The night air was fresh as we walked across the Seattle Center grounds, my hand tucked in the crook of Shepherd’s arm. We’d had a nice dinner at a bistro up the street. Nothing fancy, but the food had been excellent. Since the night was so nice, we’d decided to take a little walk.
People strolled by on the paved path and a few still lounged on blankets on the open expanse of grass. The low hum of the city surrounded us, and streetlights twinkled in the darkness.
It had been six months since Miami. Since Shepherd had said those six magical words. Not three. The I love you had been important, but only half of what I’d needed to hear. The second half, please come home, had meant just as much.
I had come home. And we hadn’t spent a night apart since.
I’d spent this morning planning Annie and Miranda’s baby shower over brunch with Richard. He’d moved out shortly after I’d started my new job and was well on his way to financial recovery. Last week, he’d been given a clean bill of health. He was officially cancer-free. He still needed to be cautious and take good care of himself. But now that he had Dahlia in his life, he was healthier than ever.
They’d been dating since the night they’d met at the Office, and Richard had never been happier.
Annie and Miranda had successfully conceived a baby girl, with Ethan as the donor. Some people might consider it strange, or even awkward, to have the brother of the man you’re dating donate sperm to your sister so she could have a baby. For us, it wasn’t weird at all. We were all just family, now. Their baby would be raised by the two best mommies ever, and have two awesome uncles in her life. She wasn’t even born yet, and she was already one lucky little girl.
The fountain was on tonight, its huge jets of water streaming from the large silver dome. A ring of lights illuminated the water, making the whole thing glow.
We paused to watch. The fountain’s bursts were choreographed to classical music, the rise and fall of the water matching the cadence of the song.
“It’s beautiful,” I said.
Shepherd rubbed slow circles across my back. “It is.”
The song grew soft and the fountain went down to nothing but a trickle. A loud clash of cymbals and horns seemed to send the water bursting from the top in a huge stream. It reached for the sky and crashed to the ground, sending out a cloud of mist.
We were too far away to get wet, but it made me laugh just the same.
“Everly,” Shepherd said, his voice strangely soft.
“Were you watching?” I asked. “Did you see how high the water went?”
His eyes flicked to the side, in the opposite direction.
“What?”
The corner of his mouth twitched, his dimple almost puckering. With his hand on the small of my back, he gently turned me around. “Look.”
For a second, I didn’t see anything. Just an open expanse of lawn, cloaked in darkness. Even the late-night picnickers seemed to have packed up and left.
A figure dashed out, crouching low, and paused. I saw a spark, like the tiny flame of a lighter. Then more sparks.
The tiny flashes grew, one spark growing into several, each lighting the next. They moved fast, lighting up the night with their soft glow. They looked like large sparklers, each one placed in the grass just close enough to light the next. A bright, flashing domino effect.
In seconds, the lawn was lit up with silver and gold sparks, their lights winking and flashing in the darkness.
As I stared at the display, wondering who on earth had done such a thing and how we’d gotten so lucky that we’d witnessed it—and how had Shepherd known to tell me to look?—I realized it spelled something. Four words.
Will you marry me?
It even had the question mark.
I looked at Shepherd, my mouth open. But I’d suddenly lost the ability to speak.
His lips turned up in that heart-melting smile and he slowly lowered to one knee. He took my hands, his eyes never leaving mine.
“Everly, you have the biggest heart of anyone I’ve ever known. And I’m about to ask you to give it to me, forever. All I have to give you in return is mine, which, to be perfectly honest, isn’t enough. But I love you with every bit of it—with every piece of my soul. Will you marry me?”
“Yes, Shepherd. Yes. Oh my god, yes.”
Before he could do anything else—he probably had a ring, but I wasn’t thinking very clearly—I threw my arms around him. Still on one knee, he pulled me lower and held me against him. Leaned his face into my hair and took a deep breath.
“I love you, Everly,” he whispered.
“I love you too.”
I sniffed, letting the tears trail from the corners of my eyes.
After a long moment, he rose and helped me stand. He produced a small box from the inside pocket of his jacket and opened it. Inside was a rose gold ring with a center stone surrounded by a halo of diamonds. It wasn’t large—nothing like the fake-engagement ring I’d worn. But it was beautiful. Perfect, even. In fact—
“Shepherd, this looks like the ring I tried on when we bought the fake ring.”
He pulled the ring from the box and held it up. “It is the ring you tried on.”
“You found one just like it?”
“No, this is the same ring. May I?”
I nodded, holding out my hand. He slipped the ring on my finger.
“I can’t believe it was still there.”
He took my hand in his and ran his thumb across my knuckles. “Actually, I bought it at the same time as the other one.”
“You bought this when we were faking? Why?”
“I honestly don’t know. It was a whim. And I never have whims; I always think things through. But I saw this ring on your finger that day and I had to buy it. So I did.”
“Thank you. It’s perfect. And were those sparklers? How did you do that?”
His lips turned up in a grin and he nodded toward the lawn. “I had a little help.”
Richard stood on the path near the now-burnt-out sparklers. He waved.
I grabbed the lapels of his jacket and leaned closer. “You’re a little bit crazy, Shepherd Calloway.”
“You bring out the best in me.”
I melted into his strong embrace, throwing my arms around his neck as he kissed me. Happy tears trailed down my cheeks and it was almost hard to kiss him back. I couldn’t stop smiling.
He was smiling, too.
As it turned out, Shepherd Calloway wasn’t the only person on the planet who was impervious to my sunshine. All it had taken was a gold-digging ex-girlfriend, a parent in crisis, a sister looking for a sperm donor, a fake relationship, some awkward bed-sharing, a stupidly huge diamond, and some strawberry shampoo to crack that man open.
Oh yeah. I knew about the shampoo. I ordered it in bulk now, just in case they stopped making it someday.
Once upon a time, I’d thought I was cursed. But my happily ever after had been there all along. The road we’d taken to find it had been winding, filled with surprises neither of us had seen coming. But it was impossible to imagine things turning out any other way. Shepherd and I had been made for each other. And now we were going to spend the rest of our lives together. Happy. Loved.
And a little bit kinky.
After all, who could resist biting her brand-new-not-fake-fiancé’s bottom lip when it made him growl like a predator? Not this girl.
