He takes his time approaching the stage, that ice-blue gaze never straying from my body as I twirl and stretch and undulate my muscles. By the time the song fades to silence, he’s standing beneath me, hands resting on the edge of the platform.
I take my bow, bending deeply, lower, closer, reaching out a hand to trail my fingers over his strong, clean-shaved jawline. Then I straighten to my full height and wait for the next song.
It doesn’t come.
The restaurant is packed, and most of the diners return to their meals. Others watch with curiosity.
“Loving you is instinctual.” His voice carries through the room, hushing the crowd.
My heart somersaults, landing somewhere near my throat. I’m shaking. Why am I nervous?
“Loving you is the best kind of self-ruination.” He laughs to himself. “God knows, I needed some renovations. I still do, yet you love me anyway. Your acceptance is humbling.” He stares up at me, his gaze naked, vulnerable. “I’m undeserving.”
My chest hitches. “Trace—”
“Don’t misunderstand me. I don’t deserve you, but I won’t let you go. You’re mine, Danni Angelo.”
Holding my eyes, he lowers to one knee.
The dining room falls quiet, but a drumming crescendo rises deep within me. It’s the din of whispered words, laughter and tears, fears and kisses, and ten months of love. With Cole. All of it catches in my throat like a final breath.
But as I exhale slowly, it feels like a rebirth. The inception of something extraordinary. A new beginning. A second chance. With Trace.
My attention zooms in on his mouth, on the ever-present scowl that isn’t moving, isn’t asking the question that follows a bent knee.
Movement ripples through the restaurant, drawing my gaze. At least a half dozen servers stand at attention, spaced throughout the room, dressed in black suits, and holding empty trays.
One by one, they hold those trays over their heads, each with a letter painted in white on the bottom.
Seven letters.
Two words.
M-A-R-R-Y-M-E
My heart beats in overdrive, and tears swim in my eyes as I lower them to the man at my feet.
A ring is pinched tightly in his extended hand. His expression creases with uncertainty, but I’m already nodding my head.
“Yes.” I drop to my knees and wrap my arms around his neck. “Yes, Trace. I’ll marry you.”
His relief is palpable, trembling through his shoulders.
The dining room explodes in cheers, but his gorgeous smile is all I see.
Until he kisses me, and suddenly we’re not in the casino, not surrounded by a room full of people. It’s just him and me, reaching toward each other, stretching and blooming as one through the cracks in a once-hostile landscape.
His mouth pulls back but not away, and his hand finds mine, raising it between us. He holds up the silver ring, and at first glance, it appears to be a simple band, bent to create a slight wave. But as he changes the angle, the twisted curves create the illusion of an infinity symbol.
I blink, smiling, and lift my damp eyes to his. “Infinity is a long time.”
“It’s not the length of time.” He slides the ring on my finger. “But the depth.”
My chest heaves with a nourishing breath, and I tug at the black bow tie around his neck. “You didn’t have to wear a tux to propose to me.”
A mischievous smirk slides across his lips. “Follow me.”
He leads me toward the entrance of the dining room, passing happy shouts of congratulations on our way out. Through the gaming area and past the lobby, he doesn’t slow until we reach the doors of the hotel ballroom.
“What is this?” I’m barefoot and half-dressed, completely unprepared for a formal function.
“Our engagement party.” He ushers me inside and raises his voice to the waiting crowd of tuxedos and gowns. “She said yes!”
My breath quickens as I scan all the smiling familiar faces. Bree and David. Father Rick and Nikolai. Virginia and many of my other elderly neighbors. Friends I danced with in college. Students I used to teach. Even some of the staff from Bissara.
I squeeze Trace’s hand, shocked and overjoyed. “What if I said no?”
“Ah, but you didn’t.” He kisses the top of my head. “Bree has your dress.”
My dress?
She hurries toward me in a flurry of floor-length satin, simpering like a little girl.
“Lucky bitch.” She grabs my arm and drags me into a connecting room off the corner of the ballroom.
Ten minutes later, I stand before her in a silver mermaid gown made from heavy silk. The fitted V-neckline gives me some sexy cleavage. The bodice bares my shoulder blades in a trendy racer-back style with a huge cutout just above my ass crack. The form-fitting mermaid skirt ruffles out in the back, cascading curls of silk into a gorgeous train.
I feel like I just inherited the keys to a magical kingdom. This life can’t be real.
“You’re breathtaking.” Bree flattens a hand over her chest.
“He picked this out?” I slide my feet into sparkling silver stilettos.
“Yes, Danni. He arranged all of this.”
“When?”
“A month ago.”
The hot air balloon ride was a month ago. The first time I told him I loved him. The man doesn’t waste any time.
“I didn’t call Mom and Dad.” She circles around me, tucking and straightening the drape of my skirt. “I thought you’d want to tell them yourself.” She bounces up and down, squealing. “You’re getting married!”
I stare down at the ring on my finger. I’m getting married.
Cole’s face flashes through my mind, and my heart gives a heavy thump. That achy feeling will never go away, because I will always love him, always miss how happy I was with him, even if I found someone I love just as much.
Don’t leave me, Trace.
“Ready?” Bree grips my shoulders.
At my nod, she laces her fingers through mine and leads me to the door.
I cross the ballroom, winding around tables and food and lively chatter. I squeeze Virginia’s hand as I pass and wave at Nikolai across the room. But when I spot the gorgeous man in the black tux, everything around me fades to black.
He stands alone at the center of a dance floor, hands behind him, shoulders back. His lips might be curved down, but his eyes glow with happiness.
The skirt of my dress swishes over the floor and settles around my feet as I pause a foot away. “Are we going to dance?”
He nods to a man behind a portable DJ booth, and a heartbeat later, an electronic disco beat thumps through the room.
I burst out laughing, instantly recognizing the song. “I expected some slow romantic number, anything but Get Lucky by Daft Punk.” I shake my head, smiling. “You’re full of surprises, Trace Savoy.”
“I intend to spend the next seventy years keeping you on your toes.” He extends a hand. “Cha Cha?”
I toss my head playfully and sink into a hip roll. Then I strut past his waiting hand.
He grabs my wrist, spins me back in a handshake position, and just like that, we’re dancing.
Cha Cha is a fast tempo dance, with sharp, staccato steps on the balls of the feet. Most of the hip action comes from the legs, flowing the entire body with the music.
I follow his lead, keeping my torso upright and my gaze on his.