Page 87 of Blindsided

“Yep.” My lips flatten into a thin line as I watch Ellie stand in front of our group with a grin on her face.

She holds her bouquet in front of her and swings her arms up and down as she prepares to throw it. She counts down, and the second she gets to one, she fakes a throw and turns around.

Suddenly, she’s standing in front of me, holding out the flower arrangement. I take it on autopilot, my eyebrows pinched together. Then she grabs my shoulders and turns me around to find Matthew kneeling behind me. He’s holding an open ring box in his hand with a classic princess-cut diamond set on a white-gold band.

I gasp. The hand not holding the flowers flies to my mouth in surprise.

“I got special permission to do this because I wanted our family and friends to be here with us to celebrate.” He clears his throat, his eyes locked on mine. “Tilly, you’re my best friend. The person I want to share every secret with, the one I can’t go a day without seeing, and the woman I want to spend the rest of my life with. You showed up on my doorstep and completely disrupted my life in the best way possible. As horrible as the circumstances that led you to me were, I’ll forever be grateful you came to me that night. I love you with every beat of my heart and want you to be mine forever. Will you marry me?”

Tears are streaming down my face, and emotions clog my throat, so all I can do is nod my head. Matthew stands up and wraps his arms around my waist. He spins me around as everyone cheers, and I laugh as the world tilts on its axis.

When he sits me back down on my feet, I press up to kiss him with everything I have. “I’ll love you until the end of my days, Matty.”

He slides the beautiful ring onto my finger. “And I’ll love you long after that.”

THE END

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