Dana knocked on the door to Tess's bedroom early on the morning of the block party. They were expected on Main Street at 8:00am to start setting up. All the stores were setting up sidewalk sales, local organizations and scout troops put together bake sales and games, including a dunk tank with popular teachers, and a stage was being set up at the far end of the businesses where musicians would play throughout the day.
Tess spent the morning helping her aunt and the other members of the town's revitalization committee set up their tent. They had two tables, one holding the raffle prizes and a couple of games of chance, all the money raised going into the committee's fund. The other table held pictures of what they had done and pamphlets of information about what other work they wanted to do.
When she finished there, she made her way over to Page Turners, helping Paige and her parents set out a sale table before assisting the a local women's group set up their tables of crafts for sale.
By noon, people began arriving in the mid-day heat. The food being grilled by the café made the entire street smell amazing. The first group, a local band made up of teenagers, took to the stage and played some covers of popular music. Kids gathered in little groups and ran from table to table trying to win prizes while their parents met up with friends to chat.
Tess spent a couple of hours volunteering in her aunt's tent and collecting money for the raffles and games.
By three, the crowd had only grown and the heat even more oppressive. Paige ducked into the shade of the tent.
"Hey, do you get a break?" She asked.
Tess looked over to where her aunt and another woman sat, fanning themselves. "Hey, Aunt Dana, do I get a break?"
"Go, sweetheart, have fun!"
"Yeah, fun," Paige muttered. "It's 105 degrees with 350% humidity."
"Let's get a drink."
"You just want to go flirt with your boyfriend."
"And get a drink." Tess sidestepped two young boys with water guns running down the street.
Paige picked up a pamphlet from a table as they passed, using it to fan her face. "Why couldn't Independence Day be in the fall, a nice, cool early October day?"
"Well, if we build a time machine and travel back, maybe we could convince your Founding Fathers to hold off a couple of months."
"You say that like its impossible."
Every outdoor seat at Flynn's was taken and several other people stood around, talking. Maggie was bartending at the temporary bar they had set up just outside the front door. Inside was pretty crowded, people trying to escape the heat. Mike, the other bartender, was serving beers while Jenna, Kevin, and two other servers moved from table to table.
Paige pushed her way up to the bar, Tess at her heels. "Hey, Mike."
"Hey, Paige, what can I get you?"
"A margarita. Blended and extra cold."
"Extra cold. Got it." He turned to Tess. "And what about you?"
Tess thought for a moment. "That sounds really good, I'll have the same, no salt."
"I haven't seen you around here before."
Tess turned to see a dark haired guy sitting on the stool next to her. "Oh, I'm just visiting."
"Yeah? Do you need someone to show you around?"
"Nope, I'm good. Thanks."
The guy's friend laughed, but that didn't stop him. "Where are you from?"
"Arus."
"Arus? I've heard of that place." He furrowed his brow. "Why do I know Arus?"
She shrugged. "I don't know. It's a beautiful place."
"Here you go, ladies," Mike said, setting their drinks on the bar.
"Where's Griff?" Tess asked, reaching for her wallet.
"Office. Don't worry about it, Tess, employees drink free."
She looked at him skeptically. "Since when?"
"Since the part time office manager started dating the owner."
"What about employee's friends?" Paige asked.
Mike winked at her. "Don't tell the boss man."
"I can pay for my drink," Tess insisted.
But Mike had already moved down the bar to take another order.
"Don't argue," Paige told her, picking up her drink and turning to find a place to sit. "Enjoy it. Oh! Table!"
"I'll be right back," Tess told her. "Save me a seat."
She wove her way through the crowd to the office door and knocked.
The door opened a crack before opening wide enough to allow her in. "Hey pretty Tess from Arus, what brings you here?"
She held up her glass. "Margaritas. Why aren't you out there?"
He held up a tube of sunscreen. "Preparing to take over for Maggie in a few minutes. Its hard work keeping skin this pale."
"Awww, poor baby."
"Says the woman with a tan, you will never understand my misery." He mumbled, rubbing a glob of sunscreen in the back of his neck. "I hate summer."
"You're the boss, make Mike go out."
He smirked. "He's doing the last shift this evening, that way none of us will be out there longer than three hours."
Tess set her drink down on the desk. "Come here, turn around. You're being all sloppy." She rubbed the sunscreen into his neck and under his collar. "You're already red back here."
"I know, I always forget the back of my neck."
"Do you have an aloe plant?"
"No."
"That would help with sunburn. Your ears too, don't forget those."
He turned to face her. "If I get one, would you help me apply aloe to my burns?"
"Mm hm." She spread the sunscreen around his neck. "You used too much back there."
