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Chapter 206: Chapter 206: Ian Sterling Gets His Wish

His lips curved into a smile. From Lynn’s point of view, she could even see them trembling.

”I know I can be unreasonable sometimes. Selfish and petty.”

At this, Lynn couldn’t help but laugh through her tears, cutting in, ”So you do know.”

She leaned over slightly to wipe the tears from Ian Sterling’s face.

Ian Sterling yelped, sputtering, ”Hey, don’t talk.”

Lynn held back a laugh and nodded, listening as Ian continued.

”I know that when you said you didn’t want to get back together, you were doing it on purpose.” As he spoke, his eyes grew redder. He mumbled a complaint, ”You’re always bullying me, just because you know I love you.”

A pang shot through Lynn’s heart. She reached for him, but he looked up, smiling like a child.

”But I still love you more than anyone.”

Lynn froze. Ian raised the ring box he’d been clutching and said softly, ”I want you to bully me for the rest of our lives. Will you marry me?”

Lynn slowly knelt down. Her tears fell like a broken strand of pearls, splashing onto Ian’s wrist. The heat of them made him flinch.

Smiling, she pursed her lips, reached out and cupped his face. As her lips slowly drew near, she said, ”I will.”

Ian’s body jolted, and his eyes flew wide.

’He knew this would be the outcome. Of course he did. But he couldn’t stop himself from imagining other possibilities, terrified that Lynn wouldn’t say yes, that something would go wrong.’

Lynn’s lips were just about to touch his when Ian suddenly snapped out of it. He dodged back, fumbled the ring out of its box, and grabbed Lynn’s hand to slide it onto her finger. ”The ring first, the ring first!” he chanted. ”It doesn’t count until the ring is on.”

...

Lynn, along with the crowd that had been watching silently, not wanting to disturb the moment, was collectively struck speechless by his antics.

With the ring securely on her finger, Ian’s lips split into a wide grin. ”Okay, now we can kiss,” he announced excitedly.

With that, he lunged forward. He managed the kiss, but it was so abrupt and forceful that Lynn, completely unprepared, was knocked off balance. Her eyes flew open as she tumbled backward and landed on the ground.

”IAN! STERLING!”

’Lynn was furious. It had been a perfect proposal. The mood was set. And now, thanks to him, all they’d ever remember about this day wasn’t how touching it was, but how the heroine of the proposal got kissed so hard by the hero that she fell flat on her ass.’

Ian was also stunned into a stupor by the turn of events. Nina Norton rushed forward, and with Zoe Sterling, who was standing nearby, helped Lynn to her feet.

The scene descended into chaos. Ian, still frozen in his half-kneeling, forward-lurching pose, looked like a statue. Finally, Nina Norton, unable to watch any longer, reached out and poked his forehead, finally summoning his soul back to his body.

”Babe, I...”

Lynn wanted nothing more than to rip the ring off and throw it in his face. But when she saw his eyelids, still red and swollen from crying, she couldn’t bring herself to do it. She pursed her lips, stepped forward, and offered him her hand.

Ian thought she was offering her hand for him to kiss while he was still kneeling. He took it and promptly planted a kiss on the back of her hand.

”...I was trying to pull you up.” Lynn didn’t know what to say. ’I feel like I can’t even form a coherent sentence right now.’

Those who cared about Ian’s dignity managed to hold their tongues, but his ”best” friends, like Jasper Jennings, had no such restraint.

”Did the happiness short-circuit your brain?”

”He’s definitely happy. He finally has a real fiancée. It’s a huge step up from all the bragging he used to do.”

”His wish came true. So what if he’s acting like an idiot? At least someone’s willing to take him.”

The fuse that had blown in Ian Sterling’s brain when Lynn agreed to marry him was reset by his friends’ mockery. He scrambled to his feet, once again the little tyrant, Finn Sterling, of old.

He shot a glare at each of his childhood friends, who were all enjoying the chaos a little too much. As his gaze swept back, it landed on Zane Lancaster, who was leaning lazily against a floral trellis.

Zane’s lips curved. He raised his hands above his head and began to clap.

He boomed, ”Congratulations to Ian Sterling on finally getting his wish and winning the heart of our eternal goddess, Miss Winslow!”

The crowd fell silent for a beat, then erupted in applause. Countless voices joined in, repeating Zane’s words, their shouts echoing across the entire beach.

Just then, the sound of fireworks bursting open echoed from nearby.

Lynn glanced over. A brilliant, multi-colored light scattered across the sky, then gradually coalesced into shimmering letters that spelled out her name against the inky blackness.

Ian stood beside her, rubbing his nose. ”It was a bit last-minute,” he said. ”I promise the engagement party will be a hundred times better.”

Lynn’s eyes, illuminated by the fireworks, gazed at him tenderly. They came from a world of spectacle; there was no grand display she hadn’t seen. To her, the most moving part had been his confession.

”It’s wonderful,” she said, leaning close to Ian’s ear and praising him in a voice only he could hear.

Ian wrapped his arms around her, pulling her tight. The tears he’d just managed to suppress welled up once more.

He said in a hoarse voice, ”Congratulations to Ian Sterling. His wish has been granted. He has won the heart of the goddess, Lynn Winslow. From this day forward, he will have no regrets.”

Lynn looked up at him and murmured, ”Congratulations.”

She rose onto her tiptoes and kissed him.

They kissed under the light of the fireworks as the crowd around them fell into a tacit silence, not wanting to disturb the couple who had been through so much to get here.

*

Zane Lancaster had slipped away unnoticed the moment the fireworks began, walking down the beach in the opposite direction.

Joel Winslow was the only one who saw him go.

By the time he caught up, Zane was already sitting on a bench near the sand, lighting a cigarette. Ever the gentleman, he had even picked up a discarded water bottle, filled it with seawater, and was using it as a makeshift ashtray.

”You got out of there quick.”

Joel’s expression was frosty as he sat down next to Zane. He picked up the pack of cigarettes on the bench, pulled one out, and lit it.

”Does your sister know you smoke? And here you are, bold as brass.” Zane’s lips curved into a wicked grin.

Joel gazed into the distance. ”My sister doesn’t know,” he said faintly. ”But I doubt she has time to worry about me right now anyway.”

”Fair point.” Zane exhaled a plume of smoke and leaned back against the bench. His gaze rested calmly on the rolling waves as he added lazily, ”I didn’t think you’d be willing to watch this.”

”I was afraid my sister would be sad.” Joel’s lips twitched into a semblance of a smile. He lowered his gaze, mimicking Zane’s motion of tapping ash into the bottle. ”Everyone else came. If I hadn’t, it might have been a source of regret for her. I don’t want her to have a regret that could be so easily avoided.”

Zane turned his head to look at Joel, smiling. ”I thought you’d have gotten over it sooner than me.”

Joel met his gaze and said calmly, ”I’ll never get over it.”

”Don’t speak too soon. You’ll end up eating your words.” Zane brought the cigarette back to his lips. ”I used to think I’d never get over it either,” he said, the filter clenched between his teeth. ”But look at me now, slowly letting go, aren’t I?”

Joel scoffed. He tossed his cigarette into the bottle, and at the SIZZLE of the dying embers, he stood up to look down at Zane.

”I’m not like you.”