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She turned to the small railing on the bridge and gazed at the glowing flowers.
I blew out a breath, then shook out my trembling hands. The fluttering in my stomach was so powerful I put a hand to it to try and calm it down.
“Ben?” Jess said, turning back to me with a concerned look on her face. “Are you okay?”
“No,” I said, the word sort of blasting out with intensity I didn’t mean.
“No?”
“I need to ask you something.”
“You can ask me anything.”
I nodded, too tongue-tied to make a joke. I exhaled again, heart pounding.
“Just ask,” she implored, hand moving from my stomach to curl around the base of my elbow.
“When I saw you at the bottom of those stairs that night…” I started, the vicious memory flickering into my mind. “It was the most afraid I’ve ever been.”
She made a crooning sound, but I shook my head, asking her to just listen. She nodded once, eyes intent and all her focus on me.
“All I could think was, I never got my chance. I waited and waited, did so much shit to try and be worthy of someone as good as you. But there you were, bleeding and unconscious, and I realized, out of everything I did, I skipped the most important.”
Her lips parted like she wanted to speak, but I forged on. Now that I was talking, I had to get it out.
“I never told you I loved you. I never said how my days basically start and end with you. I never kissed or touched you the way I wanted. I realized as I worried you might die that it didn’t matter what I did to be worthy of you because I never would be, but I love you anyway. I love you so damn much.”
Tears slipped down her cheeks, the fingers around my elbow tightening until it almost hurt.
“I know we’re still young, and I don’t have everything figured out. But I can’t date you, Jess. I won’t do it.”
She blinked, brows drawing down like she was confused. “You don’t want to date me?”
“No,” I said, absolute.
She pulled away, stepping just out of reach.
I dropped to my knees right there in front of her. Not just one. Both. That was the effect this woman had on me. She brought me to my knees. The second I pulled a small box out of my pocket, her hand flew to cover her mouth.
Her eyes were wide and luminous, filled with surprise… and love.
Yeah, I got this.
“You aren’t girlfriend material, Jessica Park. You’re my final girl. My fiancée. My wife.”
The other hand not pressed to her mouth lay against her belly. The action caused my heart to constrict, and I found myself nodding. “You’re my kids’ mom too.”
Her sob was muffled behind her palm, but that was okay. I heard it just fine.
Opening the box, I held it out, showing her the glittering silver set inside.
“Ever since you pulled that crappy gold ring off your finger, I’ve been walking around with a hole inside me, a feeling that something isn’t right. And yeah, I know you think that ring was fake, but what it stood for was real. I got you this, one I picked out with you in mind. I want to see it on your finger, baby. I don’t ever want to see you without it.”
Her arm fell to her side.
“Marry me, Jess. Please, marry me. I swear I’ll love you good. I’ll never stop.”
When she reached out, I thought it was for the ring, but she bypassed the box between us to grab my face in her palms and drop to her knees in front of me.
