Slamming Demon (Pounding Hearts 2)

“I’m not being secretive.”

“Then where are we going?”

Brett’s smirk only grows. “You’ll see when we get there.”

I snort, roll my eyes, and try to be more patient. After two more minutes of squirming in my seat, I just can’t take it anymore. Just as I’m about to whine and ask, “Are we there yet?” We roll up on a pair of headlights beaming out of the darkness.

I lean towards my door and press my nose almost to the glass. “Is that Grace and Max?”

“Yep,” Brett answers as we slow down and approach what must be Max’s truck.

“What are they doing here? Are they coming out with us? Did their car break down?”

Grace and Max are leaning against the truck. They both grin and wave as we drive by.

“Nope,” Brett says as we roll past them. “They’re just here to make sure nobody bothers us.”

What the hell is going on? Now I’m even more confused.

“You still don’t know where we are?” Brett asks and frowns over at me. “It doesn’t look familiar?”

I frown back at him. Should I know? Looking out the window all I see are some trees and bushes and not much else.

“Look up there,” Brett says and points towards the windshield.

Through the windshield I can make out a bunch of twinkling lights. “What’s that?” I ask. The way the lights twinkle they kind of remind me of stars.

Brett only grins and the lights grow bigger and bigger.

“Oh shit,” I gasp as I suddenly remember. “Is this where we used to park?” I do have fond memories of him spreading me out on the hood of his mom’s Volvo.

Brett nods and parks the truck. While I’m busy gawking out the windshield, he jumps out and rushes over to my side to help me out.

“You did this?” I ask and cover my slack mouth with my hand as I take it all in. Brett has transformed our little spot into something that looks like it’s straight out of a fairytale. Twinkling white lights glitter from the trees and bushes, and a blanket with a picnic has been spread out on the ground.

Leading me over to the blanket, Brett suddenly drops to his knee and I can’t help it, I bust out crying. Keeping ahold of my hand, he reaches into his pocket and withdraws a black ring box. I knew he was going to do this, I so knew, but even knowing didn’t prepare me for this sudden overwhelming burst of emotion.

Brett smoothly snaps the ring box open and looks up at me. I can barely see his face through the blur of the tears. “Mandy, I’ve loved you before you…”

I don’t let him finish. Brett looks completely stunned and caught off guard as I throw myself at him and tell him, “Yes! Yes, I’ll marry you!”

Brett holds me for one stunned second before asking. “You will? I didn’t even as you yet.”

I nod my head, wrap my arms around his neck and cover his face in kisses. “You don’t have to ask me. I love you with all my heart, and I know you love me too. I want to marry you.”

Brett’s arms wrap around my middle and he hugs me tight. It feels like we hug each other for an eternity, but as soon as he starts to pull away I know it will never be long enough.

He brushes my hair out of my face and looks deep into my eyes as he tells me, “I love you so much I don’t know how I survived without you.”

I burst into a fresh round of big fat ugly tears. “I’m sorry,” I sob. “I’m so sorry.” I’ll always regret letting myself be pushed away from him. I’ll always regret all the time that passed that could have been spent with him. All the time that we lost.

“I know,” he tells me and wipes the tears from cheeks. “You need to let it go, my fairy girl. We won’t forget the past, but we won’t let it ruin us.”

I nod at him. “You’re right. You just know me and history, we don’t exactly get along.”

Brett laughs at that and his face lights up.

I vow to myself I’ll spend the rest of my life trying to be worthy of him. “But right now, I want to live in this moment. I just want to be with you.”