Claimed By The Devil (Devil's Riders 8)

She looked as confused as I imagined she was. But bless her heart, she was going with it. She saw me and waved shyly. I was standing next to her without even realizing I had walked across the yard.

“You look nice.” I said stupidly.

“It’s my mom’s. The dress, I mean.”

“That’s good. She would say the same thing.”

“What?”

“That you look nice. Beautiful, I mean. Listen, Melissa, I need to talk to you.”

But she was suddenly surrounded by girls bearing cocktails. I watched as she was whisked away. How was I supposed to prepare her for what was coming?

I shook my head and realized I’d better get the ring out of the hiding place in the camper. I’d thought about proposing that night, so I tucked it away near the bed. I ran to get it, giving the guys dirty looks as I went.

Of course, that just made them laugh harder.

I tried to get Melissa alone three more times as the afternoon progressed. Every damned time, somebody stopped me. It was almost as if they didn’t want to miss the big moment, I thought sourly.

I’d wanted to at least let her know that I loved her, once and for all. Before I popped the question. But it didn’t look like I was going to get the chance.

I knew I could postpone the proposal. I knew that would be the smart thing. But seeing her in that floaty dress . . . the perfect sunny afternoon . . . with all our friends here . . .

It was perfect. It was time. I grabbed a beer and waited for the right moment. Soon.

I was going to ask her soon.

I just hoped I didn’t blow it.

Chapter Forty-Nine

Kaylie

“Take a load off, Kaylie,” Sally said with a gentle nudge to my side. I shook my head with a rueful smile. I was watching the kids play and waiting for the show to start. I was too restless to sit.

“Sit. Your. Ass. Down,” Janet insisted in her best drill sergeant voice. I complied immediately. Janet had a way of getting you to do things.

“I wish I could do that.” Sally laughed. Janet just winked and went to grab us another round of drinks. Non-alcoholic for me, of course.

“He still didn’t say the L word?” Molly asked worriedly. “Are we sure this is the right thing to do?”

“Well, he did,” Becky said with a smirk. “But only during. And she wasn’t even sure the first couple of times.”

“Nick is a shy one. He just needs a little push,” Angel said with a grin.

“Lucky never needed a push,” I countered.

“Neither did Mac,” Suzannah cackled. “But it’s not like Nick hasn’t been on board since day one. He’s just worried about freaking her out.”

“Well, he won’t. Will he?” Sally asked, looking concerned.

“Too late now,” Janet said as she handed me a cocktail. We all turned to look in the direction she was pointing. Nick and Melissa were standing in the perfect spot, with an archway of twinkling lights above them. It was pretty much made for Pinterest, I thought as I snapped a quick picture. Janet was to thank for that!

"Don't freak out," we heard Nick say from across the patio. We watched as he slowly lowered himself to his knee. All the guys whipped out their camera phones and started filming. Well, except Jack and Dev. The big guy looked stoic, as always, and Dev was smiling, loving every minute of it.

"Poor Nick," Janet muttered, but she was smiling. We all were. Well, except for Melissa. Melissa look like she was going to implode. I had never seen anyone’s eyes wider. Literally never.

"Melissa, I have loved you for a long time. Things changed when you came back. It made me see you clearly for the first time. You're an amazing woman and I’m wildly in love with you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you." He pulled a box from his pocket and opened it, holding it out for her to see. "Your mother gave me her permission to ask you this. I want you to know we have Meg’s blessing.”

We all held our breath as he paused.

“Will you marry me? Will you be my wife?"

We were all biting our lips and squeezing each other’s hands. It was so quiet you could've heard a pin drop. Not even the birds were making a sound. Not a single chirp. Not even the wind was blowing.

"Yes, Nick," came the soft reply. "I have loved you for a long time, too."

“So you'll do it?” he asked. “You'll marry me?”

"Yes," she said clearly as the tears started to fall. “I’ll marry you. I will be your wife."

Everything exploded then. Nick stood and pulled her into his arms for a long, deep kiss. The birds started chirping again. We cheered wildly as he finally stopped kissing her and slipped the ring onto her finger.