Ryder was quiet the rest of the day on Thursday which concerned Bethany a bit, but he still wanted her to stay after work that night and they kept Maggie company at the bar for about an hour or so before calling it a night. And he still walked her to her car and gave her a kiss goodnight. It wasn’t as long or as passionate as the one she’d had the night before, but it was still a pretty good kiss as far as kisses went.

By Saturday, things seemed back to normal with them and Bethany relaxed fully. Her heart had sank when she saw Mark walk into Quinn’s and then saw the look on Ryder’s face. She never wanted to see that look again. She knew that he needed to process what he’d seen and heard and she was glad that he seemed to realize that Mark was unimportant to her and that what they had was real and solid.

Ryder was in an unusually good mood Saturday night as they shared a drink after a very busy and long night. It was their best night of the year so far and Bethany was still feeling the warm fuzzies from the review on Quinn’s that was published that morning. Marcia had brought it into the restaurant and plunked it down on the table where they were sitting and drinking their coffee.

“We should frame this and hang it on the wall. We’ve never had a review like this one before,” she said proudly.

Ryder picked up the paper and read the review out loud. It was full of accolades about the food and the service. What made Bethany happiest of all was the final line,

“If you’re looking for the kind of comfort food that you wish your mother was able to make, come to Quinn’s. You won’t be disappointed. This is Manhattan quality fare in Quinn Valley. A true gem.”

“A true gem,” Ryder repeated holding her gaze until she felt herself beginning to blush and looked away.

“That’s really great news,” she’d said.

The mood all day had felt celebratory and when Ryder walked her to her car at the end of the night, the kiss they shared made her toes tingle.

“I’ll be by late tomorrow afternoon, around three,” he said.

At three o’clock sharp, there was a knock at the front door. Bethany heard it open and her mother’s voice mixed with Ryder’s. She took one last look in the mirror before heading downstairs. It was chilly out and since they were going outside to see his lake property, she’d dressed for warmth in a thick fisherman’s knit sweater, turtle neck, jeans, heavy socks and her favorite old brown boots that were soft and warm.

When she came downstairs, Ryder and her mother were speaking softly. Her mother looked up and stopped talking. There was a gleam in her eye that Bethany hadn’t seen in a long time. Her spirits had been great ever since she got the good news from her doctor.

“Have fun you two,” she called out as they stepped outside.

“Do you have a hat?” Ryder asked before they got to his car.

“I do. I forgot to put it on.” Bethany fished a knit hat out of her tote bag and pulled it on. She knew it wasn’t the most flattering look, but it kept her warm. Ryder was wearing a thick knit hat as well and a down jacket. She had a thin down jacket over her sweater and even though it was cold out, she was warm enough.

“I made us a thermos of hot chocolate we can have when we get to the lake,” Ryder said.

They reached his street fifteen minutes later, and he slowed as he reached a large empty lot that overlooked a large lake. There were boat ramps along the shore and the view from his land was beautiful.

“Come on, I’ll give you the grand tour.” He grabbed the thermos and a blanket and led the way around his lot and down to the shore. There was plenty of room for him to add a dock if he wanted to and he would have a large sunny view almost anywhere on the lot that he decided to build.

“What do you think?”

“It’s awesome. I can see why you want to keep it for yourself.”

He spread out the blanket and sat Indian-style with the thermos in front of him. He had two plastic mugs with him as well and poured out some hot chocolate for both of them. Bethany joined him on the blanket and gratefully accepted a mug of the steaming beverage. It smelled wonderful and had tiny marshmallows bobbing over the top.

They talked again about the kind of house he wanted to build and she told him all about what she envisioned her dream kitchen looking like. It was fun to dream even if it was for someone else’s house.

“So, could you ever see yourself living here?” he surprised her by asking. His tone was serious, and she turned and the love that was reflected in his eyes took her breath away. She nodded. “Yes, of course.”

He smiled, then stood up, which confused her, until he bent down on one knee and fished something out of his pocketed. A small, black velvet box. She hadn’t expected this at all, not today.

His smile was shaky but about as big as she’d ever seen it.

“Bethany, there’s no one else I want to be with. No one else I’d rather live in my dream house with. Our dream house. I want to build it the way we want it. I don’t think I ever stopped loving you. You’re my best friend and the person I want to spend every day with for the rest of my life. Will you marry me?” He held the ring up, and the diamond sparkled in the sunlight.

“Yes, yes of course I’ll marry you! I love you too, Ryder. So much.”

He stood and pulled her in for a kiss that went on and on. They sat down again and had more hot chocolate and she stared at the ring. It was beautiful, a cushion cut diamond surrounded by a ring of delicate, smaller diamonds in a platinum setting.

“How long have you had this ring?” She wondered when he’d gone shopping for it.

“My mother gave it to me years ago, before you went to Manhattan. She knew I wanted to ask you then. It was her mother’s ring.”

“And you’ve had it all this time.” Bethany stared at the ring in wonder.

“Well, it’s not like I had anyone else I wanted to give it to.” He grinned and pulled her in for another kiss.

“Do you mind if I wait until after the house is built? I want to give my mother some time to get used to the idea.”

“I don’t mind waiting. She already knows though.”

“She does?”

“That’s what we were talking about before you came downstairs. I was asking her permission. She thoroughly approves.”

“Oh, well we could do it sooner then.”

“How about in a few months? I know my mother is going to have certain ideas about what she wants for a wedding and yours probably will too. That will give them both time to plot and plan. And there’s plenty of room in my condo for both of us. We can live there until the house is done.”

“I love that plan.” She smiled and touched her finger lightly to his lips. “And I love you.”

“I love you, too.” Ryder kissed her again, and she sighed with happiness. Everything finally was exactly as it should be.