Page 71 of Conflagration
“Look at me, Ari,” he demands.
I can’t bring myself to meet his eyes though. Instead, I stare at his chest.
He chuckles then brings his hand to my chin and tilts my head up until I’m looking into his eyes, which are filled with both desire and amusement. “I swear, you ruin everything.”
Confusion washes over me, and I look away, trying to break his hold. He doesn’t let me go, however. His hands slide down to grip my hips and he turns us around, lifting me up like I’m light as a feather and setting me down on the kitchen island. He takes my left hand and, before I can protest, slides the engagement ring off my finger. My heart begins to race and I want to panic, but he pushes my legs apart and positions himself between them. He lets out a deep sigh, and I force myself to meet his eyes, feeling bewildered.
“The first time I proposed to you, part of me knew how special you were, but at the same time, I had no idea the impact you were going to have on my life.” He holds the ring between us then takes my left hand and brings it to his chest, where it rests over his heart. “I love you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, and I want that to start as soon as possible.”
My breath hitches, and Branson’s lips lift up in a sweet smile. “I want that, too.”
Taking my hand, he holds the ring just above my left finger. “I was fooling myself for ever thinking that what we had could be temporary. I want you to be mine forever. Let this be the last time this ring leaves your finger. Marry me, Ariana.”
His eyes are flicking back and forth between mine, and as I take in our surroundings, my heart melts. I couldn’t have imagined a more perfect proposal. Just the two of us, alone, in the privacy of our own kitchen. Tears prick my eyes as I nod my head.
“Yes, yes. Absolutely yes!” I gush, practically squealing as he slides the ring back onto my finger. “Holy crap! I never expected you to propose again. That was perfect!”
He laughs, bringing my hand up to his lips and giving the ring a kiss. “I don’t know about that. I was planning on doing something elaborate, but now that you’re sitting here, my ring on your finger, I realize how it was done didn’t matter. All that matters is that you said yes. Again.”
Sliding my arms around his neck, I lean in and press a kiss to his lips. “I’ll say yes every single time,” I whisper, nipping at his bottom lip.
He steps back, and I groan at the missed contact. He grins as he glances at the clock, and I see that we’re going to be late. Branson takes my hand and helps me off the counter.
“We’ll pick this up later on,” he says, placing his hands on my hips and pushing me towards the front door. When we get outside, he takes hold of my hand. “Want to walk?” he asks
I nod. It’s unusually cool on this last weekend of August, and with my flats, I know I can last the couple of blocks to his parents’ place.
As we walk hand in hand, I start to think about his family, wishing we could announce our engagement for real this time. Then I remember Shane’s incredulity at our story.
“Hey, Branson?”
“Hmm?” he responds.
“Do you think we should come clean about us?”
He stops and looks down at me. “What do you mean?”
“I don’t know. It’s just… Now that Shane knows, I worry about someone else finding out about us. And now that this is genuine, that you’ve proposed for real, I don’t want anything to mess it up.”
“Ariana,” he says, his hand coming to cup my cheek. “No. There’s no reason for us to tell anyone how this happened. Not of that matters now, anyway. We’re getting married. That’s all anyone needs to know.”
Unease fills me, but his smile is reassuring. “Are you sure?”
“Yes, I’m positive. Nothing good will come out of it, and we’d just spend more time trying to explain it than anything else. And it’s our relationship. I love you. That’s all anyone needs to know,” he reaffirms.
“Okay,” I whisper, and he drowns it out with a kiss that leaves me breathless as soon as he pulls away.
During the rest of the walk to his parents’ place, the fears try to surface, but I push them away and instead focus on the gorgeous man next to me. My fiancé. For real.
“I HEAR you’veofficiallycome over to the dark side,” a chipper voice whispers in my ear, startling me out of my reverie.
The Wellington men decided that the best way to celebrate Knox’s being back home would be with an impromptu game of two-on-two—both Knoxes on one team, Cohen and Branson on the other. I almost didn’t want to let him play, but he swore to wear his brace and Knox promised he wouldn’t push him around—too much. Not wanting to be a downer on his bonding time with the men in his family, I relented reluctantly.
Unsure of what she means, I tear my eyes away from my shirtless—gorgeous—fiancé and slowly turn to see Charlie grinning at me, Andi right behind her. For a split second, I think she means my engagement, and my heart starts beating wildly as I look around, thankful that Amelia’s nowhere in sight.
“What do you mean? I ask, feigning ignorance and glancing back at the basketball court, where I appreciate the view—and the elder Knox’s insistence that the other team would be skins, not his.
She says something, but I don’t register her words as I watch Branson go in for a dunk over his dad, his torso stretched, his muscles flexing, and beads of sweat rolling down his chest. A finger snaps in front of my face, and I blink twice then look at her only to see a huge grin on her face.
