“I love you, Hailey. I love the you that crawled through the doggy door and let me get your sheets dirty when I needed you. I love the you that runs around in flannel pajamas with the kids and the you that looks like a movie star right now.” He let go of her hand to open the box, and the diamond sparkled at her in the golden light from the chandeliers. “I wanted this moment to be extra special for you because every moment with you is special to me. No matter where we are or what we’re doing, all that matters is that I’m with you. Will you marry me?”
“Yes,” she whispered, but she wasn’t sure any sound came out because her throat felt choked with tears, so she tried again. “Yes!”
When he slid the ring onto her finger, she had to blink back tears to see it sparkling in the sunlit hallway. Then she threw her arms around his neck and kissed him until she could hardly breathe, not caring who might see.
“I love you,” she whispered against his mouth.
“I love you, too. More than you can imagine.”
“We could go try out that huge tub and order room service.”
“Oh no, you don’t, future Mrs. Barnett. There’s a very expensive bottle of champagne in that dining room just waiting for me to pop the question.”
She laughed. “A diamond ring and champagne? You’re going to spoil me, you know.”
“And I’ll love every minute of it. Because I love you.”
“I’m glad I waited my whole life for you.”
He lifted her hand, kissing her knuckles just above the ring. “Me, too. Now let’s go drink some champagne and live happily ever after.”
About the Author
New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author Shannon Stacey lives with her husband and two sons in New England, where her two favorite activities are writing stories of happily ever after and riding her four-wheeler. From May to November, the Stacey family spends their weekends on their ATVs, making loads of muddy laundry to keep Shannon busy when she’s not at her computer. She prefers writing to laundry, however, and considers herself lucky she got to be an author when she grew up.
You can contact Shannon through her website, www.shannonstacey.com, where she maintains an almost daily blog, or visit her on Twitter, @shannonstacey, her Facebook page, or email her at [email protected].