Page 125 of Here & Now

“You’re hosting us, so this is the least we can do,” her mom said.

“I agree,” Jill said.

“I hate to eat and run, but Tessa and I need to get going,” Marco said.

Bree and Zane exchanged a look.

“Can you hold on a minute?” Zane asked.

Marco nodded, eyeing him curiously.

“Would anyone like dessert?” Jill asked.

Everyone groaned.

She laughed. “Forget I asked.”

Their moms were still tidying up, but Zane stopped them. “Come and sit back down for a minute.”

“There are only a few more dishes,” Jill argued.

“Please,” he added.

She put down the dishrag, and the women rejoined everyone else at the table. The guests quieted and looked expectantly at Zane, who remained standing.

Bree clenched her hands in her lap. This was the moment she’d been anticipating for days, and it was finally here.

Ivy was sitting across from her and gave her a questioning look, but Bree averted her gaze to Zane. Naturally, he looked as calm as she was nervous. That they were opposites in this regard worked in her favor. Whenever she got frazzled about something big or small, he was there to settle her nerves.

“Sam said it first, but I also want to thank you all for being here. We know it was challenging for Bree’s family to travel this far, and we appreciate it.”

She swallowed hard. Here it comes…

“With that said, we’re going to ask you to travel here again in the very near future.”

“Ohmigod!” Ivy blurted out. Then she clamped her hands over her mouth.

Bree glanced around the table. Their moms looked at each other excitedly, while their dads remained stoic. Marco was grinning from ear to ear, and Tessa smiled sweetly at Bree.

“Bree and I would like to invite you all to our wedding in June.”

“I knew it!” Ivy blurted again.

“Congratulations!” Jack said.

Marco stood and slapped Zane on the back before pulling him into a crushing hug. “I’m the best man, right?” he said.

“Of course!”

“Congratulations, man!”

Then Marco went over to Bree, who’d been standing next to Zane on shaky legs and clutching the back of the chair for support. He leaned in and kissed her cheek. “Thank God you stayed here; otherwise, he would have been a bear.”

She laughed and pulled him in for a hug.

Suddenly they were surrounded as everybody hugged, kissed, and congratulated them in their own unique way. Their moms had a million questions, but Bree deferred them for now.

Zane had proposed just last weekend, and she didn’t even have a ring yet. “Since you’re going to wear it forever, I want you to pick it out,” he’d insisted. “But I wanted to ask you now so we can tell our families when they come for Thanksgiving.”