NautiCal (Forever Wilde 8)

“This is gorgeous,” he said, turning it around in his hand to see all the attention to detail. “Is it a Christmas ornament?”

I nodded. “Yeah, and the steering wheel there is actually a wedding band,” I said with a shrug. “Surprise. Will you marry me too?”

His jaw dropped, and I could hear enough tittering from the crew on shore to realize at least half of them, if not all, had known both of us had plans to propose to each other this week.

“Really? You were going to propose to me too?”

“Yes, you idiot. But you cheated since I didn’t know you were coming home earlier.”

He pulled the band out of the little boat and slipped it on. “I love it. And I love the little Rainbow ornament too.”

I bit my lip and glanced around nervously. Now came the hard part. “Um… do you remember that one time you got mad when your boyfriend spent your money on a really expensive yacht?”

His forehead crinkled in confusion. “Yes?”

“Do you think it would make a difference if your fiancé did it instead?”

“Calgary… what are you saying?”

I pulled out my phone to show him the photos of the full-sized Rainbow snuggled in the St. Mitz harbor next to the Worthington.

“I think I’m getting better at being rich,” I admitted, hands still shaking. “I mean… I only vomited the one time when I arranged for the wire transfer. But Julo was with me and said I looked very brave while I did it.”

I could hear Julo’s laugh from the shore. He and Freya had moved up here with us and into my original cabin after we’d fixed it up. Julo oversaw the mess hall during the season, and the three of them traveled to the islands during the off-season to take care of the Worthington. I was pretty sure Julo was even more excited about the new ship than I was. Their daughter, Isla, was a gem, and she fulfilled what little desire Worth and I had for our own kids without us needing to actually have any of our own.

“You bought me a ship?” he asked.

I nodded frantically. “A really expensive one.” Was I hyperventilating or just dying slowly? I put my hand on my throat to see if something had constricted it. Like a snake or… or stark panic.

Worth’s face widened into a huge smile. “You bought me a ship?” he asked again.

“Oh god. I might vomit again for good measure.” I stood up and looked around for a bucket, but Worth caught me around the middle and spun me around. Clearly he didn’t realize how close to upchucking I was.

“He bought me a ship!” he shouted. “He finally took my damned money.”

I groaned and sagged against him, trying desperately to convince my brain this meant he was happy about it. “So, you’re not mad?”

“Babe,” he said, still grinning wildly. “If you felt comfortable spending millions of our dollars, I’m the happiest man on earth. You know why?”

“Because it means I’m just like Mason?” I grumbled, still wondering if the panic would ever fully go away.

“Not even close. Because it means you finally accept that what’s mine is yours.”

He waved for everyone to come join us on the dock. Julo went immediately to the champagne to open it for us while Freya produced several more bottles and plastic cups for everyone else. Someone turned on steel drum music, and the sound of happy friends and family chattering about our upcoming marriage finally served to calm me down.

“Okay, fine,” I said. “But if what’s yours is mine, then I own half that gorgeous wooden ship.”

“Of course you do,” he said, clinking his glass to mine and taking a sip.

“And you own half my boxed wine collection.”

He froze midsip. “I changed my mind.”

“Too late for that. You said forever,” I reminded him.

He slid his arm around me and looked out over the sea of familiar faces. “Forever sounds good to me.”