Total pages in book: 169
Estimated words: 162138 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 811(@200wpm)___ 649(@250wpm)___ 540(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 162138 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 811(@200wpm)___ 649(@250wpm)___ 540(@300wpm)
“It’s a black speckled diamond, for your little black heart,” he says, smiling as he takes it out of the box and slides it on my ring finger.
“Holy shit,” I whisper again, my bottom lip wobbling as more tears form.
I don’t know if the band is white gold, silver, or platinum. In the middle is an enormous round stone. It’s not entirely black. It’s speckled, as he said, and sits on the most beautiful halo, covered in regular diamonds to contrast the one in the middle. Not only is it the most beautiful ring I’ve ever seen in my life, but the thought that went into it. My heart squeezes again. More tears trickle down my face. The fact that he picked out something so unconventionally perfect for me. . .I shake my head and swallow hard, wiping more tears.
“I know.” He winks with that cocky smirk. “I did good, right?”
“I don’t hate it,” I whisper.
His jaw drops, for a second, before he gets up and tackles me onto the bed. Between laughs, I manage to say, “I’m kidding. You did amazing. I love it. I love it. Stop.”
“You didn’t say yes.” He pulls back and looks down at me, serious again, as he sits us both up.
I laugh. “Would you even let me say no?”
“Of course, I would, but I’d just wear you down until you said yes.”
“You realize you didn’t ask, right?” I raise an eyebrow.
“Lyla.” He groans, shutting his eyes.
“Lach,” I say quietly, bringing my hands to his face. I wait until he opens his eyes. “Ask me.”
He looks at me for a long moment, takes a deep breath, and blurts. “Will you marry me, Lyla James?”
“Yes.” I smile wide, giving him the smile he once told me he wanted to possess. “And I’ll stay with you forever. And ever. And ever.”
His face is a mixture of relief and amazement as he stares at me before grabbing my face and kissing me deeply. We fall onto the bed again and pull apart to catch our breaths.
“Let’s get married tomorrow,” he says. “Here. We’ll call Marissa and Prescott and get them to come here.”
“Absolutely not. I’m only getting married once, and I want to do this right.”
His eyes widen. “You’re not going to make me wait a whole year, are you?”
“No.” I laugh at the horrified look on his face. “Maybe a whole week, though.”
He scowls. “I don’t like it.”
“We’ll do it when we get back from Fairview. I just need a few days before the actual—”
“No. Hell no.” He pulls away. “You’re not going to Fairview.”
“Are you still going?” I ask, my heart beating harder for different reasons. I knew this was going to happen. I freaking knew it.
“Yes, but I don’t want you anywhere near him. I don’t want you there.”
“There’s no way you’re going without me,” I say. “I’m going.”
“Lyla.”
I narrow my eyes. He doesn’t seem to understand that I may be the only person who can protect him. I’m not sure how, but I know if I’m not there, one of two things will happen: he’ll kill Jameson or Jameson will kill him. There’s no freaking way he’s going without me.
“I have to pick up my things from my dad’s house anyway,” I say.
“I’ll get them for you.” His eyes flash. “You’re not going.”
I stare at him. “If you go without me, I’ll get out of the contract. I’ll file for divorce, if I have to, in order to void it. I’m not joking.”
“Jesus Christ, woman.” His eyes widen and he pulls me flush against his chest. “We haven’t even gotten married.”
“I promise, this is the only time I’ll ever threaten you with that. I can’t let you go alone, Lach. Please.”
He groans deeply. “I just want to take care of you, damn it.”
“Well, this is me taking care of you.” I kiss his collarbone. “I love you too much to lose you.”
He growls deeply and kisses me. We stay in bed for another hour, celebrating our engagement.
CHAPTER 48
LYLA
We agreed to meet at Duke Tech so I could see the place and go to lunch with his parents afterward. In the meantime, I text Marissa and Prescott a picture of the ring. I get Prescott’s generic message: out of town on business, spotty reception, leave a message, or call the office. Marissa video calls me right away.
“WHAT?” she screams, eyes wide on me. “WHAT? WHAT? WHAT? OH MY GOD.”
I laugh. “Obviously, I said yes.”
“Fuck. Obviously,” she breathes. “Let me see it again. Holy shit, Lyles. He really did good.”
“I know.” I smile wide as I stare at the ring on my finger.
“How did he propose? Did he propose? I’ll kill him if he didn’t.”
“He got down on one knee and proposed.” I sigh contentedly. “It was beautiful.”
She grins wide and lets out a little shriek. “When’s the wedding? I bet Lach wanted it to be five minutes after he proposed.”