“It is,” Griffin agreed. “It’s bigger than the royal palace in Bellissime.”
“Lordamercy,” Maylee breathed as it came into sight. “That is some house.”
It was, Griffin had to agree. He knew it was an ancestral home for Hunter, but it reminded Griffin too much of the staid, remote palaces of his own childhood and he hated the place. It didn’t feel like a house nearly as much as his townhouse did. A place like this required constant upkeep, and Griffin was more interested in traveling to different archaeological sites than nursing a ramshackle mansion back to health.
But, to each their own.
Maylee clung to his hand when they pulled into the driveway. He nodded at Kip and gestured for him to park the car. Then, Griffin exited the car and held out his hand for Maylee to take.
She did, and they went up the expanse of stairs hand in hand.
When they got to the door, it opened and a beaming Gretchen greeted them. “Hey you two! Come on in. We just popped the champagne.”
“Oh? What are we celebrating?” Maylee asked, but her hand still clung tightly to Griffin’s and she didn’t follow Gretchen in.
“Nothing, yet.” She gave Griffin an exaggerated wink that made him want to strangle her, and then headed further into the house. “Come on. We’re hanging out in the Red Dining Room.”
They followed her through the maze of the house, Maylee exclaiming under her breath at the size of the place. He knew Buchanan Manor was intimidating, but now he was questioning the wisdom of this place for Maylee’s party. He wanted her to feel warmed and welcomed, not more isolated and out of place than ever.
So he squeezed her hand.
She looked at him, surprised, and then gave him a grateful smile and squeezed his hand back.
In the Red Dining Room, there was a small cluster of people standing around. He immediately felt Maylee stiffen, but he put his arm around her shoulders and gently steered her in. “Maylee,” he told her. “I want you to meet my friends.”
And he introduced her to Reese and Audrey, and Logan and Brontë. Both women were welcoming to Maylee, though they shot him curious looks from time to time. Maylee exclaimed over them in her soft, adorable accent, and he knew this party had been a good idea.
It was so obvious now. Introducing her to his friends seemed like the most reasonable thing in the world. Showing her that she belonged with him was such a small thing, but he could see from the glow on her cheeks that she was happy.
He should have thought of it sooner, rather than see her mope for a week.
She knew Hunter and Gretchen, of course, and he introduced her to Cade Archer, a good friend and the only man at the party flying solo. Cade never seemed to mind, though.
“Jonathan not here?” he asked him, but he already knew the answer. Jonathan had run off on business, something to take care of. Lately, his friend had been absent more and more.
Cade only shrugged as if to say, what can you do?
Once Maylee had met everyone, he grabbed them both glasses of champagne and pressed one into her hand. She took it from him, smiling but puzzled. “This looks like a party.”
“It is.”
“What are we celebrating?”
He looked at the people in the room, then back at Maylee. “I have something I want to tell you.”
Her eyes widened and he saw the uncertainty flash across her face again, though she did her best to hide it. “Oh?”
Griffin soldiered on. “You asked about my tattoo—”
Reese interrupted with a groan. “Oh, here we go. Worst kept secret ever.”
Audrey shushed him.
Griffin shot a scathing look at Reese, and then turned back to Maylee. He took a swig of his champagne, then set the glass down. He took her hand in his and noticed it was trembling. “Maylee, I am going to tell you something I’ve never told anyone else.” He paused, then exhaled slowly. “I’m . . . in a secret society. All of us are.”
Her brows wrinkled together. “Um, okay.”
He waited.
“Is that all?”
“It’s very secret,” he stressed. “It could ruin us financially if it got out. Six billionaires working together would mean we’d be investigated by every tax auditor in this country.”
“Okay,” she said, still giving him a puzzled look. “I won’t tell anyone. I thought this was something bad. As long as you guys don’t sacrifice kittens, I think I can handle it.”
“Only on holidays,” Gretchen joked, but Audrey shushed her.
He squeezed Maylee’s hand. “That information cannot leave this room. Do you understand what I’m trusting you with?”
She nodded. “I do. Thank you.”
Griffin smiled at her. “But that wasn’t what I asked you here for.”
Her brows drew down again. “It’s not?”
“No.” He looked over at Audrey.
She smiled and hurried forward, her loose blouse just barely hinting at her rounded pregnant stomach. She disappeared down the hall and returned with a small silver tray and a man at her side, who held a camera.
Griffin watched Maylee try to figure it out, frowning to herself. He took the box from Audrey, and then turned to Maylee. The box was velvet and oblong and she’d probably recognize the shape—inside it were the Verdi Emeralds. “You wore these once before, at the ball in Bellissime.”
Maylee’s smile was small, puzzled. “I remember. Big honking earrings and a necklace.”
He chuckled. “Those are the ones. There’s another piece that goes with this set, though, and I want you to have it.”
And he opened the box and pulled out a ring.
It wasn’t the most elegant or dainty of rings. Like the rest of the Verdi Emeralds, it was very old, square cut, and surrounded by tiny diamonds. It was a hideous beast of a ring.
Maylee’s eyes widened into saucers, just as the camera flashed in her face.
“I . . .” She stared at the ring. “What is this, Griffin?”
“That,” he said, gesturing at the photographer, “is a man working on a news article to send home to Bellissime about you and I.” He looked back at her, and then dropped to one knee. “Maylee . . .”
“Oh,” she breathed, frozen in place in front of him.
“I know I’ve been a right prat,” he began.
“Glad to hear him admit it,” he heard Gretchen mutter in the background.
He ignored her. “And I know you worry that I think you’re not good enough for me. So I wanted you to know how much I value you. These people in this room are the only family that have ever mattered to me. I stay in the States not because I don’t love my country, but because my family—my real family—is here. And now, you’re here.” He held the ring out to her. “And you’re the most beautiful, most worthy woman I have ever met and I never considered offering anyone this ring until I met you. Will you marry me?”