Page 112 of Countdown

With regret, she slipped away from him and out of the fort to walk to the door. When she opened it, she gaped. “What are you guys doing here?”

????

Vince heard Raina’s exclamation and figured their romantic interlude had just come to a screeching halt. He climbed out of the fort to find Grace, Sam, Julianna, Clay, Penny, and Holt standing at the entrance to the den, mouths open, but smiles spreading.

“Um ... what’s going on here?” Penny asked.

“Just some catching-up time,” Vince said. Let them wonder. It wasn’t any of their business. And okay, he might be a little perturbed at their arrival.

“Well,” Clay said, “we were all at Julianna’s, but the power went out and we want to watch the game, so Penny flew us here.” He paused and looked at the blank area where Raina’s television usually resided. “Uh ... you get robbed?”

Raina rolled her eyes. “It’s in the tent.” She sighed. “Vince, you want to do the honors?”

“I absolutely do not.” He pointed to the door. “Y’all are interrupting a perfectly good proposal. So could you please leave?”

Penny held up a hand. “But we have a surprise—”

“It can wait. I’ve worked up my nerve for the past twenty-four hours and you’re not going to spoil this. So, out.” He pointed to the door.

Silence fell. The others looked at one another and left without another word.

Once the door shut behind them, Raina turned to him with wide eyes. “What was that?”

Vince’s hands went clammy. “Well, that wasn’t exactly how I planned to do this, but why not?” He pulled a small box from his pocket and dropped to one knee. “I had a whole speech planned. A lot of pretty words, all telling you how much you mean to me and how absolutely crazy I am about you. But my brain is kind of short-circuiting at the moment, so, Raina, will you marry me?”

Her jaw was swinging, but she snapped it shut. “Yes. Yes, I will.”

“It’s not too soon?”

“No. It’s definitely not too soon. We’ve been fighting our feelings for each other for a long time. I think it’s time we finally admit that we’re supposed to be together come what may.”

“Thank God,” he whispered. He cupped her face and kissed her. Thoroughly, passionately, and with all the love in his heart. When he finally lifted his head, he smiled at the dazed expression that no doubt mirrored his own. “Should we let them back in?”

“Yes. There’s no way they left.”

“I didn’t hear any car door slams, did you?”

“Nope.”

“You think they brought socks?”

“A whole bag full.” Throwing socks at the television when there was a bad call was much less damaging than throwing anything else.

“All right then.”

Together, hand in hand, they went to the door and opened it. Penny would have fallen inside if Holt hadn’t caught her.

“She said yes,” Vince said. “Y’all can come back in.”

With much whooping and hollering, the gang came inside but paused just inside the doorway. Grace planted her hands on her hips. “Can we share the surprise now?”

“Of course.”

Grace opened the door once more. “You can come in now.”

Two people Vince had never met before stepped through, and Raina’s sharp gasp and subsequent sob was enough to let him know who they were. She flew to her mother and wrapped her arms around the woman. “You came!”

“Nothing was keeping me away a minute longer now that I was assured you were safe.”

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