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He took a step forward, and even if she hadn’t heard the strain in his voice she would have seen it around his eyes.
‘I made you a promise. I said I’d be here, and I was. I know I wasn’t in the front row. I got here too late for that. But I was at the back the whole time.’
She stared at him, blinking, remembering that moment when she’d felt his presence, how she’d thought it was just a phantom memory of the first time they’d met.
‘I should never have left you. I knew I was making a mistake, but...’ He paused, then frowned. ‘But when you told me you loved me I panicked.’
His choice of words felt like a slap to the face. Could he make it any plainer that her feelings were not reciprocated? Her heart was a lead weight in her chest and she felt suddenly brutally tired.
‘I don’t need to hear this, Aristo,’ she said flatly. ‘I just want to go home.’
He shook his head. ‘Not until you understand.’
Reaching out, he took hold of her arms, but she shook him off.
‘I do understand. You don’t love me and you only wanted to marry me because of George. I get it, okay? And now I want to go home.’
‘Your home is with me, Teddie. And not just because of George.’
She started to shake her head, but he took her face between his hands and this time she didn’t pull away.
‘Look at me,’ he said softly.
At first she resisted, but finally she lifted her chin.
‘Maybe it was true at first, but not any more. George is our son, but he’s not the reason I want to marry you. I want you to be my wife because I love you.’
‘If you love someone you don’t panic when she tells you she feels the same,’ she said stubbornly.
He shook his head, his dark eyes narrowing. ‘Not true. I love you, Teddie. And I did panic. As soon as you said those words I couldn’t think straight. I just knew that I couldn’t let anything mess up my business, the sale of the shares.’
‘But I told you I don’t care about any of that.’
He nodded. ‘I know you don’t—but I did. Look, I know it sounds crazy, but I’ve been chasing perfection all my life—first at school, then with work. And each time I reached my goal I’d set myself a new one.’
He frowned, as though baffled by what he was saying.
‘When you told me you loved me I couldn’t just say the words back to you. I wanted to show you how much I love you, and I thought that meant fixing things in Dubai, that if I couldn’t do that then I didn’t deserve to win you back. I was so desperate to make that happen, and so scared that it wouldn’t. But as soon I got there I realised that I wasn’t fixing anything, only breaking us, and that’s why I came back to New York—’
His voice cracked, and he breathed out unsteadily.
‘Because I can’t lose you again, Teddie. The business, my career—none of that matters if we’re not together. That’s all I want...to be with you.’ He stopped, his dark eyes on hers. ‘If you’ll have me. Do you think that’s possible?’
Her heart was fluttering against her ribs, but her love for him felt solid and unbreakable. ‘I do,’ she said softly. Holding her breath, she searched his face, saw hope and love shining in his eyes.
He pulled her closer, wrapping his arms around her, burying his face against her hair. ‘I thought I’d broken us.’
She felt his grip tighten.
‘I was so scared that I’d ruined it, that I’d lost you.’
‘You can’t lose me. You’re my husband, my heart.’ Lifting her face, she smiled
weakly. ‘But if you’d told me you were coming I’d have saved you a seat.’
He loosened his grip. ‘I think I left my phone on the plane.’
She looked up at him. ‘What about Dubai?’
