“A year and two days ago, I saw you for the first time,” I say, taking care with each word. “You took my breath away. At first, I thought it was because you knocked the door handle into my dick.”
She gives a short laugh at that, but her eyes are already filling with tears.
My own voice is thick with emotion. “You were so striking. Seeing you was like being struck by lightning. It didn’t take me long to realize what exactly that meant. It didn’t take me long to realize it was me, falling completely in love with you.”
I take a moment to swallow and reach for her hand. She shakily slips it into mine. “I want to spend my life loving you. I want to make a life with you. A family. I want us to make so many Christmas memories and cherish every day in between.”
I beam up at her. “Holly Carol, will you be my wife?”
“Yes.” She bobs her head up and down. “Will you be my husband?”
“Absolutely.”
I slide a ring onto her finger and she throws herself into my arms. I pull her close, kissing her with all of the love in my heart.
There’s a cheer in the background and we break apart. Outside of the office, a small crowd has gathered. My dad and my stepmom. Her sisters, Ivy and Merry, and their other halves.
“I hope you don’t mind.” I brush my lips over hers again. “I know it’s the Christmas Eve party, but I thought we might make it a bit of an engagement celebration too.”
“I think it’s a great idea.” She grins and presses her lips to mine. “Just so long as you don’t use company funds. As the CEO, it’s important for me to keep track of these things. And as CFO, you should—”
I silence her, deepening the kiss, forgetting that we have an audience. It’s the first kiss of our promise to each other. A promise for hundreds and thousands of days of finding joy together.
Easing up on the kiss, my lips curve into a matching grin against hers. Ending it so we can both breathe, I beam at her. All of the love in my heart filled to the brim.
I wonder if I can talk her into sneaking back into her office later after we greet our employees. We can pretend that the doorknob is broken. I’m sure we’ll find a way to pass the time.
I stand up and offer her a hand, helping her smooth out her dress. I start to speak but frown as I see another person standing behind our families, who are all excitedly chatting.
It’s a woman who looks familiar. I don’t know that I’ve met her, but there’s… something about her.
“Holly?”
She strokes my cheek and I lean into her touch. “Yes, my love?”
“I know this might sound crazy. But… Is it just me, or does the woman standing over there look just like Rose fromThe Golden Girls?”
* * *