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              Kat had the brazen attitude similar to Evan’s publicist, but she was nicer and not nearly as bossy or demanding. She waited until Kat exited the room before removing the robe. At least she had the common courtesy to let someone have their privacy when getting ready, unlike Ms. Stone.

              Within minutes, Sara was dressed and out the door. Kat escorted her downstairs to the limo, finding the driver from before holding the door open for them.

              “Where are we going,” Sara asked.

              “Evan gave me explicit instructions to get your hair and nails done, and also bring you in for a massage.”

              “Hair, nails, the dress; okay out with it. What does he have planned? Is there some sort of business dinner or meeting he needs me to go with him to?”

              “I’m sorry; I’m not at liberty to discuss Evan’s plans. You will just have to trust him and see what he has in store for you.”

Chapter 27-Evan

              Evan sat at a small round table surrounded by dark red Venetian plaster walls, lined with bookshelves and framed pictures. His focus lingered on the entrance while briefly checking his watch nervously.

             
They’re late
, he thought. He hoped that everything was all right, that they weren’t stuck in traffic, or that Sara didn’t decide to leave him when he no showed at the airport. He knew lying to her about being at the airport to pick her up was a mistake. But rearranging his tour schedule was a crucial part of his plan. He needed to make sure his late afternoon and evening was open, which meant the book signing needed to take place earlier than expected. Sending the limo was the best thing he could’ve done. Of course Mr. Waters wasn’t happy that Evan wanted to loan it out for someone other than the touring trio, but Evan expressed how important the night would be.

              Audrey wasn’t too happy about the schedule change either. She was the one who booked the tour, and didn’t like anyone interfering with it. Evan told her how important the night was, but held back the exact reason for the change. Reluctantly, Audrey agreed and called the bookstore they were supposed to be at and arranged for an earlier time to come in.

              There was a lot of tension in the room during the book signing. No one seemed happy and everyone, including the bookstore employees, seemed to be agitated by the inconvenient change. Evan was just happy to get out of there on time and without anyone hassling him. He wondered how much trouble his plan caused, but was hoping it would be worth it.

              Heels clicking against the stone floors alerted Evan someone was coming. He looked up to see the maître d’ escorting a woman in a blue studded cocktail dress. The long creamy white legs he was used to staring at were now tanned and placed in a pair of stilettos with straps that tied around the ankles. This had Kat’s name written all over it.

              Evan stood up and greeted Sara as she made her way to the table. Her long brown hair had been cut and styled in waves with the ends curling at her shoulders. Her nails had been carefully manicured, with the paint resembling the dress. He was in complete awe of his girlfriend, wanting desperately to take her back to the hotel.

              He approached Sara, seeing a different look in her eyes than usual. Knowing he was in trouble, he quickly smiled and held the chair out for her.

              “You have a lot of explaining to do,” she whispered while sitting down. The plastered smile never faded from her face as Evan walked to the other side. She waited until the maître d’ excused himself from the table before letting the smile fade. “Start talking, Evan.”

              “Look, I know you’re pissed about the whole airport thing, but I have a good reason.” The face staring back at him urged him as if saying this better be good. “I called Audrey and Mr. Waters the other day and asked if they could move the signing to earlier in the day.”

              “You did what?” Sara’s voice was louder than Evan expected. He tried to quiet her, but stoked the fire. “Why the hell would you ask to move the signing to earlier in the day? You knew what time my flight was coming in.”

              “I know you’re pissed, but I needed the extra time to get everything ready for tonight.”

              “Why? What’s so special about tonight?”

              “I need you to calm down and trust me.”

              “Evan, you lied to me, you had some random guy in a limo pick me up from the airport, you had some woman come to the hotel and take me out all day, and…” Evan saw the look in Sara’s eyes change from a woman gone mad to a woman in love. “You did all that to make my day special, didn’t you?”

              Evan nodded as he picked up the menu. “Now, can you please relax just a bit, and trust that I have something amazing planned for you?”

              “Okay, but you’re just lucky I didn’t call Julie first.”

             
You didn’t, but thankfully I did
. He hid the smirk behind the menu as the waiter came to take their order.

              Evan fidgeted in his chair for most of the night. His nerves made him shovel forkfuls of gnocchi down his throat, nearly choking several times because he didn’t chew enough. Sara cautioned him to slow down. He did so once the main course came out. A beautifully pan seared salmon and seared chicken breast was placed in front of them to share. The chicken was perfectly seasoned and moist. The salmon could easily be cut with a fork. It was the one of the best meals Evan had in a long time. It was becoming the special night he intended it to be. Stolen glances over the candle lit table set the mood. Not a single word was spoken while they slowly ate, sampling some of the food from the other’s fork.

              The waiter stopped by the table to take the food away, never asking if they wanted anything for dessert. He didn’t need to. Evan had put in a request earlier while he waited for Sara to arrive. Knowing her favorite desserts involved Nutella, Evan ordered a Nutella Budino.

              The waiter returned, placing two mason jars on the table. He gave a quick wink to Evan, letting him know the plan was set.

              “Um excuse me,” Sara said. “We didn’t order any dessert.”

              The waiter stopped and smiled at her. “Signore Taylor requested it.” He had a heavy Italian accent which made Sara swoon every time she heard it. “He ah said you love Nutella.”

              “He did, did he?”

              Evan nodded to the waiter, causing him to scurry away from the table before Sara could ask him any more questions. Nervously, Evan shifted in his chair, dipping his right hand into his pocket.

