“Are you seriously not going to tell me where we are going?”
“It’s a surprise,” he tells me, and I can hear the smile on his face. Now that the gallery is doing well and the house is being slowly turned into an event venue, we’ve started looking at properties nearer the Quarter. I told him I would love to be close by so we could have walks in the evenings. The energy of the city is intoxicating, and just watching the crowds, seeing the tours, and being a part of it has me excited.
I feel each left turn and right, as we make our way through the streets, and I’m tempted to pull the blindfold off. I’ve never been one for surprises, but I breathe deeply, knowing and trusting Julian to know what I’ll like.
When we finally come to a stop, Julian leans over and whispers in my ear. “Don’t go anywhere.” I can’t help but giggle. It’s not like I can see where to go anyway. I hear the car door open, then shut, and soon enough, my door opens. The gentle breeze fills the car, and Julian’s hands are on me, helping me from the seat.
“Where are we?”
“We’re in NOLA,” Julian tells me, chuckling when I swat at him but miss because I can’t actually see where he is. He moves behind me, his arms wrapped around my waist, and he guides me forward, then turns me toward the right, and soon enough, we’re stopped again. He steps back, then disappears, making anxiety twist in my stomach. I don’t know why I’m nervous, I don’t think he’ll leave me somewhere, but not having his warmth is disarming.
“Julian?”
“Hold on, gorgeous,” he tells me, and from the distance in his voice, I know he’s walked off somewhere. The darkness still has ahold of me, but then he calls to me. “You can take off the blindfold now.”
I reach for the material and tug it free. Blinking a few times, I try to focus on where he is and where we are. The road is familiar, very familiar, and when I look straight ahead, I see Julian grinning at me from across the street. He’s standing outside the house my mother had lived in.
Confusion has my brows furrowing together. He doesn’t say a word, so I make my way toward him. When I reach him, I’m about to ask him what’s going on when he drops to one knee.
“I had to bring you to this house to ask you this question.” The man before me is grinning like a fool. He’s so handsome, so everything I never realized I wanted. “I did something without your permission, and that’s why we had to come here.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Nea, I want to spend forever with you. There’s nothing in this world that would make me walk away from you, and I need you to know that you have brought so much color into my monochrome life. I want to show you every day how much you mean to me.”
“Julian—”
“Marry me, Nea.” He pulls out a small box and flicks it open. A gasp falls from my lips when I see the beautiful gold ring with a princess-cut diamond shimmering under the sunlight.
“Julian,” is all I can muster as tears brim on my lashes. “This is beautiful.”
“You’re beautiful. Be my wife, gorgeous,” he says.
“Of course!” My voice cracks as Julian rises and pulls me into his arms. When he finally gets the ring on my finger, I find myself trembling. It’s a strange feeling when all your dreams come true, but one thing doesn’t make sense. “What did you mean you did something without my permission?” I pull away, needing to know what he’s been up to.
“Well, I know how much you love New Orleans, and how much you love being close to the Quarter. I wanted to give that to you, Nea. I want to give you all your heart’s desires. So, a couple of weeks ago, I was heading into the city when I passed by this street.”
“Okay?” I drag the word out because he still hasn’t fully answered my question.
“Well, this was for sale,” he tells me, waving his hand toward the house behind him. My mother’s childhood home. “And I ended up closing on it two days ago. It’s our home.”
My heart stops. It does. My chest tightens, and I can no longer hold back the tears. I blink once, twice, and the salty emotion trickles down my cheeks. Julian buying this home for us brings happiness I haven’t felt in such a long time. I’m choked up.
“I hoped you would say yes to marrying me, and we could perhaps raise our own family in this home.” His voice is low, a whisper, but it is drenched in love and affection. His arms are still around my waist, he’s still holding onto me, and I’m thankful because I’m shaking.