“Fix her mascara,” she said to a makeup artist next to her. “I want some nice proposal pictures.”
Penny looked approvingly at my nails. “Your hands look good. Hold it out, let it catch the light.”
Penny inspected the photos, and I wrapped my arms around Blade.
“The joys of having a magazine editor as a family member,” Blade said, nuzzling my neck.
I held out my left hand, staring at the sparkling ring on my finger. I now had a fiancé! In that moment, with Blade smiling down at me, face soft and, dare I say, loving, it felt real. It felt as if he loved me and wanted nothing more than to spend every day of the rest of his life with me. It was intoxicating and addictive.
“Look at you two lovebirds!” my grandmother, Dottie, exclaimed, coming over to me her with arms outstretched. “What a wonderful proposal! So well planned, Blade.”
The rest of my family trailed her. Cassie came up, Trevor firmly in tow, and looked down at my ring, sour expression on her face. My ring was a lot of things—ugly, garish, completely out of scale with my hand. The one thing it did have going for it was that it was much larger than Cassie’s ring. She saw it and I saw it.
“I just don’t understand people who go for that type of style,” she said, “though it does suit you, I suppose.”
My engagement ring—yes, mine!—was also bigger than my stepmother’s. My father’s eyes widened slightly when he looked down at my hand.
Blade held out his hand to my father. He shook it hesitantly.
“I’ll make sure to take very good care of your precious little girl,” Blade said, teeth bared in a smile.
My father’s mouth turned down. “I’m just glad she’s off my hands. You’re not getting anything more from my bank account,” he scolded me. “She’s your problem now, bud.”
“It’s just hard for a dad when his little girl grows up,” Dottie said. My grandmother refused to acknowledge that my father treated me differently from Cassie. As much as I loved her, my grandmother was known for sticking her head in the sand and seeing the reality she wanted rather than acknowledging what was actually going on.
I tried not to seem unhappy while the rest of the guests came up and congratulated us.
“Thank you so much for inviting us!” Mrs. Schultz said, leaning over to kiss my cheek. “What a nice proposal, Blade. You really put a lot of thought into this.”
“He’s a thoughtful guy,” I said, wrapping my hand around Blade’s waist.
“Are you mad?” Blade asked me as we sat down at a table with food. The restaurant was Italian, and there were trays of grilled vegetables, platters of antipasto, and stations making fresh pasta.
“What? No! Why?”
“I know you said you wanted something small, intimate, and low-key.”
I barked a laugh. “Our wedding is going to have almost two thousand people. I think we’ve already burned that bridge.”
“We could elope,” he offered. “Just you and me. No family…”
“I thought you liked your family.”
“We could have a big reception when we come back. They won’t know the difference.” He brushed an errant curl out of my face and leaned over to press his mouth softly to mine. “I want you,” he whispered.
I wanted him too.
34
Blade
Ihad always wondered what it would be like to have a woman be so happy to spend every day with me. It might have been just my imagination, but Avery did seem genuinely thrilled. I had loved seeing her so excited at the proposal, even if her father had tried to ruin the mood. I sent two of my more annoying brothers to run interference and keep him and Avery’s family occupied so she would enjoy the party. It was important to me that she have a good time.
“Have you started wedding planning?” Josie, Mace’s girlfriend, asked us over the noise of the live band.
Avery gave a strained laugh. “Not really!”
“Two months is a very short time to plan a wedding.”
