“Alright. If that’s what you want, that’s what we’ll do.”
He took my cup and set it down on the banister. Then he took my hand and led me down to the center of the porch where our family and friends were sitting. He brought his hands up to his mouth and whistled so loudly that I wanted to cover my ears.
“Gather around everyone. Lacey and I have news to share.”
However, instead of holding up the sonogram like we’d planned, he dropped down onto his knees and pulled a ring box out of his cut. I froze in place because this was not partof our plan for the day. Rebel had gone off-script in the most unexpected manner possible.
When he opened the black velvet box, my breath caught in my throat.
“Lacey Livingstone, I had this ring made especially for you in order to increase the probability of you saying yes to becoming my wife.” When I didn’t immediately respond, he added, “Don’t pretend like you don’t like the ring, because I can tell by your expression that you do. Just so you know, the ring and me are a package deal. You can’t have one without the other.”
Everyone around us burst out laughing and so did I. Leave it to Rebel to come up with an absolutely gorgeous ring design and a humorous proposal, specially crafted to make me laugh.
“I wasn’t expecting a proposal today but since you went through all the trouble to make a perfect one and I’m head over heels in love with you, I’m gonna have to say yes.”
He removed the ring from the box and slid it onto my finger. I just shook my head, staring down at it. “This is the most adorable engagement ring I’ve ever seen,” I gushed.
Rebel was all smiles, “I knew you would love it. Do I need to take a vote on whether I’ve earned a kiss for all my hard work?”
Everyone started shouting for me to kiss him, so I did and everyone cheered. Rebel raised his hand into the air. “Hold up. Don’t nobody go nowhere. We’ve got one more announcement to make.”
I glanced at my parents and my mom’s hopeful expression told me she was hoping this announcement involved a baby.She slid her hand into Rebel’s grandmother’s. The older woman looked her fondly and gave her hand a squeeze in response.
Rebel didn’t disappoint. He held the sonogram picture and announced, “We’re expecting a baby ladybug.”
I chimed in, “Or a baby biker. We won’t know for sure for a few more weeks.”
Rebel kissed me long and hard before being pulled away by his club brothers. He pretended to fight them every step of the way to get back to me. Again, it was amusing and added fun to the occasion.
When I turned around to face my mom and his grandmother, they were all smiles. I rushed over and knelt in front of his grandmother to show her and my mom my ring. Suddenly, there was Zoe and Alison on my other side.
My mother commented, “It’s a little lightbulb. The perfect ring for a master electrician’s wife.”
“Yeah, I love it.”
Zoe grinned at me, clearly surprised by the unique design. “Storm said it was amazing, and he was right.”
Even Rebel’s gran had to admit, “My grandson did good by you, Lacey.’
Alison stared down at it for a second. “That’s the cutest thing I’ve ever seen.”
After everyone had finished admiring my ring, my mom, Zoe, Alison, and a couple of my aunts, crowded around me asking questions about how far along my pregnancy was and how long I’d been with Rebel, and pelted me with questions about hisclub. I immediately got swarmed by my female cousins asking questions about some of the single brothers. If I was being honest, it was starting to get overwhelming.
That’s when Rebel swooped in, scooped me up in his arms and walked off with me. I snuggled my face into his neck as he took me down to the pier. There was a boathouse I barely remembered, and several of his club brothers were milling about outside. They moved further away when he carried me into the wooden building, like they were standing guard.
When we made it inside, I realized why. Rebel had created a little place for us to rest. It was a mattress on a frame with loads of warm blankets and a little heater.
“This is really romantic, babe. Did you think up this all on your own?”
He glanced up at me with an amused expression on his face. “Of course. You act like I don’t know how to treat a woman.”
I grabbed his hands and gave them a little squeeze. “It’s not that. It’s just that the ring was so spot on and this little getaway you’ve made for us is so thoughtful and well planned. It’s even color coordinated. Zoe mentioned they have an event planner they work with, and I thought you may have availed yourself of her services.”
His eyebrows flew up. “Nope, I damn sure did not. This is all one hundred percent me, ladybug. If I’d known about this event planner, you can bet your sweet ass I would have used her though, because I worried myself stupid trying make everything perfect for you.”
I reached up and cupped his face in my hands then pulled him down for a kiss. “Like your gran said, you did real good for me today.”
Looking down into my eyes, he asked, “You aren’t teasing me, are you?”