“Can we talk about literally anything else?” I asked, sipping my beer and blushing all the way to the tips of my ears.
Andre graciously changed the subject, but that didn’t stop Wes leaning over to whisper in my ear that he was glad I worethe jeanstonight.
I could never throw these out, it’d break Wes’s heart. The last thing in the world I wanted to do was break his heart.
By the time we said our good nights to go home, my heart was full and the edges of the world seemed a little softer than usual.
Not, to be honest, that there’d been any hard edges in my world for a while. Being home, being with Wes, that softened them a whole lot.
The worst thing that ever happened to me these days was three birthday cakes on the one weekend, and by now Wes had most of the town’s birthdays on a calendar and could warn me to bake ahead and freeze.
Life was good.
No, life wasgreat.
Salt hung in the night air as Wes and I strolled along the trail behind the creek, recovering from a night of laughter and friends, taking a moment to get used to the silence.
“This trail means a lot to me,” I said, running my hand along the railing I’d stood at the first time Wes asked me to come home with him.
“Me too,” Wes said, pausing to look out on the black water, moonlight bouncing on the surface like spilled glitter, the gentle sound of the ocean in the distance, and the low, distant hum of the nearby gay club.
We still went there from time to time, and Wes never looked at anyone but me.
My phone vibrated in my pocket, breaking the peace.
I almost didn’t respond, but the thought that it might beimportantat this time of night made me take it out and look at it.
When I saw the screen, I almost dropped it into the creek.
OverEasy:marry me?
I turned to stare at Wes, who was just now putting his phone back in his pocket, and my heart melted.
I couldn’t think of anything I wanted more.
“Really?” I asked, not quite daring to believe that hemeantit.
“Really,” Wes said, meeting my eyes. There was barely enough light to see by, but I knew every plane of his face now. I knew the sheepish, hopeful little smile curling his lips, I knew the way his eyes darted back and forth when he was unsure about something.
I surged forward, pulling him into a clumsy kiss that went straight to the pit of my stomach, like it always did.
I was so in love with this man that I could feel it in every atom of my being, there was only one possible answer I could give.
“Yes,” I murmured against his lips, kissing him again as soon as the word was out. “Yes,” I repeated between kisses.
Wes laughed into my mouth, and it wasstillthe most beautiful sound I’d ever heard, and I still wanted to make him do that every single day of the rest of our lives.
My phone vibrated in my pocket again.
I took it out, still afraid it might be important—the last message definitely had been—and then burst into laughter.
I passed the phone to Wes so he could read it while I tried to compose myself.
Dad:just remembered it’s your anniversary! Congrats!
“Oh my god.” Wes laughed, resting his forehead against mine and slipping the phone back into my pocket. “How does hedoit?”
“I dunno, I have to assume he’s got a sixth sense,” I said. “Should we tell him?”
