The Best Friend Bargain(70)
She felt him staring and pictured that dimpled, confident expression of his that rendered her defenseless. Gah. Did he have to be so beautiful, too? Even behind her eyelids?
“Look at me, Maybug.” She did. “I want to stare into your eyes when I say the rest of what I need to say to you.”
Oh. Liv released a deep breath and held eye contact. “Okay.”
In her periphery she was vaguely aware of activity near the open side gate to the backyard. Voices. Bits and pieces of color and movement that didn’t belong. “But first,” she added, “thank you for getting me here like you did. I loved almost every minute of it.”
His impish grin told her he knew his game had worked its magic on her, but that it took a damn long time to get here. Sliding the back of his hand along her cheek, he dropped the playful attitude and said, “I’ve been going insane all day.”
“Well, now that you’ve got me here, please tell me what’s going on.”
He took a deep breath, lifted both her hands into his. “I love you, Maybug. Your smile, your frown, your messiness, your humor, your body, your accents, the list goes on and on, and I don’t want to fight these feelings anymore.”
Goose bumps sprang up on her skin.
“I’ve been looking for my happiness for a long time and it wasn’t complete until you. I don’t want to miss another day of seeing you, looking at your beautiful face and knowing you’re mine. With every sunrise I want to watch your eyes open to greet the day, and when I can only feel, I want to kiss you awake and whisper how much I love you.”
A tear slid down her cheek. “Oh, Danny. I love you, too, so, so much, and I promise I’m going to be by your side for every sunrise so I can whisper back that I adore and cherish you, too.”
“That’s an awfully big promise when—”
“Shh.” She lifted his hands and put them on her face. Held them there beneath her own. “You already see so much, Danny, and you’ll always, always be able to touch me whenever you want.” A flash of lust sparked in his eyes, and she was pretty sure he saw the same in hers. “Besides, I kind of like the idea of you not seeing my wrinkles. You’ll always see me as youngish.”
He moved his hands to her belly. “I love this baby, too, and I want to have more with you.”
“I would love that.” Holy shit, this was really happening. “But we—”
He cut her off with a finger pressed to her lips. Then he got down on one knee and pulled a small velvet box out of his pocket. Her heart raced.
“Olivia May Lincoln”—he opened the box to reveal the prettiest diamond ring Liv had ever seen—“will you marry me?”
She nodded. She grinned so hard her face hurt. She refrained from tackle hugging him so he could lift the ring out of the box. “Yes! Yes, I’ll marry you.”
Danny slid the ring onto her finger. They both stared at it as she flexed her hand for a good look. “It’s beautiful.”
He swept a strand of hair away from her face. “The most beautiful thing in my world is you. So, you ready to do this?”
“This?”
“Close your eyes?”
She complied without thought, linked her arm with his.
After a few steps, Danny paused, turned her, and tipped her chin up with a soft press of his fingers. His lips brushed hers. “I love you.”
“Love you back,” she said, eyes still shut.
“Ready for one last clue?”
She sensed him lifting his arm and waving over her shoulder. Was he signaling someone? “Very ready. And Danny?”
“Yeah?”
“I love you, and I’m apologizing now because those are my new favorite words and I think I’m going to be saying them a lot.”
“How about for the next sixty years?”
“I like that plan.”
“Excellent.” He tucked her into his side and walked her toward the backyard. They stopped, by her estimation inside the gate, and he said, “You can open your eyes now.”
What she saw made her heart sing a symphony. She glanced at him, glanced back at the incredible sight before her, glanced at him again. He’d planned their wedding! The most perfect, most beautiful wedding she’d ever seen.
The backyard transformation from simple to simply stunning took her breath away. Family and friends, including her mom and stepdad, sat in white chairs on either side of an aisle decorated with baby’s breath. A striking wedding arch with pink, red, and white daisies, ivy, and tulle, stood at the end of the aisle, and Pastor Michael waited beneath it with a smile on his face. Bryce and Zane, wearing black dress pants and blue button downs, flanked the pastor. Candles were everywhere, casting a breathtaking glow on the yard, and her conversation last night with Honor made perfect sense now.