Two Years Later
TWO YEARS LATER
ASHLIE
B reathe, Ashlie .
My arms fall across my chest as I plant my feet in front of the door. “You’re not driving without those glasses.”
Hunter leans against the kitchen counter, his exasperated sigh aiding the scowl on my face. “I wore them all day at work. It’s fine, Ash.”
“No.” In . Out . Breathe . “Glasses at night. So either grab them or give me the keys.”
“Naw, you’re not driving my car.” Hunter eyes me for several seconds, running his tongue across his bottom lip. “I’ve seen the way you drive yours.”
You control your reaction . “Then I’ll get the glasses.” I start back toward his office.
“The sun just started going down. It’s not even dark yet,” he gripes as he follows me. “We’re gonna be late. Let’s just go.”
I shuffle through the mess of papers on his desk and scan over his workstation, finding nothing. He’s watching me from the doorway. “Did you hide them? Where are they?”
“They’re in the dresser. Top drawer, my side.”
“Okay… Go get them so we can leave for dinner.”
“Naw.”
My nostrils flare as I watch his stubborn ass pull out his phone like he didn’t hear me. No amount of breathing will help the annoyance simmering in my chest at his obstinance over these stupid glasses. Because of his astigmatism, the glare from taillights creates starbursts when he drives at night, making it hard for him to see. I finally dragged him into an eye doctor who gave him a new prescription for special lenses. But he doesn’t like them because they cramp his style , which is his way of saying he feels nerdy in them. I think they make him look sophisticated, but he’s not hearing any of it. It’s been a month of having this argument with him, and I’m this close to leaving him here and driving myself to family dinner at his dad’s house. If he thinks I won’t call him out for being childish, he has another thing coming.
“Over some damn glasses,” I mumble, breezing past him to get to our bedroom.
I deal with children all day at work. Despite the chaos, being an associate youth swim director for the LA County Recreation Centers is the best job I could have asked for. I get to oversee a few of the programs around LA, with one day a week where I’m teaching eight-year-olds how to swim at McMahon. I’m good at it, and still have a nice work-life balance. Even on the hard days—like today when we had to drain the pool after a stomach flu incident in the water—I still love it. But I’m not putting up with his stubborn ass today too.
The dresser shakes as I yank the drawer open, and I grumble obscenities while rifling through his boxer briefs. I don’t make it far, finding the glasses tucked in their case in the corner of the drawer. When I grab them, I notice a small black velvet box underneath it. I stop breathing.
My whole body stills, heart pounding as my hand hovers. It’s the right size and shape to be that kind of box, and we’ve been together long enough for it to be that kind of box. Is this it ? Has he finally picked up on all my hints ?
“Did you find them?” Hunter asks, but his voice is a lot closer than it would be if he were standing back at the doorway. I’m stuck staring so hard at this damn box that I can’t turn around.
“I… What is that?”
He chuckles. “Why don’t you open it and see…?”
Gulping down an entire fleet of butterflies, I lift it out of the dresser. I open it slowly, holding my breath as my heart skips several beats. Then I purse my lips and breathe out a growl. It’s empty . Nailing him in the head with this stupid empty ring box is my first instinct. I don’t do it, but I’m pissed enough to think about it. He knows how much I want to marry him. We talk about it all the time. This kind of prank is just cruel, especially when we’re about to go to dinner with his family.
I spin on my heel, ready to lay into him. “You’re so damn annoy—” The words fly out of my mouth before I realize he’s down on a knee, holding up the white gold solitaire ring I’ve been hinting at since I moved in with him a year ago. I drop the box, the glasses, and my jaw.
“Yeah. I know.” His sly grin pins me in place. “I couldn’t make it that easy.” He drops his head, takes a deep breath, and looks right into my eyes. “Ashlie Janiece Willis, you are the best thing to ever happen to me. You’ve made me see life as more than something to endure, given me a sense of purpose beyond my own selfishness. You came into my life and illuminated every ounce of darkness I kept hidden until the only thing left was you and your light. I want to spend the rest of my life making you the happiest woman in the world, because that’s what you deserve. I am yours, always, and it would be the greatest honor to call you my wife. Will you marry me?”
I’ve thought about this moment since I was little. Had it all planned out. I would cry, jump for joy, and tremble as the ring slid on my finger. It would be wonderfully dramatic, and my waterworks would be worthy of a cinematic award. So color me surprised when there isn’t a tear in sight as I stare at the love of my life down on one knee. I walk toward him slowly, and an audible gulp travels down his throat as I get closer. I drop my head to his. “It took you long enough.”
