My pulse beats so hard against my ears that I wonder if she can hear it. To buy some time, I ask, "Is there anything you don't like?"

She doesn't tear her gaze from mine as she shakes her head. "No, this is more than I could have ever imagined."

Relief fills me, then dies as my nerves overpower it. I grab her hand and claim, "I know something that's wrong."

She furrows her eyebrows, reassesses the garden, and asks, "What? Everything is perfect."

"No, it's not," I insist.

She scrunches her face, trying to figure out what isn't perfect.

I summon my courage and assert, "I can't marry you if it's not right."

Her face scrunches in confusion. She admits, "I can't figure it out."

I slide the oversized diamond so wrong for her off her finger.

"What are you doing?"

"Do what you want with this." I slip it into her coat pocket, then turn back toward her. I reach into my jeans, pull the new ring out, and curl my fist around it. It takes me several breaths to gather my thoughts. The speech I thought about all week becomes a mishmash of words. I scold myself for not being more prepared, even though I thought I was, and then I open my fist.

Her eyes dart between the ring and me until she's gaping.

I state, "I was an idiot getting you that other ring. It's not you. I should've known it wouldn't be you. All I saw were the women in my past, but you aren't like them, are you?"

She swallows hard, remaining quiet, and I think my heart will pound out of my chest.

I push a lock of her blonde hair behind her ear and continue, "I chose to marry you because I knew everyone here would fall for you. I knew you'd fit in, and deep down, I knew you weren't like anyone I'd ever met. So, I don't know why I didn't put any effort into something so important."

"Sebastian, it's okay," she claims.

I firmly state, "No, it's not. You deserve a ring that represents you, not something that screams for attention. You don't need to scream, do you? You walk into a room and everyone naturally sees you. They're drawn to you. Yet you aren't vain or selfish or have any hidden agendas. You're genuine, and that's really hard to find."

Her eyes tear up, and her lip slightly trembles. She glances away, blinks hard, then relocks her gaze with mine, questioning, "Why are you telling me this?"

I don't know how to answer her. There are too many emotions running through me. It's been like this ever since I met her, if I'm being honest, but especially the last few days.

However, one of them is fear. I'm unsure what I'm trying to tell her, and I wish I could just man up and figure it out. But my insecurities get the best of me.