Chapter 62- Saying yes
Purple, blue and pink lights danced along the stage. Slow music played in the background as the crowd screamed and egged Tessa on. “Say yes! Say yes!”
Aaron gulped as he held up the ring at Tessa. His heart was beating like a drum as he waited with bated breath for Tessa to respond.
It had been a few minutes already and her silence was starting to worry him. He glanced at her and noticed that she was staring at him with a gaze that he couldn’t fathom.
‘Is she going to say no?” His stomach twisted with nerves. He had planned to propose to her a few weeks later but what David Kingsley had said made him hasten his plans.
It was a wake-up call. More men would want to try their luck with Tessa as long as she was not married.
Tessa was someone he couldn’t bear to lose again. It was a miracle that she gave him a second chance despite how he had treated her in the past. He would be a fool to let her slip through his fingers again. Thus, he decided to propose to her earlier than he planned to.
Aaron called his friends over and hired a choreographer who helped them learn the dance they just performed. It was a simple dance that the kids could easily muster because he wanted to include them in the important event.
In the morning, he called Michelle and gave her his black card after instructing her to take Tessa for dinner and a massage before taking her to the concert he had organised.
His only hope was that Tessa loved him enough to want to spend the rest of her life with him. He mistook Tessa’s silence for hesitation and his heart dropped to his stomach.
He glanced at her and affirmed, “Tessa, I promise to love and cherish you for as long as I live. Please, marry me.”
On the other hand, Tessa felt a sting in her eyes at Aaron’s words. Tears rolled down her cheeks as her heart exploded. It wasn’t like she didn’t want to respond. For a moment, she was bereft of words. She stilled, her heart pounding like a galloping horse as she registered what was happening.
She had seen the ring in Aaron’s safe but she didn’t expect him to propose like this. She felt touched and she couldn’t stop sobbing.
The butterflies in her stomach went wild. She could have sworn there was a whole zoo in there from the way it was fluttering.
Aaron saw her tears and he found himself shedding a few too. He said, “I swear to never hurt you again. All these people, our friends, our parents and our children will serve as my witnesses. My only goal in this life will be to make you happy.”
Tessa gasped and wiped her tears that kept falling. Her heart fluttered like a hummingbird’s wings and she felt over the moon. A smile crossed her lips as she stared at Aaron lovingly.
However, she was yet to answer and it was making Aaron nervous. The knot in his stomach tightened as he waited patiently.
‘Please say yes, my love.’ He said silently.
Someone from the crowd suddenly shouted, “Girl, if you don’t want him, give him to me! I’ll gladly marry him!”
That seemed to snap Tessa out of her trance. She wiped her tears and looked at the crowd saying, “Sorry, this man is mine.”
She then glanced at Aaron and nodded. “Yes!”
“Really?” Aaron asked, not believing his ears.
His heart thundered excitedly but he still wanted to confirm Tessa’s reply.
“Yes, Aaron. I’ll marry you,” Tessa repeated as more tears rolled down her cheeks.
Aaron stilled for a moment so Tessa stuck out her left hand for him to slip the ring on. Seeing that, Aaron snapped out of his trance and quickly got to his feet.
He grabbed Tessa’s hand and slipped the diamond ring on her fourth finger. He caressed her hand briefly before cupping the back of her head and crashing his lips on hers.
Suddenly, they were propelled up into the air by a segment of the stage that was movable. Fireworks exploded as they twirled all the way up. They kissed like no man’s business while on the small segment of the stage.
A round of applause erupted through the crowd. The kids glanced up at their parents and cheered too.
“Wow! Daddy is so cool,” Willa chirped.
When the movable segment of the stage returned to the initial stage, the kids rushed to their parents, screaming, “Daddy! Mommy!”
Aaron whipped around, he and Tessa both lowered themselves and they both embraced the triplets.
“Are we going to stay together now, Daddy?” Reagan asked.
Aaron glanced at Tessa hopefully and said, “Well, what do you think, mama bear?”
Tessa blushed as they stood up straight. She ruffled Reagan’s hair and said, “Not yet, baby. We need to get officially married first.”
Although Aaron was a little disappointed, he understood why Tessa only wanted to move in with him when they were officially a married couple. She wanted security and he was willing to do everything he could to make her feel safe.
He cleared his throat and remarked, “In a month son. I’m going to marry your mother and we shall live together.”
Tessa’s eyes grew wide. “A month? Isn’t that too soon?”
“If it were up to me… I would marry you now. However, since it’s our first wedding, I want it to be the best of the best,” Aaron responded.
The concert was done so after watching the proposal, people began to leave. Aaron’s friends stepped closer to the family and congratulated them on their engagement.
Edmund, Elena and Michelle also got on the stage to wish them well.
