Remind me again why you think it’s a good idea to be taking a toddler into a candy store?”

Luke looked askance at Sweet Ballz, but gamely pushed the stroller through the door I held open. I’d worked very hard to get this plan together, and the price for his help was that Tom got to watch it go down.

“Welcome to my Sweet Ballz, come on in and have a taste.” Tom winked at us with an overly innocent look on his face. “Seriously, though… it’s good to see you guys. Thank you for coming in to try the new recipe, I appreciate the focus group action.”

I bit back a grin at Tom’s easy lie, placing my hand in the small of Luke’s back. “Look at those big blue ballz, sweetness. Is that a new recipe of yours, Tom?”

Tom rolled his eyes dramatically. “Please. As if Tom would ever come up with a recipe involving blue ballz—that’s just not right, you know? But Kent does his own thing, you know. I’m just a poor manager stuck with the whims of my star candy maker.”

Luke stepped around the stroller and moved up to the counter. “Star candy maker? He’s your only candy maker. Now, tell me about those blue ballz—I like that swirly tie-dyed effect they have.”

After slipping on a pair of plastic gloves, Tom stepped over to the display case and pulled out a tray of the specially made Sweetness Ballz. They were slightly larger than the average ballz the shop carried, and reminded me of a billiard ball.

“These are a shortbread cookie ball, infused with a special blend of locally sourced berries—blueberry, raspberry, and acai. They were rolled in a pan that contained three different shades of white chocolate coating, each dyed different shades of blue. That’s how Kent got the tie-dyed effect.”

“Holy cow, Tom. It’s like these ballz were made just for me. I mean, you have to know by now what a big berry freak I am, right? Plus, I do have blue eyes.”

Tom laughed at Luke’s comment. “That’s right! Wait… weren’t you the one who got stung by bees while you were picking blackberries a couple years ago?”

“Hey, there is no danger too great to keep me from my berries. And don’t even get me started on the antioxidant effects. Berries are nature’s superfood, and a perfect way to satisfy a sweet tooth.”

“Okay, doll. I get it. Berries good, sugar bad. Now why don’t you go ahead and get our little missy set up at the table over there while Uncle Tom takes care of her daddy’s ballz.”

Tom giggled at the stern look on Luke’s face when he heard Tom’s teasing comment and waved a hand at a small round table near the plate glass window.

“Go ahead and get settled, I’ll hook you up with a special serving of blue ballz and a couple of ice coffees. I even have animal crackers and apple juice for my pretty niece.”

I started to dig my wallet out, but Tom waved me off. “Leave it there, big guy. This time it’s on the house—Tom’s treat. Being able to see two of my favorite guys get together and form new family unit is all the payment I need.”

While Luke pushed the stroller over to the table Tom had pointed out, I grabbed a high chair for Sammy. Luke started to unfasten her from the stroller, but I shook my head.

“Nope, this is about giving you an afternoon of nothing but fun and relaxation. Papa gets to do all the heavy lifting today.” As I spoke, I was already unfastening Sammy and lifting her from the stroller.

“Those jokes are okay now, but I’d be cautious with those heavy lifting type of comments when she gets older, Grazer. From what I hear, girls don’t like it when you make weight jokes.”

Luke stuck his tongue out at me when I shot him a playfully dirty look.

“Princess Samantha knows that her Papa was referring to the metaphorical heavy lifting, and not her personage,” I said.

I grinned and carefully tucked her into the high chair and fastened the safety belt. Yeah, I would never again forget a safety belt when it came to my daughter. Talk about learning lessons the hard way, but at least she’d come through it okay.

Tom came bustling over right as I took my seat, setting down the drinks and a paper plate filled with animal crackers in front of Sammy. “I’ll be right back with your ballz, I have a special batch that we made up just for you.” Tom flashed me a conspiratorial wink, before dashing off.

“What the hell was that about?” Luke asked with a raised brow. “Is it me, or do you think Tom has been dipping into the sugar too much? He seems a little crazy today—and that’s saying a lot for Tom.”

I shrugged. “Maybe he’s just happy to see us together? He was telling me at Sammy’s birthday party that he had been in the room when she was born, and that’s why he will always be her uncle. Did I ever tell you about that?”

Luke shook his head with a soft smile, his eyes looking out the window as if he were reliving memories. He turned to his attention back to me, and pointed at a table over by the wall.

“No, you didn’t—but that’s really sweet, isn’t it? Yeah, I was sitting at that table right over there when I went into labor. I was here having a snack with Braden and Scott. While I was pregnant with Sammy, I had a heck of a sweet tooth. I may have spent a little too much time in here, now that I think about it.”

