Tethered (Book Two of The Invisible String Series)

The Proposal: Part Two

Y/N POV

I never want to forget this moment.

The beautiful piano music swirls around us, and Lizzie's eyes are sparkling in the soft lights, the smile of the blonde's face so wide that her dimples are showing. And my heart feels so full that, for a moment, I'm afraid that it's going to burst from the sheer amount of happiness that I can feel coursing through my veins with every beat of my heart. It feels like a dream, and if it is, it's one that I never want to wake from.

Eventually, though, the two of us are brought out of our little bubble when Olivia comes barreling through the tunnel with a wide smile on her face. "Well?!"

I tuck Lizzie into my side as the rest of our family appears as well and based on the looks on their faces, they also seem to be waiting for confirmation, so I glance down at the love of my life and nudge the blonde.

Lizzie's smile matches my own and she holds my gaze as she speaks. "I said yes."

The group's cheers are practically deafening, causing both me and Lizzie to laugh. We spend a few minutes just basking in the post-engagement bubble with our family members, receiving hugs from everyone as they offer us their congratulations. My mother is the first to meet me out of the group, and she pulls me into a tight hug that I readily return. When we pull away, I notice how there are unshed tears in her eyes as she grasps my hands and squeezes. "Congratulations, sweetheart. Your father would be so happy for you. Lizzie's wonderful."

I choke up a bit at her words and pull her back into a hug, letting out a few tears out of sadness knowing how special this moment is for the both of us. "Thank you, Mom."

When my mother pulls back once more, she gently wipes at my cheeks with her thumbs before she passes me off to Scarlett and the twins, the former moving to show me the recording of the proposal that the four of us huddle together to watch, even though it only happened just moments ago. Out of the corner of my eye, though, I see as my mother pulls Lizzie into just as tight a hug as she'd given me and I smile softly to myself.

I receive a few more hugs from everyone else before Jarnie is excitedly ushering Lizzie back to my side. "Okay, okay, I want some pictures of the two of you!"

I smile when I pull Lizzie into me, resting one hand against her lower back as Lizzie's left hand settles on my chest and I place a light kiss against her forehead, all while our family snaps away. We take several more photos in varying poses for as long as our mothers ask, and I snatch Scarlett's phone from her when we all finally start to head back towards the house, swiping through every one until I settle on the ones that I like the most and send them to myself.

I glance over to my left, where I notice Lizzie is smiling softly to herself with a far-off look on her face and I tug on her hand gently to gain her attention. I slow our pace so that we're walking a few steps behind our families and swing our conjoined hands in the minimal space between us. "How ya holding up, babe?"

Lizzie laughs, the sound like music to my ears as the blonde shakes her head and lifts her free hand to place it over her chest. "My heart is still beating like crazy. Did that just really happen?"

I chuckle at the woman's adorableness, leaning over to place a kiss against her cheek. At least I managed to catch her off guard. "You're cute."

"We're getting married."

I nod as her wide green eyes meet mine, my stomach doing wonderful little flips at the goofy smile on her face. We stop just before reaching the patio and I step forward, hooking a finger under her chin to tilt her head up. "We're getting married."

The blonde's hands find their way to my hips, slipping underneath my jacket to loop her fingers through my belt loops to pull us closer than we already were and brushes our noses together. "Best birthday ever."