“Princess?” I say firmly with a hint of sarcasm.
“Sasha?”
“You going to let me in?”
“Oh sorry. Yes!” The door buzzes indicating the lock has been released. I enter the lobby waiting for her to join me. Moments later she opens the door. My heart starts to race, my palms sweat, and I realize I have no plan. None whatsoever. I did not think this out; I just got in my car and drove over here. “Is everything alright?”
“Yes.” I open my mouth several times to say something but nothing comes out other than air. “I, uh.” Still nothing. “Claire, I….” This is ridiculous. “Fuck!” I drag my hands through my hair before looking back at her face, smiling at me. She knows. And she’s enjoying it. She crosses her ankles and clasps her hands in front of her in a demure schoolgirl pose, raising her eyebrows at me. Then it starts to come out. Like vomit, I can’t stop it. “I think about you day and night. I’ve wanted to call you, see you, but I’m not that guy. I don’t let women in but I can’t get you out. I miss your snarky attitude and your submissive sensuality. Claire,” she doesn’t let me finish my sentence, stepping forward, she grabs my face, smashing her lips to mine. Her fingers trail down my neck as I pull her to me.
Dinner that night turns into dinner every night, and frequently lunch during the week. She closes on the mill, gets all the permits needed to start the renovations, and runs the project from start to finish. I can’t get enough of her, every free moment I have is spent with her.
It’s been almost a year since that night at the mill. She moved into the third floor loft about three months ago and has been begging me to move in ever since. I spend most of my time there anyhow but I still have a house I go to as well. I pull in behind her in the parking lot, walking hand in hand to the elevator, she pushes the up button, “You know, it would be a lot easier if you just lived here, Sasha. It’s silly to be paying a mortgage on a house you’re never at.” I smile at her back when she steps into the steel box. Following her in, the doors close behind us. She’s fiddling with her phone when I press the stop button on the elevator. “You’ve got to be kidding me.” She starts to panic, still fearing confined spaces. “Sasha, fix it.” She commands as if I’m an elevator mechanic. When I make no move to do anything, she looks at me, I see the fear starting to bubble over, so I take one knee.
Pulling the ring out of my pocket to present to her, before one word comes from my mouth the tears are pooling in her eyes, “Princess,” yes, she still loves to hate it. “You’re my best friend, my confidant, my partner. I love you more than life itself and never want to spend a day not knowing you’re mine. Will you marry me?”
She nods her head in agreement through the tears as I slide the ring on her finger. She never looks at it, just throws her arms around my neck, “I love you.”
“I hope you still feel that way when we get upstairs,” I wink at her and push the start button to carry us up the final floor. She watches me from the corner of her eye, she’s waiting to strike but can’t bring herself to yell at me, since I just proposed. Ahh, victory.
When she opens the door to the loft, all of our friends and family, including the crazy old bat Elsie, are there to celebrate with us. Claire immediately starts to cry as people swarm the door, turning into me, burying her face in my neck as I laugh at her. She’s not the-center-of-attention kind of girl, but she’s my world and I want everyone to know I have claimed her.
She’s quickly swept away by her girlfriends and a group of women from my family. I find a beer and the guys who got suckered into being here huddled around a football game on television. When she screams, I know she’s seen it. Everyone stops what they’re doing to look at her as she comes sliding across the floor jumping into my arms with her legs around my waist. She shows me the ring, as if I didn’t pick it out. The center stone is almost two carats, surrounded by a ring of tiny stones and encased on the sides in the same stones, “It’s a crown!”she yells, although I suspect only Claire and I would really see it.
_____________________________
Six months later, before her belly would be come noticeable, we tied the knot in a small ceremony in Falls Park downtown. It was simple, but classically Claire, and whatever made her happy, made me happy. I made my Princess my Queen so her heir would have a rightful place. Our Princess, Sofia, would be here soon to start her reign.
The End
About The Author
Stephie currently resides in the suburbs of Greenville, South Carolina with her daughter, two cats, and a dog. She has a serious addiction to anything Coach and would live on Starbucks if she could. She’s an avid reader, averaging around 300 novels a year. Writing has always been her dream.
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