Page 221 of My Dark Prince
“You overwhelmed me with …” She squinted at the very realistic edit of her sunbathing on a frozen Lake Baikal. “… my three heads?”
“What can I say? One head wasn’t enough to capture your magnificence.”
“This is a creepy level of devotion I wasn’t prepared for.” She spun, taking her time to study each and every photograph. “What are these?”
“They’re every memory we should have made – every memory wewillmake.” I signaled for Dallas to change the slides, which flickered to edited photos of her with our friends. “Christmas, Spring Break, baby showers.” I pointed to one of us eating turkey at my parents’, then again at Romeo’s. “That’s the year we fought over where to eat on Thanksgiving Day. Don’t worry. I made it up to you by feeding you the hotteststuffingof your life.”
She turned beet red, playing along. “So, that’s why they call it a feast.”
“It’s now an annual tradition.” I paused, letting her soak in the ugly Christmas sweaters, and obnoxious tree toppers, and dogs in silly Leprechaun hats. “And we’ll make more holiday traditions together. You’ll never be alone for a single one of them. You’re part of this family, Briar. We’re not let you go.”
Dallas nodded, forming a heart with both hands. “We love you.”
Romeo managed not to grimace. “If I have to suffer through Dallas’ infamous New Year’s pancakes, you do, too.”
“We have traditions for every holiday imaginable.” Zach shuddered. “You’ll be exhausted by July.”
Farrow winced. “We celebrate half-birthdays, too. Consider yourself warned.”
I studied Briar, enjoying how her eyes drank in each of their faces. She struggled to keep her tears at bay, her chest shaking with laughter that threatened to crack her wide open. A kaleidoscope of emotions flickered across her face – gratitude, wonder, and a hint of disbelief.
Her gaze softened in that rare, unguarded way she used to stare at me as kids. Like she’d given us her heart and trusted us not to break it.
“Thank you. I think I’m speechless.” Briar’s voice caught, and I could see the exact moment she’d lost the battle to keep her composure. “You guys really want me here?”
“Please.” Farrow waved a hand. “Dallas already planned our Halloween costumes.”
Dallas gestured between the six of us. “We’re going as the Avengers. Obviously, you’ll have to take one for the team and go as Black Widow. My postpartum ass isn’t touching latex for at least another year.”
Romeo shrugged. “Once you enter the group chat, you can’t escape.
Zach sighed. “We’ve tried.”
Briar kneeled, her fingers shaking slightly as she touched a photo of us slicing cake. “I’ve never had this.” Her eyes swung up to mine. “I wished for this that night at the castle ball. Happiness. Freedom. Friends so close, they’re family. I finally have it.”
“Get used to it.” I helped her up and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “We’re stubborn, and we’re not going anywhere.”
From the jaws of the crowd, someone started sobbing. “Does anyone have tissues?”
Briar laughed through unshed tears, glowing like I’d never seen before.
Aw, fuck it.
I gathered the courage to go off script, producing the engagement ring she’d given back to me. The one I’d kept in my pocket ever since.
“I’ve carried this around since you left, hoping you’d let me put it back where it belongs.” I lowered to one knee. “When we broke up as kids, I tried to convince myself I’d survive. I lied to myself. Hell, my whole life is one big lie. Well, I’m done. I’m done pretending I can live without you. You’re not a chapter in my life. You’re the whole damn story.”
The crowd began to buzz, the energy in the lobby shifting. A lady sighed and clutched on to her husband’s hand. An older couple shot me two thumbs up, while the man beside them wiped tears from his wife’s eyes with his thumbs.
“I realized lately that I’m a greedy bastard, and I’m okay with that.” The crowd’s encouragement energized me. “I want to fall asleep next to you and wake up to your kisses. I want to watch you eat veggie burgers, and throw pool parties I’ll crash, and fail at riding Al Capony, and even do your brutal naked yoga routine.Especiallyyour naked yoga routine.”
My heartbeat reached my ears, drumming out the crowd. It was just us now. Me and the girl who made every other dream feel small. She was the beginning, middle, and end.
“I want to save seals, and adopt endangered sea turtles in your name, and march the capital when some oil exec does something that pisses you off. I’d chain myself to a fucking redwood if it meant staying by your side. I am so hopelessly obsessed with you, Briar. I didn’t fall for you. I crash-landed without a parachute.”
She breathed out my name, and nothing else would ever come close. “I love you, too.”
“And I am so proud of the person you’ve become. I always knew you could be such a bad ass, but to actually witness it takes my fucking breath away. You were right when you saidthorns belong on a rose. You’re living proof. I love that you’re strong enough to fight for yourself. I hate that you have to be. If you give me the chance, I’ll be your safe space.”
