16. Lani

CHAPTER 16

LANI

Okay, today’s the day.

No matter what, I’m proposing.

I can sense Asher has something big brewing, and he’s trying to outsmart me. Things have been unusually tense between us as we both try to avoid each other so we can’t spoil any surprises we’ve planned, but I decided last night as we celebrated Tammy’s bachelorette party, and swooned over her upcoming nuptials, that I couldn’t delay this any longer. The best way to surprise my man is to forget about all the elaborate ideas I’ve been toying with and just freaking ask him!

I don’t want to take away from Tammy and Baxter’s big day next weekend, and I’m guessing Asher is thinking the same. He probably has some grand plan which he’ll show me, maybe even the day after the wedding, but I don’t need anything fancy.

Why should guys always get to propose anyway?

I’m doing it today and have spent the last two hours setting up the top floor of the villa. I’ve lit enough candles in our bedroom and the living room to put the fire station on high alert and have classical music wafting out of the speakers. I’ve spent all week compiling the perfect playlist—selecting all of the most romantic classical music I could find.

I bought all of Asher’s favorite treats—the coffee table is piled high—plus I wrote a quiz. Just ten quick questions, the last one being… Will you marry me?

Sweet, simple, and romantic.

Tick, tick, tick.

I’m grinning as I pad down the hallway, heading into the bathroom so I can double-check my makeup and put on Asher’s favorite dress. Then I’ll?—

“Lani?” Asher’s surprised voice reaches me from the living room.

Shit, he’s back early. I didn’t even hear him coming up the stairs!

I run out to find him, my bathrobe flying open because I forgot to tie it back up…

And there he is in a tuxedo, holding a large bunch of roses and gaping at me.

His eyes heat with desire as they travel down my body. Yes, I’m in my lacy black lingerie. And is he about to…?

“Don’t you dare get down on one knee,” I warn him, pointing my finger with the sternest look I can muster.

He narrows his eyes at me, glancing around the living room, then arching his brow.

“Leilani Iona, will you?—”

“Marry me?” I pop out the question before he can.

His face bunches into a scowl and he goes to drop to one knee, but I fall to the floor—yes, still in my underwear—and quickly rush out, “Asher Bensen, will you?—”

“Marry me?” he interrupts, and I huff, jumping back to my feet and resting my hands on my hips.

“Will you marry me?” we both blurt in unison, then end up growling.

The bouquet of roses hits Asher’s leg, some of the petals falling to the floor. “Dammit, woman. Can’t you just let me propose? I got you a ring!”

“Yeah, well, me too!” I flick my arm at him. “Why should you get to be the only one to gift the person you love a beautiful piece of jewelry!”

He goes still, blinking at me and suddenly fighting a grin. “You got me a ring?”

“Yes,” I mumble, pulling my bathrobe around myself and tying it securely.

“Can I see it?” He lays the roses down on the table, eyeing the food before grinning at me. “Did you bake it into the chocolate cake?”

“Ewww, no.” I scrunch up my nose, then sigh, my own lips starting to quirk up at the edges. “I’ll let you see it if you let me propose.”

He rolls his eyes, sucking in a breath and holding it like he’s counting to ten.

I arch my eyebrow at him.

“Okay, fine. But then I get to propose after you.”

“Fine.” I roll my eyes, but my giggle is soft and uncontrolled as I walk to the coffee table and dig the ring box out of my prize bag. “I wrote a quiz, and I was going to give you a little prize after each correct answer.”

“Really?” His voice perks up. “I love that idea. Hit me, boo.”

I stare at him for a second, loving his enthusiasm as he takes a seat on the couch and flicks his fingers at me.

“Okay, fine.” I nod and pull out my question cards. “Which constellations did we talk about the first night we made love?”

Asher tips his head back, his eyes snapping shut. “That would be Orion and Scorpius.”

“Very good.” I grin, pulling a black G-string out of the bag and throwing it at him.

He holds it up with a smirk. “This is my prize?”

“You can rip it off me later.” I wink, and he starts laughing.

“Well, bring on question two, then!”

I giggle. “What’s my favorite dessert?”

“Crème br?lée.”

“What’s my real favorite dessert?”

He grins. “Oreo ice cream with way too much chocolate sauce.”

“Correct and correct.” I throw him a bottle of chocolate sauce, and he wiggles his eyebrows at me.

