OK, maybe he couldn't be a lot more romantic...
"Uh...thanks?"
"I wasn't finished," he assured me. "You are also the cleverest, funniest, sweetest person."
That suitably mollified me and I gave him a little thumbs up with my free hand to let him know so.
"I take your point about weddings being kind of unnecessary," he went on, "especially since we already have our contract, and I don't want you to think I want things to change. I don't. In fact, if you think getting married would change anything about us then don't take this as a proposal, just take it as a morning where I said some nice stuff and showed you Nan's glitter ring. I just..." he paused, apparently looking for the right words, and then suddenly grinned. "Nan would hate this, but I think I'm that dick that likes the idea of saying you're my wife."
He stopped again, as if expecting me to make some sort of comment, but I just stared at him. Elliot loved me, I wasn’t in any doubt about that, but he wasn't the type to go on about it so this sudden rush of words was definitely something new.
"I've been waiting for that money stuff to be over, really, properly over, before I did this because that's not us now," he continued. "That was just the stupid way we kicked stuff off. I don't want us to be defined by a drunken one night stand, or money, or any of that. I want it to be me reaching for you every morning and you losing your mind over glitter rings, that's what I want."
And then, his piece clearly said, he looked to me, as if there was any doubt about my response.
"You," I pointed a finger at him and found that I was shaking, crying and giggling all at once, "you I want forever."
It wasn't as long as his declaration, nor as eloquent, but I think it got my point across just as well. Certainly he didn't seem disappointed if the way his face split into a wide grin and he grabbed me up and kissed me was any indication.
"I'm going to wear a different one of Nan's novelty rings every day," I declared as Elliot put me down and slid the glitter ring onto my finger. "Then I'll not only be the top employee at my company, creating higher revenue than anyone else my age in their history, but I'll be doing it in costume jewellery no less! Ha!"
"Yes, yes, you're an employee extraordinaire," Elliot said with a smirk, cool as ice now he'd got that sentimental stuff out the way, "but you're also about to be late."
"Monkeys!" I looked across at the clock and then back at him in a torment. "I'm so glad you love me and we're going to get married and everything," I said quickly, "and I don't want to pre-emptively end our newly engaged clinch, but-"
"Go on, then." He released me and gave me a little bump towards the bathroom.
"See, this is why we're good together," I called over my shoulder as I bounded away. "Appreciation of each other's priorities. You better hurry too, birthday boy," I added as I started to the shower and hopped into the cubicle. "Those kids aren't going to teach themselves the horror and misery of war."
"Ah, would that they could." His voice sounded suspiciously close so I wasn't all that surprised when, in the next second, the shower curtain was pulled aside and he climbed in under the water with me.
"Sinclair!" I laughed as he reached past me for the shampoo, ever so conveniently pressing himself against me whilst doing so.
"What?" He asked innocently. "I just thought I'd show you another reason why we're good together. Plus, two showers in one, it's a timesaver."
----------
It wasn't a timesaver, a fact Rox took great delight in informing him approximately once a second for the rest of the morning.
He didn't care. It was his birthday, what better present than spending some quality time in the shower with his fiancée?
Damn. His fiancée.
He couldn't stop the smile, just as he couldn't stop himself reaching for Rox as she shot past him holding a piece of toast in one hand and a shoe in the other. A shoe that, he noticed, didn't match the one on her foot.
"No!" She laughed and squirmed out of his grasp, shoving the piece of toast into his mouth as if it was a replacement for her.
"Your other present, by the way," she called over her shoulder as she dug through her shoes, trying to find a pair that matched, "is a boys' weekend away with Jonah to watch the rugby. And so help me, Sinclair," she suddenly whirled around to glare at him where he lounged against the wall eating her toast, "if you so much as look at a slingshot..."
"I got slingshot one time, but will she forget it?" He said in a long-suffering voice and, as she emerged triumphant with the right shoe, she raised her eyebrows.
"No," she said pointedly, "she won't. It's not something easily forgotten. Right then," she straightened and grabbed up her bag, "I'm off. I'm going to come over and kiss you now, but it has to be quick and if you try and drag it out," she fixed him with a stern look, "I'm going to remind you that your mum will probably call today to wish you a happy birthday."
He groaned.
"And I'll also remind you that, after the debacle of last year, you promised me you wouldn't hang up on her again."
He groaned again, louder this time.
"Well, quite," she agreed, going over to him and taking advantage of his annoyance at the mention of his mother to drop a quick peck on his lips and then dance away before he had time to react.
"You're a harsh woman, Rox," he complained and she laughed.
"Yes, but also I love you, I'm going to marry you, and I'll see you tonight, and that's what really matters, right?"
She didn't wait for an answer, just waved and skipped out through the door. Still, it wasn't as if he was going to argue with her reasoning.
She loved him, she was going to marry him, and she would see him that night. So, yeah, that was what mattered.
~*~
The end.
Other novels by Jessie L. Star:
The Do-Gooder
So Much to Learn
Private Lives, Public Property
Lighthouse Charlie
http://www.facebook.com/jessielstar
Acknowledgements:
References to economic principles in Chapter 7 were understood from:
Slembeck, T. (2001). Principles of Economics. Available: http://www.slembeck.ch/principles.html. Last accessed 14 Feb 2014.
Gans, J, King, S, Stonecash, R, Mankiw, N (2002). Principles of Economics. Victoria: Thomson. p43.
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