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In a futile attempt to nip at his wrist, I whipped my head to the side, but he just snickered and in the next motion, I was in his arms. “Be a good girl and keep your eyes closed,” he ordered.
“You’re bossy,” I prodded.
“And you like it.”
He wasn’t wrong. “Is that what you’re telling yourself?”
“That’s what you tell me when you suck my cock to the back of your throat like my personal whore.”
My cackle trailed away as the dulcet notes of piano tiptoed over the crash of surf, and I turned my head in an attempt to hear more of it. “What is that?”
“Not the response I was expecting,” he noted lightly, and I pinched his chest through the slick material of his button-up. “That’spart of it, princess.”
When Grey set my feet back into the warm sand, I realized I was chewing my lip. Elegant piano music played, my ears straining to recognize the notes. “Can I open yet?” I demanded impatiently.
“Hang on,” he said, but then he let go of me, and I threw my hands out in protest, earning a dark chuckle that sent heat climbing beneath my skin. The subtle whoosh of his feet through the sand held my attention until they silenced, leaving in their stead the most disarming combination of sound and caress of warm air on my cheeks. Anticipation sent butterflies flying through my chest, my teeth running over my bottom lip until at last, Grey breathed, “Now.”
I opened my eyes to find Greyson Hart kneeling on a beautiful blue and gold Thai throw we’d found together. The corners were framed by flickering tea lights and taller candles, and a canopy of glimmering lights formed a peak in the center.
“Grey?” I breathed.
“A year ago, I took you as my wife without earning that title. Not long after, I asked you to date me, Mrs. Hart, and you agreed. In the year since, you’ve stood by my side through literal hell. You’ve had my back when the world came against us. You’ve chosen me time and again—your loyalty unmatched.” He cleared his throat, shifting his weight on the blanket. “But something was missing—the theatrics of it all. The grand gesture a love like this deserves.”
“Grey,” I gasped as he reached into his vest pocket and pulled out a rather thick stack of papers. “What is this?”
“What I should have shown you then. Because before I had any right to call you mine, I knew you would be.”
With nerves in my belly, and confusion throbbing in my mind, I stepped through the sand, careful not to kick any up onto his beautiful arrangement. Between two of the canopy poles was a string with photographs clipped to it. Some were Mattie’s polaroids, others were prints off our phones, but none were those we’d paid a fortune to craft so strategically.
Me on Grey’s back with him laughing, soaking wet from a water fight.
Greyson, looking like he shit his pants on the boat last summer, made me laugh.
Me, asleep on the back patio with the lights glimmering above, looking entirely at peace.
Grey and me dancing at a gala.
Hell, there was even one of us at Paxton’s first Emerald Bay game, proudly wearing our jerseys and foam fingers before everything went to shit.
Me in that damn sling for my arm, glaring at him from the couch where he’d surrounded me in all manner of treats to choose from.
Me and Leighton covered in flour, sandwiching Ollie’s laughing kids between our grinning faces at Christmas.
Eyes watering, I returned to his intense gaze where my real-life Adonis knelt in the sand. I took the stack but just stared at my husband as my breathing picked up tempo with the significance he’d so thoughtfully sown into each little detail. As if in confirmation, the piano gave way to the ethereal notes ofBordersby Kalandra. The song I’d been singing the night we started this relationship authentically.
When I glanced to the papers, confusion settled in for a long moment as I read over the words so hastily written and scratched out. I’d know Greyson’s handwriting anywhere.
Alessandra, you are the light of my life
Alessandra Rhodes, you have challenged me from the day you walked into my office
And then a familiarparagraph sprawled at the bottom of the page stopped my breath. My gaze flicked to his, lungs tight in my chest as I looked back to the words he’d said last year on our beach.
To the most stubborn, ambitious, infuriating, and beautiful woman I’ve ever known. I am not a perfect man. You, of all people, have seen the ugliest parts of me, yet you stand here, declaring our lives united. Your grace and empathy inspire me beyondwords—to be a better man, to be courageous enough to feel more deeply. While I may never be flawless, I vow to dedicate my life to earning the loyalty you’ve given me. If any woman can push me to conquer impossibilities, it’s you, Alessandra Lennon Rhodes.
My Nona always told me that the Hebrew phrase for partner—Ezer Kenegdo—translates to ’a helper opposite him’, which I think perfectly reflects your unique ability to challenge me in ways no one else can. If you allow me, I vow to prove myself worthy of you. I may never fully deserve what you’ve given me, what you’ve sacrificed to stand beside me, but I promise to spend my life trying.
When my burningeyes pulled away from the text, he smiled softly as I poured flustered words between my lips. “These are…youwrote our vows?”