He took a step closer. "Having fun out there?"
She slid her arms around his neck. "It's hot and humid and miserable. I'm having more fun in here."
"We can have lots of fun in here." He lowered his head to kiss her.
A loud knock on the door had him skimming her lips. "Damnit."
"You had to own a popular restaurant, didn't you?" She teased.
"Hey." He grabbed her arm before she could step away. "I love you." Griff kissed her quickly.
"Love you, too." It gave her a quick thrill to say it.
"8:45," he said when there was a second knock.
"8:45." She picked up her drink and opened the door.
"Oops! Sorry, didn't mean to interrupt," Jenna said, not sounding the least bit sorry. "But Mike said he needs more vodka before you head outside and he can't leave the bar."
"Thanks, Jenna, I'll take care of it." He laid his hand on the small of Tess's back and steered her through the door.
"Try not to burn too much," Tess teased.
"I burn under a 60 watt bulb." He mumbled.
"Good thing I find pale men sexy."
"That's it, I am never taking you to Ireland."
She laughed. "A whole island of pale, ginger men? I wouldn't be able to handle it."
"Oh, there are the black Irish, too."
"And they all sound like you?"
"Yup."
"Oh man, that sounds like heaven on earth."
He glared at her. "Go. I have work to do."
With a huge grin on her face, Tess slipped into the crowd and found her way to the small table Paige was holding.
"About time, I'm almost done," Paige said as her friend joined her.
"Sorry, had to get my fix."
"Gross."
Tess laughed. "We have to get you a man."
"I've been trying."
"Voltron!"
Tess jumped and looked up to see the guy who had been hitting on her at the bar. "What?"
"Voltron is from Arus," he said, grinning at her. "I knew I had heard of Arus somewhere."
"Uh, yes, he is."
"You ever see him?"
"Um, yeah."
"What's he like?"
"He's huge. And metal."
He put his hand on the back of Tess's chair. "Do they bring him out for, like, celebrations?"
She looked up at him, incredulous. "What? No! He's not a toy, he is the most powerful military machine in the universe."
"Hey, I don't know, I've only read about him."
"Uh, look, my friend and I are just trying to talk and have a drink. I'm really not interested."
He held up both hands. "All right, all right, I get it. No problem."
"What was that about?" Paige asked after he left.
"Voltron, he's a military robot created by the joining of five lion ships. He's the defender of the universe and he is from Arus."
"I know about Voltron, everyone has heard of Voltron. Although, I forgot he was from Arus. No, I mean, what's with the attitude?"
"What attitude?"
"I don't know, I mean, yeah, he was kind of obnoxious, but you could've been nicer."
Tess shrugged. "Sometimes they just can't take a hint and you have to be rude."
"You girls want another one?" Kevin asked, appearing at their tableside.
Tess looked at Paige, who shrugged in response.
"Oh, go ahead," he prodded. "It's a holiday."
"Okay, why not?" Paige said.
"You're a bad influence," Tess told him.
"I'm paid to be. Margaritas?"
"Yup. And can we have an order of mozzarella sticks? I need to eat something with this." Tess watched him walk away before turning back to her friend. "So, why don't you just ask him out?"
Paige sighed. "If he wanted to go out with me, he would've asked."
"Or he doesn't know how you feel."
"I've been dropping hints since I was sixteen."
"Maybe you need to stop dropping hints and just talk to him."
"Or maybe I should just give up on this childish crush and find someone else."
"Do you really want to do that?"
"No."
"Then don't give up."
Paige finished off her drink and set it down. "How do I get him to think of me as more than just a friend?"
"Tell him how you feel."
"But I don't want to lose him as a friend."
"Who's that?" Kevin asked as he set their drinks down in front of them.
Paige looked at Tess, horrified.
"Can we add an order of chicken fingers to the mozzarella sticks?" Tess asked. "I'm starved."
"Sure." He made a note on his pad and went to add it to their order.
She turned back to Paige. "Okay, he's totally clueless. Talk to him."
"I don't think I can."
"Paige, I know it's scary, but nothing will change unless you do something. At least you'll know one way or the other how he feels. I know he isn't seeing anyone right now, Jenna keeps trying to get him to let her set him up."
"Why won't he let her?"
"He said he doesn't trust her to find someone he'll like. Do you want me to drop some hints, kind of feel him out about you?"
Paige shook her head. "Part of me wants to let you do that, but no, I'm an adult, this isn't middle school."
"Just because we're adults doesn't mean it's any easier."
"You and Griff make it look easy."
"What?"
"You knew each other less than a week and you were going out on a date, you just clicked right away."