He breathes out a nervous chuckle. “Ash, I’m freaking out here. Is that a yes?”
“Put the ring on my finger first.”
“Naw, not till you say yes…”
I grab for the ring, and Hunter sits back on his heels, holding it up in the air, just out of my reach. The nervousness etched on his face melts into exasperation—but I’m still miffed about his prank. He said it best: can’t make it that easy . If I had to get my hopes dashed by opening an empty ring box, he can flounder for a bit while he waits for me to answer. He can work for this yes . I eye him suspiciously. “How long have you had this?”
“Ash—”
“How long?”
“A year. I got it right after you saw it in that magazine. Ashlie, are you going to answ?—”
“ A year ? And you’re sure now?” I mock sarcastically. “Do you need some more time to think about it?”
He drags a hand down the frustration on his face and tips his head back with a groan. “You’re gonna be the death of me, woman.”
“It took you an entire year to decide whether you wanted to marry me?”
“No. It took me a year to convince myself you’d actually want to marry me … And you haven’t said yes yet. So do you?”
Of course I do. He knows I do. It’s all I talk about. “Do I, what?” I tease.
Hunter’s gaze is equally annoyed and amused as he waits for me to finish my outburst. He’s come a long way in showing vulnerability since we’ve been together. Between a lot of patience, on both of our parts, and some couple’s therapy, being open with each other about our fears comes easier to us. I almost feel bad for dragging this out. Almost .
“Okay.” He stands and slips the ring in his back pocket. Plucking me off the ground, he throws me over his shoulder.
“Put. Me. Down,” I squeal, unable to hold in my laughter. “What are you doing?”
“You’ve clearly lost your mind. I’m performing a factory reset on my girlfriend.” He tosses me on the bed and hovers over me, smothering me with kisses across my face as I lose the giggle fight.
“Oh, I’ve been downgraded from fiancée to girlfriend that fast, huh?”
“Say yes, and we can work on installing the system upgrade.” His eyebrows dance, and that smirk I’ve come to love slides across his lips.
This man, my man, has my whole heart. I could never in a million years see myself with anyone but him. I’ll take all the sarcasm, teasing, and silly bets as long as I get to wake up with him by my side.
“Ask me again,” I whisper, biting my lip as I let go of the last of my tenacity.
He cocks his head to the side, waiting to see what other games I have up my sleeve. “I’m not doing the whole knee thing aga?—”
I interrupt the rest of his snarky commentary with a kiss, and he melts into me, pouring all his frustration into his lips while we battle it out on the kissing field. As much as we tease one another, this passionate pull we have together has never lessened. I think the playfulness brings us closer, and I wouldn’t change it for the world.
After we’ve taken our fill of each other, I pull away, breathless. “Ask me…”
“Honey bear…” The huskiness in his voice sends tingles down to my toes. “Will you marry me?”
“Yes!” And that’s when the tears come. It’s not a downpour. The two or three that slip aren’t award winning, but they’ll be ingrained in my memory forever. “My love, there isn’t any timeline in the universe where I wouldn’t say yes.”
Hunter kisses the wetness on my face, and in a sweeping motion, brings my left hand between us. He slips the oval cut moissanite ring on my finger with a smile on his face. Holding my hand out, I admire the way it glints, gleaming brightly enough to shout to the world and everyone in it that it’s finally my turn. I’ve found my person .
Hunter nibbles my ear, pulling me away from the gorgeous symbol on my finger. He slowly works his way down to his favorite spot at the base of my neck.
“We’re already late, love.” I gasp, jolting at the way he grips my hips.
“Sorry. System upgrade in progress,” he says breathily, chuckling at the shiver that travels through me. Moaning softly, he weaves his fingers with my recently engaged hand, holding tight, like he’ll never let go.
“Fiancée loading.” I giggle. We’re definitely going to be late. “We have to be quick.”
“They’ll wait for us,” he mumbles around the shoulder he’s freed from my top.
“They, who? I thought it was just dinner at your dad’s.”
He smiles with a mischievous slant to his eyebrow. “Everyone. Our parents, Chase, Kayla, Willa, Trev…everyone. They’re at our engagement party, waiting for me to tell them we’re on our way.”
“But you hate that kind of thing…”
“Yeah, but you don’t. And I want whatever makes you happy.” He leans in and nuzzles my nose. “But first, I want you all to myself.”
“I’m yours, Hunter James Jackson. Always.” And that’s all the assurance he needs before diving back in, taking me with him as our souls swim to the blissful depths of ecstasy together. Quick ecstasy, though. There’s no way I’m missing my own engagement party.