Page 114 of Walkoff Wedding

“One sec,” he murmurs, dropping my hand and reaching into his pocket. When he pulls out a set of keys, my mouth falls open in shock.

Why… Why would Grant have keys to this place? It’s been empty for years.

Before I can even ask that question, he leads us up to the peeling black front door and unlocks it, pushing it open.

The stale, musty air hits us the moment we walk over the threshold, and I turn to look at him. “Okay, what’s going on? Why would you hav?—”

My question dies on my tongue when Grant drops to one knee in front of me, holding a dark blue box in his hand as he peers up at me with stormy eyes that nearly match.

Oh my god.

Shaky fingers fly to my mouth, covering it, as a new onslaught of tears well in my eyes, blurring my vision. I blink rapidly, attempting to breathe even as the lump of emotion forms in my throat, making it tight.

I try to speak, but my voice catches, and a breathless laugh escapes from my lips instead.

Grant’s mouth tilts into a smile that makes my heart stutter wildly in my chest. “I love you, Addie. I wish that I could’ve proposed to you this way the first time instead of with a paper ring on my kitchen floor. Because you deserve that. You deserve a wedding surrounded by people who love you and your happily ever after just the way that you imagined it. I want to give it to you. I want to give you everything you’ve ever wanted, ArtGirl. I want to be your muse, your best friend, and your biggest fan. I want to support you and love you without condition. Our love was always more than an arrangement—it’s a testament to souls being tethered by fate. Because I loved you before I ever even saw you.

I’m sobbing as he continues, my entire body shaking with emotion.

“You’re the love of my life. In any universe, it will always be you. In any lifetime, you will always be the marrow of my bones. A love that transcends time—that’s the way I was made to love you, Addie Bergeron. Will you stay my wife? Until the stars call us home?”

I fall to my knees in front of him, throwing myself into his arms so hard that he nearly topples over, burying my face into his neck as my wet tears coat his skin.

“Y-yes, ye-s-s, yes,” I chant, over and over, as his arms wrap around my waist and hold me tightly to his body.

He pulls back, tears shining in his own stormy eyes as he kisses me. His lips press against mine in a series of quick, breathless movements, and I laugh against his mouth.

“I have something else to show you, baby.”

I look up at him, blinking away the wetness from my eyes watching as he lifts the blue box for me to see. When he flips it open, it’s not a ring inside of it… it’s a key, slotted into the spot where a ring would fit.

My gaze darts from the key to him, and he smirks. “I’m going to get you a new ring, but I want it to be one that you pick out so it’s exactly what you want.” He pauses, slipping the key out of the box and holding it out for me. “You always said that you wanted to have the bakery and display your art for the world to see one day. So, I bought this place for you. And it’s in your name only, so no one can ever try and take it away from you. My promise to you that I will never stop trying to make your dreams come true, Addie.”

“I love you so much,” I sob, crushing my lips to his. I never knew it was possible to love anyone so all-consumingly and wholly.

Nothing in the world has ever felt as right as it does when I’m with him. Like we’re two halves of one soul that only feel complete when we’re together.

He’s the kind of fairy tale that I once thought only existed in books and movies.

Grant Bergeron is my happily ever after, and once upon a time… it all started with ArtGirl and Jockboy.

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