Chapter 5: The Proposal I Never Expected

Thayer replied before I reached the parking lot.

[Yes.]

A second message followed almost immediately.

[But not over text.]

I stared at the screen while the noise from the bar faded behind me.

For years, Thayer Sinclair had been the man who appeared at family dinners with impeccable manners, remembered every detail I mentioned, and never once pressured me to choose him.

He had proposed once before.

Not with a ring.

Not even romantically.

He had simply said, "If Bastian ever gives you a reason to leave, call me. I will marry you the next day."

At the time, I had laughed.

Now I was standing beneath the neon lights outside a bar with Gina's foot-washing water still staining the hem of my dress.

I typed back.

[Where are you?]

His answer came at once.

[Turn around.]

A black car rolled to a stop by the curb.

The rear door opened, and Thayer stepped out.

He wore a dark suit without a tie, his coat draped over one arm. His expression changed the instant he saw me.

His gaze dropped to my wet dress, then to the red marks Bastian's fingers had left on my arm.

The calm in his face disappeared.

"Who did that?"

"It doesn't matter."

"It matters to me."

I looked away before the concern in his eyes could undo me.

"I ended the engagement."

"Good."

The answer was so immediate that I almost laughed.

"You could pretend to be surprised."

"I have been waiting years for you to realize he was unworthy of you. Surprise would be dishonest."

The bar door opened behind us.

Bastian stumbled outside with Gina clinging to his arm.

"Meredith!"

He stopped when he saw Thayer.

His face hardened.

"What is he doing here?"

Thayer moved half a step in front of me.

"She called me."

Bastian looked at me as if I had betrayed him.

"You contacted another man five minutes after breaking up with me?"

"You washed another woman's feet while I was still your fiancée."

"That was different."

"It always is when you are the one doing something wrong."

Gina gave a sharp laugh.

"So this is your backup plan? A richer man?"

Thayer's gaze shifted to her.

He did not raise his voice.

"You should be careful, Miss Reed. Humiliation may be entertaining among your friends, but distributing intimate recordings without consent is a criminal offense."

The color drained from Gina's face.

"I was joking."

"Then you will enjoy explaining the joke to the police."

Bastian stepped forward.

"Don't threaten her."

"I did not threaten anyone. I stated a fact."

The tension between them sharpened.

I was too tired to endure another scene.

"Thayer, take me home."

He opened the car door without another word.

Bastian caught my wrist before I could get inside.

"You are not leaving with him."

Thayer's hand closed around Bastian's arm.

The pressure looked effortless, but Bastian immediately released me.

"Touch her again," Thayer said quietly, "and your parents will not be the worst problem you have tonight."

For once, Bastian had no answer.

I got into the car.

Thayer joined me a moment later.

As we pulled away, I saw Bastian standing beneath the bar lights with Gina beside him.

He still looked angry.

Not heartbroken.

Not regretful.

Only offended that I had finally walked away.

The silence inside the car was gentle.

Thayer did not ask me to explain.

He removed his coat and placed it over my shoulders.

"Your parents are at home," he said. "I called them."

"You called my parents?"

"You sounded like you were trying not to cry. I assumed you would prefer not to explain everything twice."

I stared at him.

"You always take control of situations this quickly?"

"Only when someone I care about is hurt."

My throat tightened.

When we arrived, my mother opened the door before the car had fully stopped.

One look at me was enough.

She pulled me into her arms.

My father stood behind her, his expression dangerously calm.

"Where is Bastian?"

"Dad, no."

"He put those marks on your arm."

"His parents have already handled him."

"Not adequately."

Thayer spoke from behind me.

"Mr. Hale, I have arranged for copies of the bar's security footage to be preserved. Gina Reed may have recorded Meredith without her consent before tonight as well."

My father looked at him with immediate approval.

"Good."

I turned.

"You already arranged that?"

"I made two calls in the car."

My mother guided me inside.

The next hour passed in fragments.

A hot shower.

Fresh clothes.

My mother's hands smoothing my hair like I was a child again.

My father's quiet phone calls to attorneys.

When I finally entered the sitting room, Thayer was still there.

He stood when he saw me.

"You should rest," he said.

"I asked you a question in my message."

His gaze held mine.

"And I told you I would not answer over text."

"Then answer now."

My parents went silent.

Thayer reached into his inside pocket.

He placed a small ring box on the table but did not open it.

"My offer still stands," he said. "But I will not marry you as revenge against Bastian."

The words caught me off guard.

"I didn't say it was revenge."

"You contacted me less than an hour after ending your engagement."

"You think I am using you."

"I think you are hurt."

He stepped closer.

"I have wanted to marry you for years. I can wait longer. If you choose me, I want it to be because you know exactly who you are choosing."

I looked at the ring box.

"And if I say yes anyway?"

"Then I will ask one condition."

"What condition?"

"Thirty days."

He opened the box.

Inside was a simple diamond ring, elegant and unmistakably real.

"Wear it for thirty days," he said. "Let the world believe we are engaged. Let Bastian believe it too, if that helps you walk away. But at the end of those thirty days, you must decide whether you want me or merely want freedom from him."

My heart pounded.

"And if I choose freedom?"

"I will let you go."

No anger.

No humiliation.

No demand that I prove myself.

Only a choice.

I held out my hand.

"Then put it on."