Edmund embraced Tessa and said, “I’ve always wanted to have more children. Especially daughters. Now I have more. Congratulations on your engagement!”
Tessa’s face flushed. She returned Edmund’s embrace and replied, “Thank you, Uncle.”
Edmund pulled away from the hug and said, “Uncle? Call me Dad, like Aaron. You’re part of the family now.”
Tessa gazed at Aaron and when he nodded at her, she shyly said to Edmund, “Thank you, Dad.”
“That’s more like it,” Edmund remarked and added, “Well, I’m still not fully healed. I know there’s a barbeque at the mansion but I won’t be joining you young people.”
Aaron smiled and said, “I know Dad. I had invited Celia but it seems she couldn’t make it.”
Edmund shook his head and replied, “I won’t be surprised if she makes a dramatic entrance. You know your sister can be quite a handful.”
Tessa furrowed her brows. She recalled Aaron had mentioned that he was an only child. She rounded her eyes at him, giving him a questioning gaze and he mouthed at her, “I’ll explain.”
He glanced at everyone and said, “Let’s all meet at the mansion for a small barbeque to celebrate our engagement.”
When he led Tessa and the children to the car, he explained. “It was very lonely when my mom passed away. Dad took me on a tour around the city to check on his investments. That’s when we stumbled upon Celia. She was taking care of her sick grandmother at that time so she was doing odd jobs to make ends meet. She was just four years older than me and she was suffering like that.
She used to sell children’s shoes as a street vendor and so when Dad was inspecting a piece of land that he wanted to purchase, she saw me with him and was brave enough to approach my Dad despite how imposing he looked. Even though she was selling counterfeit shoes, Dad bought them for me and decided to adopt her because he was impressed with her negotiating skills. He changed her last name and she became my elder sister. One thing about my father is that he doesn’t discriminate. Since she was older, he decided she was the right person to inherit the business, However, she fell in love with someone he didn’t approve of and left.”
“Really? I thought you were the only heir,” Tessa remarked.
“I was for a short while before you and the kids came into my life. Celia relinquished her rights to inherit since she married someone from a rival company. Dad can be a bit stubborn. sometimes. But I am very sure she’s included in his will and he will share his properties. between us equally, I know he seemed harsh at first but he’s a good father. I hope you don’t blame him for how he treated you earlier,” Aaron replied.
Tessa smiled and said, “So you were an only child for a short time. Celia came along and accompanied you. I’m sure it no longer felt lonely.”
Aaron nodded and chuckled, “Yes. I wanted you to meet her but it seems she’s still not comfortable to face Dad after their last fight.’
11
The family and friends drove to the Wentworth mansion. Edmund and Elena retired early, leaving the young ones to party.
Aaron took the kids to their room to tuck them in. They were all hyper and kept being chatty with no signs of going to sleep soon.
“Daddy, are we going to live with Grandpa?” Nia asked as she sat on Aaron’s lap, playing with
his shirt.
“Do you want to live with him?” Aaron inquired.
Nia nodded and replied, “Yes. He’s always alone here. I feel sorry for him.”
“Ok. We can live with him and your grandma in our new family villa,” Aaron promised.
Tessa smiled when she saw this. A little while later, the kids finally got tired and slept. Tessa and Aaron were walking to the garden to join their friends when Tessa mentioned, “Do you know that Nia used to be very quiet? But ever since we came back and you came into the kid’s lives, she’s been more open and jovial. Thank you for being a loving father.”
Aaron smiled. He laced his fingers with Tessa’s and claimed, “You did well on your own. Now I’m here. I’ll never leave you to raise the kids alone ever again.”
When they got to the garden, Tony called out to them and raised his glass, “The engaged couple is finally here. Come and have a drink. We want to give a toast to your happiness.”
Tessa noticed that Michelle and Graham were being awkward. They were standing next to each other but they couldn’t meet each other’s eyes. She smiled inwardly and shook her head. ‘They are a perfect match since they are both stubborn.’
Aaron gave her a glass and poured her some wine. When all the glasses were filled, Tony raised his glass and said, “I would like to give a toast to Tessa and Aaron.”
He looked at Tessa and added, “Tessa, we were all there when Aaron lost you. He was like a living dead. I can confirm and reassure you that he would never make the mistake of hurting you ever again. Congratulations to the both of you on your engagement.”
The rest followed, “Congratulations.”
They clinked glasses but just as they were about to drink the wine, a female voice stopped them. “I can’t believe you were going to start the engagement celebration without me.”
When they glanced at the entrance, they saw a female with blonde hair in a sexy red dress. Aaron furrowed his eyebrows. He said curtly, “This is when you’re coming? You’re late.”
The female smirked and gracefully walked to the table, grabbing the glass of wine from Tony’s hand. She remarked, “Oh no, you’re wrong, baby bro. The party is just getting started.”
