Love in London by Flora Ferrari
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Gabby
I look at Oz in surprise. He’s already dropped the bombshell that he’s willing to leave London for me, that he wants me to move in with him, and that he’s even going to buy a new house for us to live in. What else could there possibly be?
But then he slips out of his seat, which has me wondering even more. And then…
And then he gets down on one knee in front of me, and it’s all I can do not to scream in surprise.
Excited, overwhelmed, but a positive surprise.
“Gabby,” he says. “I know it’s only been a week. But for me, it’s been a lifetime of waiting for you, of waiting to find that person that would be right for me. I don’t want to wait any longer. I’m so sure that you’re the right one for me that I’ll risk it all. Money, property, business – it doesn’t mean anything in comparison to you. I won’t ask for a prenup. I won’t risk that we might not be able to stay together because of visa issues. Gabby, marry me – make me the happiest man on earth. And do it soon please.”
I laugh, with joy and wonder, clapping my hands over my mouth as my eyes fill with tears. From somewhere, I don’t even know where he’s produced a small ring box and popped it open. A beautiful diamond ring is propped up on the black velvet pillow inside, ready and waiting for me to pluck it out and try it on.
“Oh, my god, Oz,” I say, managing to get the words out of my mouth with some serious difficulty. “Yes. Yes. A hundred, thousand times, yes!”
When he leaps up from his position to embrace me, holding me close against him, the both of us are laughing. And from the sound of his laughter, with a wet edge to it, I know I’m not the only one crying in happiness, either. We cling to each other like we’re drowning and need to stay afloat, and it’s like that in itself is the thing lifting us to the surface. It’s the best feeling I’ve ever felt, a pure kind of happiness that fills me up from the inside and makes me feel like nothing is ever going to be bad again.
When I finally stop crying enough to pull back, Oz takes the ring from the box and slides it onto my finger. It’s a perfect fit. It’s incredible. From the look on his face, I can see that he didn’t expect it, either – he hasn’t had enough time to get a ring resized, let alone subtly figure out my finger size in the first place, so it must have been his best guess only. It fits like it was meant to be there, and my hand feels whole all of a sudden. I never even knew it was missing something.
I glance at the screen, and I see something totally unexpected. Not only is my dad there looking emotional, but behind him over his shoulder, my mom is there with a hand over her mouth. Tears are streaming down her face, and she has the biggest smile under that hand.
“Mom?” I say.
“Sweetie, I heard voices and came over earlier,” she says. “I didn’t want to interrupt before. I was just listening. But… oh, my darling…”
“I’m so happy, Mom,” I say, my voice almost lost in tears.
“I can see that sweetie,” she says. And with how happy she looks for me in turn, I know we’re not going to have any more problems with my dad. No matter what, mom is in my corner – and she’s going to make sure that dad toes the line when it comes to letting us be happy together.
We all stay on the call for hours, talking and trying to calm down from everything that’s happened. The whole while, Oz keeps a tight grip on my hand where he sits next to me on the couch, except in the short break when he gets us both some drinks. We watch the sun come up in my parent’s home – not my home any longer, I realize – as we talk away the hours.
I tell them about the reason I actually came to London – the colleges. We talk over the pros and cons of each one of them, and how I feel like my instincts were right from the beginning, that the first college I looked at, the one where Oz studied himself, is going to be the best for me. Not because he studied there, but because it’s one of the best options in the world for business studies.
And given that I won’t even necessarily need to have an income when I’m married to Oz, it might be a question more of where I feel more comfortable than where I need to get the best education. And really, even despite the closet incident and the potential embarrassment, I think I’ll have the best time there.
“You think you’ll get in there?” Dad asks, to which mom swats his arm.
“You know she will,” Mom says. “You’ve seen her grades. There’s no way they wouldn’t want to have her. She’s going to get in easily.”
“Easily, hey?” Oz says, quirking an eyebrow as he looks in my direction. I guess we didn’t really discuss my grades.
