It was Brady’s time to smile. “Yeah. She should be texting me any minute.”

Marcus clapped him on the back. “I’ll just be happy when I don’t have to keep this secret anymore!”

Brady agreed with that.

The party ebbed and flowed for the next hour until finally Emma arrived. Brady met her outside before Sloane could see her.

“Did you get it?”

Emma bounced up and down where she stood, nodding. Then she pulled out the ring and actually squealed.

“It took forever to get Ms. Peggy away from talking to the jeweler, but it’s totally worth it.”

Brady looked at the ring on his palm. It was so small. Just like the woman he was going to propose to the next day. Marcus had hooked Brady up with a jeweler friend who had resized Sloane’s mother’s ring, and Emma had agreed to pick it up, along with an intense amount of lights. She and Callum had already offered to hang them all throughout the clearing behind Cassidy’s before Brady brought Sloane there the next night for a picnic, something they’d been doing once a week since she’d moved back to Arbor Bay.

“Don’t show it to Callum until you’re sure he isn’t about to see Sloane,” Emma warned. “He’s going to cry just like he did when you asked him for Sloane’s hand.” She sighed, then touched her chest. “Oh, Brady, she’s going to love it.”

Brady took the compliment and followed her back inside. Dewey, King of Arbor Bay two years in a row now, caught his queen’s hand the moment she was through the door. He and Emma dance-laughed to the middle of the still-bustling dance floor.

Brady searched out his girl and found her on the back patio. She was finishing up a phone call. He kissed her on the cheek and waited.

When she was done, excitement was making her bounce almost like Emma had.

“What is it?” he asked with a laugh.

“That was Rizzie! She said the publisher wants to buy the second book! The paperwork is going to be sent over Monday!”

“Hell yeah, sweet cakes!” Brady picked her up and spun her around. Then he gave her a kiss that made her sigh. “I told you all that work was going to pay off.”

“You never doubted me for a moment.” She put her hands against his chest and was smiling. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

They shared another kiss. This one was deeper, more meaningful. It took longer for Sloane to catch her breath after.

“I don’t think I could be any happier than I am right now,” she whispered into his arms.

Brady smirked into her hair and lowered his voice.

“We’ll see about that, sweet cakes.”

“What was that?”

“I said I’m still not painting the laundry room blue.”