I continue asking him questions that prove he knows me better than anybody else and makes me want to marry him more now than I ever have before.

Flipping to the next card, I pull in a breath, smile down at the question, and then look him in the eye.

“Question ten,” I whisper.

His gaze turns soft and mushy.

“Will you make me the happiest woman on this earth and marry me?”

“Yes.” His voice is a sexy, husky whisper, and I feel my insides tremble as a watery laugh punches out of me.

“Correct answer.” I reach into the prize bag and pull out the small box. Holding it out for him, I can’t take my eyes off his face as he pops it open.

His lips part, this soft, awe-filled sound escaping him as he pulls out the tungsten ring inlayed with a line of small rubies.

“Red rubies,” he murmurs, his voice kind of choked up.

“For Gryffindor,” we whisper at the same time.

His gaze jumps up to meet mine, and I’ve never been more sure of anything in my entire life—I’m staring at my soulmate. And he just said yes!

I’m going to marry my soulmate!

He sniffs, blinking as he lets me slip the ring on.

“It looks so good on you.” I brush my fingers over his, and he captures my hand, threading our fingers together and smiling at me.

“I love you so much.”

I want to say the same, but my throat has gone all thick. He’s about to propose!

“When I first met you…” He laughs and shakes his head. “I thought you were such a piece of work. No one has ever put me in my place the way you have. I thought I couldn’t stand you, but it took all of one drive and a quiz night to be totally enamored with you. And every day, I find another reason to love you. Every month that passes, I become even more sure that I can’t live without you.”

My heart trills, tears clogging my throat at the look of pure adoration on his face.

“You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”

“You too,” I squeak.

He grins. “Wanna be my wife forever and ever?”

“Yes,” I blubber, lurching forward and planting my lips on his. He lets go of my hands, holding my face and swiping his tongue into my mouth. It’s a deep, passionate kiss filled with hope and promise.

He eases away, brushing his nose against mine before pulling a box from his jacket pocket.

“Your ring, milady.” He pops it open for me, and my heart skips through my chest, a soft gasp popping out of my mouth, followed by a wispy laugh.

“Ravenclaw,” I whisper, staring at the stunning sapphire ring.

“You know it, boo.” He laughs, pulling the ring out to slip it onto my finger. “It’s so funny that we thought of the same thing.”

“I know.” My stomach trembles from laughter or tears—I can’t tell. My emotions are running so high that I feel lightheaded. “We’re so meant to be.”

He grins, gazing at the ring on my finger and nodding. “Yeah, we are.”

I stare at the ring, studying it from every angle with an awe-filled smile. “Can you believe we’re finally engaged?”

“We have taken way too long to make this happen. Seriously, why were we so stubborn over this thing?”

I groan and tip my head back. “Because the idea of planning a wedding is so overwhelming. I just couldn’t do it. As soon as people find out, the pressure will instantly come on. You know what it’s like. Everyone who loves us means well, but…” I wince.

“I feel ya.” He nods. “My mother will be a nightmare.”

My wince deepens as I squeak, “She will.”

He laughs and brushes his thumb across my cheek. “Well, let’s just keep things quiet for a bit. We don’t want to take away from Tammy and Baxter’s big day anyway. Why don’t we go to the rehearsal dinner on Friday night and not wear the rings? Then a few days after the wedding is over and they’ve had their big moment, we can slip them on again. We don’t have to announce anything. If someone is smart enough to notice the rings, we can tell them then.”

“Agreed.” I rub my thumb over his band, then go to take my stunning ring off.

“Wait, wait, wait.” He stops me. “Once I’ve made love to my fiancée, then you can take it off.”

My lips rise into what I hope is a playful, sexy smirk. “You want to make love to me with our rings on?”

His hooded eyes make me feel like my skin’s on fire. “Boo, that’s the only thing I want you wearing.” His deft fingers quickly untie my robe, and he flicks it open, exposing my lacy lingerie. “Damn, woman,” he whines, his eyes drinking me in. “What you do to me.”

With a soft growl, he launches out of his seat, cinching me around the waist and lifting me off the couch. I can’t help a laughing squeal as he walks me to the wooden table, which is sometimes a desk and sometimes a dining table. He places me onto the polished surface. The wood hits my naked butt cheeks and I yelp at the contact but am soon distracted by a luscious tongue gliding into my mouth. His strong hands wrap about the back of my neck, his fingers fisting my hair as he kisses me soundly, overriding all my senses.

