The Kiss That Launched 1,000 Gifs (27 page)

“Oh, definitely,” he said without hesitation.

“And Ash?”

“Yeah?”

Grace stepped forward and put one hand on the door. “I’m pretty sure I love you, too. You know… for what it’s worth.” Then she pressed one last quick kiss to his lips and was gone.

They were nearly to the peak when Grace gripped Ash’s arm to keep herself from falling.

“Hold on a sec,” she said, wobbling on the stilts she’d insisted on wearing. “My shoe is stuck.”

Ash tried for a patient response. “I told you not to wear heels.”

Grace glared at him as if her shoe situation was all his fault. “You said it was a short hike.”

“I said it was three miles.”

“Three miles isn’t far,” she said, getting her shoes back under her. “I walk that far in heels before noon every day. No problem.”

Ash turned his head away so he could roll his eyes without being seen. There were only a few steps left to the crest of the peak so Ash covered them in an effort to get Grace to stop inspecting the gashes she’d added to her shoes and join him.

The sun was on the verge of kissing the horizon. Perfect timing. Carrying Grace half way up the mountain had been worth it.

“You’d better hurry or you’ll miss it,” he called over his shoulder, then smiled as she muttered something in Spanish.

Rosetta Stone hadn’t taught him that phrase yet.

While Ash waited for Grace to join him, he took a seat on a large boulder big enough for two and fished water bottles out of his pack.

“Wow,” Grace breathed as she reached the top and took her place next to him. “This is beautiful. We totally have to take a selfie.”

“Just one,” he said. “The point is to be in the moment, not miss the moment while trying to capture it.”

“I know, I know,” she said, pulling her phone out, figuring out the perfect angle, then saying, “Smile.”

Ash smiled, and the second he heard the click he turned back to watch the sun begin to disappear behind the horizon while he drank his water. Grace did the same, resting her head on his shoulder.

“This is perfect,” she said a moment later. “Seriously, it’s moments like this when I get why you love nature so much.”

“It is pretty awesome,” Ash agreed as he slipped his hand into hers and continued to watch the sun descend. When it got halfway to the horizon the colors really started popping, shooting out reds, oranges, pinks, and even purples into the sky.

“Beautiful,” Grace breathed, eyes locked on the horizon. “This is the most gorgeous thing I’ve ever seen in my life.”

“Yeah,” he agreed, deciding the moment was right. The sky was perfect. Grace’s mood was perfect. No moment would be better. It was time. Ash took a breath and was about to move from the rock and take a knee when Grace spoke again.

“You should totally propose to me right now.”

Ash grew still and blinked in surprise. “Yeah? Or maybe it’s just enough to sit here with the woman I love and enjoy a beautiful sunset.”

He felt her head shake against his arm. “No. Proposing would be better.”

“But this isn’t your style, Grace,” he argued. “What if I was planning taking you out for a fine dinner followed by dancing? And then, when you were all danced out, I took you to the top of the broadcast building and asked you to marry me under the stars of a summer sky?”

Grace seemed to consider that, then shook her head. “No. This is definitely better. It’s the moment when you silently convinced me to let you take our kids camping. I can hear them complaining now about being forced to spend time in the wilderness. They’ll want to hear this story.”

“Yeah? Do we leave out the part where you refused to wear reasonable shoes and I had to carry you most of the way up the mountain to make it to the top by sunset?”

“Oh, no. We’ll keep that in,” she said on a sigh. “Along with the part where you carry me down the mountain in the dark. I’m sure that will be an adventure.”

“Not going to happen,” he said. “I packed your hiking shoes along with a head lamp. You’re walking down, babe.”

“I don’t have hiking shoes.”

“You do now.”

“What if they don’t fit?”

“They’ll fit,” he said with confidence.

“Hmmm,” she said, and they both settled in to watching the sun set.

After a few beats, Grace raised her camera and aimed it at the horizon for another picture. She looked at the resulting picture and sighed. “I don’t know why I just did that. There aren’t enough pixels in my phone to do that sunset any justice.”

Ash gave her hand a squeeze. “Sometimes it’s worth a try.”

“That’s right. You can’t blame a girl for trying.” She sighed melodramatically. “She can try for the perfect picture, and not have enough pixels… she can try for the perfect proposal, and be stuck with a stubborn man.” Another sigh. “I guess tonight has taught me that you can have the perfect sunset, the perfect picture, and the perfect proposal, but you just can’t have them all at the same time and in the same place.”

“Hey, little miss feminist,” Ash balked, hiding a smile. “Since when am I the only one in this relationship who can do the proposing? If you’re feeling this moment, you can totally ask me.”

Ash felt her cheek press against his arm as she smiled. “I guess I could, couldn’t I?”

“You could,” he agreed.

