“
I tracked down a vegan baker and had this cake special ordered for tonight. It’s a vanilla cake made with almond milk and maple syrup, glazed with cocoa icing. The damn thing smells delicious, yet my mouth is as dry as the Sahara Desert. That’s probably because of the message. Or, I should say, question iced on top of the cake.
Walking up to the kitchen, I see her shaking her booty as she sings to the loud music blasting through the apartment. In her hand, she has a knife and is cutting up a banana. On the stove, I can see a small pot of melted dark chocolate and what looks like toasted and chopped walnuts on a plate.
“Hey, babe! You’re home too early.” She gives me a fake pout. “I wanted to surprise you.”
Setting my chin on her shoulder, I place my hands on her hips and watch as she starts cutting up another banana. “Surprise me with what, Pixie?”
“Something sweet for us to eat while we watch the movie tonight.”
Kissing the side of her neck, I murmur into her skin, “I’ve got your sweet covered.”
She looks at the box with curious eyes. “Oh? And what do you have there, Trevor Blake?”
Lifting the lid, I push the now visible cake with its question closer to her, and she gasps. Her hands start to tremble, and I watch the hand holding the knife with a wary eye. Perhaps I should have asked her to put that down first.
I watch her face as her eyes tear up at the question in red icing.
Will You Marry Me?
The ring is the dot at the bottom of the question mark, shiny and blinking at her.
Standing here, I wait for an answer.
And I wait more.
Thing is, it’s too quiet. There are silent tears running down her face, but she’s not said a single word.
Fuck.
What if she isn’t ready for this?
I open my mouth to try to fix this, but suddenly my little sprite is squealing loudly, jumping up and down.
I should be fucking thrilled that she’s happy, but all I can see is that knife bouncing up and down with her little body. She’s talking so fast I can barely understand what she’s saying.
“Oh-my-gosh-Trevor-are-you-serious-right-now!”
“Babe, happy as hell that you’re excited, but can you do me a favor really quick?”
Paisley stops jumping up and down and nods her head repeatedly like a bobble head doll. I have to stop myself from laughing at her.
She smiles brightly at me. “If you wanna know my answer, it’s yes!”
“Well, that, too. But, Pixie, can you please put down the knife? Would really fucking hate it if one of us got accidentally stabbed on the night that I’m asking you to become my wife.
”
”