This was happening. A knot in her throat got harder.
The sea of people around them faded. All she saw were Blake’s eyes.
“Carrie.” He said her name in a way she’d never heard before. Like there was love in every letter. “You are the strongest woman I’ve ever known. You have a fire and kindness that I admire. You are beautiful in every way.”
He dropped to one knee, and the crowd gasped. He opened the box in his hand and held it out to her. A light-pink pearl set with diamonds on a gold band shined up at her.
“Oh my God,” she said, breathless. Water lined her eyes. “Pink?”
He smiled and nodded. “I’d like to think I know you a little,” he said softly. And Carrie realized he did know her. And she knew him. Far more than Kevin or anyone else. Everything with Blake might have started as fake, but standing there, looking at his gesture and feeling such a deep trust and love, she felt her heart burst open so wide and deep that it was almost painful.
“Will you marry me?” he asked.
A rustle came from the back of the room, and she heard Kevin clear his throat. Blake clearly heard it, too, because the smile on his face told her so.
But Carrie didn’t take her eyes from Blake.
The truth swept her up and swelled every ounce of blood she had like a tidal wave. Her own nerves were going to rip her in half, and there’d be nothing left of her but a heap of desperation.
I love you.
She didn’t know if she said it out loud. She didn’t think so, because Blake just winked at her, his plan going perfectly.
She knew right then that her answer would forever change the both of them.
“No,” she said. “No, I can’t marry you.”
That time she heard a gasp, and it was 100 percent the crowd.
Blake looked stunned. Maybe almost as stunned as Carrie felt. She didn’t know if the ring was real. It looked like it. He certainly had the money to burn on fulfilling her fantasy. But she knew the proposal was fake. And she knew she couldn’t live in a fantasy and keep dodging the truth anymore.
“I love you,” she whispered to Blake when he stood up. “I really do. And that’s why I can’t do this.”
He looked at her hard, snapped the ring box shut, and set the mic on a small table.
“What are you doing?” he asked harshly against her ear, leading her off the stage. Unfortunately, the only way to go was back through the crowd the way she’d come. Only this time, the people weren’t parting for her as kindly. Whispers broke out, and it was too quiet, too terrifying for comfort.
Blake was still leading her toward the back of the bar, toward the open ocean, where Kevin stood waiting, cell phone in hand, massive grin on his face. She couldn’t stand to look at him.
“I didn’t mean to embarrass you,” she said quietly. “I just needed to be honest.”
“Honest?” Blake said quickly. “You pick now? I thought we had a plan. This fake engagement…”
She shook her head. “My feelings for you stopped being fake a while ago.”
Before Blake said any more, his phone chirped in his pocket, just as they reached her table in the back where she’d been sitting before making the shameful walk to the stage.
Kevin called out from behind them, “Bro, you might want to take that call.”
Blake glared at him. “Yeah?” he barked into his cell phone. After a moment of what sounded like someone chewing his ass on the other line, Blake’s eyes went wide, then narrowed on Kevin.
“What?” Carrie asked.
Blake held the phone away from his ear and said, “I’ve got Lane on the phone here. Says he just got a Facebook video message from Kevin.” He paused. “Lane, hold on. I can explain—”
“Don’t worry, she said no,” Kevin said loudly. “Just thought you wanted to be part of the happy—well—not so happy moment. Never would have seen that coming!”
“Kevin, shut up,” Carrie said, and then turned her attention back to Blake.