excuses himself and turns to me. “Don’t forget. Stay put or I’ll never find you.”
I point to the seat beneath me. “I’ll be right here.” After he kisses me on the forehead, he stares at me a long moment. “What?”
“Nothing. Just feeling lucky I have you. You look amazing in my jersey, by the way.”
I won’t lie. I’ve always wanted to wear his old Broncos jersey. “Well, I’m incredibly proud of you. Go get more accolades.” I wave my hand toward the field. Then I whisper in his ear, “When we get to the hotel, I’m gonna take everything off except the jersey.”
“Mm. Love the sound of that, Gabriela.”
I never thought I’d get so turned on by the sound of my name.
He plants a kiss on me that gets the students around us cheering. I laugh and playfully shove him away.
Without his body heat, it’s cold and my butt goes numb as I sit here, but I don’t care. I’m having too much fun. His NFL games in Dallas are amazing, but there’s something really special about being on Bronco turf.
I’m almost teary-eyed when I think back to standing in this spot during his UT game last year. If I hadn’t given in and gone to that game, I would’ve missed so much—the Cotton Bowl. His championship. The Heisman. All his hard work paid off when he went number one in the draft.
My heart swells with pride and love for that man.
For a moment, I close my eyes in thanks. That Rider and I got on the right track. That we fought to make it through so much. That we’re the best of friends. That we’re still crazy about each other.
And tonight we can get as loud as we want since Adele is watching Poppy!
While I’m loving my first official teaching job in Dallas, I’m definitely grateful for this long weekend away with Rider and plan to make the most of it.
During halftime, the band does a number, and then the cheerleaders form a circle in the middle of the field. The president of the university walks out there with Rider, and the crowd goes crazy when he gets introduced.
My boyfriend accepts an award, says some nice things about his time here, but then he peers into the stands, pausing when he sees me.
“This is where I’m gonna need your help, Broncos. See that beautiful woman over there? Gabby, baby, can you wave?”
Holy crap. What’s he doing?
The woman next to me elbows me. “He’s talking to you, right?”
I nod slowly, speechless. Like he asked, I wave back at him, even more confused when he stalks toward me, mic in hand.
“Gabby Duran is my best friend. My ride-or-die. I love her so much, it’s a little scary, if ya know what I mean.”
My mouth drops open.
He talks to the crowd like there aren’t tens of thousands of people in the arena. “For the last several months, I’ve had a really important question I’ve been dying to ask her. And since Lone Star Arena is where I first told her I loved her, I figure there’s no better place than our home turf to do this.”
The crowd goes crazy. My heart’s in my throat.
No way.
“And from what I know about women, you gotta make the grand gesture, right?”
Oh, my God.
“So that’s where y’all come in.”
I race down to the rail so I can see him peering up at me.
“Babe, our friends here are gonna help me out. Starting over by the tunnel.” The entire section unfurls an enormous sign that says, “WILL.” He points to the next that says “YOU.”
“MARRY.”
“ME?”
The look of love on his face does me in, and tears spring to my eyes.
But then eighty thousand people start chanting, “Say yes! Say yes! Say yes!”
I cover my mouth with one hand and hold on to the railing with the other because I need something to steady myself.
He tucks the mic into the back pocket of his jeans and looks into my eyes. “Gabriela, I love you with my whole heart and soul. You’re everything I’ve ever wanted in a best friend and girlfriend. Make me the happiest man on the planet and be my wife.”
Then he freaking scales the stands and leaps over the rails, landing in front of me with a laugh. Going down on one knee, he reaches into his pocket and holds out a black velvet box.
Before he even opens it, I grab his face with both hands. “Yes, you crazy man. I will marry you.”