Alex Wars

Chapter Eight: An Unexpected Proposal

"George, Al, dinner!"

Georgie and I hurried down the stairs before Phil finished his yelling.

"Keep it down, Phil, the East Coast is trying to sleep," Georgie said.

Phil rolled his eyes. "Why is she here?"

"Because I said tonight was family dinner night," Martin cut in, placing the large dish of lasagna on the dinner table, "And Georgie has been part of this family as long as the twins have been."

"Also, I need some more estrogen in this house," Stacy, Martin's girlfriend, joked as she carried in the salad bowl. To say I loved Stacy would be an understatement. Five feet tall, she was tiny and sassy, and the two have been dating since senior year of college.

"God, even you two make me feel like a hobbit," she cried, shaking her head at Georgie and me.

Oh, and she liked the Lord of the Rings too.

Once the twins rolled—literally, rolled—down the stairs and everyone was present and accounted for, we sat down for our first family meal in ages. Usually, one of us would be working late and rarely did our schedules match up so we could have dinner at the same time. To say the least, it was a great night.

By the time Martin pulled out the peach cobbler, we were all breathless from laughing and having no room around our waist belts.

"So," Martin coughed, fiddling with the cake cutter in his hands, "there's a reason why we're gathered here today."

"Marty, you sound like some priest at a wedding," Phil snorted.

"That's, uh, actually really relevant to what I'm about to say," Martin mumbled. "Thanks, Phil, for that transition."

My eyes widened. I glanced at Phil and he had a similar look of surprise and—apprehension? Martin cleared his throat and, with his green eyes trained on the petite woman sitting adjacent from him, Martin slowly slid out of his chair and down onto one knee.

"You're doing this now?" Stacy asked in disbelief, her words airy and soft. She didn't sound mad, just shocked. "You're seriously doing this right now?"

"I am," Martin nodded. He took a deep breath. "Stacy, we met sophomore year of college, and we were dating by senior. Five years later, you're still here. After everything—every little problem and disturbance, no matter the circumstance—you not only stuck by me, but you also stuck by this family. You helped drop off and pick up the twins, you coached Al through puberty," here, I made a cry of protest, "and you encouraged Phil to become a policeman. You're giving, selfless, and beautiful from the inside out. I love you for everything about you, but seeing you with my family is what pulls at my heartstrings the most."

At this point, Martin pulled out the teal-colored box that pushed Stacy's tears over the edge. I tried not to make eye contact with Georgie since I knew that one look at each other and we'd be bawling harder than how we did at the end of the last Hobbit movie.

"This is a family dinner and I want you, Stacy Keebler, to officially be married into this family, but I also want us to start our own." Martin gazed up at Stacy with shining eyes. "Stacy Renee Keebler—"

"Yes!" Stacy cried, pouncing on Martin.

"I haven't even asked yet!" Martin chuckled, swiping at the corners of his eyes.

"You were taking too long," she replied, choking on a mixture of a laugh and a sob.

Jackson was whooping, and Georgie and I cheered along. Phil just slow-clapped, yelling out, "It's about time!" Only Jimmy stayed quiet and I raised a brow at him.