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“Please don’t cry,” Gabriel begs, his warm hands cupping my face, the pads of his thumbs lightly brushing away my tears. “Talk to me, Winter. Your silence is torture. What do you want? Whatdon’tyou want? Is it me? Am I not good enough?”
A sob escapes me rather than the burst of laughter I feel at the preposterous suggestion that Gabriel isn’t good enough for me. He’s all I want. He and our baby. I can see it in his eyes that his question is genuine, that he’s concerned I don’t feel like he’s worthy of me. The pain in their blue depths tears me apart, and I cling to his hands, holding them to my cheeks as I fight to get myself under control.
“N-No. It’s n-not that,” I insist, refusing to let Gabriel pull away. “I’m just so s-scared,” I sob, losing it again.
In an instant, Gabriel pulls me into his lap, his arms closing around me, holding me to his chest as though to shield me from the world.
“Shhh,” he soothes, tucking me under his chin as his workman’s calloused hand roughly comforts me, running up and down my arm.
It feels so incredibly safe and warm here in his arms, and I know that even if I tried, I couldn’t leave him. He’s what makes me whole. He keeps me in one piece. He’s the sole person tethering me to this earth.
“I can’t lose you,” I force out between stuttering breaths.
“You won’t,” Gabriel promises fiercely. “I’m right here. I’ll never leave you.”
“But you can’t know that, Gabriel,” I demand, sitting up to meet his eyes. “Your life is so dangerous. Being a biker is dangerous. You should know that better than anyone.”
Pain flits across his face at my harsh words, and I know he’s thinking about his parents and what it felt like to lose them. “You’re right. Running a club can be dangerous. I lost both my parents to this lifestyle.”
I hold my breath as I realize Gabriel might actually open up to me about his past, something he’s kept locked down since the day I met him. I’ve only gotten tiny snippets of information from him and the rest from Starla.
Sighing heavily, Gabriel repositions me on his lap so he can run his fingers through my hair. The soothing gesture feels as though it’s as much to comfort him as it is to me. I study his strong, masculine face as he looks off into the middle distance at something far in the past.
“Losing them was the hardest thing that’s ever happened to me. I thought my life had ended, that the world would simply stop that day. And for a long time, I felt as though it had. The only thing that kept me going was the club and the members in it. But all that time, I was just existing. Waiting for something. I craved a family, one to call my own. I knew I wanted that with someone, to feel the connection I saw my parents had, to love a child the way my father loved me.”
Gabriel’s voice cracks, and he stops to gather himself for a moment. When he finally looks at me, I can see the glassy sheen of tears in his eyes.
“And then you came along. From the moment I first laid eyes on you, you filled my world with life and purpose. I couldn’t look away. I could scarcely breathe with the need to be near you. But there you were, in your own world, completely oblivious to me. And when I found you in that basement, when I picked you up and held you in my arms for the first time, I felt as though I’d captured an angel.”
I giggle at that; my own tears were forgotten as I sit in rapt attention to his story, in awe of this rare window into his soul.
Gabriel smiles, the sadness ebbing from his eyes. “Even when you were impossible to reason with and refused to see us for what we could be because you were so set on returning things to what they were, I knew. We have something special, Winter. I want to have a family with you. I want to start a life with you. And we can do that however you see fit.”
My heart swells with the power of his statement, and I feel fresh tears sting the back of my eyes.
“But I really think I can make this work. I’ll run the club right. I’ll run it straight and honest, so we won’t be putting ourselves at risk. I would never put you or our family in harm’s way, and I can take care of you. If you’ll let me. Do you trust me to do that?”
Unable to speak with the emotions clogging my throat, I throw my arms around Gabriel’s shoulders and pull him to me for a passionate kiss. Gabriel’s arms twine around my waist, drawing me closer as he greedily accepts my answer.
Finally, when we break free, we’re both gasping for air. I release a breathy giggle, elated that it finally feels like I can see our future laid out before us. I know without a shadow of a doubt that Gabriel’s the one for me. And hearing him be so open about his feelings has only cemented that fact.
But then Gabriel shifts me off his lap, setting me gently onto the edge of the bed as he stands to leave.
“Where are you going?” I demand, aghast that he could have somewhere else he wants to be right at this moment.
Gabriel chuckles, his deep laugh rumbling in his chest. “Nowhere,” he answers as he heads to the door.
Cocking an eyebrow, I cross my arms over my chest as I watch him do exactly the opposite. But rather than reaching for the door handle, Gabriel stoops in front of the dresser, opening one of the bottom drawers I’m not sure I’ve ever seen him go into.
Anticipation makes my stomach quiver as I wonder if he’s bringing out a new toy for us to play with.
“I wanted to do this somewhere more special,” he says cryptically. “But maybe this is special. This is where we began, in this room.” His eyes travel around the four walls, taking in the sparse decor as if truly seeing it for the first time, and a nostalgic smile spreads across his face.
I’m momentarily confused as he returns to the bed and kneels down in front of me. And then my heart stops. His blue eyes peer deep into my soul as he opens the tiny black box in his hands. Unable to think clearly as my heart bursts into a sprint, roaring in my ears, I look down at the gold ring nestled inside the velvet box. A tiny solitaire diamond winks back up at me, stunning in its simplicity, and I can’t help but cover my mouth as I realize what this means.
It’s nothing like my mother wore—a seven-karat centerpiece with multiple accent stones that were still larger than this little solitaire. It’s small in comparison to the rings I looked at when I thought I would be Dean’s wife. But even so, it’s better than anything I could have imagined. So perfect and fitting for our new life, our fresh start.
“Winter, I love you,” Gabriel says solemnly. “I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?”
