Maybe he should’ve done it differently. She’s still young, after all. She probably wanted a proper proposal. He grimaced. He should’ve made preparations before blurting that out. Still, he simply wanted to create an opening for Drew’s question. He’s sure Alena would agree.

He stood up and approached her. He took her into his arms.

“Don’t worry. I’ll give you a proper proposal. I just wanted to make my intentions clear. You’ve been hearing the boys asking about a marriage or a wedding. You shouldn’t feel embarrassed when they do. They already know that’s where this is going.”

Alena took a deep breath at his explanation. His words are too...