Page 79 of After the Storm

“Someday, you’ll come around to Taylor Swift.” I sigh dramatically.

“Doubt it.” He shrugs.

“Can you tell me where we’re going yet?” I ask.

“I told you, we’re just going for a drive.”

“Right, I might believe you if the drive hadn’t been mandatory.” I laugh.

“Mandatory seems a little dramatic, don’t you think?” He scoffs.

“Ares, you told me if I didn’t get in the car, you’d—and I quote—set mybitch asson fire,” I say, trying to keep a straight face, which is nearly impossible.

“God, you threaten arson once.” He scoffs. We look at each other and burst into laughter.

“Ares, where are you taking me?” I ask again.

“We’re just going for a drive.” He huffs like I’m annoying him.

As if he didn’t force me into this car and drive me around for thirty minutes. From end to end, Doves Harbor is hardly even thirty minutes. Have we been going in circles this whole time? I guess I hadn’t been fully paying attention because I was just enjoying the time with Ares.

“Didn’t we already pass the library like ten minutes ago?” I ask, tapping him on the shoulder. He just keeps his eyes on the road, ignoring me with a smirk on his face. I huff and throw myself back in my seat.

I watch out the window and realize we have, in fact, just been doing big squares around town. This is fucking weird. Then it hits me like a ton of bricks. He wouldn’t propose, would he?

I try to run the scenario through my head. If he asked, I would definitely say yes… But it’s so soon. I’ve always thought you should live with someone before you get engaged, what if we hate living together? Shit.

“He’s not proposing, is he?” I ask, heart thudding against my chest. Ares’ brows pinch together, and he laughs.

“Proposing?” He laughs. “No. Bit early for that, don’t you think?” he asks. Yes, yes, I do.

“Thank God. I got nervous, you were being so weird.” I exhale out of relief. Ares’ phone chimes, and a smile creeps up on his face when he reads it. Katrina, I’m assuming. Then he finally puts me out of the misery of another circle around the same five blocks.

We drive for maybe another five minutes before Ares pulls into the driveway of one of the most beautiful houses I’ve ever seen. Maybe it’s Katrina’s? It’s a pastel green-colored house on stilts. Just on the other side of the stilts is the beach. Wide window panes with baby pink hurricane shutters sit on either side of the front door.

“Come on,” Ares says, getting out of the car. I get out and follow closely behind him as he walks up the driveway and the stairs leading up to the front door.

“Is this where Katrina lives?” I ask. He does a small laugh.

“No.” He says simply like he isn’t leading me into someone’s house I’ve never been to. We reach the top of the stairs, and there’s a porch swing hanging a few feet from the front door. The front door swings open, and it’s Roman on the other side.

“Roman? What are you doing here? Where the hell are we?” I ask.

“What am I doing here? We live here,” he says like it’s common knowledge. Like I should know that already. Like he didn’t just tell me we own this fucking house.

“What? How did you—when did you—This is ours?” I ask, walking past Ares and Roman and into the house. I look around, and off to the side is the kitchen.

“Yes, it’s ours.” I don’t say a word. I don’t even think I can. I’m fucking speechless. I walk to the kitchen, and it’s everything I could dream of. It’s big, it’s open, there’s an island. Tears well in my eyes as I make my way through this house.

I walk out the sliding glass door that leads to a large wooden deck. One with stairs up to a second-story deck and stairs down to a pool on the lower level. I look around, and ceiling fans hang at either end. I turn back to face the house and find them both standing in the doorway.

“You knew,” I choke out as happy tears—fucking ecstatic tears—fall from my eyes. “How did you know?” I ask.

“You told me.” He shrugs.

“What? When?” I ask, wiping at the tears under my eyes.

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