Ready or Not (Ready #4)(81)

I looked at the phone, like it was my friend standing in front of me. “Are you sure?”

“Positive.”

“Thanks, guys.”

“Anytime,” Clare answered.

“Can we go now? I have important things to take care of, Liv,” Declan chimed in. “Oh, and let’s do this more often. But not in the afternoons…or mornings…scratch evenings off the schedule, too.”

“Mental images!” I screeched.

“You’re welcome! Good-bye!”

The phone clicked, and slowly, we said good-bye to the rest, leaving just Clare and me once again.

“When—not if—he asks, what will be your answer?”

I smiled sheepishly. “Guess you’ll have to wait and find out.”

~Jackson~

“It’s been a month, and I still haven’t asked her,” I admitted as Declan and I wasted away an afternoon playing pool at a local sports bar. I had yet to nail down a job, finding one reason or another to turn down every respectable offer I’d received. I had plenty of money to float us for as long as necessary, but I hated sitting around, doing nothing all day. Especially when I had Liv’s ring constantly reminding me of the many possibilities the future held.

“Why the hold up?” he inquired.

I watched him line up his shot and sink three balls with ease.

“I have no clue. The words are right there on the tip of my tongue, and every time she walks through the damn door, I think, This is it. This is the exact moment I’ve been waiting for. Then, nothing. I end up asking her about her day or if she thinks my flowers are being properly watered.”

“You’re not getting cold feet, are you? I mean, you love her, right?” he asked, standing up straight to meet my gaze.

“God, yes. Jesus, calm down. You look like the Hulk, about to go postal.”

“Just looking out for my family.” He shrugged. His shoulders loosening, he grabbed his beer from the nearby table.

“I honestly don’t know what it is. I mean, Noah is doing great, better than great actually, which is amazing considering everything we went through. And yeah, things with her father still aren’t fantastic, but I know that will take some time. I just keep waiting for the perfect moment.”

Setting his beer down, he turned to face me. “Did you ever think that maybe that moment doesn’t exist?”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“I mean, maybe it’s not about how you ask. Do you really think five or ten years down the road it’s really going to make a f*ck-ton of difference if you asked her while you were cuddled on the couch in front of the TV or by some waterfall three months from now because you were waiting for the perfect opportunity?”

I rolled my eyes. “Says the dude who had his wife’s initials tattooed on his chest as part of his marriage proposal.”

Declan’s cocky grin lit up his face. “Well, we all can’t be as awesome as me.”

“Clearly.”

“Dude, I’m going to do you a favor, a huge and epic favor. It will break about a million friend laws that I don’t even know exist, but Leah will cite me for them, if she ever finds out.”

“I have no idea what the hell you’re talking about,” I replied in confusion.

“She knows.”

“What? Who knows?”

“Liv. She knows. She found the ring in the pantry, like, a month ago. By the way, who in his right mind hides a diamond ring in an oatmeal container?”

“It’s not a diamond. It’s an emerald.”

“Whatever. Same question still applies.”

“I don’t know! I got home with the ring and panicked. It was the only place I could think of.”

“Well, it was a shitty idea because she’s known about that little hiding place for a while now.”

“She knows I’m going to propose?”

“Yep.”

“Fuck.”

“Yep. But hey, now, you don’t have to worry about that perfect moment, right? Hell, you could ask her while you’re making dinner or brushing your teeth. See how much stress I just saved you?”

I didn’t answer. My mind was reeling with this new information, and then a sly smile spread across my face. If Liv had known all this time and not said a word, did this mean she was ready to say yes? Or maybe she was worried I’d become too complacent in our relationship and that I didn’t want to propose anymore.

Well, I couldn’t have that.

“Oh, f*ck. What are you planning, Jackson?”

“The best worst proposal ever.”

~Liv~

Dress fancy, he said.

We’re celebrating, he said.

As I stared at my closet, I found myself wondering what one wore to a proposal dinner. Having never imagined myself being proposed to while at a stuffy restaurant, I really didn’t know.

Honestly, I didn’t expect to ever be in this position at all, stuffy restaurant or not.

Should I trust a man who thought a fancy dinner out was the perfect way to ask me this very important question?

Taking a deep breath, I reminded myself that it didn’t matter where or when, only that I would be marrying the right person.

And I would be, regardless of what I wore or how much I hated the restaurant.