Updated Feb 20, 2026 • ~5 min read
WESTLEY
I want to marry her.
The thought hits me while she’s making breakfast.
She’s in my t-shirt. Hair messy. Singing off-key to the radio.
I want to marry her.
I call Jonah.
“I need your help.”
“With what?”
“Ring shopping.”
Silence.
“You’re going to propose?”
“Yeah.”
“It’s been three months.”
“I know.”
“West—”
“I know it’s fast. I know people will think I’m crazy. But I don’t care. I want to marry her.”
More silence.
Then: “Okay. When do you want to go?”
LUCIA
Carmen calls.
“How’s Seattle?”
“Good. Great actually.”
“You sound happy.”
“I am. West and I are living together now.”
“That’s amazing! I’m so happy for you.”
“Thanks. How are you?”
“Trial date got set. Six months from now.”
My stomach drops.
“What happens after?”
“If all goes well? I’m free. I can come home.”
“Home to Seattle?”
“Maybe. I don’t know. Phoenix isn’t so bad.”
“You should come home. For real. See Mom. See me.”
“I’d like that.”
We talk for an hour.
About everything. Nothing.
Sisters.
Finally.
WESTLEY
Ring shopping is overwhelming.
“What about this one?” Jonah asks.
It’s pretty. Traditional.
But it’s not… her.
“Next.”
We go to four stores.
Look at dozens of rings.
Nothing feels right.
Then I see it.
Simple. Elegant. A sapphire surrounded by small diamonds.
Blue. Her favorite color.
“That one.”
The jeweler pulls it out.
“Excellent choice. Very unique.”
I hold it up to the light.
Perfect.
“I’ll take it.”
LUCIA
West has been acting strange.
Secretive.
Sneaking phone calls.
Coming home late.
“Is everything okay?” I ask one night.
“What? Yeah. Fine. Why?”
“You’ve just been… distracted.”
“Work stuff. Big project.”
It’s probably true.
But something feels off.
I push the feeling down.
Trust him, Lucia.
WESTLEY
I plan the perfect proposal.
Kerry Park at sunset.
The place I told her I loved her for the first time.
Tate helps me set up.
Candles. Flowers. A photographer hidden in the bushes.
“This is really happening,” I say.
“You nervous?”
“Terrified.”
“She’s going to say yes.”
“How do you know?”
“Because she looks at you the way you look at her. Like you’re her whole world.”
I hope he’s right.
I pick up Lucia at six.
“Where are we going?”
“It’s a surprise.”
“I hate surprises.”
“You’ll like this one.”
LUCIA
We drive to Kerry Park.
The sun is starting to set.
There are candles everywhere.
Flowers.
“West, what—”
Then I see him drop to one knee.
Oh my god.
“Lucia Santos,” he says. “Three months ago you moved into my apartment. Six months before that, you walked into my life—under complicated circumstances.”
I’m crying.
“You lied to me. Broke my heart. Made me question everything. But you also showed me what real love looks like. Honest. Vulnerable. Imperfect but trying.”
He pulls out a ring.
Sapphire.
My favorite.
“I don’t want to spend another day without you. Will you marry me?”
WESTLEY
She’s crying.
Not saying anything.
Just crying.
Panic rises.
“Lucia?”
“Yes.”
“Yes?”
“Yes! Of course yes!”
I slide the ring on her finger.
Stand.
Pull her into my arms.
She’s sobbing.
Happy tears.
I hope.
“I love you so much,” she says.
“I love you too.”
The photographer emerges.
Takes photos.
We’re both laughing and crying.
This is it.
This is forever.
LUCIA
I can’t stop staring at the ring.
“It’s perfect.”
“Like you.”
“I’m not perfect.”
“Perfect for me then.”
We go to West’s parents’ house.
Surprise them with the news.
Diana cries.
Tom shakes West’s hand.
Jonah hugs me.
“Welcome to the family. Officially.”
I call Paloma.
“We’re engaged!”
She screams so loud I have to hold the phone away.
Then I call Carmen.
“You’re WHAT?”
“Engaged. He proposed tonight.”
Silence.
“Carmen?”
“I’m here. I’m just… wow. Lucia, that’s amazing.”
“Are you okay with this? I know he was yours first—”
“Stop. He’s not mine. He’s yours. And I couldn’t be happier for you both.”
Relief floods through me.
“Thank you.”
“You deserve this. After everything. You deserve your happy ending.”
WESTLEY
That night, lying in bed, Lucia turns to me.
“When did you know you wanted to marry me?”
“Six weeks ago. You were making breakfast. Singing terribly.”
She laughs.
“I don’t sing terribly.”
“You really do.”
She hits me with a pillow.
“When did you know you’d say yes?” I ask.
“The moment you asked. But honestly? I’ve known since that first dinner with your family. When you called me your girlfriend.”
“That was fast.”
“When you know, you know.”
I pull her closer.
“How long do you want to wait? To get married?”
“I don’t want to wait at all.”
“Me neither.”
“So… soon?”
“As soon as possible.”
She grins.
“Let’s do it. Let’s get married.”
And just like that, we’re planning a wedding.
END OF CHAPTER 22
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