Oh my god, you are. Matt, I’m going to say yes, so just ask me already.” She crawled into my lap and grabbed my face. “I can do it for you, you know. Pretend to be you and ask me to marry you and then I can act it out.”
“You little shit.” I laughed. She was audacious and wild andmine.“Maddie, will you marry me and continue our crazy shenanigans for the rest of our lives? I love you so fucking much its annoying, and I want to do life with you.”
“Give me that ring, Mims.” She tickled my side until I cackled at a high pitch, and she pushed me so I was on my back. The light hit her just right, and I couldn’t believe she’d agreed to be my wife. I reached into my pocket to grab it, and I barely got it open before she slid it on. “Goddamn. This is beautiful. I’m never taking it off. Ever. You’ll have to remove my finger to get this back.”
“That’s the goal.”
