whole week and I don’t get to go,” Preston whines as he throws himself down on my couch while I double-check our hotel room reservation.
“It’s our first trip as a couple. Would you want your little brother going?”
“If he were as cool as me? Yeah!”
I roll my eyes.
“Can’t I come, please? I promise I’ll leave you guys alone.”
“No, Preston. I have something very important to do on this trip and you cannot come.”
He looks at me with annoyance written on his face. “It’s a vacation. What could you possibly have to do?”
I give him a smile before pulling a small black box out of my pocket. I open it and show him the ring. “You think she’ll like it?”
His mouth drops open as his eyes take in the large diamond. He leans forward and takes the box to inspect it closely. “Like it? She’s going to love it!”
I smile as I take the box and put it back in my pocket to resume confirming our reservations.
“I can’t believe my best friend and brother are going to get married.”
“Don’t jinx me. I haven’t asked her yet. She could still say no.”
He snorts. “She’s not saying no. You’ve ruined her with that Maglite of yours. She couldn’t be with anyone else if she wanted to!”
I reach over and slug him in the shoulder. “Fuck off.” I take a deep breath. “But seriously, you think she’ll say yes?”
He looks at me seriously now and says, “She’s going to say yes, man.” I can see the honestly shining in his eyes.
“And how do you feel about that? I know us getting together was a little hard to swallow at first.”
He waves his hand through the air. “Piper was right, of course. I was just feeling lost, I guess. She hadn’t been around much and I was feeling lonely. But now that you’re keeping her off my back, I’ve had a lot of time on my hands. I’ve been dating a few different girls.”
“Yeah, any of them going to stick?”
“There’s one I really like. She reminds me of Piper a lot. She’s funny and gets these wild ideas in her head. Plus she’s adventurous and playful. Hopefully things work out.”
“Good. I’m glad to see you moving on.” All of our reservations seem to be in order, so I close the browser and stand up. “Time to pack.”
“Does Piper know where you’re going?”
“Of course she does. She’s packing now.”
“But she has no idea you’re going to propose?”
I laugh. “No, and don’t spoil it by telling her. I want it to be a surprise. I have the whole thing set up. Our room has a balcony that overlooks the beach. I have a romantic dinner planned for tomorrow night. Right when the sun goes down, I’m going to get on one knee and ask her.”
“So you’re asking her on the first night?”
“Yeah, why?”
He shrugs. “What if she says no? That will ruin the rest of the trip, won’t it?”
I offer up a grin. “She won’t say no. I’m asking her at the beginning so we can spend the rest of the trip tangled up in each other.”
He shakes his head. “I can’t wait until the doing-it-all-the-time phase ends for you guys. I’ve seen you two fucking more than I’ve watched porn this month.”
“Well, knock before you walk into a damn room and that won’t happen again.”
“I would if I were walking into a bedroom. You don’t think to knock before walking into a fucking kitchen!”
“You should if it’s not your kitchen!” I point out.
“It wouldn’t be bad if I walked in and saw Piper, but no, I always walk in to see your fucking ass.”
I laugh. “Yeah, I always make sure she’s pointed away from the doorway. You’re welcome.”
He holds up his middle finger.
Preston helps me get everything down to my car and we both make the drive over to Piper’s. He’s going to ride with us to the airport and drive my car back home so it doesn’t have to sit in the parking lot for a week. We walk into Piper’s place and she’s nowhere near ready. There are clothes thrown all over the bedroom, her suitcase is open on the bed, and she’s running from room to room like a chicken with its head cut off.
I grab ahold of her wrist and pull her to my chest. I cup her face with my hands as I look into her eyes. “Calm down. It’s just a trip. Whatever you forget, we can buy when we