50 Shades of Drake 5 and 6

Chapter Nineteen

    It was like a scene from a movie. The finest thing to ever rock a suit, Aubrey led Destiny down the winding staircase of his Calabasas mansion. Her hand was firmly tucked into his as she followed him down the stairs. The sounds of mixed conversations reached her ears, but she could care less what their family and friends were discussing. Clutching onto the skirt of her dress with one hand, she stared down at the sparkling large princess cut diamond ring looped around her finger.

    When they reached the bottom of the stairs, he turned and pulled her against him. His dark eyes burned with his own trademark level of intensity as he stole a quick kiss, and her very breath away. Then he turned and continued walking, barely missing a beat.

    Speaking of beats, Destiny's was beating double-time at the thought of walking into a room of friends and family while wearing a collar, and started to beat triple-time at the thought of Aubrey announcing their engagement. Up until now, the engagement had seemed like some distant far-off dream to look forward to. The fact that an official announcement was being made caused the engagement to feel a lot more real, a lot less like some wispy dream or fantasy.

    He entered the dining room, where their family and friends were gathered. They walked into a room that was lively with chatter, but as soon as Destiny emerged, everyone fell silent. She stared down at the floor, wondering what they were thinking. Were they gawking at her collar, or were they just viewing it as another jewelry piece like the diamond chandelier earrings that dangled from her earlobes?

    "Oh my God," someone gasped.

    Destiny couldn't bring herself to look at any of them. It no longer felt like a relaxing family experience; it felt like she was on display. Just a few commands from Aubrey, and she no longer felt like a person. She felt like an object.

    He leaned in close and pressed a chaste kiss to her cheek. The kiss was much more chaste than the one he gave her out in the hall just moments before.

    I feel like a cherished object, but an object nonetheless, she thought, trying to brave a smile for him. The smile wavered.

    As he walked around the table, his hand cleverly covered the ring he'd bestowed upon her.

    "I'm feeling a little underdressed, bro," OB called out. "You should have told me that this was a fancified occasion."

    Aubrey grinned. "I wanted you all to be comfortable."

    "Bullshit," OB said. "You just wanted to look extra clean, in comparison to us bums. Don't bullshit me. I still know you better than just about anyone."

    "Nonsense," Aubrey said, leveling a gaze in OB's direction.

    "Nonsense," OB mocked with a roll of his eyes.

    Aubrey swung his gaze across the room, stroking the back of Destiny's hand. "Thank you all for coming. Everyone came on very short notice, despite having their own lives to lead. It's much appreciated."

    Destiny finally dared to look towards everyone else in the room.

    Everyone stood around the table. The chairs were still pushed in, but drinks and a light dinner course had been set out for them. Mr. and Mrs. Richards stood with their arms around each other. Happiness lit their eyes. Sandi beamed their way. Out of everyone in the room, those three were the ones who most likely knew what Aubrey was preparing to announce to them.

    Destiny continued scanning the room, and her breath caught in her throat at the side of her uncle Kevin and his wife Tasha. Last summer, Tasha had voiced her "concerns" over Aubrey dating Destiny with such a significant age gap between the two of them. Aubrey had been quick to put her in her place, but from the scowl on her face, she still didn't approve of the union. Destiny's hand reflexively squeezed Aubrey's.

    "It was a little more than a year ago that I met this gorgeous young lady standing next to me," Aubrey directed at everyone in the room. "I met her at a time in my life when I didn't know what love was. Back then, I'd convinced myself that true love didn't exist. When I met her, I knew that I wanted to keep her in my life, but I...didn't know how to give her the kind of love that she really deserved." He looked down at Destiny and smiled.

    She met his gaze and smiled back.

    "Since it seemed that we wanted different things, she was willing to walk away from me," he went on, lifting his head and focusing on the loved ones standing in the room with them. "She was willing to walk away from me and wait for someone who was capable of loving her the way that she wanted. I don't know if I've ever told her, but I gained a lot of respect for her because of that. Believe it or not, a woman hasn't walked away from me like that in a long time."

    There was soft laughter around the room.

    "Our relationship hasn't been smooth sailing. We've both had to work with each other, and learn how to love each other the way both of us deserve. And tonight, more than a year later, every morning when I get to wake up next to this beautiful, angelic face of hers..." He tilted his head down and pressed his forehead to hers. "I just thank God that I didn't let her walk away from me. I thank God that I fought to keep her, even though the thought of opening up my heart to someone again scared the hell out of me." He laughed nervously. "Making that choice, though, to open up my heart to her has been the smartest, bravest thing that I've ever done. No matter the trials and tribulations we've had to go through to get here, I've never regretted opening up to her. I never will regret it. She makes me happy. She makes me want to be better. And she taught me how to love. I stand before you all today, because we both have an announcement...just a little something we'd like to share with you."

    Jasmine clutched her heart.

    Candace reached out and grabbed Jasmine's arm.

    Carlos looked like he was ready to run and grab another bag of popcorn.

    Tasha arched an eyebrow while looking at Destiny with narrowed eyes.

    Sadie climbed up into one of the chairs, inspecting the food on the plate, completely unbothered.

    OB, Ryan, Oliver, Chubbs, and the rest of the crew waited for Aubrey's next words with baited breaths.

    Aubrey grinned at all of them. He angled his eyes downward and raised Destiny's hand into the air, brandishing the ring that threatened to blind everyone in the room.

    Candace and Jasmine screamed.

    Carlos raised the back of his hand to his forehead, as if he were going to faint.

    "I asked her to marry me, and she said yes," Aubrey added for measure, bringing Destiny's hand to his lips and kissing it. "And nothing in the world would make me happier than giving this fascinating young woman my last name. Soon-to-be-Mrs.-Graham."

    She buried her face in his arm, trying to steady her frantically beating heart.

    "Don't hide from me," he said softly.

    She tiled her face up.

    "I love you," he told her, "and I intend on spending the rest of my life showing you how much."

    "I love you too," she said back, her eyes shining with happy tears. "But don't think that you can recycle this speech for your vows. You have to write something else. Or, better yet, sing them to me."

    "You got it, baby girl," he said before kissing her again, amidst happy shouts and clapping from the family and friends gathering around them.