Page 71 of About That Pact

She cocked her head to the side. “Yes, you have no game. I had to come chasing you down each time.”

“Not when it comes to marriage.”

Now, she rolled her eyes. “Ah, yes. But how hard could it have been to ask me to marry you when you were a kid? If I remember correctly, it was also as a last-ditch effort proposal if you were forced into marriage.”

It was the perfect moment.

Rafe got down on one knee, and someone from the streets screamed, “We got a proposal happening!”

People around cheered and took pictures, celebrating the soon-to-be proposal.

“This is not a last-ditch effort, my Charlie. I am chasing you down this time. I know this is unconventional, but that works for us. I love you, and I always have. Probably since the first time I proposed. Will you marry me?”

Charlotte yanked Rafe up and kissed him on the strip.

Another person yelled, “Give us a show! Take it off!”

Rafe pulled away and told the guy to fuck off.

“Did she say yes or is that a pity kiss?” someone screamed from the bar.

The man had a good point.

“You would never offer a pity kiss, but I need to hear your answer. Will you marry me?”

“This is insane.” She was glowing. Her eyes lit up with happiness.

“Yes or no,” he rushed. “And don’t be mad I’m being bossy because our Uber is here to take us to get a marriage license.”

“Yes! I can’t believe this is happening, but yes.” Charlotte was ecstatic as Rafe guided her to the car.

They couldn’t stop talking on their way to the Clark Counter Clerk Marriage office. Even through the thirty-minute wait.

With a marriage certificate in Rafe’s hand, they sat together on a bench, waiting for another Uber.

“Are you sure?” Guilt tugged at him because he didn’t have a ring for her. “This isn’t a fairytale proposal.”

She grinned. “In a way, I think it is. This feels right. Just like all our promises, pacts, and bets through the years, it’s just between us. No one else is involved. I love the romance behind it, behind our shared past that got us here. There is something magical, something so beautiful, about this being another private moment for us.”

The Uber pulled up, and they got in.

Rafe shook his head. “Remember the romance when I tell you the last favor you owe me.”

She gave him the side-eye. “Isn’t it a favor that I’m marrying you?”

“Look who’s a comedian all of a sudden.”

“Spit it out. What is it?”

The Uber pulled in front of the Graceland Wedding Chapel, and they got out. Somehow, at eight o’clock at night, there was no wait. Perhaps most impromptu weddings happened after hours.

“You have to be the one who tells our family at dinner.”

She swatted his arm. “No way! You should have to do it—getting married was your idea.”

“Absolutely not. You tell them, talk about the romance of it all. You do owe me, after all.”

Charlotte agreed, but only after he promised he would make her breakfast every Sunday morning for the rest of their lives—after they have sex of course.