She put her finger to his mouth to cut off the words.
“Ask me again. Please.”
A wild spark lit his eyes and the pupils dilated, turning the brown to black. There was hope and fear simultaneously, one warring with the other. She hated the insecurity and hesitancy she saw as he came to grips with what she’d asked.
To her surprise, he pushed himself up and got off the bed. For a moment she wondered if she’d royally screwed up. But he reached for her, holding out a hand.
She slid her palm over his and he helped her to the edge of the bed until she sat with her legs hanging over the side, her feet just brushing the floor.
Still holding on to her hand, he knelt on the floor so they looked each other in the eye. Nervousness bunched in her stomach and her breathing shallowed until she realized she was holding it.
Micah raised her hand to his mouth and pressed a kiss into the softness of her palm. Then he slowly pulled it away and gazed directly into her eyes.
“Will you marry me, Angel? Will you spend the rest of your life with me? Love me the way I love you? Have my children, grow a family with me, grow old with me and spend a lifetime allowing me to love you the way you deserve to be loved?”
Completely undone by the heartfelt words, she stared in wonder as tears slid silently down her cheeks. She raised her hands and cupped his face, gazing into the eyes of the man she adored—had always adored.
“You once told me that when I knew without a doubt that you loved me more than life and that when I trusted you with my heart, it was then you wanted me to marry you. I should have said yes a long time ago,” she whispered. “Yes. I’ll marry you. I love you. I’ll always love you.”
He rose up and crushed her to him. He held her tight, his entire body trembling against her. She felt every breath, every beat of his heart as it pounded wildly against her throat.
“Oh God, I love you, Angel girl. So much. So damn much. I thank God I didn’t destroy your faith in me, that I didn’t destroy your love. I couldn’t live with myself if I had. You and Nia are my world. I love you both so much.”
She pulled away and then took his hands and guided them down to mold to her belly. “We’re your family, Micah. She and I. She’ll love you as much as I love you.”
His smile made her heart ache. There was such joy in his eyes. It wasn’t until now that she noticed the shadows he’d worn for the past months. But now they lifted away and there was such relief in his face.
He lowered his head and pressed his lips to the hard bump of her belly. She threaded her fingers through his long hair and held him lovingly against the gentle patter of their daughter.
She closed her eyes and let the sweetness of the moment envelope her. They’d been through so much in such a short amount of time. But it was all worth it because here and now, she held everything she’d ever wanted in her arms and cradled in her womb.
Micah and their daughter. Her family.
She couldn’t help but think her brother, David, and Hannah were smiling down on them from heaven.
Micah lifted his head, then curled his hand around her nape and pulled her until their foreheads rested against each other. Their noses brushed and she felt his erratic breaths puff out as if he was valiantly trying to maintain control of his emotions.
“Tell me again,” he whispered. “Tell me you’ll marry me.”
She smiled. “I’ll marry you, Micah.”
“When?”
“Whenever you say when.”
“Tomorrow,” he breathed.
She laughed. “I think we’ll need a little longer than that. While I don’t want a huge wedding, I do want our closest friends—our family,” she amended, “to be there.”
“Yeah, I do too.”
“Are you sure this is what you want, Micah? You’ll be happy?”
He pulled away and cupped her face as she’d cupped his a moment earlier. “I’ve never been happier in my life than I am right at this very moment. But as overjoyed as I am right now, nothing will match the day you become officially mine in the eyes of the law.”
“I’ve always been yours, Micah. But now you’re mine. And I’m never going to let you go.”
He smiled then and the last remaining shadows faded away, leaving only hope and joy. “I see I’m not the only possessive one in this relationship. I like it.”
CHAPTER 11
Connor pulled under the hotel awning and stopped behind two other cars waiting to valet park. He cut the engine and sat there for a long moment while they watched the valet tend to the first car in line.
She could sense his irritation, which was fine, because it wasn’t like she didn’t have plenty of her own.
Finally he looked over at her. “What the hell was all that about tonight?”
Her eyelids narrowed to slits as she glared over at him. “You don’t think you did anything wrong in this scenario?”
“So I piss you off and you find that sufficient reason to hot-wire a car, get arrested and be hauled off to jail?”
She crossed her arms and huffed. “I was not arrested. I was specifically looking for a cop. It’s not my fault he overreacted and thought I was some lunatic off her meds.”
“I can’t imagine why he’d think something like that.”
“Cut the sarcasm. It makes you sound like an even bigger ass**le,” she muttered.
He sighed. “Do you always react this strongly about everything? I mean, most people would have just called me a dickhead and been done with it. Not many people would hot-wire a car, then flag down a cop and try to convince them you’re off your f**king rocker.”
She glared at him again. “I was being smart. I didn’t want to be driving around alone and I damn sure didn’t want to come back to the hotel by myself. I mean, what if the demented dude was waiting for me in my room?”
He looked like he wanted to beat his head against the steering wheel. Luckily the valet walked up and Connor opened his door to collect the ticket. Lyric got out and forced herself to wait for Connor. Whatever he might think, she really didn’t want to go back up to her room alone. She didn’t want to stay alone, for that matter, but neither did she want him in such close proximity for the entire night. She was f**ked either way and she was resigned to spending another sleepless night. She would be a freaking zombie by tomorrow.
Connor put his hand to her back and herded her toward the door. All the way to her room, he was silent. His glower spoke volumes, and to be honest, she was happy he wasn’t talking. He’d just gripe at her some more.