I start yanking at his jacket, shoving it off his shoulders and loving the sound of each item hitting the floor. The living room is soon littered with fabric, my bra dangling off the bookshelf as Asher sucks my eager nipple into his mouth. I moan, fisting his hair and thrusting my chest toward him. He plays with my sensitive body, drawing patterns on my skin and using his teeth to pull the lace off me. I lie back, the cold desk barely registering as I lift my hips. My G-string ends up bunched around my ankle and I flick it off, giggling to myself as it arcs through the air and gets caught on the lampshade.

Asher gazes down at me, his hungry eyes making my skin tingle. Parting my legs, he devours my pussy without even touching me. His searing stare makes me feel like the sexiest woman on the planet.

His lips rise into that delectable smirk of his, and I grin at him as he lightly kisses my knee, then starts working his way down to my sensitive haven. His tongue destroys me, knocking out the power to most of my brain. All that remains is the heady ecstasy of his tongue lapping my pussy before he gently sucks my clit between his lips. I groan, fisting his hair and pressing my toes into the desk. He scoops his hands under my butt, giving it a squeeze and pulling my folds apart. His tongue pancakes over me, long licks from the base to my clit until my breaths are a frenzied mess. Shock waves pulse though my body as he grips my ass even tighter, then sucks my clit again.

I pinch my nipples, breaths punching out of me as I arch my back and revel in his practiced touch. He knows all my hot spots, and he’s hitting each one with his expert tongue. I can’t control my voice as an orgasm builds, burning through me as cries of pleasure rise in my throat.

“That’s it, boo,” he murmurs around my clit before pressing his thumb against it. “Come for me.”

I let out another cry, my inner walls spasming as my body starts to quiver. I revel in this moment, my body jerking uncontrollably as I’m taken out from all sides. My chest is heaving, my heart thundering when I hit my high with gusto.

“You’re so fucking sexy, fiancée.” Asher grins down at me.

“I love you,” I manage to whisper. “I’m so fucking glad you’re gonna be my husband.”

He grabs my hips, sliding me to the edge of the table. I sit up, pulling his face toward me and thrusting my tongue into his mouth. We moan in unison, his hands gliding around my back as I deepen the kiss even more. It’s like we want to crawl inside each other. I could find a happy home in his chest.

“I’ve got to have you, baby,” he murmurs between kisses. “Let me take you right here.”

I pull away from him, spreading my legs and giving him easy access to my body. His cock is rigid, standing at attention, and I watch it with a grin, scraping my teeth across my bottom lip as he parts my folds and lines himself up.

His head hits my wet core, and I grip his shoulders, silently urging him deeper.

He reads my mind and gives me a deep, strong thrust that has me moaning all over again.

I love this man. I love him inside me.

My eyes pop open and I spot my ring, glistening against his skin as he thrusts once more.

I love his ring on my finger.

I love my ring on his.

Lying back, I lift my legs, and he places them against his shoulders. His soft fingers wrap around my ankles as he plunges again.

His groan overrides the classical music sweeping over us, and I tune in to it, becoming acutely aware of every sound our bodies make together—the rhythmic beat of our coupling, the whimper that stirs in his throat, that guttural groan that rips out of mine when he pushes my legs forward and changes the angle.

He slows his pace for a moment, shortening his thrusts so he can work my G-spot and send my body into another frenzy.

My moans escalate, my chest heaving as I bite my bottom lip and tip my head back.

Spreading my arms wide, I grip the edge of the table when he plunges deep again, then goes a little harder, a little faster, until I’m consumed by him.

His fingers dig into my ass and he practically pulls me off the table, hips pumping like a piston as he speeds toward his orgasm.

“Oh fuck. Fuck.” He breathes the words, his body convulsing before he lets out a strangled cry and jerks inside me, then plunges to his hilt. Snatching my ankles, he squeezes them and thrusts a few more times.

I can feel him going off, his seed spurting into me as I cling to the table and ride out this wild storm of pleasure.

He’s always been able to make me breathless. To send me over the edge. And once again, he’s won first prize.

Or maybe I have.

Because surely marrying this man makes me the ultimate winner in all things.