Page 156 of The Renegade Billionaire
“Are you okay?” she asks.
“Yeah, I, I love you, Madison. So damn much it scares me.”
“I know you do.” Her shoulders relax, and she settles into the swing. “And I love you too. It’s not as easy for me to say it sometimes, but I feel it. I hope you know that.”
“I do. And I know we’ve only known each other for a few months, but?—”
“Braxton.” Her tone is cautious, and her gaze darts from me to the front door.
Shit, is it too soon?
“Fuck, I’m nervous,” I admit as she picks at the hair elastic on her wrist.
“At the Chug, I told Harry that you were my fiancée.”
She frowns. “You did?”
I nod. “Maybe you didn’t hear me. There was a lot going on that day.”
“You told him in front of everyone?”
“Yeah. It just happened.”
She laughs, and my jitters fade away. Her laughter will always bring me joy. “Well, that explains why everyone’s been congratulating me. I thought they were talking about the inn.”
“Nope, it was probably because of me.”
With a smile that outshines the sun, she pats my knee in a reassuring gesture. “Don’t worry about it, Braxton. Is that why you’re so nervous? It’s not a big deal. We can explain to Blissy what happened. She’ll get a laugh out of it, and the whole town will know by lunchtime.”
That’s not what I want. Doesn’t she know that?
Damn it. My skin feels too tight for my body.
“Braxton?” Her tone is concerned.
I have no idea what’s going on with my face because I’ve lost all control of my features.
“What if we don’t?” I blurt.
“Ah…” She searches the porch, presumably for answers as to why I’m acting as though I stole Santa’s sack. “What if we don’t what?”
“Tell Blissy. What if we don’t tell Blissy that it was a mistake?”
“I’m sorry. You’re not making any sense. What are you saying?”
It’s now or never. Reaching into the pocket of my hoodie, I pull out a small box. It’s empty inside, but it’s the thought that counts, right? I hold it out to her in my open palm.
She stares at it with her mouth wide open.
“It’s empty, don’t worry.”
Now she frowns, blinking furiously.
“No, I mean temporarily it’s empty. Pops gave me your grandma’s ring, and I want to merge her ring with one I buy for you, but I didn’t want to mess with her ring unless you said it was okay. It’s okay with Pops, but is it okay with you?”
“You talked to Pops?”
I nod, a tiny amount of confidence returning. “About ten minutes ago. I was afraid if I did it any sooner, he’d blab it to everyone.”
