Page 29 of The Love Duet
We were all gathered in the Camerons’ living room, the NFL Draft being televised and almost ready to begin.Luckily, Royce’s parents lived in a nice home, so the living room was spacious enough that we weren’t all sitting on top of one another.
Glancing around the room, I saw my parents, Royce’s parents, Quincy, Hudson, Pepper, and even A.J.had managed to score a few days off from work for this.It also felt wonderful to have all the most important people in our lives here for this moment.
Hudson had ended up going to Notre Dame, but instead of finishing college with his degree, he had opted out of education and had gone into the NFL during his junior year at school.He was so good that it’d been hard for him to pass on the amazing contract that he’d been offered.Even so, he’d started going back to school this year to get his degree after all.However, even through all that, he and Royce had remained the best of friends.
Pepper had ended up going to USC with me and Royce, and as much as I’d wanted to be all independent woman, it had been nice to have her with me.Even though I no longer needed her to help communicate with Royce, I still needed her.Deaf or not, solid friends weren’t easy to come by.Her boyfriend, Tullie, was also solid.He was a good guy and perfect for Pepper.The only reason that he wasn’t here was because it’d been agreed that this was a family moment, and he’d been astute enough to recognize that.
“Are you nervous?”I signed.
Everyone around us was chatting excitedly, so they weren’t paying any attention to us, and while I spoke a lot more these days, I was still at my most comfortable signing my conversations.
“Yes,” he signed back, grinning, and not at all embarrassed to admit it.
“Don’t be,” I signed.“There’s no way that you’re not getting chosen.”
Royce placed his hand on my stomach subtly before signing, “As long as you’re coming with me, it doesn’t matter who picks me.”
We were pregnant, but no one knew yet.It was still early, and I just wasn’t ready yet.
“Anywhere,” I promised him as I signed.“I’ll follow you anywhere.”
Pepper started jumping up and down, and that was our cue.“They’re starting,” she announced, her hands still as fast as always.
The football commissioner started in on his speech, talking all kinds of things that I didn’t care about, so I just skimmed through the close captioning on the screen.I didn’t care about anything other than who was going to choose Royce as their rookie quarterback.
Finally, the commissioner got to announcing the picks, and the first up were the Las Vegas Raiders.I still didn’t follow sports, so I had no idea if they needed a quarterback or not, but who in the hell didn’t want to get paid to live and work in Las Vegas?
“With the first draft pick of 2026, the Las Vegas Raiders pick...Royce Cameron, quarterback from USC...”
Everyone started jumping up and down, celebrating, excited that Royce had been chosen first out of everyone.However, before I could join in on the celebration, Royce ignored his ringing phone, took my face in his hands, and after a kiss to end all kisses, he signed, “I love you, Roxie.I will always love you.”
Tears streaming down my face, I smiled as Royce grabbed his phone, then answered the most important call of his life.Quincy quickly grabbed me, then tossed me into the fray, everyone happy, excited, and wired.
When I was finally allowed to free myself from the enthusiastic melee, I turned to find Royce kneeling down on one knee, a stunning diamond ring nestled inside the black box in his hand.
“Royce...”I whispered, shocked that he was doing this.Sure, we had talked about it, but I had expected us to get married after he’d gotten settled in the NFL.Our getting pregnant had been an accident, but not a cause for a shotgun wedding.
Royce placed the ring on my finger without even asking me to marry him, and I choked out a tearful laugh.Smiling at me, he signed, “I can’t live without you, Roxanne Rafferty, so there’s no way that you’re getting the chance to say no.”
“The thought never crossed my mind,” I said, my voice saying it all for me.
The End.
The Sweetest Silence
Copyright 2025 Monica Clayton
Published by M.E.Clayton
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