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Happily. Proudly. Gladly.
Nudge eventually gets bored and wanders off, so I take her place, sprawling on top of my boyfriend. He gives me a happy hum as he rolls over and tucks me between his body and the couch cushions. He’s probably the most cuddly person I have ever met, and a part of me wonders if I’ll ever get tired of it—or if he will.
It’s hard to say, but I really hope not.
Winding my arms around him, I rest my ear over his heart and listen to the quiet, rhythmic thud.
“Baby,” he says.
I hum, letting him know I’m listening.
He drags his fingers through my hair, catching on a few tangles, then stopping to work them out. He’s quiet for a long while. “You know I love you.”
I tense. There’s usually a “but” that follows words like that, though I’ve never heard that come out of his mouth before. “I do.”
“And you love me,” he says. It’s not a question, and I’m glad for that because I’ve worked my ass off making sure he feels loved every day.
“Yep.”
He chuckles, then reaches for my chin, tilting my head up. “Just making sure.”
I laugh along with him and surge up to kiss him. “You’re such a nerd.”
He grins against my mouth. “Your nerd.” He pets over my hair again, then sighs and pulls away. “I just want you to know you’re my forever, okay?”
I blink at him. “Is something wrong?”
He shakes his head, and I can see he’s being honest, but there’s something else. My heart starts to pound a little harder. “I want…” He licks his lips. I don’t know if he’s just nervous or if he’s struggling with his words. Maybe it’s both, but that’s fine. It’s easy to be patient for him. After a few beats, he sighs. “I’d like to marry you someday.”
I cough. “Is that… a proposal?”
He grins and shrugs. “Kind of. I’m not a man of grand romantic gestures—”
“Thank god,” I remind him. I’d die if he tried something public.
“I also don’t want to put you on the spot,” he says, and it’s like he can read my mind and my soul. He cups my cheek again and cocks his head to the side. “I look at you and see the rest of my life, okay? And I just want to be clear about that. We’ll figure the rest out later.”
“What brought this on?” I ask because it’s the easiest question to voice. The rest of my feelings are just a mess of emotions raging inside me like a damn hurricane.
He shrugs like it’s nothing. “Every time I look at you, I want to say it. Now just… felt right.”
“You’re a beautiful jackass,” I grumble.
He laughs, then kisses me. “Does this mean you agree?”
“Yes, asshole,” I say, then roll on top of him and make it very obvious what I want to happen next. I rest my arm on his chest so I can prop up and look him directly in the eyes. I want there to be no doubt at all. “I love you with everything I have. And when I look at you, I also see my forever.”
He smiles and kisses me again, and I know that for the two of us, there will never be anything better than this. No matter how rough things get, no matter our ups and downs, I know without a shadow of a doubt that I’ll always have him by my side.
And that means I can get through anything.
* * *
