Finding Our Forever (Silver Springs #1)(58)
“Are you kidding?” Gavin cried. “That’s a big diamond! It’ll cost you ten thousand dollars, at least!”
The sales associate handed it to Eli, and he looked it over carefully. Unfortunately, the price was as high as Gavin had predicted, so he let his brother talk him into putting it back until he could devote some more thought to whether he really wanted to make such a purchase.
But over the next week, all he wanted to do was go back and buy that ring.
“Are you sure she’ll say yes?” Gavin asked when Eli brought it up again while they were lifting weights one evening at the school gym. “Because every time I talk to her, she seems dead set on leaving Silver Springs as soon as school gets out. I mean, if she won’t even stay here and teach another year...”
Eli had been a little worried about that, too. He knew she liked New Horizons and the area. She liked Aiyana, the rest of the staff, the students, too. And when she was with him? He got the feeling he meant a lot to her. Sometimes, just the way she looked at him seemed to speak volumes—especially when they were making love. But she’d never tried to commit him, never talked as if they had a future together. “I called the store this morning. The owner knows Mom, said I can surprise Cora with the ring and then return it if she says no.”
“So you want to risk it.”
He finished loading the barbell he was about to use. “The idea of proposing to her—of marrying her—has somehow taken hold of me, and I can’t get it out of my head.”
Gavin studied him closely. “You love her.”
With a groan for the physical strain it cost him, Eli did eight clean and jerks before dropping the barbell. “Yeah, I do,” he responded and realized that was the first time he’d ever said it out loud.
Chapter Nineteen
A week later, when Eli got up to play basketball on Saturday morning, Cora fell back asleep, so she was totally out of it when she heard a knock at the door. Eli didn’t get many visitors. He gave so much to the school during the day that when he retired to his “cave,” as Cora fondly called it, he demanded absolute privacy, and everyone knew it. That was what made it possible for her to stay with him so often. No one made a big deal about her almost living there because no one was privy to what he did, or who he spent his time with, after he disappeared from campus. Aiyana was about the only person who ever came over. Even Gavin and Eli’s younger brothers typically called or texted him rather than showing up. So Cora wasn’t surprised when she peered through the peep hole to find his adoptive mother on the stoop.
“Shoot,” she whispered and waited, hoping Aiyana would realize he wasn’t home and leave. Aiyana knew they’d been sleeping together, of course, but seeing Cora standing in his living room, wearing his T-shirt made it all a bit more...brazen, especially because he didn’t welcome a lot of people into his house and she was becoming a regular fixture.
But Aiyana didn’t leave. Another knock sounded.
Accepting the fact that she wasn’t going to get out of this encounter, Cora used her fingers to comb down her hair and answered the door. “Hi,” she said, squinting against the sunlight. Although Christmas was only a week away, the weather felt more like March or April.
Aiyana grinned as her eyes swept over Cora, then took in what she could see of the living room.
Nervously smoothing the wrinkles from Eli’s T-shirt, Cora turned to follow her gaze. “What?”
“I’ve never seen this house look so...homey. My son actually has a Christmas tree—probably for the first time since he moved out of my house. And look, there’re photographs of the two of you, and art you’ve created. Even a few plants. Wow. Who knew so much could change in such a short time.”
“I tend to fill my space with the things I love,” she said but flushed immediately after because this wasn’t “her space.”
“This place was pretty barren,” she added lamely.
“So was his soul. Fortunately, that’s changed, too,” Aiyana said, but she didn’t allow Cora any time to comment. “Can I come in?”
“Of course. Except Eli’s not here. He’s—”
“At the basketball court. I know. I tried calling you, but you didn’t pick up so I decided to walk over.”
Cora didn’t get the impression she’d first tried the faculty housing. Aiyana had known right where to find her. “Are you...upset about something?” she asked as she stepped out of the way so that Aiyana could come in. Her mind raced through the past several days, searching for any incident in her classroom that might’ve warranted a visit from her “boss.”
“Not at all. I’d like to go Christmas shopping today and was hoping you’d be interested in going with me. That’s all.”
Cora felt her eyes widen. “You mean...the three of us?”
“No. Just you and me. Eli’s not much fun to take on an extended shopping trip. He’s tolerant, if you know what you want and are just going to pick it up. But wandering around, admiring lights and decorations and such?” She shook her head. “Not particularly.”
Cora laughed. She’d taken him to Rodeo Drive the last time they visited LA, since he’d never been there, and found that to be true. He was far more interested in seeking out places to eat or heading to the beach to play sand volleyball or go body surfing than shopping. “True.”