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She moaned in embarrassment.
“And soon we’ll be married, and we’ll both get to see everything anyway.”
“We can’t get married. You’ve been with... I just can’t compete,” she said, with her face still hidden.
Josh swore and pulled her hands away from her face, bending to catch her gaze. She tried to keep her eyes averted, but he persisted. His hand gently brushed her curls back until she lifted her eyes.
“Please, Charlie. If I could undo my past I would. But I promise you, I don’t miss anything about that life. And when I make love to you, it’ll be my first time, too.”
“No it won’t,” she protested, wishing it could be true.
“Yes. It will be my first time to make love. Because I’ve never been in love with anyone else before.”
Charlie felt a small bud of hope in her heart. Was it possible? Did he really love her?
“But Josh, we were only getting married because you needed to, and now you don’t need me. I don’t think you really love me. I think you’ve just convinced yourself you need to marry me.”
He groaned, dropping her hands. “Charlie, I’ve tried everything I know to convince you. I’ve been trying for two years to convince you I love you. I’ve countered every protestation. This last one, implying I would object to your incredible body, was the most ridiculous of all.”
“It wasn’t either,” she mumbled through pouted lips.
He paced in the small elevator like a caged animal., tearing at his hair until it stood up at strange angles. “I don’t know what else to do.” He stopped, his face bright with a light-bulb look.
“Charlie. Don’t jump, okay? I’m just going to reach inside this tuxedo pocket for a second.” He lifted the front of the jacket still draped on her shoulders and grasped something within the pocket, easing it out. He removed a small ring box and opened it, dropping to one knee.
“Charlie, please, marry me. I am miserable without you. I promise I’ll do everything I can possibly do to make you happy.”
Her heart pounded so hard her chest hurt, and the elevator felt like a vacuum. She stared at the ring in amazement. It was different from any ring she’d seen before. The bud of hope unfurled a single petal.
“You don’t like it, do you? I’ll get you a different one. I should have picked one like the pictures Emily gave me.”
“Emily gave you pictures?”
“Yes, but I was stubborn and tried to pick something out myself. I’m sorry.”
“No. Don’t be sorry. I think this one is beautiful. You picked it out just for me?” He nodded , as her eyes took in every detail—the unusual color of the gold, the unique hexagonal pattern of small diamonds surrounding the central diamond, the double strand of small diamonds on the band. It was beautiful, and he’d chosen it just for her. Was it possible? Could he really, truly love her? Could it be that he would have chosen her even if he hadn’t ever needed her to complete the adoption.
She forced her eyes away from the ring. How could she know for sure? “But I can’t accept it, of course.”
“Why not?” The anguish in his voice ripped at her.
“I just don’t think you’ve thought it through,” she said, clamping down on her emotions.
With painstaking care, Josh removed the ring from the velvet box and handed it to Charlie. “Can you read the inscription?”
She squinted at the tiny letters inside the ring. “Ruth 1:16.” A small cry escaped her lips and her hand flew to her mouth. “How did you know?”
“At your sister’s rehearsal dinner... I heard you mention that if you ever got married you wanted that verse at your wedding.”
“And you remembered?” Her astonishment could not have been greater had he proclaimed the ability to read her mind.
Still on his knee, he sandwiched her hand between his, and capturing her eyes with a tender, reverent gaze as he quoted the verse. “Entreat me not to leave you, or to turn back from following after you; for wherever you go, I will go; and wherever you lodge, I will lodge; and your people shall be my people, and your God, my God.”
“I can’t believe you remembered that... from two years ago.” The air felt cold on her hot wet cheeks.
“Perhaps now, you might admit it’s possible I’ve thought this through.”
Charlie opened her mouth to answer, but realized she had no response. He’d eliminated every objection. She stared at him, unspeaking, with wide eyes. He took the ring from her hand and slid it onto her finger.
