His Naughty Lessons-Chapter 296: The Moment of Truth

** Eli **

Eli could feel his heart thrashing violently against his ribcage. No matter how many deep breaths he took, it wouldn’t calm down the slightest bit.

The idea for the ring had come to him three weeks ago, back at Sean’s salon. While Harper was trying on those lovely evening gowns in the fitting room, the designer had casually mentioned a jeweler he met at a fashion show, who was known for a large collection of high quality work crafted for celebrities and art exhibits. The thought of making an engagement ring for Harper had immediately taken root in Eli’s mind at that moment, and he wasn’t one to procrastinate once he made his decision.

He had worked on the design with the jeweler himself, all the way from the initial idea to the final details. The ring had turned out beautifully, truly one-of-a-kind, and he had let out a sigh of relief when he picked it up earlier this week. But now that he was holding the tiny box in his hand again ... he suddenly had a moment of nervous self-doubt.

What if Harper didn’t like it? For how well they knew each other, Eli thought he had a pretty decent idea of what kind of styles she might be into. But what if he was wrong? What if the diamond wasn’t her favorite shape, or if the size didn’t fit?

And what if she thought tonight wasn’t romantic enough for this? As far as dates went, they had done many more swoon-worthy things than hiking up a mountain and watching the stars. He had decided to pick this evening because it felt right to him — because these simple, homey, nostalgic moments were when it all started, when the story of their lives was first written down in the stars — but what if she wanted something more different? What if his choice of timing wasn’t perfect, leaving them with the regret that it wasn’t as memorable as she wished it could be?

Or, worse than all of the above ... What if she simply wasn’t ready to say yes?

Eli suspected that his palms were starting to sweat a little. He wiped it a few times on the inside of his pocket, afraid to leave ugly fingerprints on the ring.

Yes, he was scared. He closed his eyes for a second, hoping that shooting stars could really grant wishes, and he wished for good luck with this biggest moment of his life.

"So gorgeous ... this is so many more shooting stars than we saw here last time and in Hawaii combined!" Harper, having finished her long whisper of wishes right then, turned around to look back at him. "Are we going to—"

Then she literally took a step back in shock when he got down to one knee, holding up the opened ring box. Both of her hands flew to her lips as she gasped with wide eyes.

Well, no more second-guessing or doubting now. Time for the moment of truth.

"Harper." Eli could barely get one word out before realizing that his voice was trembling like crazy. Immensely embarrassed, he swallowed hard and took another quick deep breath in. Hopefully she wouldn’t notice that ridiculous mistake.

"I know this might come as a surprise to you," he began, looking into her eyes, "since we’ve only been officially together for a little over a month. But the truth is, ever since that day when I promised to take a leap of faith with you, I have been imagining this moment ... when I get to confess to you what that promise truly means."

Harper stared at him, unmoving, unblinking. Which wasn’t helping the heart that was threatening to leap out of his throat, not at all.

"I was never a family person," he admitted. "The concept wasn’t a familiar one to me, and I’ve never learned how to love someone, care about someone. Those were luxuries that I didn’t understand and never knew I could have ... until you. Until that moment at the swimming pool that marked a new beginning of my life."

Harper’s hands moved, and she opened her mouth, as if wanting to argue with some part of those facts. Afraid that her interruption would make him lose all the courage to finish his words, Eli hastily continued before she could get a chance to speak.

"You are the light in my world that changed everything." He could hear the shake in those words now, even though every one of them was the raw truth coming straight from his heart. "You are the one who taught me how to trust, how to be honest, how to be brave with what I want. You are the one who taught me how to live true, and you’ve been teaching me those things from the very beginning, before either of us were even aware. With every moment I spend with you, you make me a better person, because you make me understand what it means to feel and how beautiful it can be to share those feelings with someone else."

His gaze drifted briefly to the ring in his hands. He wasn’t sure if his hands were trembling as well, and he breathed in again, calming his voice.

"There has never been a decision easier than this in my life," he continued softly. "This thought has been on my mind ever since that day in Hawaii, because I’ve already known since then that you are the one for me. Even if I might be the last person to qualify as the perfect husband material, even if I might still not know what I’ve ever done to deserve you, I want to ask for this chance to prove that I can be worthy of your love and trust. And if you let me, I’d like to spend the rest of my life doing it."

He took one last deep inhale, locking eyes with her, and he mustered all his strength for the final words before his voice broke. "I love you, Harper. Now and forever. Will you marry me?"