Trey looked at Jasmine, who nodded her head eagerly. He handed the mic to Jaz and walked over to Kris.
Kris looked at Trey quizzically as he pulled her to her feet.
"I was going to put on some dance music, but since Jaz is more than capable of belting a tune, she'll sing for us," he said, spinning her around when the music started.
Kris laughed in genuine surprise and delight. Trey was going to dance with her! In front of their friends!
Trey started rocking and the guys hooted in glee. Kris' eyes watered as she boogied with her man. She was so proud of him. He'd kept his word and let her teach him not just how to dance, but how to enjoy himself doing it. Once again, he moved her with his actions.
As the song finished, Trey twirled with a flourish and ended the dance with him kneeling in front of Kris. Everyone clapped enthusiastically and Kris tugged at Trey's arm to help him get up to his feet. He resisted. Instead, he held on to her left hand tightly while he groped for something in his pocket.
Kris' heart thundered madly in her chest. The room and everyone else in it ceased to exist for her as all her senses zoned in on Trey. When he found what he was looking for in his pocket, he stared at her with love in his eyes—and a hint of trepidation.
"Kris," he said hoarsely. "I love you so much. You'll make me the happiest man in the world if you say you'll marry me. So please say 'yes'?"
Her face broke into a smile as emotions overwhelmed her. "Yes, Trey, I'll marry you," she said haltingly as tears flowed profusely down her cheeks.
Trey pressed her hand to his lips before sliding a beautiful diamond ring on her finger. Then he got up and pulled her in his arms.
"I love you," he whispered.
"I love you," she whispered back.
When they pulled apart, her tears started afresh as she saw her friends wiping their eyes with tissues. Sam handed her one and hugged her.
"Congrats, darling. I'm so happy for you," Sam said.
"Thank you, Sam," she responded. She prayed fervently that the cousin she loved like a sister would find the same happiness she'd found—both in love and career.
*******
Kris lay contentedly in Trey's arms, sated and utterly satisfied from their passionate lovemaking. She gazed in awe at the ring on her finger, not for its sheer size and brilliance, but because Trey put it there. Who would have known they'd come so far in such a short time?
"Do you like it?" he asked huskily, caressing her arm with the tips of his fingers.
"I love it, especially because it's from you," she said sincerely.
"No one else could slide a ring on that finger now, ever," he murmured. "Apart from me when we get married, of course."
She smiled just as her phone buzzed with a text message.
"It's from Sam. She said she'll be home soon. She's leaving the function centre now to catch a cab."
Kris was glad that Sam was enjoying herself and meeting new friends in Sydney who were also in the food industry. The cooking class she went to that night, conducted by a high profile celebrity chef and attended by many in the industry, must have finished two hours ago, but Sam had stayed to enjoy drinks with whomever she met there. When it came to her passion, the extroverted Sam came out.
"I do hope Sam goes through with moving here so she can be with us—and that she has enough courage to follow her dream. I know she's finding it hard to disappoint her parents," she said to Trey.
"She certainly looked keen with what you girls had planned."
"Could you imagine Adam and her pretending to be a couple?" she snickered.
"You never know. Dylan didn't expect to fall in love with Ari, and I certainly didn't expect to be in a relationship, let alone want to get married. You girls seem to have this indefinable something that makes us fall in love with you."
"You think something could happen between them? That would be good," she said, excited by the thought.
Trey chuckled dryly. "We can only hope. Adam quite likes women who are aggressive. That's why he ends up with the not-so-desirable ones, because they chase him and chase him until he gives in. I think he's addicted to being chased."
"Oh. What about Sandy? Are they well and truly over?"
"In Adam's mind, they are. But like Adam said, Sandy's like a dog with a bone when he's involved. I think he's flattered by that."
"Hmm."
"Anyway, let's not talk about them, I want your mouth for something else," Trey said seductively.
"Oh, yeah? What for?" she asked, pulling herself up and settling on top of him. She felt his burgeoning erection and deliberately brushed it with her leg.
"Anything, as long as you put it to work on my body," he croaked.