Tess rubbed her hand over the watch on her left wrist. She had no doubt in her mind that the magic that surrounds the Arusian royal family helped bring her and Griff together. They did seem to just click. He was her soul mate, of that she was absolutely certain.
"It's different with everyone. My parents thought they couldn't be together, they had to work closely together for a couple of years before they could even date. My mom said it was torture, she fell in love with him when they first met, but she thought he didn't care for her that way and my dad thought he could never be with my mother, so he tried to put distance between them. Here we are, over 30 years later and they're happily married with six kids and two grandchildren."
A confused look crossed over Paige's face. "Why couldn't your parents be together?"
Tess took a sip of her drink to buy herself some time. Maybe it was time to tell her friend the whole truth, but this wasn't the place and she wanted to tell Griff everything first. "Someday, I'll tell you the whole sorted, romantic story."
"Mozzarella sticks and chicken fingers," Kevin announced, setting the food down in front of them. "Anything else?"
Twenty minutes later, happily full of margaritas and fried food, Tess and Paige made their way back out into the sticky, July heat.
"Yeah! Voltron!"
Tess chose to ignore the guy from the bar as she walked past him and his friend.
"Let's take a quick walk around before I head back to the bookstore," Paige said. "I heard a rumor that my old English teacher is volunteering at the dunk tank. I really want to dunk him. Jerk. Gave me a 'B' on my Of Mice and Men book report, that was 'A' caliber work."
They stopped to buy lemonade from a church group before taking a few minutes to listen to the current band playing. Paige's former English teacher had been in the dunk tank the previous hour and she liked the math teacher too much to try and dunk her. They then stopped to buy homemade cookies from a local women's group before they headed back to their own places.
"You going to the fireworks later?" Paige asked.
"Yup. I'm meeting Griff at 8:45. Come with us."
"Uh, no, I don't want to be a third wheel."
"Oh stop. I'll text Griff and have him invite Kevin along."
"No! I don't want Griff to know, he has no tact, he'll just tell Kevin straight up that I like him."
"Well, someone has to."
Paige glared at her.
Tess grinned back. "All right, all right, I won't invite Kevin, but come with us anyway."
"We'll see."
The heat had not let up as the evening arrived and it was still quite warm as the sun set and the street lamps came on. Tess checked her watch as she stood in front of Flynn's. It was 8:43. The outdoor bar had been cleared and the liquor taken back inside. The tables out front were empty and the employees filed out of the bar.
"Hey, you guys going over to the park?" She asked Maggie and Jenna as they walked out.
"Yup. See you over there?" Jenna asked.
"As soon as Griff gets out here."
Paige appeared at her side. "All right, I'm here."
Tess smiled and leaned over to bump her shoulder with her own. "Glad to see you."
"Think Griff will give us margaritas to go?"
"Sorry, open container laws."
"Stupid government."
The door opened again and Kevin came out, followed by Griff who turned to lock the door.
"Hey, Kevin, you heading down to the park?" Tess asked.
"Nah, I've had enough of people today, I'm heading home."
"Oh come on, Paige is coming too."
"Yeah," Griff added. "We don't want her to be a third wheel all by herself."
"Gee, thanks," Paige grumbled.
Tess slipped her arm through Kevin's. "It has been a great day, it is a beautiful evening, join us!"
"But get your own woman," Griff added, taking Tess's hand and pulling her toward him.
The four of them followed the crowd from Main Street, up Pell Avenue one block, before turning left onto Elm Street to Hunter Park.
Every bench and picnic table was occupied, people sat on the swings and the slides, and blankets covered every possible inch of ground.
"Hm, I probably could've planned this better," Griff said.
"Over here," Kevin said, weaving around blankets and leading them through the park toward the baseball diamond on the other side of the playground. "Feel like, possibly, getting in trouble?"
"Of course," Paige replied.
"When we were kids, my little league team and I would climb up here," he explained, walking over to the dugout.
The back and sides of the dugout were covered with planks of wood, painted green, that had about three inches of space between each plank. Kevin stuck his foot into one of the spaces, reached up with his hands and boosted himself up onto the roof of the dugout. He leaned down and offered Paige a hand as she pulled herself up. Tess and, finally Griff, followed.
All four of them sat on the edge of the dugout roof, looking out over the field of people waiting for the show to start.
"Perfect seat," Tess whispered, leaning back to look up at the sky.
"I'm really surprised no one else thought of this," Kevin said.
"But they're stealing your idea." Paige pointed to the other dugout where they could make out the silhouettes of some people climbing on top.
The first rocket streaked through the air with a loud whistle, exploding over them in a bright flash of white. People "ohhed" and "ahhed" as more fireworks shot into the sky above them.
