Page 56 of The Final Deal

He plucks the ring out of its box and holds it up for us to see. “So this means I love you. It meanswelove you. Maybe I messed things up by askin’ you out when I promised Dree I wouldn’t, but I needed you to know that you weren’t supposed to be with anyone else. Now we’re older and have gone through some shit, but it’s made me understand where things went wrong. So this ring isn’t to keep you as mine and mine only—it’s to show you’re ours.”

I scoff and yank my neckline down to expose the bandage covering my breast. “What, like cutting me up didn’t do the trick?”

“That was just for fun.”

I cluck my tongue and lightly shove Adrian. He chuckles and holds me tighter, kissing my head.

“So, what d’you say, babe?”

Looking at Adrian, his lips curve and his eyes are warm as he embraces me.

“Is this what you want, hon?” I ask him. Zak and I might’ve had the rest of our lives planned out to a tee, but what I knew about Adrian—the guy who dedicated himself to his instrument day in and day out and loved partying and screwing groupies every other night—is different from what I know about him now. He wanted the white wedding, the house and white picket fence and kids with me, too.

Dree cups my cheek and kisses me tenderly, whispering over my lips, “I want whatever you want, princesa. As long as we’re together, the world can burn and I’ll roast without feeling the flames.”

I kiss him back, once, twice, and again because I can. And then I face Zak, who watches us with the warmest smile—like he’s genuinely happy to see me with his brother.

Honing in on the ring between his fingers, I hardly catch a glimpse before it disappears into the clouds all over again.

“Yes,” I finally answer in a shaky whisper.

A grin bursts on Zak’s face. He takes my hand and slips the ring onto my finger, pausing to admire the slightly-snug fit, and then brings it to his lips to kiss it.

“I-I want to get y’all something, too,” I say with a trembling voice. “Maybe it’s silly, but this goes both ways.”

Adrian’s beam matches his brother’s. “Then let’s go get it, princesa.”

Chapter 21

Eternally Yours

–Motionless in White

Adrian glancesaround the well-lit store nervously, tapping rudiments against his thighs like he’s passing the time practicing instead of burning off nervous energy. When his eyes meet mine, the rudiments stutter and fade as I smile at him.

“Ooh, babe, babe!”

I look past Dree to find Zak leaning over a glass case and peering in like a kid in a candy shop. His eyes are bright as he points to something in the case below. “This one!”

I can’t help snorting at his excitement as I drag Adrian behind me. I follow Zak’s pointed finger and hone in on a gold band with two rows of small diamonds separated by textured metal in the middle and polished edges.

“Jeez,” Adrian grumbles under his breath with wide eyes.

Zak talks with a sharp-dressed saleswoman, and I pull Adrian away from them. “Hon, are you okay?”

He stops his anxious glancing and focuses on me. “Yeah, why?”

“Because you’re acting like you’re nervous as hell. You don’t have to get a fancy ring like Zak. If you don’t want to wear a ring at all, I don’t mind, either.”

Dree shakes his head. “No, I want one.”

He continues perusing with unease tensing in his face as he studies different parts of the store, wrinkling his nose.

I nudge his side. “What d’you think about me pickin’ one out and surprising you?”

Relief crashes over his features, his jitters blown out in a heavy exhale. “Yeah. Yeah, I’d like that.”

I squeeze his hand. “Okay. You get to surprise me, too.”

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