Melody of the Heart (Runaway Train, #4)

“You’re impossible,” she muttered before she shoved away from me.

I pulled her back to me and started tickling her. She dissolved into giggles. “Stop it, Bray!” she shrieked.

“Do you promise to lighten up?”

Jerking her chin up, she countered, “And do you?”

I grinned at her. “Yeah, I do.”

She returned my smile. “Good. Now can we please go?”

“Lead away.”

With a squeal, she took my arm and dragged me down the aisle. Jake and the others were milling around outside. “You guys going in to0?” I asked.

Jake shrugged. “Might as well. Nothing else to do until show time.”

AJ grinned. “Oh, I’m going in. I’m going to have a fucking blast.”

“Me too,” Lily answered.

“Race you to the ticket stand?” AJ asked.

“Deal,” Lily said, and then they took off, kicking up a cloud of dust behind them.

Jake, Rhys, and I followed them at a much slower pace. By the time we caught up to them, they’d bought a ridiculous amount of tickets and were impatiently bouncing on the balls of their feet as they waited for us.

We did the bumper cars, the Tilt a Whirl, and the hokey Tunnel of Love. Lily even managed to drag me on the Merry Go Round. That’s when we eventually split up from the guys. Then we hit the food stands trying fried Oreos and fried pickles. I didn’t make it through half of my corndog before I was feeling way too full. Lily on the other hand had a never ending stomach when it came to fair food. I couldn’t help but laugh at her dainty self as she packed away the goodies.

As we walked around the other side of the fair, I nursed my growing indigestion. I knew it wasn’t just the fair food. It was the ring box in my pocket and what I had in mind to do with it when the time was right.

“Let’s do the Ferris Wheel,” I suggested.

Lily’s eyes lit up. “Okay.”

As we got in line, she started trying to devour what was left of her cotton candy. “Babe, I’ll get you some more if they won’t let you take it on with you.”

When she glanced up at me with her mouth and cheeks covered pink, I busted out laughing. “What? Do I have something on my face?” she questioned, with a smile.

“Hmm, just a bit.”

“Well, get it off. There’s wet wipes in my purse.”

“You’re always so prepared.” I then opened the giant bag at her side and got out the wipes. Bringing one to her face, I slowly started to work off the pink film. “You are a dirty girl,” I teased.

She giggled. “Only you would say something like that in line for the Ferris Wheel. Don’t think you’re going to get all happy-hands on me like Mark Wahlburg in the movie Fear.”

Whispering in her ear, I asked, “You mean you wouldn’t want to have an orgasm high up in the air?”

As I pulled back, she licked her lips. “Maybe. I’m all about new experiences.”

“Mmm, I like it when you’re naughty,” I said, as I nuzzled my face in her neck.

“Next,” the man taking tickets bellowed. Lily tossed her remaining cotton candy in the trash while I deposited the napkins I’d used to clean her up. I passed him our tickets, and then we climbed into a bucket seat.

The ring box continued to burn a hole in my pocket. I knew it was now or never. As our seat climbed to the top, I shifted and reached for the box. When I did, I ended up poking Lily in the side with my elbow. She gave me a weird look. “What are you so fidgety?”

“Just needed to get something.”

As she surveyed the view of the fairgrounds from our position, I finally got the box out. When we reached the top, the wheel stopped to allow other people on. “Isn’t it beautiful, Bray?” Lily asked, as she gazed at all the twinkling lights.

“Yeah, it is.” Taking Lily’s hand, I said, “I want you to know that each and every day with you is like this view. I can’t imagine my world without you in it. You’re the greatest blessing that has ever happened to me. You’re my soul mate, my other half, the very best of me. More in the anything in the world, I want you to marry me.”

Lily’s eyes bulged while her hand flew to her mouth. “You…me…” She shook her head. “What about going to my father and asking his permission?”

I smiled. “I went to him before we left this summer. We have his blessing and his support.”

The wheel shifted us forward again, and we started to descend back to the ground. As she continued to remain speechless, I cracked open the ring box. “This was my Nana’s first engagement ring. My Papa gave it to her right before he left to fight in WWII. Years later when he had made something of himself, he bought her a big, fancy diamond, but she never stopped wearing this one. Not until the day she died.”

Tears streamed down Lily’s cheeks. “It’s beautiful—the story, the ring, all of it.”