Roman
When Roman came up with his romantic plans for Everleigh, he’d wanted to involve Eliza. But what he had not counted on was the fact that Eliza would now giggle every single time they made eye contact.
Everleigh definitely noticed that something was up.
"What's going on?" she asked that morning. She asked at least three or four times a day. She asked them separately and together. But so far Eliza had not spilled the beans.
He loved having them in his home. No, it was their home now. He loved waking up in the mornings and hearing Everleigh go into the kitchen and make eggs. He loved smelling the sausage that she made for Eliza too. He often went in and offered to do it for her while she got ready for the real estate office. He loved hearing the click of her heels on the wooden floor. And he loved hearing Eliza’s chatter as she searched for her lunchbox, her boots, her jacket, and her backpack.
So far he’d been sending Everleigh on her way with a kiss and then taking Eliza to school himself. He hadn’t anticipated encountering so many humans at one time. But he loved dropping her off at the kindergarten. Most days they had to go through a drop off line in the parking lot, but on Fridays they were allowed to walk their kindergartners inside the building, all the way to the classroom. He always stopped and snapped a photo of the two of them together.
It was bliss. It was domestic and it was sweet and it was everything he never knew he wanted.
But thank God it was finally time for him to propose. He didn’t think he could stand another day of suspense.
He picked up Eliza. "Are you ready?"
"Is today the day?" she asked, hopping up and down.
"Yes. Today's the day." He pulled the little box from his pocket and showed her the ring. Rings were impractical for shifters, but Everleigh would be able to wear it to the office. All of her coworkers would see it. As a wolf, he sure didn't mind staking his claim. He wanted everyone in the world to know that she was taken.
He was going to keep the proposal private with just the three of them. He knew it was common among humans to do a proposal that was public or at least visible to others. But due to their tumultuous past he figured it was better to keep it between them.
Maybe it was a mistake involving Eliza in the proposal. Her mother definitely would censor her reactions based on her daughter's presence. But at the same time, since they were a newer family, he definitely wanted to include Eliza in every way that he could. Assuming that Everleigh said yes, then this would be a really special memory for Eliza. He had his phone in his back pocket fully charged, ready to snap photos.
They went to the special spot in the woods that Eliza had chosen, and they began to gather as many wildflowers as they could find. There weren't too many natural ones and so he had brought a giant load of them and carried them out there during the day. “It's so pretty,'' she yelled. “Mommy will love it.”
"I hope so.” They worked for several moments grouping the flowers together in a circle. There was a small stream running nearby, which provided some relaxing sound effects. He had a bottle of champagne on ice that he carried out, along with a sparkling juice for Eliza.
Alcohol wouldn't affect her much, but he figured it was still better to make sure she had a kid-friendly drink. He'd even bought three glass champagne glasses from the thrift store. He could always donate them when they were finished.
Finally, they were ready. He could feel Everleigh getting closer. "Your mommy is almost home. Do you want to go get her?"
"Yes! Let's go!" He scooped Eliza into the air and spun her around. Still laughing, she hopped on his back for a piggyback ride, and they made their way to the house. Eliza was just stepping onto the back porch, still wearing her business casual work clothes.
"Hey, guys," she said. "How's my girl?” Of course, Eliza was hit with a fit of giggles. She ran and threw her arms around her mother's waist. "Come on, Mommy. Let's go in the woods."
"Let me change clothes."
"No. Come like you are."
"Okay. If you insist."
Roman walked up and kissed her on the forehead.
He didn't hold her hand because his hands were sweating. Of all the shit he had been through in his life, he wasn't sure he'd ever been this nervous. His anxiety spiked up into the stratosphere.
They walked slowly, and they finally reached the clearing. Everleigh took in the wildflower arrangements and the bucket with the champagne bottle on ice, and the special glasses.
"Oh,” she said. Roman stood in front of her and took both of her hands into one of his. With his free arm, he lifted Eliza onto his hip and held her aloft.
"As you know, our relationship has not been straightforward, although that's my fault. But I'm turning over a new leaf. I hope you give me another chance. We live in the shifter world and in the human world. I've already asked you to be my mate, but I would also like to ask you to be my wife.”
He dropped to one knee, still holding onto Eliza, and he let her stand beside him with his arm wrapped around her. He pulled the ring box from his pocket and popped it open with one hand. "Will you marry me?"
Everleigh just stood there and gaped at them. Tears sprang to her eyes and she dropped to her knees, wrapping her arms around both of them. “I can't believe you two. Is this what you've been laughing about constantly, Eliza?”
"Yes, Mommy. I have known all along, and I never told you. I did a good job keeping a secret. Daddy said so."