When Lily gets engaged, she asks her stepfather for the heirloom ring her late mother promised her — only to find it’s gone. Her stepfather gave it to his daughter instead. But as grief turns to betrayal, one person quietly prepares to set things right: Lily’s sharp, unshakable Grandma Margaret.
Liam was down on one knee in the park.
My heartbeat kicked into overdrive as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a tiny velvet box.
I thought he’d been strangely excited when we arrived here today for a picnic, but I never imagined this was the reason.
I stared at him, taking in the goofy, love-struck grin stretched across his face. Was this it? The moment I’d been waiting for?
“Lily,” he said, his voice a touch shaky, “We’ve been together for six years.
During that time, we’ve overcome every hurdle that life threw at us and come out stronger. I can’t imagine my life without you in it. Will you marry me?”
He opened the box to reveal a simple gold band with a small, solitaire diamond.
“I wanted to propose with your mother’s ring,” he said quickly, “but I couldn’t find it in your jewelry box, so I got this one as a stand-in.”
I didn’t answer right away.
Instead, I just started to cry.
Not those delicate, ladylike tears you see in movies. No, these were full-blown, ugly sobs that shook my entire body.
It was pure, unadulterated joy, a tidal wave crashing over me. But right alongside it, this gaping hole, this raw, aching emptiness where Mom should have been.
“Of course, I’ll marry you,” I said between sobs.
Liam let out a sigh and slipped the ring on my finger.
I wiped my eyes as I took in the way the light danced across the diamond’s faceted surface.
“Carl still has Mom’s ring,” I said. “We spoke about the ring before she passed, but she went so fast at the end…”
“I remember.” Liam moved closer and put his arm around me. “I’m sorry she couldn’t be here for this moment.”
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