The Sterling Boys(76)

"Too late," Kode chirps, moving beside Maverick who's grinning mischievously.

"What if I baked you a cake?" I ask hopefully.

"Can't bribe us," Dale says with a dismissive wave. "Get packed. We're taking you home tomorrow. We've got a room here for tonight."

"Wait. I have to stay for the production," I object, hoping to delay the punishment.

Filming could take at least a year if—

"Nope. Producer was fucking ecstatic when we talked to him about taking you home. Ran into him when we were heading up. Nice guy. Maverick recognized him from the internet. We've been stalking your book/movie deal. You'll also be punished for not telling us about that. Prepare to be tossed into Mom's pool," Kode says mildly, the same dark humor glinting in his eyes.

“I can’t swim,” I quickly remind him, knowing he wouldn’t do anything to—

“Shallow end,” he adds, killing my hope. “And I think you’re old enough to learn to swim.”

Ah hell. Elizabeth keeps her pool too cold. I'm not even sure how she manages to do it, but I hate that damn pool. I’ve only ever put my toes in it, and even that was terrible. I’m sure as hell not learning to swim in there. I’m already terrified of the water. Frigid water is a double threat.

"And you're really going to be punished if we find out you didn't make us look like total studs in your books," Corbin adds, a taunting smile on his face.

Crap. The books.

"I... uh—"

"Get some rest," Dale says with his uncharacteristically wicked grin. "You'll need it."

One by one, they all hug me, whispering their threats of tickle torture and cold-as-ice water dunking as they press a kiss to my cheek. Everyone chuckles as they filter out, and Dane's arms come back around me just as the door shuts behind them.

"You can't keep hiding stuff from me. Promise me you'll never do it again. Secrets only tear people apart," he says before brushing his lips against mine.

"I promise," I whisper, entranced by his simple, soft touch. "Promise you won't help them punish me?"

I peek up, giving him my most innocent expression, and he chuckles. "I won't be helping them punish you. I have my own punishment in mind."

Really wish that didn't sound so dirty. I've read too many books.

"Oh?" I ask, running my finger down his chest and enjoying the way his breath hitches.

He catches my hand, and kisses it, then he takes my left hand in his to pull it up to his lips, repeating the kiss on it. His lips then find mine, and I melt against him as he plays with my hand. It takes me a second to realize that he just put something on my finger. I pull back from the kiss to investigate when the foreign feeling finally registers.

When a raindrop diamond stares at me, I'm pretty sure my heart gives up trying to find an actual rhythm and just beats whenever it thinks about it. It's the most perfect ring I've ever seen. It's like someone designed this ring just for me, and Dane found it.

"I plan to punish you by making you spend the rest of your life with me. Your vows will promise that you won't ever run away from me again. You'll promise to let me make you happy in ways only I can. Everyday you'll have to let me touch you, hold you, and love you while I remind you how fucking much you mean to me. And you'll listen, believe it, and trust me.

"You won't ever face anything alone, because I'll always be there. You'll be forced to smile daily while I make you scream my name, and you'll enjoy every second of being in my arms. We'll always promise to make time for each other no matter how busy we are, and you'll have to do things like take long baths with me, come on a few business trips so that I don't have to miss you, and you'll have to do terrible things like sleep in my arms all night. It'll be brutal."

He grins as I struggle to do things like breathe and stand. It's rather frustrating to let him continue spelling out his delicious punishment for me when all I want to do is get started.

"We'll argue, but we'll always get through it because we love each enough to make it through anything. You'll have to go out on dates with me even after your name is Sterling. And you'll also have to let me take you on vacations, even after we expand our family. My favorite part of growing up with the Sterlings was a family vacation. It's why I was always so close to my cousins."

My tears come out harder as the promise of my dream future keeps getting better, and I look up to see him smiling down at me.

"Yes. I'll marry you," I choke out, hiccupping again.

His throaty chuckle is one of amusement, and he thumbs away a few of my tears. "Of course you will. It's your punishment. You can't get out of your punishment, after all," he jokes, bending down to kiss me softly, but I break the restraint he has when I jump up to wrap my legs around his waist.