“He’s a taxidermist. Not a tailor.”
“Portia is going to have quite the opinion about your, uh, fashion statement.”
“The costume isn’t a fashion statement. It’s a love statement. Seven years ago, I rescued Rachel from an embarrassing lemur costume malfunction. It’s sentimental.”
“You’re just weird, honey. Admit it and move on.”
He grinned at her. “That, too.”
Deanna started toward the kitchen, then paused by the unplastered wall and ran her fingertips over a taped seam in the sheetrock. “Trey sure does good work.”
“Yep. And he’s better off as my builder than he was as Colleen’s boyfriend.”
“They only went out on three dates. He wasn’t her boyfriend.”
“Colleen only ever goes out on three dates, Mom. She’s cursed.”
“She is not cursed!”
“She didn’t get the nickname Third Date Colleen for nothing. He still hates her.” Choosing Trey to do the work here had been a gamble, mostly because it meant hearing Colleen chew him out about it. The two avoided each other, and Kell made it clear he wanted nothing to do with their conflict.
He just wanted great work.
“I can’t believe he’s still obsessed over that little incident?”
“Little incident? Mom! Trey’s still called ‘Slicer’ because of that ‘little incident.’ Nearly cut off his–” Kell looked down at his own crotch and cleared his throat, “–with a hedge trimmer, right after their third date.”
“How is that her fault? He was doing landscaping and tripped on a ladder!”
“It’s not. Not directly. But you have to admit, it’s kind of weird. Colleen goes out with a guy. After the third date, he ends up in her emergency room, injured.”
“She’s an ER nurse in a small town! Where else are they going to go?”
“Last I counted, there’ve been six guys she’s made it to the third date with, and then something bad happened.”
“But it’s not every guy.”
“The ones who have a third date with her, yes.”
Deanna frowned, eyebrows knitting, clearly searching her memory banks for a retort. Kell and his oldest brother, Dennis, favored their mom, with dark hair and bright ice-gray eyes; Colleen and Luke looked more like their dad, with blue eyes that turned down at the corners and sandy blond hair. Watching his mother frown made him wonder if he had the same mannerisms.
Rachel often commented on how the Luview family seemed so intertwined with each other, interconnected not just by familial bond but by something more. When he pressed, she couldn’t give specifics.
Just a feeling.
Which was more than enough for Kell.
“Let’s stop talking about Colleen’s love life and focus on yours,” his mom said as she went to the kitchen sink, reached for a small bar of soap, and came back to stand before him. “Let me guess. Cheap metal zipper?”
“You are clairvoyant.”
“No. I’ve just bought enough cheap stuff over the years to know a bad zipper when I see one. This costume is horrible.”
“It’s fine!”
“It looks like something Randy the moose would try to mate with in the wild.”
“Randy tried to mate with the trailer at Kenny’s place when Rachel stayed there.”
“See? Randy has terrible taste, and this costume is terrible.”
“It’s all I’ve got, so stop criticizing it and start helping me,” he said in a tone that revealed more anxiety than he would have liked.
That stopped Deanna short.
“Oh, sweetie. I’m sorry. You’re nervous, aren’t you?”
“No.”
“It’s normal.”
“I’m not nervous. Why would I be nervous? I’ve been with Rachel for two years. Living with her for nearly a year. We get along great. Better than great. I love her more than life itself. She’s the most amazing person I’ve ever met, and I can’t wait to make her my wife. What’s there to be nervous about?”
“How about the fact that Portia, Stan, and Tim are all hiding at the Love You Forever Inn and Chapel, you’re going to perform an acoustic guitar version of “I Will Always Love You” in front of the whole town, then ask Rachel to marry you, plus there’s a flashmob, then her parents and brother are going to come here and stay in the guest cabin for three days, and–”
“Got it. Now I’m about to have a full-blown panic attack hearing it put that way. Thanks, Mom.”
“I can’t help with that, but I can unstick a zipper.”
His hands and feet turned cold. Heart started doing a reggae beat in his chest, double speed. His head felt like a calypso drum and his brain was wiped clean of all the notes to the song.
Fool.
He was a fool for thinking he could pull off such an elaborate scheme. Why hadn’t he just planned a private, quiet proposal at the hot springs?
What was he thinking with this grand gesture?
Deanna’s cool, calm fingers worked the zipper, reminding him of Halloweens past, his little body eagerly encased in a superhero costume. Spiderman. Iron Man. Thor.
Living in Luview meant trick-or-treating around the town common, the rural nature of the area making it impossible to go out much further to individual houses.
A flash of himself in fake superhero muscles made him almost smile.
Almost.
As his mom gently pulled up and down, clearing fabric and trying to get the stupid zipper tab to move smoothly, he really did begin to panic.
“This is a mess. I can’t pull this off! Rachel’s going to hate me. She hates surprises. When her parents show up, she’s going to be so confused, then enraged. I can’t propose to an enraged woman! Have you ever seen her when she’s furious? I’d rather face off against Randy while covered in female moose pheromones!”
“That’s… disturbing.” But Deanna didn’t stop working on the zipper.
“Mom! What am I doing?”
“Proposing to the woman you love.”
“That’s not what I meant.”
“I know what you meant. You’ll be fine. Just…”
“Just what?”
“Just remember this is about you and Rachel. Not anyone else.”
“It’s about you guys, too, though. We’re combining families.”
“Sure. But no matter what, the heart of all of this is you and Rachel, your love for each other. The rest is details.”
“Is that how it worked when Dad proposed to you?”
Kell’s phone rang before Deanna could answer, but she let out a satisfied “ahh!” as she slid the zipper to his chin.
Magic touch. His mom really did have a magic touch.
“You fixed it! It works!”
Eyes combing over him, his mom made a face as she planted her hands on her hips and sighed.
“The zipper is the only part of this costume that works, Kellan.”
He answered his phone and ignored her.
“Kell?” Rachel sounded breathless. “Where are you?”
“Running late.”
Deanna shot him a reproachful look, but giggled.
“I’m here at the festival. I really need you.”