Page 121 of Whisper Sweet Nothings
Bridger was proposing to Emilia today, and we were all on cloud nine about it. They adored one another, and it was nice to see my grumpy cousin find his happily ever after.
The girls had taken Emilia out shopping, and then Bridger had asked her to meet him for dinner at Rosewood’s, while we finished setting up the backyard, grateful that all the snow had melted.
It looked like something out of a magazine. The girls were all talking about how Emilia would appreciate the aesthetic because she was an interior designer.
I didn’t know much about that kind of stuff, but it looked great. A giant backdrop made of book pages saidWill You Marry Me, Angel?
A large floral arch surrounded the backdrop. Baskets of flowers and oversized wooden lanterns with candles were everywhere, forming almost an aisle leading to the backdrop.
Everyone had just taken off. Wren and Axel had taken Melody home with them, and we said we’d pick her up after Winnie had taken the proposal photos.
Apparently that was a thing.
And my girl loved to capture moments on her camera.
“This looks amazing, right?” Winnie asked.
“It does. I’m really happy for him. For both of them.” I glanced down at my phone to see a text from Bridger. “They’re here. Where do we go?”
She chuckled. “Let’s just come around the corner over here so we stay out of sight. I’ll snap some pictures when they’re walking in, and then I’ll come out and take some photos from beside that bush. You just sort of stay on the side, okay?”
“Got it.” I rubbed my hands together as we moved to the side of the house.
Within minutes, the back door opened and we could hear Emilia gasp. I watched my cousin lead her through the yard to where the backdrop was.
“What is this?” Emilia asked with a croak.
“This is me asking you to marry me, angel,” he said as he dropped to his knee.
Winnie was already on the move, snapping photos and sliding around the other side of the bush. She was on the ground, and then standing all the way up.
She was determined to catch every angle and every moment.
Emilia had both hands over her face as she cried, and Bridger pulled her hands away. “No crying, baby. I want to look at you when I tell you how much I love you.”
Damn. Who knew my cousin was so smooth?
Emilia nodded, sniffing repeatedly, as tears streamed down her face.
“I know that I’m not an easy man,” he said, and it took everything in me not to laugh.
“But you make me want to be a better man. You’ve shown me what it means to truly love someone and to be loved back. I already feel like the luckiest man in the world for knowing you. But if you agree to forever with me, you will make me the happiest man in the world, Emilia. You are my today, my tomorrow, and my forever. Will you marry me, angel?”
“You had me at ‘I’m not an easy man,’” she said, crying. “Yes, I would be honored to be your wife, Bridger Chadwick.”
He tugged her down and kissed her, and Winnie came out from behind the bush and moved closer, snapping even more photos of them.
After a few moments and some tears, Emilia looked up and smiled. “I was just going to say we need a photo to capture the moment. And here you are, Winnie.”
Bridger stood and tugged his new fiancée close as they posed for a few more pictures. Emilia gushed over the setting and the backdrop and they kissed and hugged, and Winnie caught every moment of it.
My girl was all heart.
She loved big, and I just stood there watching her do her thing.
“Okay, I think I’ve got plenty to work with.” She moved forward to hug them both goodbye, and I walked out from the side yard.
“Congrats. I’m so happy for you both,” I said, pulling my cousin in for a hug before doing the same to Emilia.
