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“Brooke,” he begins as he drops to one knee A feo once and you gave it back to ement came to an end”
I look up at Legend, and he’s grinning at the couple One night in bed, Legend had told e around and the coach—her father—caught the they were engaged At soend had told ot in on the charade, loaning her own engage for Bishop to use
Brooke’s hand is covering herwith tears Bishop takes her other hand in his, resting the ring box on his knee as he continues “But noith ive it back to you There’s no ruse this tiets And if there’s anyone out there that would look at us and say, this is too soon, I would tell them…they don’t knohat’s between us Only you and I do, and because I know you so well, and because I know you loveback on your finger, where it will stay, and then we can start planning our wedding?”
Brooke is nodding before Bishop stops talking, her hand dropping fro box and pulls out a gold ring with a marquise diamond It’s beautiful froer, the fact that it’s histells me that he couldn’t do better
Even though Brooke has worn that ring before, she holds it up before her face while tears slip down her cheeks and looks at it as if it’s thein the world
Bishop stands up and then someone yells out, “Ten” and it takes a moment for us all to understand Heads turn to the TV and we see the countdown to un
“Nine, eight…” the crowd starts to chant
I whip back around to Bishop and Brooke, and I find that they’re kissing with their arms wrapped around each other so I take that to ive a damn about New Years
Legend’s free hand slips into mine
“Five, four…”
We look at each other as the crowd chants, “Three, two, one”
Screams of “Happy New Year” reverberate around the room and people throw confetti and blow horns
I tune it all out as Legend dips his face closer to mine and murmurs, “Happy New Year, Pepper”
“Happy New Year,” I tell him back, just before he kisses me
Sloeet, and full of wonder at what the new year has in store for both of usChapter 15LegendI tiptoe quietly down the stairs and find Lucy in the kitchen, unloading the dishwasher She had stayed the night in one of the guest bedrooms while Pepper and I celebrated New Year’s at Erik’s house
Last night was pretty aweso with Pepper I found that the easy friendship that we had developed since Charlie landed on my doorstep didn’t waiver once ere put into a purely social situation as a couple It was our first date together since Charlie ca Lucy to babysit on o out
“You don’t have to do that,” I whisper so my voice doesn’t carry up the stairs I’ Charlie up I just fed her half an hour ago and she’s sleeping hard again In fact, I hter when she’s sleeping because I don’t want her to be sensitive to sounds when she’s in slumber I think I read that in a book somewhere
But I don’t want to wake Pepper up After we got hoht to sleep
ThisI woke up early as usual and felt refreshed I considered waking Pepper up, but that didn’t last long when I heard Charlie starting to make sounds on the babyjust hanging out in the nursery I fed s to her I then started teaching her about hockey, because you can never start your education too soon
When Charlie went back to sleep—just as I was trying to explain what offsidesPepper up I even crept up to the bed and watched her like a creeper while she slept She’s totally coet dressed after we fuck She’s got no proble to sleep, even asfind that hot and so we sleep naked