years we lived together were some of the best of my life. I learned that not only was Charlie the best soldier I knew, she was also the best friend a woman could have. Loyal, generous, supportive, honest—and she wasn’t afraid to hand out a bit of tough love, either. She’s also the woman least likely to hog the limelight, least likely to demand credit for her accomplishments and least likely to ask for help when she needs it, even though I can name dozens of people who would fall over themselves to provide it.
“Needless to say, I am thrilled to death that Charlie allowed me to throw her this party today because I have been waiting for years to spoil her and make her squirm.” Gina turned to face Charlie, her eyes suspiciously shiny. “Think of it as payback for all those sit-ups you made me do so I’d pass physical. I love you, friend. Happy birthday.”
Everyone else took up the cheer. Charlie blinked furiously as Gina hugged her tightly.
“And now, someone else has something he’d like to say,” Gina said, disentangling herself from Charlie’s embrace.
Gina stepped down, and Rhys stepped up. Charlie sniffed and used the excuse of pushing her hair behind her ear to wipe a tear from her cheek.
“How you doing there, tiger?” Rhys asked, a small smile on his lips.
“Let’s just get this over with.”
Everyone laughed.
“Suck it up, Charlie,” Becky heckled from the rear of the patio. “Take it like a woman.”
Rhys took her hand. “Not so long ago, someone asked me why I wasn’t married yet. I’ll leave it up to you to guess who’d ask such a forthright question. And no, it wasn’t my mother.”
Everyone laughed. Charlie gave Rhys a dark look.
“You asked some pretty pointed questions that night, too, if I remember.”
Rhys squeezed her hand. “My answer to this very direct question was that I hadn’t met anyone I wanted to spend the rest of my life with yet. I was completely wrong, of course. I had met her—she was sitting in front of me, doing her damnedest to make the best of a bad situation. It just took me a while to work it out.”
For some reason, her stomach did a slow, nervous roll. As though it knew something that she didn’t. Rhys didn’t take his eyes from hers as he continued talking.
“Charlie, you are the best person I know. I love the way you never do anything by halves. I love the way you refuse to retreat. I love your quiet sense of humor. I love you. These past months with you have made everything else in my life suddenly make sense. I literally can’t imagine my life without you in it. Better yet, I don’t want to.”
It took Charlie a moment to realize what was happening as Rhys stepped down to the patio and sank on to one knee. The hand holding hers was trembling as he looked up into her face.
“Charlie, will you marry me? Will you let me make you and The Bean happy for the rest of our lives?” Rhys’s voice was husky with emotion and she could see the nervousness and hope behind his eyes.
Everyone was silent, barely daring to breathe as they waited for her response, but her mind was one big echo chamber, empty of thought.
She looked at Rhys and saw his handsome face and broad shoulders and felt the powerful pull of his personality. She loved him so much it scared her. The sound of his voice, his little gestures and habits, the way he laughed, his energy, his drive. His essential goodness. His integrity. The way he made her feel. The future he offered her—a life filled with laughter and challenge and love.
He was a dream. A fantasy. Too good to be true. Yet he was on his knee in front of her, and he’d asked her to marry him.
This was happening. To her.
The shuffling of feet sounded and a motorbike drove by on the street—and still Rhys held her gaze, waiting patiently. Allowing her to get to where she needed to be in her own time.
I want this so badly.
Her life had been full of compromise and disappointment. Everything she’d ever had she’d earned three times over. She didn’t feel as though she’d earned Rhys and The Bean. They’d simply happened, a gift from the gods, and the cautious, wary part of her was afraid to trust that they were real.
It feels real. And I want it so badly.
She stared