Page 45 of Forgetting Rafe Thomas
Chapter Nineteen
Luna
Thomas family meetings areboisterous, and this one is no different. It’s the second one they’ve had today, but with baked goods and coffee involved, no one complains. Catching sight of Vivien, it hits me that this is real. I’m back in the fold of this beautiful family, and my heart swells. It feels like just yesterday that I dropped in on Lorelai in the Thomas’ mountain cabin along with Vivien, Emma, and Ella. Back then, I didn’t think I’d ever fix things with Rafe. And now? I’m going to be his wife.
“Is it safe to assume someone talked you out of selling Sweet and Salty?” Mav asks, glancing at Rafe and me. His eyes travel down to our linked hands and he smiles with that undeniablemission accomplishedgrin.
“Not exactly,” Mr. Thomas says and settles into a chair near the display. “We had an offer to buy already.”
“What?” Vivien whines. “Already?”
Mrs. Thomas nods. “Yes, and we have agreed to a partnership with an eventual take over.” She motions toward Rafe and me and smiles. “Meet the soon-to-be new owners of Sweet and Salty.”
“Rafe and Luna?” Silas asks. He glances between us and our parents. “Does this mean…” He leaves the question open-ended for us to fill in.
Rafe squeezes my hand and looks at me. “Luna and I are officially engaged. She’s moving back to Coldstone Creek once her exhibit opens, and we’ll transition to full ownership of the bakery over the next year.”
Silas throws his hands in the air and laughs. “Great, now I’ll have to wait even longer to propose to Ella.”
Evidently, he forgot Ella was in the room, sitting right beside him, holding his hand. She sits straighter than a pin and slowly turns her head to look at him. “You’re…planning to propose?”
Silas’ mouth falls open, and I truly believe hejust nowrealized what he said aloud. “Well…yeah…we talked about it, right? We said we would when the time is right.”
“Yes,” Ella says, nodding along with her reply.
“So, yeah, I’ve been trying to make the time right, and these guys keep stealing it.”
“We are not—”
“Shh!” Emma nudges Lev while her eyes are glued on Silas and Ella.
“No, I mean, yes. Yes, I’ll marry you,” Ella says, ignoring the rest of thevery fullroom.
“But I didn’t—”
“Just agree,” Ella says. “I’ve been waiting and waiting. Just agree, Silas.”
“You’re sure you don’t want—”
“I want you. That’s all.” Ella’s eyes water and it seems to finally hit Silas. She doesn’t need something special, some big show of love. She just needs him.
Rafe squeezes my hand. It’s too bad we figured out the same thing the hard way, but it looks like Silas and Ella aren’t going to make the same mistake.
“I just want you, too. Will you marry me, Ella?”
Ella nods her head again and throws herself onto him while everyone’s uproar of encouragement still cannot drown out Mrs. Thomas’ squeal. Once Ella is free from Silas’ grip, Mrs. Thomas squeezes her next future daughter-in-law.
“You know,” Mrs. Thomas sits straighter and gets that sparkle in her eyes that says something insane is about to come out of her mouth, and we may or may not escape whatever plan she has concocted. For the first time, I realize that Mrs. Kilmermighthave worn off on her. “Your cousins, May and Calliope, had a double wedding. I could definitely pull off a triple wedding with a little help.”
Lev’s nose scrunches at the very idea. “Mom, no.”
“Oh, come on. What’s wrong with a triple wedding? Then half of my boys will be settled down with the best women a mom could want for daughters-in-law, and then I can move on to worrying about the other five.”
“I’m nineteen, Mom. I have time,” Mav says as he slowly slinks toward the exit.
“You’re almost twenty,” she reminds. Yep, he’s in her crosshairs too. The youngest Thomas has officially gotten on the marriage radar.
I lean close to Rafe and cup his ear with my hand. “You wanna scram and tell my parents before we get roped into this?”
