"Are you okay?" I ask, flipping my tie underneath and knotting it. Lexi keeps staring at me but when I catch her eye she looks away. 

"Uh yeah I'm fine. Are you okay? You seem nervous." she says quickly, smoothing her hands down her dress. She looks damn good in that blue shade and the material hugs every curve, taunting me to rip if off of her. 

"Lexi I'm fine. But you've been acting weird the last few days." I say, taking a step closer towards her.

When we got into Lake Tahoe, she was looking around like a photographer was going to jump out of the bushes and take her picture. When we were sitting around the fire the first night, she kept smoothing down her hair. Then on our hike, she kept staring at my dick, at least I think she was staring at my dick, and setting up her tripod to take pictures of us in front of the mountains. She seemed on edge and constantly making sure she looked perfect. It's not like her. 

"Nope I'm good." she answers, wrapping another strand of hair around her curling iron. She lets it sit there for a few seconds then unwinds the hair from the tool. I watch it fall down her back, cascading with the other waves. I want to wrap it in my fist and pull her back into bed, but we've already spent every spare minute we have in it. I'm afraid she might be a little sore especially after this morning. 

"You can talk to me you know?" I say, moving towards her and taking the iron from her. She looks forward, staring back at me in the mirror while I grab the loose strands at the back and wrap them around the iron. I've watched her struggle enough with trying to get every piece in the back that I know when it's my time to take over. 

"I'm okay really." she says, her voice a little shaky. I don't believe her for a second but I drop it anyway. 

"Okay. You look beautiful. The restaurant has a beautiful view of the lake that I'm sure you'll want to see." I tell her, finishing the last of her hair. She fluffs it out with her hand and adds some hairspray to it before applying her lipstick. 

"Sounds great. We should see that first." she says, grabbing her purse and heading for the door. I grab my coat and keys then follow her out the door, hoping she'll tell me what's bothering her.

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Trying to guess when and where Mason is going to propose on this trip is stressing me out. I thought for sure he was going to do it on our hike. We had spent the entire morning hiking Bayview trail, talking about our lives, work, everything and when we finally got to the top, the view was spectacular. The tall green pine trees broke into a clearing at the edge of the mountain, giving way to the picturesque lake. The lake seemed to go on for miles with mountains lining the back like an artist had painted it. We stopped, taking in the view and watching the birds above dive into the water for food then reappear. I kept looking at his pockets to see if I could make out a square shaped box but no such luck. It was a perfect spot, just the two of us with the most stunning background but after he snapped a few pictures of me in front of it, he suggested we head back. 

Then this man wanted to have a fire that night out behind our cabin and I thought maybe he would want to propose here, just the two of us, but nope. He was perfectly content with snuggling on the hammock and gazing up at the stars. I know, this seems like the perfect getaway, but I want to look good when he proposes. What girl wants to be in sweatpants with two-day old greasy hair and have her man get down on one knee? Not me. 

But all of that is about to change because I know for sure he's proposing tonight at this restaurant. That little comment he dropped about the lake in the background has me convinced. Plus, Nate spilled the beans on the way to the airport. 

Mason leads me to our table, a small round one in the corner up against a massive window that overlooks the lake. My knees feel a little weak as he pulls out my chair and helps me into it. God I hope he asked my dad for permission. 

He takes his seat across from me, giving me a wide grin, then picks up his menu. 

Okay... so is he going to comment on this view? 

He continues to study his menu, completely oblivious. 

Guess not. 

"This place is amazing." I say, grabbing my phone to take a picture of the lake. "I can't believe how pretty it is up here."

"Yeah this is my favorite place to eat at. It's beautiful in the winter too." he says, continuing to stare at the menu. 

My stomach drops. "You've brought other women here before?" 

He looks up at me confused. "No? Well my mom's a woman so actually yes, but I've never brought a girlfriend here before if that's where your mind was headed." 

It was. I breathe a sigh of relief then mentally slap myself. This is Mason's we're talking about. This man has barely looked at another girl, let alone brought one to his fancy cabin. "Right, sorry, I'm just nervous." I say, honestly. 

He puts down his menu. "Why?  What's going on?" 

"I'm just going to be honest." I concede, as the waiter walks up to us. 

"Good evening, folks. Can I interest you in some wine or champagne?" 

Mason looks at me for an answer. "Uh, yes, I'll have a glass of Pighin Pinot Grigo please." 

"Just make it a bottle, please." Mason finishes.

"I'll be right back with that." the waiter says then walks away. 

"You were saying."

I cross my legs under the table, trying to stop myself from fidgeting. "Nate might have let it slip that you're proposing on this trip."

His eyes widen in surprise at my admission. He doesn't say anything and for a second I think he stopped breathing. "Is that why you're being weird?"

"I'm not being weird." I whisper-yell at him. "I might be a little off my game but I'm not being weird." 

He sits back in his chair and smiles. "Well I have two things to tell you. One's good, one's probably bad. Which do you want first?"

My heart thumps against my chest. Good and bad? This took a turn I wasn't expecting. "Go with the bad." 

He sighs. "I'm not proposing on this trip babe. I wanted this to be a relaxing week for us before we fly to New York to release the app. I wanted you to enjoy being pampered at the spa, show you some of my favorite hiking trails, and to be tangled up in bed for days on end." 

My heart drops a little bit at the fact that he's not proposing but I can't be to upset when he planned this whole trip around me having a good time. Still, I'm disappointed to an extent. 

"So then what's the good news?"

"The good news is now I know you want to marry me as much as I want to marry you." he says, as the waiter comes back over and pours us each a glass of wine. 

Wait what? 

"Do we want an appetizer or are we ready to order our meals?" the waiter says, as I stare dumbfounded at Mason. 

"For an appetizer we'll take the crab cakes and for my meal I'd like grilled salmon with the garlic mashed potatoes and steamed broccoli. Lexi?" he asks, smirking at me. 

The waiter looks at me, pen ready in his hand as I fumble through the menu. "I'll have the spinach ravioli with a side salad, Italian dressing please. Thank you." I say, flustered. 

"I'll get those right in for you." the waiter replies, taking our menus.

Mason thanks him then continues to smirk at me. "So, you're saying... you had Nate drop that on me on purpose?" I ask, trying to keep my voice level. 

"He was just confirming something I thought was true." he laughs. 

I shake my head at him, keeping his eyes locked to mine. I kick my heel off under the table and run my bare foot up his pant leg. "Oh Mason Young, you're going to get it when we get home." 

His eyes turn hooded, clearly turned on, before his voice gets low and raspy. "No baby, you're the only one who gets spanked in this relationship." 

A warm pool floods my panties and I shift again in my chair. "Maybe it's my turn to be in control."

He wiggles his eyebrows at me then signals for the waiter. "We'll take our meals to go please."