Page 112 of A Forever Love

“I love when your nerdy brain gets unhinged. But what if this underwear-model material likes something more permanent?” Carter’s words, his light smile, everything about him suggests we’re having a fun, flirty conversation. But his eyes tell a different story.

I try not to get lost in their depths and maintain the fluff in my voice. “Elaborate, please.”

But then Carter opens the top drawer of his nightstand and places something resembling a ring box next to my leg, where I’m still straddling him. I couldn’t have jumped out of the bed faster. I turn around and cover my eyes with my hand.

“Carter, please tell me you’re not proposing to me.”

A beat passes, feeling like an eternity, and then I hear his teasing voice. “What if I am? Would it be so terrible that you can’t even look at me, mittens?”

“You’re kidding, right?” I spin around in a flash. “Today…today was a once-in-a-lifetime day for me. I’m in London, in this incredible palatial hotel, with its enormous king-sized bed, Egyptian cotton linens, exquisite décor, amazing food—”

“I take it you like the hotel.” His grin only fuels my agitation.

“You took me to see The Jane Austen Centre. On the bed right now are some of the best romance books known to mankind. There’s bookish merch, candles, T-shirts…” My throat tightens as I recite all those amazing things. “And then you pull out a black velvet ring box in the middle of this…perfection. I can’t say yes until I tell Dad, and you can’t make a future proposal more perfect than it is right now.” Tears threaten to spill from my eyes, and finally, he laughs. He laughs! At me!

I snatch a cushion from the couch, and the soft material slips easily from my hand when I throw it at him. I give myself a mental congratulatory pat on the back when it lands squarely on his head. Carter keeps laughing, and before I can grab another pillow, he lunges at me. In one swift move, he pins me against the wall, the pillow still in my grip behind me. He clutches my wrists, and my chest presses against his.

“Was that a subtle challenge, mittens? Are you suggesting ideas for my next proposal, or were you tossing hints my way?” he teases.

“Wh-what? I was doing no such thing.” My jaw drops open, which I notice when he gently lifts my chin with a finger.

“Uh-huh.” He continues to smile, something he’s been doing more and more since the gala night. I love wondering if, in some teeny tiny way, I’m responsible for his happiness. The dimpled indents on his cheeks take me back several years, to a time when I first fell for him. And now, he’s here, within my reach, larger than any of my imaginings.

God, I still struggle to believe this sometimes.

“Can you please put on a shirt?” I manage to say, trying not to let my voice waver.

“I’m good, thank you.” His grin widens at my request. “Am I distracting you?”

I choose to ignore his question because, really, what can I say anyway, and ask instead, “What’s that?” I motion in the general direction of the box still sitting pretty on his bed.

“I’ll tell you what it’s not. It’s not a time bomb.” He applies some pressure on my wrist, and the forgotten pillow slips from my hand. With a swift move, he grabs my wrists in one hand, his touch tender as he caresses my cheeks with the other. “Don’t worry, it’s not an engagement ring.”

I must be utterly crazy because the balloon of hope deflates in my chest, swirling around in the empty space, and a stupid grin deepens on Carter’s face. “Come and see.”

When I finally open the box, there’s a book shaped charm with the same quote that I just read to him, engraved in small flowing letters.

“Do not give way to useless alarm…though it is right to be prepared for the worst, there is no occasion to look on it as certain.”

“How did you do this?” My voice is nothing more than a gasp.

“I didn’t do anything. I’d already ordered it when we were in Cherrywood. Since I was bringing you to Jane Austen’s center, I thought it was only apt that I got something personalized, so I picked the quote that sounded the best to me in that moment.”

“So it was a coincidence?”

“Pure and simple.” He nods, gently moving my hair aside before opening the clasp of my gold chain, which now always sits around my neck. He uses the hook on the book charm and hangs it in between the heart locket and gold cupcake. When I finally turn around, Carter says, “I also believe that everything will turn out okay.”

30

MERIDA

The next day, Carter and I explore the city, returning to the hotel midafternoon, just as Kristy, Charlie, and Brandon arrive. We all have dinner together. Unlike the previous day, Carter doesn’t follow me to my room; instead, he heads to the one adjacent mine. As I’m taking off my shoes, the nondescript door near the floor-length mirror in the closet swings open, and Carter walks inside.

“There are secret doors in this room!” The surprise in my voice can’t be tamed.

“Only one.” He grins. “It was the reason I booked us this room.”

“Wow. I feel like I’m in a James Bond movie.”

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