Tom said, “There is no such thing as spending too much time with the ballz, if you ask me. I mean, it’s amazing how many people underestimate the importance of them, don’t you think?”

Tom grinned unrepentantly as he set a small plate—with a single blue ball on it—down in front of Luke, before turning to me. “Don’t worry, cutie. Tom has more ballz coming for you in just a minute.”

“Tom, exactly how many times do you think you utter the word ballz in an average work day? You don’t have to answer, I’m just curious.” Luke chuckled as he picked up the ball and started to bite into it.

“No!” Tom stopped him with a shout. “You need to cut it in half first. I wouldn’t want you to break a tooth.”

Luke looked up at Tom and opened his mouth to say something, then merely closed it and shook his head instead.

“Okay, Tom. Whatever you say,” Luke said politely. He flashed me an amused look, but gamely picked up the fork and knife that had mysteriously appeared next to his plate right before Tom moved back a few steps.

As soon as he cut through the outer shell, the ball fell open, revealing a hollow center. Rather than the expected berry infused shortbread cookie, the ball contained a platinum wedding band.

Luke’s eyes widened in surprise, while I quietly rose and moved to kneel at his side. His dark blue eyes flicked to mine, his jaw dropping open when he realized that I was down on one knee. Luke’s hands flew up to cover his mouth, and his eyes filled with tears as he looked at me.

“Sweetness, two years ago I told you that I didn’t want anything permanent, and was happier chasing silver foxes. I thought being footloose and fancy free was living the dream—but I was wrong. Being with you is better than any dream I ever could have imagined… All I want for the rest of my life is to spend it with you. Luke Branford, will you marry me?”

He flew out of his chair and his arms were flung around my neck as Luke planted a flurry of kisses along my cheek, jaw and neck. Peppered in between each kiss was the almost frantically whispered word I’d been waiting to hear—yes.

Grasping his elbows, I pulled us both to our feet. I touched my forehead to Luke’s and chuckled lightly.

“Sorry, sweetness. I couldn’t kneel on that hard floor any longer. So did I hear you right? Was that a yes?”

Luke tipped his head back to look into my eyes. “That was a yes times infinity.”

Loud clapping came from over to our left, and we both turned to see Tom giddy with delight. He was practically vibrating as he jumped up and down, his ginger hair flapping with each bounce.

“As soon as you lovebirds are ready to sit down, Tom will go and get your real Sweetness Ballz. As you can see, that one was just a decoy.”

Luke turned to look at me curiously. “Did Tom just call those Sweetness Ballz?”

“Tom did. Just like Tom and Kent made the recipe based on Grazer’s special request. Besides, it was either use his pet name for you, or go with Smurf Ballz… but Kent said no to that one.” Tom admitted with a grin.

“So not only did I get proposed to with a beautiful ring in my favorite candy store, I also got big blue ballz named after me? Okay, I’m trying to decide if this was the coolest or most romantic proposal ever given.”

“Why can’t it be both? Especially since Tom was involved in the planning and execution. I mean, epic wouldn’t even be too strong a word,” Tom scoffed.

True to his word, once Luke and I were sitting again, Tom dashed off to get us our real treats. He came back again later while we were eating, and set a bag down next to Luke.

“Since the Sweetness Ballz aren’t actually on the menu, these will go home with you. Not that they may not appear on the menu later, just probably not in a tie-dyed blue. Milo may have a problem with Tom trying to sell blue ballz in his family business. As we’ve seen, the joke possibilities are too endless. And Milo’s a little more sensitive to that kind of thing than the rest of us.”

Luke grinned at Tom. “Translation—Milo has more class than ass? Remind me again, how is that poor guy your best friend?”

“He’s been asking me the same question for our entire lives,” Tom giggled. “But I just tell him the same thing that I told my hot alpha daddy—Tom is a fungi. Once he grows on you... you can never get rid of him.”

“Tom, did you just compare yourself to mold?” Luke looked up at the ceiling and swallowed a laugh before looking back over at our friend. “You’re too much. What are we going to do with you, Tom?”

Tom waved a hand. “Well, the first thing you’re going to do, is make plans for me to come over tomorrow. We have a wedding to plan. And don’t even think you’re going to slip off to the courthouse like so many of our other friends have. This time, Tom will have his event.”

I snorted at Tom’s threatening glare, but held my palms up. “That’s up to Luke, I planned the proposal—he gets to plan the wedding.”

Luke nodded thoughtfully. “That’s fair. Is ten o’clock tomorrow morning good for you, Tom? Because, I could honestly use all the help I can get.”

Tom whipped out his phone and began tapping at the screen. His eyes never left the device as he answered. “That’s perfect, make sure there’s coffee. We have a lot of work to do. Ooh, tell me... What do you think of ice sculptures?”