“Shh. He’s a good person.”
“I know.” And smile when I see Max sitting at the table, legs stretched out in front of him, the top button of his shirt undone, god knows where his tie is. He catches my eye and smiles at me, melting my insides.
“How are things with Nurse McCartney?”
“Yeah, it seems to be going well.” He gives a little shrug, obviously as uncomfortable talking about this as I am.
“Good, I’m glad.” I give him a peck on the cheek, and we finish our dance. Max is waiting for me as I walk off the dance floor. His arms wrap around my waist as he tugs me gently onto his lap. Resting my arms around his neck, I look down to press a kiss to his lips. Public displays of affection like this don’t bother me so much now. It’s a small town and everyone knows about Max and me. They probably knew about us before we did.
• • •
My final duty of the night is to help Beth get changed out of her wedding dress and into a simple maxi dress. Sugar takes her hair down and arranges it into a looser style, while I stand and pass her the hairbrush, as useful as ever.
“So you and my little brother,” Sugar starts, and I catch the twinkle in her eye. She’s never said anything before about us; she always just watches with this knowing smile on her face.
“It’s about time,” Beth adds, and I swat her gently on the shoulder, feeling a blush stain my cheeks.
“I always gave him a hard time about his dating habits but seems like he was waiting for the right person.” Sugar winks at me.
“It’s so romantic,” Beth gushes, and I shoot her a look.
“Give it a rest.”
“Well, it is. Max pined for you, dating other girls to hide how he truly felt, and then you show up again. And even though you felt the same way all along, you denied it to everyone, even yourself. Now you’re finally together and you’re staying. Happily every after.” Beth sighs dramatically.
“Enough, you two.” I hold up my hands. “Okay, I admit it, I love him. As for happily ever after… we’ll see.”
“Told you, it’s romantic,” she squeals, and Sugar nods her agreement.
“Whatever. You ready, Sugar?” I hand over the last bobby pin, and Sugar places it in her hair.
“All done, let’s go. Aaron will be wondering what’s taking so long.”
• • •
Going with tradition, Beth gathers all the women at the bottom of the steps outside to throw the bouquet. I try to slink away without being spotted, but Beth catches me.
“Get back here,” she calls over and beckons me back. Laughing, I shake my head.
“No way. I don’t want it.” And I edge slightly further away just to be on the safe side.
“Ready?” she calls and all the women cheer, jostling for the best position with their hands in the air.
Beth faces the front and raises her bouquet above her head and throws it. It soars over the head of the women standing at the bottom of the steps and into the outstretched hand… of Max. My jaw drops as his hand curls around the flowers, a triumphant look on his face. All the women glare at him. Since when did men catch the bouquet? Turning to face me, he drops to one knee and holds out his hand. All heads turn to look in my direction, and I stand rooted to the spot, my fingers twisting the material of my dress.
No. What the fuck is he doing?
Beth stares at him and then at me, her eyes like saucers.
“Get up,” I hiss at him, but his eyes sparkle, the infuriatingly sexy grin widens as he shakes his head. “What are you doing?” I wail, wishing he would stand up.
“Marry me.”
Everyone is staring at us. Sugar grips Causey’s arm and swipes at her cheek while a wide smile spreads across Beth’s face. Shaking my head, I start to back up until my bum hits against the side of the limo. Finally, he gets up off his knee and stalks toward me while I edge around the car, trying to keep some distance between us. I can’t very well break into a flat-out sprint, certainly not in these heels.
“Wh… what?”
“You heard. Marry me.” I freeze at his words.
“But…” He rounds the car and places the bouquet on the white hood. His hands slide around my waist and takes a step closer.
“Come on, Storm. I’m asking you to marry me. How about it?” He stares down at me, confident and commanding. No trace of nervousness or hesitation, so sure of himself. How long has he been thinking about this?
My chest heaves as I try to catch my breath. Still unable to quite believe what is happening. Marriage. I hadn’t even thought about it. But I do love him, I have for a long time, and he is part of the reason I’ve decided to stay. My heart soars when I look at him standing there asking me to marry him and in front of all these people. Everything slides into place when I’m with him, and I feel complete. I know without any doubt what my answer is.