"Lay back," Kevin suggested. "That's the best way to watch them."
The four of them laid back to see a completely unobstructed view of the show.
Tess felt Griff's fingers brush over hers before he took her hand in his and squeezed gently. She stared up at the wide, star strewn sky as fireworks exploded above them. For the first time in weeks, she was feeling homesick. The distance between Arus and Terra suddenly seemed too far.
It took him weeks to plan and prepare, going to Cady, Gideon, and Brina's sister for help, but Declan knew it would all be worth it. He wanted the whole evening to be memorable and he thought that he might just have achieved that.
Declan had been happy and excited, feeling like he had a mission now, something to work towards. He and Brina had been dating for nearly seven years, except for a few months off that he didn't like to think about. He had been happy in their life together, it was safe, it was fun. But it was time to move forward if he wanted to make some changes. The entire team had worked so hard for so long to secure the safety of Arus and now was as good a time as any to make her his wife and plan their family.
"You ready for this?" Gideon asked as he watched his brother pace.
"I think so. Do you think it's too much?"
Gideon shrugged. "For you? No. When is she coming home?"
"She's supposed to be back in fifteen minutes."
"Okay, I'll let you get ready." Gideon stood up. "Good luck, man, I'll see you after she says yes."
Declan crossed over to hug his brother. "Thanks, for everything."
"Any time."
When he was alone, Declan went back to the mirror over his dresser and checked his hair. He wore the tux he had bought for Gideon's wedding, the ring in his pocket. After running his brush through his hair again, Declan took a deep breath to calm his nerves and left.
Brina was out shopping with her sister. When she returned to the castle, she would go to her bedroom where a single red rose would be laying in the middle of her bed on top of a piece of paper with the note: Please come to the rose garden.
Declan paced the pathway in the rose garden, waiting for her. The garden had started with six bushes, but his father added to it over the years until there were nearly three dozen bushes in a rainbow of blooms: red, pink, white, yellow, and hybrids. They were at the height of their bloom and the scent was sweet and welcoming, it always reminded Declan of home.
The sun was just setting, the sky streaked pink, yellow and orange as stars started popping out over the indigo sky. Insects and frogs were creating the soundtrack as Declan stopped beside a bush of yellow roses and looked up to see the two and a quarter moons.
"Declan?"
He turned quickly at the uncertain voice. "I'm here."
Brina followed the trail of rose petals he had sprinkled along the path to where he stood, waiting for her. "Hi."
"Hi."
"So…what's up?"
Declan stepped to her, taking her hands in his. For a moment, he just looked at her, his nerves taking over him as she looked up at him, expectantly. "Brin, I love you."
"I love you too," she whispered.
"I've been doing a lot of thinking lately. I've been feeling restless and stuck, I missed adventure and excitement. I found myself trying to figure out what I want to do, where I want to go. And it seemed like everything led me back to one conclusion."
Declan released her hands and took the ring box out of his pocket. Getting down on one knee, he opened the ring box and presented the ring to her.
Brina gasped and clapped both hands over her mouth.
"Thank you, so much, for giving me another chance when I know I didn't deserve it. Thank you for understanding me when I didn't always understand myself. You are the best person I've ever known, the most beautiful woman, inside and out, that I've ever known. Being with you has made me a better man. I realize now that I have waited too long. I am ready. I am ready to be your husband. I am ready to have a family with you. I hope you're ready to be my wife because I know now that this would be the next great adventure. Will you marry me, Brina, and start this adventure?"
"Oh! Oh, Declan…yes, of course! Yes!"
"Really?"
"Yes, really."
Getting to his feet Declan wrapped his arms around her, pressing his lips to hers in an excited kiss. Brina wound her arms around his neck and held him tightly to her.
He lifted his head and looked down at her, tears burning his own eyes as he saw the tears on her cheeks. "I love you."
"I love you too. And it's about damn time."
"I don't want to wait. Gid and Lynnai waited almost three years after he proposed, I want to do it a lot sooner."
"Me too. We'll have to talk to your mom and see when the soonest possible date we can marry is."
He kissed her again. "Yes, I like that idea."
"Declan?"
"What?"
"Where's my ring?"
"Oh, yeah, sorry." In his excitement, he forgot to give it to her, but when he looked at the box, it was empty. "Oh, oh shit. Where is it?"
"Where did it go?" She asked, looking around.
"It must've fallen out when I hugged you." Declan took a step back, looking down on the ground. Not seeing it, he fell to his knees, running his hands over the path.
Brina fell to her knees beside him, searching. "Dec, get up, you're in a tux."
