Chapter 51
Ava
“Hear me out,” Chase says carefully, sliding the sparkly diamond ring another inch across the table.
I stare at him.
Then the blinding disco ball of a ring.
Then him again.
He’s my best friend.
I at least owe him the courtesy of hearing him out. “I’m listening.”
“Good.” He settles back against his chair, intense and dangerously put together. “I’ll always look after your best interests.”
“I know.”
My pulse picks up.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
“And with me, I’ll always support your career. Have adorable genetically blessed children with you as long as you handle anything involving bodily fluids.”
I roll my eyes.
“Be there for you, like I always have and always will.”
Just like I’ve always been there for him.
Wait.
Is he… serious?
“You’d look incredible brooding beside the Mediterranean.”
Despite the grief clawing at my ribs every waking second, I laugh. Chase is always good for a laugh.
I look back down at the ring.
And God, it’s breathtaking.
“Do you like it?” he asks.
So much.
And not because it’s expensive, which I’m sure it is.
The cluster of yellow and white diamonds looks like a marigold. Like hope.
Warmth.
Home.
Then I look at Chase.
And this perfect moment feels somehow… off.
My heart doesn’t leap the way it should.
The truth settles all around. And suddenly, I know.
“Chase…”
His expression softens instantly.
“You’ve been beside me through it all. Every scandal. Every breakup. Every public disaster.” I laugh shakily. “That deeply unfortunate wardrobe malfunction.”
He sips his scotch. “That image of me stripped of my pants still haunts the dark web. And OnlyFans.”
His smile softens into something sadder.
Mine does too.
And the terrifying thing?
A small part of me wonders if maybe that’s enough.
Maybe safe should be enough.
The thought barely forms before the truth crushes it.
Because Chase is here.
But Harrison has my heart.
My chest tightens so hard it almost hurts to breathe.
“You’re incredible, Chase. And I wish that was enough.”
Chase goes very still.
“Can’t it be?”
Silence stretches between us.
The warmth between us suddenly feels unbearably sad.
I say the only thing I can. The brutal truth.
“I love Harrison. And I can’t unlove him.”
Chase exhales slowly and drags a hand down his face.
“Yeah,” he mutters. “That’s what I was afraid of.”
A watery laugh escapes me.
“He broke your heart, Ava. And he pushed you away from the people you love most.”
“I know.”
Chase studies me carefully.
“So you’d rather have Harrison Evans sitting here instead of me?”
I let out a watery laugh. “I’m afraid so.”
Chase huffs a quiet laugh through his nose.
“Well.” He reaches for his scotch. “That certainly clears things up.”
Then Chase glances past my shoulder, suddenly looking far too satisfied with himself.
“He designed it, you know.”
“Who designed what?”
He nods toward the ring. “Your big oaf of a lumberjack. He designed the ring.”
“He designed a ring for you to propose with?”
“No, he designed a ring for him to propose with. He dropped it while wrestling your ex to the ground. I just happened to pick it up.”
“What?”
Harrison brought a ring with him to LA. This ring?
I smack him with a napkin. “And you didn’t give it back?”
“No. If you weren’t in love with him, I figured we’d pawn it. Split it right down the middle. Then, we could vanish. Private jet. New passports. Somewhere warm. Without fucking puffins on the menu.”
I laugh out loud.
He reaches over and carefully wipes away my tears. “You need to look presentable. Harrison looks murderous with me this close to you.”
“He’s here?”
“He is.”
My stomach drops.
Slowly…
very slowly…
I turn around.
And the world stops.
Harrison stands near the entrance of the restaurant, smiling as he dusts snow from the shoulders of his dark coat.
He’s in a new suit, and his lumberjack scruff has been trimmed to perfection.
And God.
He’s so devastatingly gorgeous my knees nearly give out beneath me.
Suddenly I can’t breathe.
“Harrison?”
He starts toward me slowly.
Like he’s… nervous.
His eyes lock onto mine.
“Hi.”
Oh, I’ve missed him.
“Hi.”
He looks how I feel.
Wrecked.
Terrified.
Hopeful enough to break my heart all over again.
The entire restaurant disappears.
And there’s only us.
Until his gaze flicks to Chase.
Then the ring.
Harrison glares at him like murder just became legal in Iceland.
Chase drains his scotch and rises from the table.
“Good news, man,” he says smoothly. “I found your ring.”
“Do you know how many police departments are actively looking for that ring?”
“I believe there’s a reward involved.”
Harrison’s growl probably registers on the Richter scale.
Then I press my palm to his chest.
And just like that, every hard line in his body melts.
A broken little sound leaves me as he pulls me straight into his arms.
He feels like home.
He takes my hand in his.
Before he drops to one knee.
Right there in the middle of Reykjavík.
A sob tears out of me instantly.
Not a sweet sob.
An oh-my-God-this-is-happening sob.
“Pix.” His voice breaks around the nickname. “I know I hurt you. And it’s taken me a long time to get here.”
Tears spill down my cheeks.
“I love you.” His eyes shine with emotion. “And the kids love you. And I can’t imagine our chaotic, impossible, beautiful life without you.”
His hand trembles as he slides the ring onto my finger.
“Marry me,” he whispers.
All the broken pieces of my heart clicks back into place.
And for the first time in weeks, I feel whole again.
“Marry me. Marry us. Because no matter where you are, where you go, we will never, ever, be without you again.”
The word breaks out of me instantly.
“Yes.”
Around us, the restaurant erupts into applause.
The massive windows overlooking Reykjavík suddenly flood with ribbons of green and blue light dancing across the night sky.
Auroras.
Lighting up the entire sky.
As Harrison Evans kisses me like he crossed an ocean to get here.
Like he’d cross ten more.
Because our love is worth it.