Grace kept her eyes on the horizon, head still leaning on his shoulder. “Ashton Miller? Will y—”

“Wait, are you proposing?”

“Yes.”

“You’re not on one knee,” he objected. “You’re not even looking at me.”

“I’m comfortable,” she said. “And there’s dirt down there.”

Ash shrugged. “Well, there will likely be a whole lot more dirt in your life if you marry me. You might as well decide right now if you’re up for it.”

Grace breathed in a deep sigh, set her water bottle down, and carefully lowered one knee to the ground. When she looked up at him, the view of her with the sunset in the background was absolutely breathtaking.

“Ashton Miller—”

“Wait a sec,” he said. “Give me your phone. You’re totally going to want a picture of this.”

A smile cracked her face. “Hurry. I’m literally kneeling in dirt right now and it freakin’ hurts like a thousand tiny daggers.”

Ash framed up the picture and captured the moment. “Got it.”

“Good. Now can we get down to business before I miss the rest of the sunset?”

“By all means.”

Grace took a deep breath, a smile curving her lips. “Ashton Miller, will—“

“Wait,” he interrupted. “Where’s my ring?”

“Your ring?”

Ash nodded. “You’re supposed to have a ring when you propose to someone, Grace. As a woman, I would think you would know the etiquette.”

“True,” she agreed. “But given that this is a spontaneous event, perhaps we can let that detail slide.”

Ash let out a long suffering sigh and shook his head. “Get out of the dirt and get back up here.”

Grace didn’t budge. “Ash, I’m being serious right now.”

“I am, too,” he said, standing and pulling her back up to her feet. “Sit down on this boulder and let me show you how this is done.”

It took a moment for his meaning to hit, changing Grace’s scowl into a sly smile as she lowered herself onto the boulder. Ash didn’t give her much recovery time. He simply stepped the direction of the sunset so she wouldn’t have to look away, grabbed the ring box from his pocket, and dropped to one knee.

“Oh, wow,” she said, raising her phone and taking a picture of her view. “You weren’t kidding. You look amazing right now.”

“I know,” he said, holding up the ring. “That was one of the main reasons for dragging you up here: godly backlighting.” He pulled the ring out of the box and held it in the light. “Once it hit the diamond, I figured it would be impossible for you to refuse it.”

Her hand went to her heart as she eyed the ring he’d chosen for her… or rather, the ring she’d chosen for herself and Instagrammed three weeks ago with the caption:
Perfection
. Ash might be a guy, but even he could pick up on a boulder-sized hint like that.

“Wow,” she breathed. “Nailed it. You know me well.”

He grinned. “Altagracia—”

Grace cleared her throat loudly to interrupt him. “You know me well enough not to use my full given name when proposing to me.”

Ash could have kissed her right then and there. He smiled instead. “Grace, I have a really boring last name, but I want you to have it with the knowledge that it will likely be the only boring thing about us.” He reached out and took her left hand in his. “I love you. Maybe even more to the point, I belong with you. I want to live with you, raise kids with you, and drag you out into nature every so often. But mostly I just want to spend every day with you and be the only man you ever want to kiss again. Forever.” He pressed a kiss to her hand. He hadn’t planned on that, but it seemed to fit the moment. “So, Grace, with all that in mind, will you marry me?”

There were actual tears streaming down her face. That was a first. Ash had never seen Grace cry out of happiness before, but he took it as a good sign. Well, that, and the fact that Grace had just about proposed to him herself. But that being the case, she was definitely taking her time responding.

Ash cleared his throat. “If you want this ring on your finger, say yes, Grace.”

She let out a little laugh and pretended to think about it. “I thought I was supposed to say yes if I wanted to forsake all other men for you.”

He shrugged. “It’s a package deal.”

Standing over him, Grace took a deep, shaky breath. “Ash, do you have any idea how much I love you?”

“Well… I have a feeling I’m about to find out.”

Without warning, she dropped down to her knees in front of him, her lips crashing on to his. He leaned in, kissing her back as he located her left ring finger and slid the ring on.

She smiled against his lips and looked him in the eyes. “I didn’t say yes.”

“You did if that kiss counts for anything.”

She brought her hand up to his face and traced the outline. “I love you, Ashton Miller—more than all the other men on the planet. So, it’s a yes. Now kiss me so I can get an epic picture of this moment for posterity before we lose the light.”

Ash didn’t need to be asked twice.

Sheralyn was born at an early age, with ten fingers and ten toes. She proudly retains all twenty digits (knock on wood). Sheralyn believes there are inspiring, heroic, and romantic stories to be found in all walks of life, and hopes to write many stories with both likely and unlikely protagonists. After all, what better place is there than fiction to explore outside our comfort zones and expand our ability for empathy, love, and acceptance?

To learn more about Sheralyn, feel free to visit her website at
www.SheralynPratt.com