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her heart that was beating out his name. “I want to give you those things.”
“You do?” Please let her have heard him correctly.
He nodded. “I do. But you know about my dysfunctional family and how I had the worst role model for a father ever. I’m afraid that I’ll end up like him.”
“That could never happen.”
His eyes widened. “You really believe that?”
“With all of my heart. You are a good man, whether you believe it or not. Your nature is to protect those you love, not to hurt them.”
He paused. “I never thought of it that way.” His gaze searched hers. “I love you.”
Those three little words knocked the breath from her lungs. She hadn’t been expecting them. In fact, she never thought he would ever say them to her.
And then a sneaky voice in the back of her mind wondered if he was just saying what she wanted him to say. Was this his way of getting her and the baby back under his roof?
If so, she couldn’t do it. She needed him to love her one hundred percent, for herself, and it not have anything to do with the baby. Because when she gave her heart away, she wanted it to be forever.
She shook her head, refusing to believe he was saying the words that she’d longed for him to say. “You’re just saying that because you think it’s what I want to hear.”
“I mean them.” His gaze pleaded with her. “I love you.”
This couldn’t be happening. It was too good to be true.
“You just want me to move back so you’ll be closer to the baby.”
“I love you and I don’t want you to do anything you don’t want to do. Whether you live at the penthouse or live above the bakery, it won’t change how I feel about you. I love you. It has nothing to do with the baby. I love you. And I’ll keep telling you that I love you until you believe me. Pepper, I love you with all of my heart.”
He reached out and swiped a tear from her cheek. She didn’t even know she was crying tears of joy. She desperately wanted to believe him. So what was holding her back?
“Do you still love me?” he asked.
She hesitated. She knew putting her heart on the line could be dangerous. But she also knew that without taking a risk, she could be missing the best parts of life.
She nodded.
“Then trust me.” He held his hand out to her.
Her gaze moved to his outstretched hand. What was he up to now? Curiosity had her putting her hand in his. He led her to the outlook.
With the gentle snow falling upon the city, it looked like pure magic. She was definitely in the middle of a movie—a movie of her life. Her heart thump-thumped. And dare she believe that it was going to be a romance? With its very own happy ending?
As though reading her mind, Simon got down on one knee. And then he slipped a box from his coat pocket, opened it and held it up to her.
Her mouth gaped. She couldn’t believe her eyes. In just a matter of a few moments all her wishes were coming true.
“Pepper, you are the most amazing woman in the world. You taught me how to open my heart again. You’ve shown me that love comes in all shapes and sizes. And I would love to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you be my wife?”
He was full of all sorts of surprises. “Simon, are...are you sure?”
“I’ve never been more certain about anything in my life.”
She pressed a hand to her mouth, holding back a squeal of delight. Her wide-eyed gaze moved from him to the diamond solitaire ring nestled in black velvet. “Simon, it’s beautiful. I’d be honored to be your wife.”
He removed the ring from the box. He took her trembling hand into his own and placed the ring on her finger.
In the background there were cheers and clapping from the onlookers that must have exited the elevator somewhere in the middle of the proposal. And there were flashes from cameras. And this time, Pepper didn’t care. She didn’t care if the whole world knew she loved Simon Ross.
