Page 199 of Power Play

“It might not have been at the time, but I like what we have now: a life together. A friend for Pico. Driving to the arena and hanging out with all the people we love so much. You know I don’t need all that fancy stuff.”

“Hang on a second.”

Liam stands and pulls a wrinkled piece of paper from his pocket. It’s weathered and worn and had to have been read a hundred times.

“What’s that?”

“This?” He unfolds the corners delicately. “A list of all your favorite things. A list of all the things you hate. Important dates and the proposal you wished you had.”

My heart hammers in my chest. “You wrote all of that down?”

“Every word. I started it when this was casual between us, but then I kept it. Added things to it here and there over the weeks that passed. Some are more important than others, but all of them are important.”

I squint at the paper and try to make out his messy handwriting. I seedogscircled and underlined three times under things I like.Spinachunder things I hate. A note scribbled in the top left corner that says I prefer the right side of the bed and have to sleep with socks on. It’s detailed. Thorough. The entire page—front and back—is covered, and I nearly stop breathing.

“You don’t need all that stuff now. There’s nothing to study or learn.”

“You think I didn’t have a plan, Piper?”

“You always have a plan,” I whisper.

Liam steps close to me. I can smell his cologne; woody with a hint of spice. Can see the flecks of gold in his eyes and the tan on his neck from when we spent too long outside on the balcony two weekends ago, curled up on a chair and enjoying the fresh summer air.

“I wanted to make sure when I got to this part, I wouldn’t fuck it up. I wouldn’t give you roses when you so clearly like—” He reaches past my shoulder and grabs a bouquet wrapped in brown paper. The stems are tied with a neat bow around them, and I smile at the burst of color. “Peonies.”

“These are beautiful. But why are you?—”

“I wanted to make sure if I ever got the chance to do this for real, I’d do it right. You told me you wanted small. Intimate. In a place you love surrounded by the people you love. Nothing fancy or over the top. A restaurant was certainly out of the question and on the big screen during a game was a death wish waiting to happen.”

He takes the flowers from me and sets them on his stool. He helps me stand, rubbing his palms up and down my arms. There’s a slight shake to his hands, a nervousness I’ve rarely seen from him in the twitch of his palms.

Liam Sullivan is the epitome of calm, cool, and collected. The master of operating under pressure, but right now, he looksterrified.

“Piper Mitchell. I love you very much. It hurts when you’re not around. I miss you when you’re gone and I count down the minutes until you come home. I’ve never cared about someone the way I care about you. I’ve never felt like I can be myself around anyone the way I can be myself around you. And, the craziest fucking thing is, you love me too. You love me when I’m grouchy. When I’m mad at the world. You hold me close when I don’t want to talk to another person.” Liam shakes his head like he doesn’t believe the things he’s saying, even though they’re all true. “Your first wedding sucked. Your second wasn’t much better. I think the third time will be the charm, and you’ll make me the luckiest fucking guy in the world if you marry me again. For real.”

“Oh my god.” I throw my arms around his neck. Tears prick my eyes and my vision goes blurry. It feels like I’m short of breath. Crossing the finish line of a race I’ve been running foryears. “Yes.Yes. Of course, Liam. Of course I’ll marry you again.”

“No tequila this time. Just you and me, and a hundred of our closest friends.”

“That might be the most romantic thing you’ve ever said to me.” He smiles then digs into his pocket, pulling out a velvet box. He opens it and a diamond blinks back at me, bright and twinkling and entirely too big. “I can’t wear that. I’m going to get robbed.”

“At least you can cut their cheek if they try.” Liam slips the ring on my finger and kisses my knuckles. “I know you like the old band, and I do too. I don’t need a new one, but I’ll get you a new one if you want to match the set.”

“No.” I shake my head and cup his cheeks, the new piece of jewelry heavy on my hand. “I want the shitty gift shop silver for the rest of my life. I don’t care if they don’t match. You can’t spoil me too much.”

“Going to spoil the shit out of you from now until eternity.”

“Can we come in now?” someone yells from behind the door, and I bury my face in Liam’s shirt. “We’re fucking dying out here, man.”

“Come in, you fuckers,” Liam answers, and the door flies open.

There’s so much noise my ears hurt. The boys clap a hand on Liam’s shoulder, congratulating him. They take turns kissing the top of my head and putting me on their back, celebrating. Maven, Emmy and Lexi are here too, jumping up and down when I show them the ring.

It’s loud and warm and perfect. Exactly what I missed out on with my first two proposals and exactly what I’ve always wanted.I don’t know how I ended up here, with a man who looks at me like I hung the moon and a group of friends I couldn’t dream up if I tried, but it was worth wading through the shit for.

It was worth the nights I spent crying and the days I felt alone, because right now, surrounded by the most important people in my life and in my favorite spot, I know there will never be another moment when I’m alone.

“Sorry for all the chaos.” Liam presses his lips to my cheek and plays with my sleeve. “I thought it would be a little more organized than this shitshow, and this isn’t exactly intimate.”

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