“Well,” I shrug, modestly.
“Did she tell you about the colleges she’s applied for here?” Mom says. Trust her to always talk me up and brag about me. “She’s going Ivy League here, you know.”
I blush, shaking my head. “We’ll see. But, if I get in… I’d really like to stay here in London. That was already the plan before all of this, after all.”
“If you’re sure that’s why?” Dad says. I can see his eyes drifting to Oz, wondering whether I’m making a decision just based on being close to him. But that isn’t it.
“He already said he’d move wherever I want to,” I say, addressing his concern directly with a smile. “Yes, Dad. I’m sure that’s why. I like the city. The colleges look great. And why just stay home and do what everyone else does? I think studying abroad is going to be really amazing.”
“Living abroad, too,” Mom mutters, sulking a little. “You’ll need to come and visit us, you know.”
“Of course, I will,” I say, looking at Oz. “And you’ll have to come visit us. Sooner rather than later. For the wedding.”
“Are you sure you want to rush in?” Oz asks, using my dad’s turn of phrase on purpose, I think. “If you’re studying here for the next three years, you’ll have a good enough visa for that. We won’t need to be married for that.”
“That’s not the point,” I say, tutting lightly. “And besides, it’s a while yet before the semester would even start. I want to make sure I can stay even if I don’t get accepted. And more than that – I want to be your wife.”
“My wife,” Oz repeats, and I hear in his voice the ghost of the same feeling that I have. It’s still so new we haven’t even felt the whole scope of how amazing it all is. That this happiness is a wave that will continue to wash over us for days, maybe weeks. Maybe even months. And it’s a good thing, too, because if we felt it all at once it might be too much to take.
“We have to invite everyone from back home,” I say, already thinking ahead. “We’ll have to give them a little notice, at least, to get flights and hotels and everything booked.”
“We can figure all that out for them,” Oz shrugs. “It’s not like I don’t have an army of assistants who can help out. We can get them here.”
“Time off work, though,” I say. “We’ll need to give them time to book a vacation. But as soon as we can get it organized…”
“As soon as we can,” Oz smiles, nodding. As much as I’ve loved talking to my parents again after a week away from home, I’m starting to feel that I want them to leave us for a little while. That I want to be back in my happiest place. Right by his side, just the two of us alone in our bubble.
Because as much as I care about my family, I know now there’s one person who comes above it all. One person, I love even more.
“It’s been a long day,” I say, looking at the screen. “We should probably get some rest. And you two, too. You’ve been up for half the night.”
“You’re right,” Dad sighs. “And since I’m not needed at the airport anymore, I guess I can go back to bed for a nap.”
“You can if you like, old man,” Mom says, grinning. “I’ve got the word to spread about some upcoming nuptials. You don’t mind if I tell everyone here, do you?”
I laugh, shaking my head. “No, Mom. Go ahead.”
She smiles, and then we all wave and say our goodbyes before turning off the video screen.
And finally, it’s the two of us alone again.
I bury my head in Oz’s chest, feeling the warmth and strength of him through his shirt, the support that I know I’ll always have now. There’s a diamond ring on my finger that tells me so, and before long, that band will be accompanied by another one that is even more permanent.
“You’re sure about getting married fast?” he asks again, now it’s just the two of us. “You don’t think you could possibly be making a mistake, jumping into marriage with an old man like me? I never want you to feel pressured.”
I laugh softly. “Didn’t you hear what I said to my dad?”
“I heard it,” he says, his voice right in my ear, his breath tickling my neck. “I just wanted to make sure. Because you know what?”
“What?”
“I think if we’re going to be married so soon, we’d better get started on making that family of ours too, so we don’t have to waste any time.”
I laugh and sit up, and when he picks me up in his arms and carries me into the bedroom, I know I’m going to be hard-pressed to find a happier day than this one.
But something tells me that record might just be broken again sooner than I think.