              “Sara, I wanted tonight to be perfect for you. I know it didn’t start out the way you had hoped, but I want you to know I did everything for you and for us.” A violinist played a soft melody in the background as Evan inched his chair closer. “My life changed the day I met you. I know our relationship hasn’t been what people would consider normal, but I love what we have and I love you.” He pushed himself out of the chair and lowered to one knee. His hand dipped back into his pocket, pulling out a velvet black box. “Our unconventional relationship has led me to the conclusion that I would love nothing more than to make you my wife.” He looked up into Sara’s eyes lovingly. “Will you marry me?”

******************************************************

Sara

             
Marriage? He wants to marry me?
The look in Sara’s eyes was reminiscent of a deer in the headlights, or hearing a creaking sound in a dark and spooky house. She froze in her chair, staring at the enormous diamond ring that Evan presented to her.

              “Sara, are you okay,” Evan asked. “Please, say something.”

              “Are you sure about this?”

              “I’ve never been more sure in my life.”

              The ring was mesmerizing, almost begging the recipient to say yes instantly. Sara was tempted to blurt out her answer right away, but knew he was asking too soon.

              “Evan, we haven’t been together that long.”

              “I knew the first night we met there was something special about you. On our first date, I wanted to make you mine. Sometimes, you just know it’s right.”

             
We already live together
, she thought.
How much different would marriage be?
She took another moment to think it over. Feeling the eyes of everyone in the room glaring at her, eagerly waiting for her answer, she decided to announce her decision. “Yes! Yes, I’ll marry you.

              Evan slipped the ring out of the box and onto Sara’s finger. She stared at it for a minute before hearing everyone applaud. Her cheeks flushed pink with embarrassment, but hid it well within the confines of Evan’s chest as she threw her arms around him. With the applause dying down, Sara and Evan returned to their seats. Sara’s eyes couldn’t look away from the ring. She was fixated on the sparkles from the center and side stones.

              “When did you…”

              “I thought about it for a while now. I just had to wait until I had enough to buy it. It’s partly why I agreed to the second tour.”

              “You went on tour so you could buy me a ring? Evan, you shouldn’t have. I would rather us spend the time together.”

              “I know, but the ring wasn’t the only thing I saved up for while on tour.” Sara didn’t know what else he planned on using the money for. Was he buying a house; a car; a dog? “Now that we are engaged, I wanted to hear your thoughts on when you’d like to get married.”

             
Holy shit! He saved money to plan a wedding
. “I don’t care when or where as long as my family and Julie can make it.”

              “Then I say we head back to the hotel, celebrate a bit, and then you give them a call. I know your parents and Julie are waiting to hear from you.”

              “They knew?”

              “I asked your father for his permission before I bought the ring. I clued Julie in the moment you told me you were coming down for the weekend.”

              “That bitch knew and didn’t tell me?”

              “She wanted to let me surprise you.”

              “Well, I’m surprised.” Sara’s mind was still racing, causing her to neglect her dessert. When she finally peeled her eyes away from the ring, she took her spoon and dug into the Nutella. “So Mr. Full of Surprise, was there a specific date you wanted to get married on?”

              “I was thinking an October wedding would be nice.”

              “Okay, that gives us a year and a month to plan.”

              “I was thinking this October, as in a little over a month from now.” Sara’s fork dropped to the table. “I know it’s a bit soon, but I figured it would fall in line with the end of the book tour which is in California. You were planning to come out and see me during the time anyway. I figured we could find a nice vineyard or a place off the beach where we could have the ceremony.”

              Everything was happening too fast. Sara came out to Arizona to surprise Evan, but she was the one caught off guard. In one night, she was treated to a perfect day, proposed to, and was now planning a wedding sooner than she expected.

              “Can we talk about it later? I’d really like to take some time to weigh out our options of getting married next month or waiting a little while longer.”

              She felt Evan grab her hand and saw him looking lovingly into her eyes. “We can wait as long as you want. I just can’t wait to make you my wife.”

             
Shit, how could I say no to that?
Sara was seconds from agreeing to the October wedding, but didn’t want to give up her say that easily. Knowing the words were on the tip of her tongue, Sara quickly removed her hand from Evan’s and focused on her dessert.

              Silence took over the table throughout the remainder of dessert, continuing until Evan paid the bill and escorted her to the limo. She slid in first taking a seat off to the side while Evan sat against the back. The big romantic night out on the town was ending much differently than it did the last time they were in a limo.

              “What’s the matter,” Evan asked as he moved closer to Sara. He placed a hand on her knee, sending an electric current through her body.

              “It’s just a lot to take in.” She placed her hand on top of his, using the pad of her thumb to rub Evan’s fingers. “I mean everything’s happening so fast.”

              “If this is about next month, we can hold off as long as you want. There’s no rush.”

              “It’s not just that. Evan, we’ve known each other for six months. We went from meeting at a bar, to having one amazing night. The next thing I knew you were asking me to move in with you, and now we’re engaged.”

              “Are you saying you don’t want to marry me?”

              “No, that’s not what I’m saying. It’s just everything happened so fast, I need some time to process it all.”

              “I get that. I just don’t want you hiding yourself from me. I love you, and I want to spend the rest of my life showing you how much you mean to me.”

              Sara leaned in, closing the gap between them. Her lips gently touched Evan’s, igniting the fire burning inside them. She could feel his arms wrap around her body, drawing her close. She felt his tongue glide across her bottom lip, knowing her strawberry lip gloss would make Evan go wild. The tingling of her core craved his attention.

              His hands moved slowly down her arm, creating goosebumps along the way. Sara needed Evan to touch her, to give her everything she needed. She gripped the edge of the seat as Evan’s hand landed on her thigh and inched its way up her skirt.

              The smirk on his face when he touched her soaked panties was priceless. “Someone seems ready.” His finger rubbed the outside a little more, eliciting a moan.

              “Evan, I don’t think…”