The Proposal
By Laury A. Egan
Summer 2024
Dean removed the black velvet box from his pocket, flipped open the lid, and admired the ring. White gold with a tiny, Asscher-cut diamond. Simple, elegant, and expensive. It had cost over $2,000, which was more than he could afford, yet nothing was too good for Rafael, his lover for the last nine years. Engraved inside was an inscription: para siempre. Forever was his intention.
He and Rafa been considering an end to their relationship so that Dean’s proposal gave him an excuse to leave? Dean couldn’t believe this was true, but neither did he understand how Rafa’s parents could influence a grown man’s decisions. Rafa was forty-eight. Financially independent, a successful business owner, who no longer attended church or seemed to hold the strong religious beliefs that his parents did.
Whatever had just happened, Dean was drowning in fear, disappointment, and embarrassment, and laid on top of these emotions was a thick layer of confusion. What should he do? The idea of facing Rafa was unimaginable. He was too ashamed, too upset, with a small ember of anger firing up, though at the same time, Dean worried that he should have anticipated Rafa’s reaction to his proposal. Was this all his fault? Should he apologize to Rafa?
Dean finished the Champagne and ate some cheese so the alcohol wouldn’t go to his head and cloud his judgment. “Too late for that,” he muttered to himself. “Your judgment is already clouded.”
After pocketing the box, signing the hotel chit, and placing a tip under his glass, Dean came to his feet and descended the steps, rounded the hotel, and walked to the front entrance. Their rental car was still parked in the driveway, which was a relief until Dean remembered the keys were in his possession because he had driven them from St. Ives. He continued on, scanning the lush garden and the mini-pond encircled by stone. No sign of Rafa. Had he returned to their room, packed, and headed for the harbor? It was about a half-hour walk into Port Isaac. Longer if one was pulling a suitcase. But would Rafa really abandon him?
Dean hurried inside, ran upstairs, and unlocked the door. Rafa’s clothes were still in the closet. He exhaled a tight breath, though the instant he did this, he realized another confrontation was unavoidable. Sitting in an armchair, he waited, consumed with worry about losing Rafa and thinking how sad his mother had been these last years, living alone after the death of Dean’s father. If he and Rafa split, he would never find anyone so perfect and would grow old alone.
The room grew dark as night settled over the hotel. Finally, the door opened and Rafa entered. He came to a stop beside the bed.
Neither spoke. The silence acquired an unbearable brittleness that Dean had never experienced before with Rafa.
Dean rose and stepped toward him. “I’m sorry. I guess I really screwed up.”
Rafa placed his hands on Dean’s arms. “No, you didn’t. I’m the one who’s sorry.”
They stared at one another. Dean had no idea what Rafa’s apology meant. As he was about to ask, Rafa smiled.
“Do they have a second ring at the jeweler’s?”
For a second, Dean was baffled. “Was there something wrong with—”
Rafa laughed. “Nothing wrong with the ring. It’s lovely. I just want to buy the same one for you. For our wedding.”
Dean blinked. “What?”
Rafa pulled Dean into his arms and whispered, “Will you marry me?”
“But your parents?”
“I’ll send them a wedding invitation. They’ll either come or they won’t. Now, answer me.”
Dean swallowed hard. “Yes! Oh, my love, yes.”
They exchanged a long kiss. When they broke apart, Rafa said, “So, are you going to put it on my finger?”
Dean pulled the box from his pocket and removed the ring. “Are you sure?”
“I’m sure,” Rafa replied. He turned on the light by the bed.
Dean slipped the diamond ring onto Rafa’s finger. It fit, just as Dean hoped it would.
Rafa displayed his hand and admired the sparkle of the stone. Then he kissed and hugged Dean. “How about we show this off at dinner?”
“There’s a second bottle of Perrier-Jouët on ice.”
“Good, because we need to make an official toast.”
Dean hesitated, afraid to ask. “So what changed your mind?”
Rafa smiled. “Well, you’re here. You’re my future. My parents are in Miami, and as much as I love them, they’re the past. I want a life together with you.”
“I’m so happy!”
“Good. Now I’m thirsty.”
“You always are,” Dean said, laughing.
After leaving their room, they descended the stairs and made an entrance into the lobby, holding hands, which they never did in public. When the bartender saw them, Rafa raised his hand to exhibit the ring. The bartender cheered, and everyone began clapping.
“Kiss! Kiss!” someone shouted.
Rafa and Dean happily obliged.
Laury A. Egan is the author of Fog and Other Stories and fourteen novels, including The Black Leopard’s Kiss & The Writer Remembers, The Psychologist’s Shadow, The Swimmer, and Once, Upon an Island. Four poetry volumes have been published: Snow, Shadows, a Stranger; Beneath the Lion’s Paw; The Sea & Beyond, and Presence & Absence. Eighty-five of her stories and poems have appeared in literary journals. Her website: www.lauryaegan.com