It was my favorite kind of night.

The one where it seems every star in the night sky is shining. A thousand star night.

The trees moved quietly in the breeze, and the water lolled underneath my raft. I shut my eyes and I could remember what it had felt like when I'd floated in the summer months; the heat and warmth, the brightness.

But a cold wind caught me and brought me back to tonight, and I curled more into my bathrobe. I felt my feet hit spider rock and I opened my eyes.

I should've known he'd be there. Of course he would be. That was my Will.

"Hey." He said softly. His eyes still looked sad and worried. He knew that even if I had said yes, that it really had meant nothing. I think he knew I had been caught up in the moment.

"Hi." I said, but looking away quickly.

"I'm sorry." He said. I could feel his eyes on me.

Sorry? For what?

He had a way of knowing exactly what I was thinking.

"I was wrong to spring this up on you. This… marriage thing. I thought it would be the only way to keep you. The only way your parents would let you be with me. The only way they would trust me. I couldn't go to England by myself. And Lance and Jennifer are all caught up in their own worlds, they try to understand but they don't really, at least not like you, Elle."

He was sad. He knew he might have made a mistake and that hurt him.

I took a deep breath.

"I said yes, Will. I said yes, right now. No one can guess what might happen later on, things might change and that's what scares me. You wanted me to accept because you were scared to go it alone. I would be too. Anyone would. But just so you know, I would have gone proposal or no proposal. Your mother would have gone, and believe it or not, if you asked him, your father. My parents as well, Mr. Morton too. You Don't have to go through this alone."

I looked back up again and he was smiling.

"You are the smartest person I know, Elle Harrison."

I smiled back, and looked up at the sky.

"This is what we should do." I went on. "My parents literally would have a field day if the Order asked them to accompany Mr. Morton and you to Exeter. My father has been itching to study in England for ages and I'm sure there is some sort of opening for two professors willing to teach Medieval Studies."

Will laughed.

"So explain this idea to Morton, the order must already be uneasy that entire family outside the order knows about you and I'm sure they would love to keep an eye on us Harrisons."

The ideas were coming clear to me, flowing from my mind. This would be fairly simple. Geoff could come to. God knows someone needed to write down this story.

Will looked more hopeful now, his eyes beaming.

"You think this will work Harrison, don't you?"

I nodded.

"Of course it will."

"All right then I guess, better now than never." He said, getting up from Spider Rock.

I floated to the side of the pool and got out with ease, not a spot of me wet. Will took my hand and led me up to the house. He reached to open the door, when I pulled him back.

"Will?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you mind if we just try dating for now?" I asked, eyeing the outline of the ring box in jeans pocket.

He smiled and pulled me in for a kiss that made my heart flip.