"Forget the tux, where is it? It had to be an emerald and I had to drop it in the grass."
"Don't worry, we'll find it." She ran her hands over the grass. "It has to be here somewhere."
"I had this whole thing, perfectly planned out, I designed the ring, I set up this romantic proposal and then I drop the damn ring." He muttered.
Brina grabbed his shoulder and forced him to turn to her. "It was perfect."
"Nearly," he said, disappointedly.
Laughing, she threw herself at him and tackled him onto the grass. "I love you so much, Declan. I love that you planned all this out, I love that you designed my ring, and I love that you proposed perfectly."
"But it can't be perfect until my ring is on your finger."
"We'll find it." She kissed him. "It's here and we'll find it. You really designed it?"
He brushed her hair back from her face. "I did. It took forever for me to make it just right and it is so perfect for you."
A tear fell from her eye and landed on his cheek.
Declan gently rolled over until she was beneath him and leaned down to kiss her.
"Ow, ow wait." Brina reached under her back and pulled her ring out from under her.
"That's it!" Declan exclaimed, snatching it from her hand and sitting up. "Give me your hand."
Brina sat up and her hand trembled as she held it out to him.
Dec took a moment to brush the dirt off and pull a blade of grass out from beneath the setting before sliding it on her finger.
"It is perfect," she breathed, holding her hand out in front of her.
"It fits?"
"Mm hm." She swallowed, too moved to speak.
He kissed her cheek. "This makes it official."
"I need to call my mom," Brina said quietly, not looking away from her ring.
He laughed. "I had a feeling you would say that."
"My parents were starting to think you'd never propose."
"I was comfortable with where we were, I was afraid of screwing it up."
"You were afraid of screwing it up by getting married and having a family?"
"No, I was afraid of screwing it up if you didn't accept my proposal and I ruined everything we have."
Brina cupped his cheek in her hand. "How could you think I'd say no?"
Declan shrugged.
"Didn't you know what I would say?"
He shook his head. "It's weird. My…my gift gives me insight as to what people close to me are going to be going through, but I never know when something affects me as directly as this does. Like, I knew when Cady, Lynnai, and Sky were all expecting, but I won't know when you are. It's kind of like a mean trick being played on me by my bloodline."
"I don't know, I don't think its mean," she said. "I think it's wonderful that you will still have surprises in your life."
"And you were the best surprise of all," he whispered, leaning close. "When you first took over flying Green, I never thought I would be sitting in the rose garden, proposing to you."
She leaned in, stopping just a breath away from him. "And I'm so glad you are."
Declan gave her a quick kiss before getting up and offering her his hand. "Come on, let's go tell your mom."
Brina let him haul her to her feet before brushing the grass and dirt from the back of her pants. "She's going to freak out."
"In a good way?" He asked, helping her brush the grass from her hair.
"In a great way. Oh, Dec, turn around, you're covered in grass."
"You tackled me," he muttered, turning so she could brush off the back of his jacket.
"I couldn't help it, you were so cute and disappointed and I just wanted to kiss you."
"Come on." He took her left hand in his and started down the path. "Before it gets too late for you to tell her tonight."
But instead of heading toward the castle, Declan led her around to the lake. There, two picnic tables were laden with champagne and delectable treats. Lanterns hung from the trees and a string quartet sat at the ready as all the members of her family and his extended family waited, watching.
Declan lifted their joined hands. "She said yes!"
A cheer went up as they were quickly surrounded by their loved ones. The quartet started playing and the party began.
Brina looked around, shocked and a little overwhelmed. "What is going on?"
Declan leaned over and whispered in her ear. "I knew you'd want to share this with your family, so I figured, why wait?"
She grinned up at him. "Thank you."
"Thank you." He gave her a quick kiss before Brina was grabbed by her sister in a bear hug and he was a surrounded by his siblings.
They celebrated long into the night, champagne flowed and sweets were eaten. A section of lawn was turned into an impromptu dance floor as the quartet played fast and slow songs. Allura teared up as one more of her children began the next step in their lives and she begrudgingly agreed that a wedding could be planned in six months, as long as they sent out the invitations within the next two weeks.
Declan was over the moon, tossing his jacket over a picnic bench and untying his bowtie, letting it hang around his neck as he danced with his fiancée. She laughed, riding high on her happiness and a couple of glasses of champagne.
When he walked her back to her room, well after midnight, Brina was still smiling and holding her left hand out in front of her.
"We're getting married," she sighed.
"We are."
"I can't believe you set up an entire party."
"I knew you'd want to share this with our families and I knew I'd want to celebrate."
"Oh, our celebrating is just beginning," she teased, dragging him into the bedroom with her.