Page 171 of Faking It With the Small-Town Bad Boy

He flips the top open, displaying a stunning gold ring with a small,

kaleidoscopic diamond in the middle. It’s simple, but it’s still so

stunning. “Leah, I have to ask properly this time.”

Looking up, I’m already in tears. I expected to cry this morning when

I saw his half of the bed empty, but I wasn’t expecting it to be in this

context.

This is a much better situation than what I was fearing.

“What are you doing?” I pant between tears. “Percy, we’re not

actually… we are just pretending and…”

“My love for you is real, darling. It’s not some fake setup anymore to

me. It’s real. And as real as this diamond, as real as this tree, and as

real as the world spins around us, I want you. Only you. Forever.”

I can’t even agree or answer him, but I know he can tell my reply. I

nod my head while I cry into my hand, and he takes the fake filler

ring off my finger, switching it to the real one. I hold my hand to the

sunlight overhead, seeing the colors glow with a yellow tint.

“Yellow gold,” he says, like he can read my mind. “Your favorite

color, right?”

“Yeah, it is. How did you—”

My parents didn’t leave me a lot, but my grandmother did. This is

her band, actually. I didn’t know if it would fit, but it looks perfect.”

I look at this man in awe, not sure if I believe what he’s saying or not.

“Thank you, Percy. Th-thank you for everything. I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

Leaning forward, we meet for a sweet, calm kiss. I pull away to tidy

my face up from the many tears, he stays grinning wide, something

else in his hands I can’t make out.

“I wanted to ask you something else, Leah.”

“What is it?”

“You were late on your birth control pills, and you took a test.

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