[When do you need to propose, dear uncle?]

Chapter 59:

[When do you need to propose?] Marc sent a message to his uncle. He was sitting leisurely on his office chair that looked like his throne in the company.

The filial grand-nephew just received a list of proposal ideas from Alex on his computer. They were all amazing. Some were over the top, some were sweet and simple.

When he checked them one by one, Marc was very impressed. Even a man who was not interested in marriage like himself was touched by the beauty of some of the proposals.

"Gosh.. this is all so good," Marc wiped his wet eyes and gulped down a big glass of water. "My uncle will be so happy."

He couldn't decide which proposal ideas to send Loriel. They were too many and all were nice. In fact, Marc wasted so much time today just to check them and visualize the perfect proposals.

Now, he had to go back to work. Hmm.. which proposal ideas he should send to his grumpy uncle?

Loriel would beat the crap out of him if Marc sent him dozens of ideas, instead of short-listing the options. He didn't like hassle.

"Okay… I better check with my uncle to understand his preference".

Finally, Marc decided. That's why he sent the text message to Loriel and asked him more details about Loriel's own ideas for the perfect proposal.

[As soon as possible.] Came the reply from Loriel.

Marc scratched his head. Even though he knew his uncle was sometimes weird and unpredictable, he was still astonished by the reply. He had his suspicion that Loriel and Elise had an unusual relationship.

What it was exactly, Marc didn't know.

He read his uncle's reply and quickly typed another message.

[Do you like fancy and luxurious proposal ideas, or simple and sweet?]

[What I like doesn't matter. What Elise like is what's important.]

Marc didn't know he could receive dog food remotely in this way. Seriously! His uncle sounded like a sweet puppy whenever he talked about Elise. His affection and love was so obvious.

Wait… this made Marc think. Loriel and Elise went to Japan together and he arranged for them to share the same bedroom in all their accommodations wihile they were on the holiday.

Marc wondered if something happened between Elise and Loriel in Japan. If the took advantage of the opportunities created by Marc, then, no wonder Loriel could think about proposing to Elise this fast.

Did they have sex?

Marc's mind went wild with guesses and imaginations. They must have had sex…he thought with a lew smile on his face.

He thought his uncle was often annoying because he had not done it for too long. Maybe after he finally got his release, he would change and become a nicer man?

Ha. It would be interesting to see, Marc thought again.

SLAP

He suddenly slapped himself. He was supposed to be taking care of his uncle's once in a lifetime proposal. Not thinking about older people's sex lives.

[I think Elise would prefer something simple, sweet and personal.] Marc replied.

[Then, you know what to do.] Loriel replied again.

[Ah, okay then.]

Marc quickly chose five of the best sweet and simple proposals from the list and sent them to Lorie. Since they were simple, Loriel could take care of them easily and propose to Elise even today, if he wanted it.

Loriel narrowed his eyes and opened his phone. He checked the ideas sent by Marc and tapped his fingers while reading them.

Hm… Marc had good taste, he thought proudly. It must be the Ashborn's gene.

***

Elise York was an ordinary young woman who happened to find herself dating one of the most eligible bachelors in the entire world. Now, Elise didn't know any of that and she considered herself far from normal with her ability to use her power.

But Elise didn't expect what would happen once she arrived back at the penthouse after working.

There was soft music that played in the background. It was similar to twinkling chimes, crystals and violins and was a harmonious melody.

When she stepped inside, beautiful, purple and soft jacaranda flower petals fell all over her and were littered across the entire penthouse.

It reminded her of the day at NYC's Central Park where she first went with Loriel.

Huh? Was there a jacaranda tree here? She knew the sky garden outsisde of the penthouse had many beautiful plants, but she didn't remember seeing a jacaranda tree.

Did Loriel just planted it? Or, maybe Elise was too unobservant and didn't pay attention on such things.

Gosh.. why was the penthouse filled with flower petals today? She was wondering.

Elise could already tell that Loriel prepared something special for her, but she didn't know what kind of surprise he'd done for her.

"Loriel?" Elise called out but received no immediate answer.

The man truly wanted to put an effort into making her smile, Elise's heart fluttered a little as she walked in and placed her bag on the sofa.

All around her were little things that made her remember their time together for the past months. There were ornamental Japanese ramen bowls that were placed near the entrance.

Several pictures of their time together seemed to pin the walls with beautiful photography. Whether it was from their recent trip to Japan or the seemingly unimportant days, Loriel managed to take a picture.

There was Elise holding snow with a great smile on her face.

The two cats, Pott and Pebbles, laid on their backs and showed off their tummies.

Even the every-day cooking that Loriel did or the baking that Elise tried to do were decorating the walls like garlands of memory.

Elise noticed the trail of flower petals that was leading her to her bedroom. Her heart started pounding louder as she noticed the smell of freshly cut flowers in the air, a fragrance sweet and subtle.

Similar to Christmas, Elise wasn't sure when Loriel took the chance to decorate at all.

Once she finally stepped inside of the bedroom, Elise was almost expecting her bed to be covered in red rose petals with Loriel probably waiting for her to join him in bed… contrary to such expectations, the man was sitting in one of the plush chairs but not the bed.

The gentle music played more visibly in her ears.

It happened to be the exact song that was playing when they attended the Christmas Gala and danced in each other's arms. How Loriel found the song and figured it out was amazing in and of itself.

But there was something else that Loriel wanted to do for her.

"Welcome home, Elise," Loriel whispered gently to her.

Elise smiled a little and nodded. Her heart fluttered as she cast her glance around and batted her eyes, still couldn't believe what she saw. "What's all of this, Loriel?"

Loriel stood up to his feet and approached her, almost as if he was going to ask her to dance, but then he fell on one knee and held out his hand. "Elise, you know how much you mean to me."

Elise's eyes widened at his sudden actions. She knew where this was leading up to now.

Loriel smiled gently at her and took her hand. "The past months that we've been together are the most colorful and bright periods of my life. You made my life infinitely better and I couldn't imagine spending the rest of my life without you by my side."

Elise didn't say anything at first.

She knew that she shouldn't interrupt Loriel as he was only starting. His words reminded her of his first confession during their Christmas dinner, but the weight of his words this time was more heavy and substantial.

This wasn't just Loriel revealing his affections for her but his intentions as well.

Loriel wanted to be by her side.

It wasn't enough to be just girlfriend and boyfriend anymore, Loriel wanted more. He wanted to be with her in the closest way a couple could ever be together. Loriel wanted her to be his wife and him to become her husband.

He wanted things to be the way they used to be.

"I want to wake up each day and find you here with me. And I do not mean just in the same penthouse or across different rooms, but I want to wake up in the morning and find you sleeping in the same bed as me. I'd want to wake up to see your face, to have you in my arms and show you how much I love you."

Loriel cleared his throat.

He was speaking from the heart but he was almost afraid that it would scare Elise away. This was a sudden proposal and he prepared as best as he could to make her remember all of the good and precious times that they were together.

The two of them were a team, partners, and a match that suited one another like no other.

"This is sudden, I know," Loriel said as he gently kissed her hand. "You don't have to say a word because I'm aware of it already."

Elise was at a loss for words. She had that look on her face that held surprise and shock.

But Loriel pushed through it with a small laugh.

"And yet when I think about what I'd want our life to be like in the future, this is the only thing I can imagine. The two of us together as husband and wife, that's all I ever want. It's all I could ever ask for, Elise. I'm already the happiest man alive to have you here with me, and I want to make you happier too if you could let me."

Loriel looked at his wife with his best puppy eyes.. He bit his lip, hoping to hear her saying she would accept his proposal.