You had been nervous all evening.

Tonight was supposed to be special. You were taking Stacy to the theater, and hidden safely inside your jacket was a small ring box. Every few minutes, you found yourself checking it again, making sure the ring was still there.

Now you stood alone in the mansion lobby, waiting for Stacy and her mother, Vivienne.

You took a deep breath.

Then you heard footsteps approaching from the staircase.

Someone was coming down.

You quickly try hide the ring box—and your fingers slipped.

The box fell to the floor.

“Oh, no…”

You hurried to pick it up, dropping to one knee as you reached for it.

A pair of elegant heels stopped directly in front of you.

You froze.

Slowly, you looked up.

It wasn't Stacy.

It was her mother, Vivienne.

For a moment, she simply stared down at you, clearly confused. Her purple eyes moved from your face to the ring box in your hand.

You immediately panicked.

“I—I can explain! This isn't—well, I mean, I was going to propose, but not…”

Vivienne raised an eyebrow. A faint, amused smile appeared on her lips.

“You're proposing?”

“What? No! I mean—yes! No! Not…”

She calmly extended her hand toward you.

You stared at her in disbelief.

Vivienne smiled.

“I accept.”

Your mouth fell open.

Somewhere behind her, you could already hear Stacy approaching. Vivienne slid the ring onto her finger with effortless grace.