Lizzy had to get back to work, so we promised to call her tomorrow and then hung up. “We should tell Brad next!” I suggested. “I wonder how he’ll take it…”
“Actually, he already knows,” Hunter said.
I blinked. “You didn’t ask for his blessing, did you?”
“Not exactly. That day I was going to fly back to Portland, and Brad dragged me off the flight? I showed him the ring then. It was how I convinced him I wasn’t just fooling around with you. It was proof that my feelings were serious.”
We called Brad and showed him the ring. He pretended to be shocked and amazed until I revealed that I knewheknew.
“Even if I didn’t know ahead of time,” Brad said, “I’m actually at Buckeye Brewery right now. Lizzy screamed so loud I probably could have heard her from the house.”
“She’s more excited than Erica is,” Hunter said.
I playfully shoved him. “I cried! That’s my go-to reaction. Lizzy is a screamer.”
Brad laughed at that. “I was wondering when he would pop the question. I’m honestly surprised he lasted until the end of your trip. But I’m glad, because this isperfecttiming.”
Hunter frowned at the screen. “Why’s that?”
“You’ll understand when you get the package I sent. I got a confirmation that it was delivered to the hotel front desk an hour ago.”
“Is it an engagement gift?” I asked excitedly. “You just said you didn’t know when he would propose, but maybe Hunter is so predictable that you guessed right.”
Brad shook his head. “It has nothing to do with your engagement. Not directly, at least. I was going through the last of Mom and Dad’s stuff, and…”
He leaned closer to the screen. “Ifoundsomething.”
51
Hunter
She said yes.
Fuck me sideways, Erica Porter actually said yes!
When I proposed to Carmen two years ago, it wasn’t very exciting. She had been expecting it, because she had been badgering me about putting a ring on her finger practically since we had met. It was a foregone conclusion, awhenrather than anif, and I got down on one knee for her reluctantly.
But with Erica? I was nervous as hell. I hadn’t been able to eat all day—a fact that Erica failed to notice, thankfully. I didn’t knowhowI wanted to propose, because I was more worried about what her answer would be. Even though I was certain she wasthe one, we hadn’t been together very long. In fact, getting engaged after only a few months was probably a giant red flag for most relationships.
Erica and I weren’t like most relationships, though. We were different. We were special.
We wereus, and I could only go with my heart.
In the end, my worries were unfounded. She said yes, an emphatic yes that left no doubt as to how she felt about me.
The only sad part, like she had pointed out, was that her parents weren’t here to give their blessing.
After Brad’s phone call, we paid our tab and walked back to the hotel. We had planned on staying out later, but we were both eager to see what Brad had sent us. It was waiting for us at the front desk: a small padded envelope withPriority Next-Day Airstamped on it in red ink, addressed to Erica Porter.
We went up to the room and sat on the bed before opening it. Erica tore open the edge and looked inside.
“There’s another envelope.” She pulled it out and frowned. “That’s weird. Brad addressed the package to me, but this letter says…”
She held it up. The letter was yellow and faded with age, and scrawled on the outside was the name:HUNTER.
My heart jackhammered in my chest as I opened it. It wasn’t sealed, and the folded letter within slid out easily. I unfolded it slowly, as if it were something precious and valuable. The handwriting was flowing and beautiful, and it took up both pages, front and back.
Dear Hunter,