Page 48 of Planning on Happily Ever After

“And ours will have a much happier ending.” His voice was filled with conviction, and the sound of it strengthened her own.

“I think so, too.” Holly kissed him deeply, the two devouring each other for a moment before she pulled back and rested her head against his. “I guess I should clear my schedule for tomorrow. Canceling with all the vendors is going to take a while.” Ben grunted in reply and she looked over to see him staring at her intently. “What is it?”

Ben shook his head and rubbed his hand up and down her back. “Nothing. Just do me a favor and wait a day or two before you call to cancel all the plans.”

Holly’s brow furrowed. “You think she’s going to change her mind?” Trish seemed pretty resolute to her, but Holly hadn’t been present for their little chat, so perhaps she was mistaken.

He shrugged. “Just wait a day or two, please. Trust me?”

Holly smiled and held him tightly. “You know I do.” She trusted Ben with her heart, her soul, her future.

“Good.” Ben brushed his lips lightly over hers and shifted them on the couch so they were both facing the screen. “Now, I think someone owes me a rematch from our game this morning.”

Holly smirked at the memory of their having played a round of strip Mortal Kombat after breakfast. Ben ended up in nothing but his boxers while Holly remained almost fully clothed. “I’m ready whenever you are.”

Ben grinned and fired up the game, the two of them playing for all of ten minutes before they ditched the pretense and found their way into the bedroom.

Later that night as she fell asleep in Ben’s arms, dreams of the bright future ahead of them enveloped her mind.

***

Gathering all of herfiles on Trish’s wedding in preparation of cancelling everything in the next few days had Holly up to her elbows in paperwork. She still had no idea why Ben had asked her to wait on cancelling the plans, but she trusted him, so she hadn’t lifted a finger to call or email any of the vendors on her list. That didn’t mean she couldn’t prepare everything just in case. She shuffled the stack of papers into a manila folder when her phone dinged. A smile spread across her face when she saw it was a text from Ben.

Ben: Good afternoon, sunshine. Will you still be home by six tonight?

Holly smiled at him calling his apartment her home. It had come to feel like home over the last few weeks, but she had a feeling that had more to do with the man living there than the actual space.

Holly: Sure thing. Do you want me to grab dinner on my way?

Ben: Nope. Just bring your lovely self.

Holly replied with a thumbs up and put her phone down. As much as she wanted to continue her conversation with Ben, she still had a few more things to do before she called an end to her work day. Now that Ben’s mom was no longer getting married, she needed to find some new clients, so she spent the next hour reserving spaces for herself at upcoming wedding expos for the next month or two. There was always the potential for her to get a new client via word of mouth or her website, but Holly wasn’t going to count on it.

At the end of the day, she was once again the last one in the bakery. After locking everything up behind her, she walked out to her car, the bags filled with more clothes from her apartment already there. Ben mentioned making room for her in his drawers and closet, and Holly wondered how long it would take for the two of them to just move in together. From the outside, it might look like they were moving at lightning speed, but Holly had zero qualms about it. As they say, when you know, you know, and Holly definitely knew Ben was her one and only.

Twenty minutes later, she pulled up to Ben’s apartment and used her key to enter whistling a happy tune that ended with a sputter as she entered the main room, her body frozen in shock. Red rose petals were scattered all over the space, and lit candles were placed on the coffee table and book shelves. With the addition of the setting sun peeking through the windows, the whole room felt steeped in a warm glow, and Holly smiled at the romantic atmosphere her boyfriend had created.

Standing in front of her with a beaming smile was Ben wearing the tux he had purchased for his mom’s wedding. He looked so elegant and stately, and the expression on his face was so blissful Holly teared up a little at the sight.

Needing to be near him, she approached him carefully, and the second she was in front of him, he took one of her hands in his. “What’s all this for?” she asked breathlessly.

He smiled, his gray eyes twinkling in the candlelight. “It’s for this,” he replied, his voice slightly shaky as he dropped down on one knee. Holly gasped in disbelief as Ben reached into his tux pocket and pulled out a small velvet box, opening it to reveal a large, oval cut blue sapphire in a platinum setting. “Holly, you have brought so much joy, comfort, humor, and love into my life. You’ve helped me be a better man and I can’t imagine the rest of my life without you in it. What do you say, sunshine? Will you make an honest man out of me and agree to be my wife?”

Holly swallowed the lump of happiness that had lodged itself in her throat. “Yes.” She flicked a tear away from her cheek, unable to nod fast enough. “Absolutely, one hundred percent, yes!” she exclaimed before he stood and slipped the ring on her finger. It fit perfectly and Holly admired it for a moment before pulling Ben’s face down to hers for a kiss filled with all of the love she had for him.

Eventually, she pulled back mere inches to search his face for any hint of anxiety about the speed with which things were moving. “Are you sure you want to get married? Maybe we should be more practical and take things slow.”

Ben shook his head vehemently. “I definitely want to get married. I’ve spent my whole life being practical. Now that I have you, I don’t want to waste another moment thinking about what ifs and might be. I want you forever, Holly.” Holly smiled and nodded, happy he felt it as deeply as she did. He lifted her hand to kiss the ring on her finger. “We can get you another ring if you like.”

Holly shook her head, already in love with the ring because he’d chosen it and it was stunning. “No way. I love it, and it fits perfectly. How did you manage that, by the way?”

Ben reached back and rubbed his hand across his neck, his ears adorably pink. “Um, about that. I may have measured your finger while you were sleeping that first weekend you stayed over.”

Holly was stunned at his sweet embarrassment. “You’ve been planning this for that long?” She’d known she was all in from early on but never once thought Ben wanted all of this so quickly.

“Remember I told you I would tell you about the dream I had some time?” Ben grabbed her hand and led her over to the couch, brushing some rose petals onto the floor and sitting them down next to one another, interlacing their fingers together.

“Vaguely.” Holly listened intently to Ben describe his dream. and how content he’d felt when he woke up. Holly wished she could have joined him in that vision of their future.

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