Falling Under (Falling 3)

I snatch the microphone from Mom. “My turn. Ya’ll are so romantic it’s almost sick. But I love you. Oz, all I can say is I’m just as much under your spell, and I’m so glad you didn’t let me seduce this secret out of you.” Mom and Dad both roll their eyes at this, but I keep going. “Mom and Dad…just thank you. For everything. And to you guys, our fans? Thanks for sitting through all this. For supporting us on this tour, and for demanding this amazing hometown show.”

The crowd hasn’t stopped cheering all this time, but now they ratchet up the intensity until it’s deafening. The four of us stand up and take hands, face the crowd, and bow together, and it takes a full ten minutes before the crowd seems ready to let us go.

We’re all giddy and overwhelmed with adrenaline as we make our way off-stage, and as soon as we’re out of sight of the audience, I turn and leap into Oz’s arms.

“I can’t believe you!” I bury my face in his neck. “That was perfect. So perfect.”

He just laughs. “I wasn’t sure you’d like it. But your dad assured me that you’re enough like your mom that you’d appreciate a proposal like that. I just didn’t think a proposal over dinner would be as special.”

“I loved it.”

He grins, and then lets me down. “I have one more surprise for you, actually.”

“You do? What?” I can’t imagine what else there is to be surprised by.

He reaches into his back pocket and pulls out a set of keys. “You know that little house we saw?”

Before the tour started, Oz and I were taking a drive together. We ended up getting lost in the suburbs, and we came across this adorable little house for sale. I got out and peeked in through the windows, and got all girly about it. I had this fantasy of us buying it, and even tried to convince Oz that we should. He seemed to brush it off, saying we weren’t ready for that yet, and I let it go. Mostly. I may or may not have looked at it online every so often over the past few months, stalking it on Zillow to see if it was still for sale.

“Yeah?” I ask, feeling excitement thrill through me.

He puts the keys in my hand. “It’s ours.”

“Really?” My voice is shockingly shrill, and I have to rein it in. “I mean…ahem, really? You bought it?”

He shrugs. “Yeah. I had…help, though.”

Daddy comes over. “Happy engagement, baby.”

That Oz let my dad help him buy me a house…it’s…unbelievable. I don’t know who to hug first, so I end up hugging them both. “You two…I love you so much.”

“Love you too, babe,” Oz and Dad say in perfect sync.

I can only laugh, and try not to cry for the third time in less than twenty minutes. “When do we move in?”

“I’ve got a truck rented for tomorrow to get my stuff from my apartment and whatever you need from home,” Oz says.

Kate appears beside me, pulls me into a hug. “I’m so happy for you two. It’ll be lonely in that apartment without Oz.”

Oz rolls his eyes and tugs his mom to him. “You know we’ll visit, Mom. And you know you’re always welcome. Just not…you know, too often.”

Kate sniffs and pats Oz’s chest. “I know, baby.”

After that things get crazy, with the crew congratulating us and Andersen trying to shake everyone’s hand at once, and the promo manager telling us we’ve got a massive lineup for autographs waiting. Through it all, I can’t stop looking at the ring on my finger, and imaging how amazing it will be to live with Oz all the time.

Pretty amazing, I think.

In the car, finally alone, I stop Oz from putting it into drive. “You’ve made my life perfect, Oz. I know you said I rescued you, but…you rescued me, too. Now I get to live with you? How can it get any better?”

“I don’t think it can,” Oz says. He kisses me. “Oh…it can. Let’s go home, and I’ll show you.”