Page 66 of Let Me Love You
“Yes!” I yell. “Yes, I’ll marry you.”
The tightness in his shoulders melts away, and he dips his chin. “That’s my girl.” With a cocky smirk, he jumps off the stage and grabs my face, kissing the shit out of me in front of everyone as his thumbs run along my damp cheeks, smearing my makeup even more and making me look like a freaking raccoon. But I don’t even care. Because Teddy Taylor just proposed to me.
Teddy. Taylor. Just. Proposed. Tome.
I wrap my arms around his neck and squeeze as tight as I can.
I’ve never been happier.
23
ASHLYN
After Theo’s proposal, Buchanan made a brief speech, everyone cheered, and we ate a delicious dinner of prime rib, mashed potatoes, and more sides than I could even count. My belly’s full, and I’m content. Or at least, I would be if I knew the results of the paternity test.
Theo invited everyone at the banquet to meet at SeaBird afterward to celebrate his engagement to Blake, but I’m so exhausted I’m not sure I can stomach it. The people. The music. The small talk. The alcohol. My senses are already on overload. Finishing my night at SeaBird feels like it might tip me over the edge.
Colt tosses his arm around my neck and pulls me against him as we wait for the limousine to pull up in front of the building. His breath is laced with whiskey, and a lazy smile is on his lips as he leans closer and kisses me softly.
“So, I take it you knew?” I ask as the limo arrives.
“Yeah. Theo asked my permission,” Colt admits when he pulls away from me. “You happy for them?”
“Of course,” I reply. And I am. Blake and Theo are perfect together. Like two Energizer bunnies in a pod with a side of sarcasm. “Does your mom know about the engagement?”
“Theo asked if he should mention it to her, but I told him to ask forgiveness, not permission.”
“That’s mean,” I tell him with a laugh.
Colt guides me into the limo, then slides in beside me. “It’s Garrett and Knox who are gonna shit a brick when they find out Blake’s engaged to Theo, not Mom.” He shifts on the leather seat, getting comfortable as the limo pulls away from the curb and begins the drive to SeaBird when Colt adds, “Not gonna lie. I was tempted to beat him to it.”
I can feel his gaze caressing my cheek, but I don’t look at him. I stare at my lap instead, twisting the shimmery fabric in my hands. In another world, I’d be swooning. In another world, I’d ask what’s holding him back.
But the truth is, I already know. And unfortunately, it’s quite the doozy.
“Would you have wanted me to beat him to it?” Colt prods.
I shake my head. “Not with everything else going on.”
His eyes dim, but he doesn’t deny it. How bad of an idea it would be to get engaged right now. How we already have enough on our plates. How it’d be mental and possibly social suicide to get engaged when a public father announcement could be right around the corner, depending on the paternity results. But I don’t need the results to know Jaxon is Colt’s son. I’m simply biding my time until it’s official. Until the press has written their articles, and everyone receives confirmation of the shit storm we’ve been drowning in for weeks.
It doesn’t mean Colt has to feel bad about the inevitable results.
He should be excited. He should be happy. He’s going to be the best dad on the planet, and I can’t wait to see the relationship he builds with his little boy.
I grab his hand and squeeze it softly. “I want to thank you.”
“For what?” he asks.
“For inviting me tonight. For being with me. For being so thoughtful and sweet. For distracting me.”
“It’s my fault you need a distraction in the first place, Sunshine,” he reminds me.
“Not your fault,” I argue. “ It’s…a messy situation we’re going to have to get through.”
“As long as we get through it together.”
“Yeah.” I rest my head on his shoulder as the car continues down the road.