“Seriously?” He cocks his head. “You’re not wearing pants. I’ve been hard since you walked out there, and you don’t hear me complaining.”
“Fine.” I bite back my smile. “Continue.”
“Believe it or not, I had something planned, but I haven’t rehearsed it in a while,” he says, laughing when my eyes widen.In a while?“From the day I met you. . .” He shakes his head and laughs hard, making me smile even though I’m pretty sure he’s laughing at my expense. He clears his throat and gets serious.
“You captured my attention the moment I met you. I think I might have fallen in love with you that night, standing against that wall, without even realizing it. I’ve never chased anyone before you came along. I went after you the way I only go after a fucking hockey puck, and I don’t regret it. I’ll chase you forever, around the world if I have to, but I hope you don’t make me. Stay with me forever, Lyla James. Marry me.”
I’m biting my lip hard to keep from crying. He finally — finally — opens the box, and my jaw drops. I had no idea what I was expecting, but. . .holy shit. A dam breaks and my tears start falling fast. I bring my hands up to cover my face.
“Oh, my God. What is this ring?” I whisper hoarsely, wiping the tears away quickly, and stare at the ring as the knot in my throat expands.
“It’s a black speckled diamond, for your little black heart,” he says, smiling as he takes it out of the box and slides it on my ring finger.
“Holy shit,” I whisper again, my bottom lip wobbling as more tears form.
I don’t know if the band is white gold, silver, or platinum. In the middle is an enormous round stone. It’s not entirely black. It’s speckled, as he said, and sits on the most beautiful halo, covered in regular diamonds to contrast the one in the middle. Not only is it the most beautiful ring I’ve ever seen in my life, but the thought that went into it. My heart squeezes again. More tears trickle down my face. The fact that he picked out something so unconventionally perfect for me. . .I shake my head and swallow hard, wiping more tears.
“I know.” He winks with that cocky smirk. “I did good, right?”
“I don’t hate it,” I whisper.
His jaw drops, for a second, before he gets up and tackles me onto the bed. Between laughs, I manage to say, “I’m kidding. You did amazing. I love it. I love it. Stop.”
“You didn’t say yes.” He pulls back and looks down at me, serious again, as he sits us both up.
I laugh. “Would you even let me say no?”
“Of course, I would, but I’d just wear you down until you said yes.”
“You realize you didn’t ask, right?” I raise an eyebrow.
“Lyla.” He groans, shutting his eyes.
“Lach,” I say quietly, bringing my hands to his face. I wait until he opens his eyes. “Ask me.”
He looks at me for a long moment, takes a deep breath, and blurts. “Will you marry me, Lyla James?”
“Yes.” I smile wide, giving him the smile he once told me he wanted to possess. “And I’ll stay with you forever. And ever. And ever.”
His face is a mixture of relief and amazement as he stares at me before grabbing my face and kissing me deeply. We fall onto the bed again and pull apart to catch our breaths.
“Let’s get married tomorrow,” he says. “Here. We’ll call Marissa and Prescott and get them to come here.”
“Absolutely not. I’m only getting married once, and I want to do this right.”
His eyes widen. “You’re not going to make me wait a whole year, are you?”
“No.” I laugh at the horrified look on his face. “Maybe a whole week, though.”
He scowls. “I don’t like it.”
“We’ll do it when we get back from Fairview. I just need a few days before the actual—”
“No. Hell no.” He pulls away. “You’re not going to Fairview.”
“Are you still going?” I ask, my heart beating harder for different reasons. I knew this was going to happen. I freaking knew it.
“Yes, but I don’t want you anywhere near him. I don’t want you there.”
