"Ah, that lovely moment when your daughter corrects your accent." Jess plants a huge kiss on her daughter's cheek. "Off you go, your hair's ready." Sarah runs right into my presents pile and starts playing with my gift boxes. Jess and Parker both stand up, but before they can stop her, I motion them that it's all right.
Damon walks up to me, leaning from behind to whisper in my ear, "Can I get another piece of cake?"
"Not until you give me my gift."
"How do you know it's not in the pile?" he asks. I turn around to face him. "You haven't opened the presents."
"I know it's not," I reply. He's hiding something. I've known it since we arrived here a few hours ago. The others are in on whatever he's hiding. They smile at me for no apparent reason like they're all enjoying a private joke or something.
"Let's take a walk."
"Okay." A light flutter settles in my stomach as he takes my hand and leads me outside to the terrace. The mid-July sun burns intensely, making my skin prickle with heat. We descend the staircase to the beach, tossing our shoes aside before we step onto the sand. "I don't see you carrying any gift," I tease.
"It's a small package." Leaning in, he drops his voice to a knowledgeable whisper. "Strong essences are kept in small bottles."
"You bought me a perfume?" I inspect his jacket, looking for the contour of a mini-bottle. It's hard to disguise my curiosity.
His face splits into a grin. "I love this about you."
"What?" Caught off-guard, my eyes snap up to him.
"Your curiosity." He drags his fingers down my cheeks. "The way your eyes light up when you look at me."
My insides melt and I fidget in my spot, sinking half an inch in the sand. Damon takes a step back, dipping his hand into the inside pocket of his coat. I expect him to snatch out a miniature perfume bottle, but his next move whips my breath away. He drops on one knee at the same time he whisks a small jewelry box out of his pocket.
"Not perfume," I whisper, my legs suddenly weak.
"Dani Cohen..." His voice quivers slightly. "You’ve meant everything to me almost from the day I met you—”
"Surely not. I insulted you that first day."
Damon smiles, cutting through my rambling. "They were good insults; I deserved them. Besides, that's why I said almost. Now, can I finish the question?" he asks. I nod, a strange sensation overcoming me. It's like I've just drunk an entire bottle of champagne by myself and all the bubbles have cumulated low in my stomach. "You will always mean everything to me. Will you marry me?"
The bubbles inside suddenly burst, filling me with euphoria. I stare as he opens the lid of the box, revealing the most beautiful ring I've ever seen. The stone is an emerald, like the color of his eyes. Tearing my gaze from the ring, I look at Damon, drinking him in. I love this man more than anything in the world. Every day, I learn to see the perfection in his love and the beauty in his mistakes. He is mine, and I am his. It's only when I see apprehension creeping in his eyes that I realize he's still waiting for my answer.
"Yes, yes, yes." Once the words are out of my mouth, the euphoria explodes, painting a wide grin on my face. As he slides the ring on my finger, a vision of a mini-me wearing a dress similar to mine, like Jess and her daughter do, flashes before my eyes. "I don't want to ever take it off." I’m practically squeaking.
"You're not supposed to."
"Let's go tell the others. Oh, wait, they already know, don't they?"
Rising to his feet, Damon grins, sliding his arms around my waist and planting a soft kiss on my lips. I’m surprised to discover I’m trembling slightly.
"Nervous?"
"Like it's our first kiss all over again."
"Mmm," he murmurs against my lips. "I remember how delicious that first kiss was." A look of mischief takes hold of his features. "Do you remember what else we did that day?"
Smiling, I turn to look at the beckoning waves of the ocean.
"Skinny-dipping," we say together.