Page 90 of Fatal Fantasy

There are candles and rose petals lined along the sand, as well as a long white runner that leads to where we’re standing, suit-clad and ready to commit our lives to the girl who deserves the entire universe, but will have to settle for our hands in marriage.

After what feels like a lifetime, but is only a few minutes, Carter finally rounds the corner, her baby blue eyes locking onto us the second she steps off the short boardwalk and onto the white sand.

“What is all this?” She squeals, dropping her gym bag and stalking toward us, a smile bigger than the sky painted on her beautiful face.

“Just fulfilling a promise, my little island princess,” Massi answers, stepping forward and reaching for her hand, guiding her along the path until she’s right in front of us, craning her neck to meet our gazes.

Since we became beach bums, Carter has let go of the insecurities regarding her scars, choosing to embrace the skin she’s in, and tonight is no different as she dons a dark purple tank top, black workout shorts, and a pair of flip flops.

“You could’ve at least let me get dressed up,” she groans, motioning toward her outfit, but I shake my head, not allowing her to think any less of herself.

“You look absolutely beautiful, baby girl. Now, can we do this right?” I ask, knowing that Carter always likes to have a word, but hoping she’ll give us the floor, just this once.

“Please,” she smirks, taking my hand in hers, while reaching for Massi’s, interlocking us all as her eyes shift between the two of us.

“Principessina, you are the other half of me. I’ve always said that there’s no better partner in death, but tonight, I’m asking for much more than that. I love you more than anything this ordinary world has to offer, but will you make me one of the two happiest men on Earth, and be my partner in life?” Massi starts, bending down on one knee and delivering the speech of a lifetime, but I’ve heard it before, the two of us rehearsing this every chance we could.

Before Carter can answer him, I too, get down on one knee, copying Massi’s stance as I inhale a breath, not letting myself get choked up until I get this off my chest.

“We’ve done a lot of things, the three of us together, but nothing would be complete if we didn’t ask you to be our wife, baby girl. You are the missing piece, the most magnificent creature this universe has ever created, and without you, there is no us. Carter Cassini, will you marry us?” I finish, Massi and I simultaneously pulling the rings from the lapels of our jackets, exactly as we practiced.

This is one of the most important moments of our lives, and ever since we arrived on this island, I’ve meticulously planned every detail of this evening, and to my surprise, Massi has been all in at every step, his devotion to perfection not faltering, even when we rehearsed how this would go like kids at choir practice.

Diamonds sparkle under the sun’s glow as we offer Carter the world, but she barely takes a second to process our words, jumping up and down in the sand as the three letter syllable we’ve been desperate to hear leaves her lips.

“Yes, and yes!” She shrieks, and we both exhale a breath, the relief flooding my body instantly as I race to remove the ring from its box, eager to put the symbol of my love exactly where it belongs.

The black diamonds I had imported onto the island by a private jeweler were all stunning, but the ring I chose is teardrop-shaped, acting as the centerpiece to thousands of tiny silver diamonds, and just as I imagined, every single one shimmers against her tan skin as she holds her hand in the air, admiring the stone against the sun's light.

“It’s beautiful,” she breathes, pesky tears clouding her lash line, but for once, they aren’t of sadness, and instead of swiping them away, she allows them to freely stream down her cheeks.

“My turn, Principessina!” Jasper cheers like a little kid, the excitement radiating off his bones as his ring slides onto her left hand, the band littered with black diamonds as it slips into place like it was made exactly for her — and it was.

Having to be creative, we tried a million different ways to get her ring size perfect, but Carter is too fucking smart, so eventually, we just fucked her into oblivion, waited until she fell asleep, and Massi was able to make a mold of her finger from a loose tie that belonged to a bread bag.

It wasn’t our finest moment, but the rings fit perfectly on her petite fingers, and that’s all I care about.

In stark contrast, Jasper’s ring is intricately designed, creating a crest that holds up a blood-red diamond, sitting atop the black stones like a queen on its throne.

He wouldn’t rest until he found something that matched Carter’s spirit, and when the jeweler pulled this from his collection, he nearly fainted, and I couldn’t agree more with the choice, fitting Carter’s personality like it was crafted to be hers.

“I can’t believe this. You two just love to spoil me,” she says, jumping into our waiting arms as we return to standing form, catching her with ease as we receive kisses on both our cheeks, the two of us attempting to hold her steady.

“You’re in for a long night, my little fiancee,” Massi hums, stealing her away from me, her legs latching around his waist until they’re nose to nose.

Letting them have their moment, I can’t help but beam with pride at how well this first portion of the evening went.

Admittedly, I was nervous, not because I thought she’d say no, but the anxiety swelled through me as the clock ticked away, the idea of something going wrong paralyzing my thoughts, no matter how hard I tried to stuff them down.

“Welcome home, baby girl.” I unlock the door to our oceanfront condo, while Massi carries Carter across the threshold, the romance we’ve set out widening her eyes.

Already, I can feel her urge to say it’s too much, but I refuse to let her feel like she shouldn’t be spoiled, if only for tonight.

“Oh my gosh. This is beautiful,” she breathes, feet landing on the floor as I interlock her fingers with mine, leading her through a rose petal path that ends in the kitchen.

We stashed two bottles of champagne in ice buckets, bought heart balloons that dangle from the ceiling, and laid out a feast of various foods in the center of the table.

“Thank you,” Carter manages to squeak out, but when her eyes meet mine, I can read the thousands of other thoughts swirling in her head, but she wisely chooses not to push back on being spoiled, and for that, I decide in the moment to reward her.