And then he dropped to one knee.
The ground shifted beneath me.
Every thought, every breath, every function of my body—gone.
And Damien—Damien was on his knee, looking up at me like I held his entire universe in my hands.
Then—
A squeal.
A gasp.
My head whipped toward a potted hedge near the far railing, where three familiar faces were peering through the leaves with all the subtlety of children caught stealing cookies.
Candace. Sebastian. Rosie.
Candace had both hands clamped over her mouth, tears streaming down her cheeks.Sebastian was grinning like an idiot, arm wrapped around her waist. And Rosie—Rosie was openly sobbing, wiping a handkerchief across her cheeks.
Damien laughed, the sound warm and unbothered. "You were supposed to be quiet."
"I'm sorry," Candace whisper-shrieked. "But look at her face—"
"Focus," Sebastian muttered, tugging her back behind the leaves.
Damien turned back to me, and everything else fell away.
The tears were falling freely now, streaming down my cheeks.
This isn't real.
My brain had short-circuited somewhere betweenI love youand his knee hitting the ground.
He took a deep breath.
"I'm sorry I made you wait this long. I'm sorry I couldn't give you the words when you deserved them. But I'm done being a coward."
He reached into his pocket.
And pulled out a small velvet box.
"What the fuck?" The question fell from my lips.
The corner of his mouth twitched. The hinge opened with a soft click.
A diamond caught the fairy lights—massive, oval-cut, glittering like captured starlight on a simple white gold band. Elegant. Timeless. Perfect.
My hand flew to my mouth.
I looked back to Damien.
Tears lined his eyes now too, his composure finally cracking.
"Emma Sinclair," he said, voice thick with emotion. "Will you marry me?"
My heartbeat pounded so loud I was sure he could hear it.
But he waited, chest heaving and hands shaking.
