“What the fuck are you doing?!” I shout as he grabs the treasure chest out of my hand and removes the lid.
Inside the little box is the most beautiful, princess-cut diamond surrounded by emeralds. Eric takes out the ring, tosses the box to the side, and grabs my hand.
“Ariel, the mouthiest woman I’ve ever met. I knew from the moment you told me to fuck off that I wanted to marry you. But you’re a stubborn little shit, and I knew I had to bide my time until you fell madly in love with me,” he says with a smirk which makes me roll my eyes even though they’re filling with tears. “I want to spend the rest of my life pissing you off and having outstanding make-up sex. I want to take you to goat yoga and flea markets and keep filling this yacht with antiques until we can’t even move around the place.”
I glance around the interior of our yacht, knowing we’re already getting close to that point. Not only are all of my antiques that Eric bought back from auction covering every available surface, so are over fifty ceramic busts that look like Eric that he had commissioned after the first one he bought me was smashed by his mother. They’re completely ridiculous and their eyes follow me wherever I go, but I love them, almost as much as I love the real Eric.
“Marry me, you sexy, hot-as-fuck woman.”
“Are you asking me, or are you telling me?”
“This will be the one and only time I will ever order you to do something because I love my balls and don’t want you to cut them off. Marry me. I’ll even take your last name if you want. I wouldn’t mind being Mr. Triton. Your dad and I can get matching T-shirts,” he says with a wink.
As much as I love being a strong, independent woman, I am not his mother, nor do I want to be. Their relationship is still pretty rocky, but at least she apologized to both of us a few months after the board meeting. It was a forced apology, and you could tell she hated every minute of it, but it was a start. I still can’t stand that woman and get rage-y every time I think about what she did to us, but I also still don’t want to be the person that comes between her and Eric. I’m hoping that eventually, she’ll realize how happy I make him and she’ll warm up to me. We’ve got plenty of time. We’ve got the rest of our lives for her to realize I’m a fucking delight.
And honestly, the satisfaction of knowing Sebastian got screwed over gives me enough joy every day that the problems with Eric’s mother don’t even bother me. His “wealthy fiancée” realized what a douchebag he was right before she said “I do.” Literally. They were in the middle of the ceremony when she announced to the entire church that she couldn’t marry him, took off down the aisle, and left his pathetic ass behind so she could elope to Barbados with her personal trainer. I heard Sebastian now works at Taco Bell and lives in his parent’s basement. Dreams really do come true.
“Okay. I’ll marry you. But I’d much rather be Mrs. Sailor. You and my dad don’t need something else to giggle like little girls about. It’s bad enough you dressed up like a yacht captain and did a commercial with him. I will never get the words ‘It’s not always better, down where it’s wetter! Come over to Triton Motors and check out our land boats!’ out of my head,” I tell him with a roll of my eyes as he stands up and pulls me down from the chair, sliding the ring on my finger and then wrapping me in his arms.
“Question for you: Look over my shoulder. Is Derrick Alfredo on the counter, licking his balls while he looks at us?”
I glance over Eric’s shoulder, and sure enough, that little shit is licking his nuts staring right at us.
“Yep.” I nod with a sigh.
“Excellent. I can kiss the girl now.” He smiles, bending his head and kissing the hell out of me.
* * *
One year later . . .
The Daily Chronicle
Sunday Business Edition
*Pictured in the photo above from left to right, business owners Cynthia Charming, Isabelle Adams, and Ariel Sailor.
The Naughty Princess Club has become a household name in recent months, thanks in part to business owners Cindy, Belle, and Ariel. Their unique idea of starting a home-stripping business, where the strippers come to you, became one of the first start-up businesses in the area with no outside capital that more than tripled its earnings in the first quarter. The three best friends never imagined the little idea they came up with as a way to make ends meet when they were struggling in their personal lives would turn into what it has today. With the help of their business manager, Ariel’s husband, Eric, the Naughty Princess Club is now a franchise located in seven states, with many more in the works. The Naughty Princess Club has turned into much more than a home-stripping business, though. They also offer sexy cocktail-waitress services for your party needs, and even provide stripping lessons for anyone looking to spice up their relationship. Franchise applications can be found on their website, but please note, the women have some very specific requirements for franchise owners and anyone looking to work for one of the Naughty Princess Club branches, according to Cynthia Charming.