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  Georgiana smiled. “I’m happy you didn’t listen to her either.”

  “Does that make you feel better?”

  She sighed. “A little.”

  Something was still bothering her. “So then why are you still upset?”

  “I can’t help it, Bry. I’m disappointed that today didn’t turn out like I had planned. It was so important to me that I make a good first impression, and I didn’t. I feel like I let you down.”

  “But you didn’t.”

  “I feel like I let myself down.”

  “You are being way too hard on yourself. I’ve never seen you this way. Why was this such a big deal to you?”

  Her bottom lip quivered. “Because, Bryan, I love you. Things just feel . . . right with you, you know? Everything’s great. And I wanted today to be better than great, because it’s Christmas, and we were bringing our families together for the first time, and meeting your mom. I just wanted everything to be perfect.”

  “Don’t you get it? It was perfect. You prepped everything and executed it all, flawlessly. If anything, I screwed up. I messed up on the candied yams or sweet potatoes or whatever, and I got carried away during the football game.”

  “Yeah, you really messed it all up,” Georgiana said, laughing through her tears.

  “I did. You were great. You don’t have anything to be upset about.” He brushed a curl out of her face. “I should have just let Ian show me up and not get so riled up.”

  “Ian’s an asshole.” She sniffed, starting to feeling better about the day’s events. “You shouldn’t have let him get to you.”

  “I know,” he cooed, continuing to reassure her. “And if it makes you feel better, I got an earful from my mom about toxic masculinity and the dangers of head injuries.”

  That sounded like severe enough punishment. “It does make me feel better.” Bryan knew how to make her feel better, how to make her laugh when she needed it most. It was just one of the many reasons she loved him.

  “So, what do you say? You ready to change your answer?” Bryan pulled out the ring box again from his pocket.

  She hesitated. “You’re sure you want to do this? Even if, after all this, our families never get along? Even if I don’t live up to your mom’s expectations? Even if—”

  “You can list a million ‘even ifs’, and my answer will always be yes, Georgiana Marie Pierson. No matter what, I want to spend the rest of forever with you. Nothing could ever change my mind. It doesn’t matter to me how today went or what my parents think or your—no, never mind, I care a lot about what your dad thinks. I asked him for your hand. Because I knew it would be important to you. Don’t you see? The only thing that matters to me is you. And I wanted to ask you in front of everyone we love, to show you just how much I care about you. Doesn’t that prove how much I want to be with you, through thick and thin?”

  She wiped the tears from her cheeks and nodded. “Yes.”

  He paused. “Yes, that’s enough? Or yes, you’ll marry me?”

  “Yes, I’ll marry you!”

  Bryan sighed in relief and grabbed Georgiana, pulling her into his lap. He kissed her, hard and happily. Her hands cupped his face, and she kissed him back, matching his passion. He pulled back and fumbled with the velvet box, removing the ring and clasping her left hand. “This is yours now.”

  Georgiana watched as he slipped the ring on her finger. It fit perfectly; no resizing would be necessary. It was fate, demonstrating once again that Bryan and Georgiana belonged together.

  Their lips met again, Georgiana straddling Bryan on the bench. His hands ran up and down her arms, and he felt her shiver. “You cold, babe?”

  “A little,” she replied, her mouth still against his.

  “Wanna go inside?”

  “Not yet. I just want to remember everything about this moment.”

  Bryan’s hands moved from her arms to her back and then to her ass. “I want to make the most of this moment. Didn’t you tell me we’d be having sex tonight?”

  “You do know that the guest room window is right above us, right?” She kissed his jawline and then pulled his earlobe into her mouth. She whispered, “I bet they can hear everything we’re saying.”

  “And your point is . . . ?”

  “Maybe we should head on inside. Get some privacy. Have some fun.”

  “Mmm, I like the sound of that.” Bryan stood up and held onto Georgiana. As she wrapped her legs around his hips and grabbed his shoulders, he walked them into the house and up the stairs. Luckily, the master bedroom was on the opposite end of the house from the guest room, with no shared walls.

  Bryan kicked the bedroom door closed behind them and set Georgiana down on the bed. He immediately grabbed at his hoodie and pulled the fabric over his head. She started to reach for his belt, but he batted her hands away.

  “I’m fixin’ to get you naked,” she said, grabbing for his belt again.

  “Not if I get you naked first,” he replied, making quick work of her sweater, bra, and jeans.

  She let him strip her down to her panties before she insisted, “It’s your turn now. Now lay down.”

  “Whatever you say, Future Mrs. Comstock.” He undid his buckle and lifted his hips, allowing Georgiana to pull off his pants and boxers. His stiffening cock stood to greet her.

  She climbed onto the bed and hovered over Bryan, her hair falling down around her face as she looked down at him. “You know, I never said I’d take your name.”

  Bryan cupped her breasts, too distracted to care. “That’s fine. As long as you marry me, I’ll call you whatever you want.”

  She lowered her hips and rubbed against him. “Mrs. Pierson-Comstock has a good ring to it, don’t you think.”

  He groaned from the pleasure of contact. Bryan wouldn’t wait any longer; he pulled the crotch of her panties to the side so she could position herself on top of him. Once he was fully inside of her, he pushed the hair away from her face, so he could see her. “You know what sounds even better?”

  “Hmm?” Her hands gripped his forearms, giving her something to hold onto as she began to grind her body against his.

  “Calling you my wife.”

  She smiled at him, beaming like the light she was. No matter what life decided to throw at them, they’d get through it together—just like they had from the start. Like they had during the past nine months. As long as they stayed on the same team, they’d be invincible.

  Epilogue

  Georgiana woke up slowly. She was warm and cozy in her bed, nestled up against Bryan beneath the duvet. This was the first morning in months that they got to sleep in, since there were no games or other obligations. Even so, she was up at 6:30 like she was every other morning, her body stuck in a sleep routine that she couldn’t break even when she wanted to.

  She carefully extricated herself from underneath Bryan’s arm, scooting out of bed without waking him. She pulled on her cotton robe over her pajamas and headed down to the kitchen to put on a pot of coffee for their guests.

  As the coffee percolated, she turned on the electric kettle so she could steep some peppermint tea for herself. Georgiana also pulled some fruit, cream cheese, and bagels from the fridge for breakfast. She spotted the leftover sweet potato pie in there, and she grabbed that too.

  Carol turned the corner and entered the kitchen. “I thought I heard someone else up.”

  “Good morning, Mrs. Comstock.” Georgiana felt her anxiety run up her spine, stiffening her body and tensing her muscles. She wasn’t sure she was ready to be alone with her without any backup from Bryan. But she knew she had to be a good hostess. “I have coffee on, and I’m just getting some breakfast. Are you hungry?”

  “I’m feeling a bit peckish. Coffee sounds good.” Carol stepped toward the counter and opened up the cabinet, looking for a mug.

  “Oh, I can get that for you, Mrs. Comstock.” Georgiana walked over, but Carol held up a hand.

  “Thank you, but I don’t mind. I appreciate the