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“It has everything to do with you, Liv.”
“Why?” she said angrily. “What does this have to do with me?”
“Because I love you. I've always loved you.”
Love? He loved her? Had she heard him right? He was gazing at her with a look she'd never seen before in his eyes, one that looked a lot like worship.
“I came back to Savannah thinking I could vanquish all the ghosts of the past by buying Renault Industries. I was wrong. I left this town thinking if I could amass an empire I'd be able to rid myself of all these feelings, all the insecurities I had growing up here.” He reached out and caressed her cheek with his thumb, infusing her with a dose of warmth and tenderness. She wanted to lean into his palm, to kiss away all his pain and regret so that she could make him whole again. But she knew at this moment she needed to hear what he had to say, to let him get it all out. It was the only way they would make it through the fire and out the other side.
He let out a sigh filled with pain and struggle. “But I still had this hole in me I needed to fill up. It was like I had this angry little beast inside me telling me I still wasn't good enough. I was a fool to think that buying Renault would fill up that hole. Don't you see, baby? The only thing missing has been you. Coming back showed me that I was running away from the very things I needed to make me whole. I'm not running anymore. I love you, Olivia.”
He placed a tender kiss on her lips, his lips filled with gentleness and love. She didn’t resist him. Olivia kissed him back with every ounce of love she had to give. His words had been genuine and heartfelt. And she needed to show him forgiveness. He had gone above and beyond to make things right with her father. Hunter had shown humility and dedication and remorse. How could she not grant him mercy? And her love?
When they pulled apart she could feel the tears flowing down her face and she briskly wiped them away, unwilling to miss a second of this magical moment. He loved her. Truly. Wondrously. Immensely.
“You love me,” she said in a voice filled with wonder. It wasn't a question anymore, not when he'd laid himself bare for her, showing her all his flaws and faults, along with sharing his regrets and mistakes. Although she'd loved him for what seemed like an eternity, she now knew he was a totally different Hunter than the one who had left Savannah a decade ago. He'd grown from a lovable and insecure young man into a mature and caring man determined to learn from his mistakes.
“I love you too, Hunter. And I always have,” she whispered, overcome with happiness that she could finally give voice to her feelings.
“Marry me, baby. Join me on this wild, crazy ride called life. I promise you'll never regret it.”
Hunter reached in his pocket and pulled out a humongous, gaudy ruby ring that looked like one of the prizes in a cracker jack box. He quickly got down on bended knee and held up the ring to her. “I promise to replace this with the real thing in a few days. I'll buy you the biggest diamond in the jewelry store, if you want. For now, I just need you to say yes. Yes, to marrying me. Yes, to loving me. Yes, to a lifetime with me.”
Tears glistened in her eyes as she heard Hunter's heartfelt declaration of love. For so many years she'd shed tears of grief and despair over losing him. For years she'd yearned for a second chance with the man she loved. Now, the tears she shed were joyful ones, born out of happiness and celebration. She'd waited years for this moment, having dreamed of it ever since she was a child. And now, she was finally able to hear him say those heartfelt words and see the love shining in his eyes. It was everything she'd ever hoped to share with this man she adored. It was the impossible dream she'd told herself over and over again to stop wishing for over the years. Today, everything in her life had come full circle.
Tears streamed down her face and she didn't even bother to wipe them away. They symbolized all the years of heartache when she'd thought Hunter was lost to her forever.
“Yes!” she shouted. “Yes. Yes. Yes.”
She held out her ring finger and wiggled it as Hunter placed the glittery jewel on her finger. “This is some serious bling,” she said as she admired the faux ruby.
“It's genuine, one hundred percent plastic. Only the best for my lady,” he said with a wink.
“You’re the best, Hunter. You always have been,” she said in a voice clogged with emotion. “Even when you go off course, you always manage to find your way back.”
Hunter cupped her face in his hands and said, “Hallelujah, woman. I didn't know what I was going to do if you rejected me. I would've slunk back to New York with my tail between my legs.”
Olivia looked at him as if he were crazy. “Reject you? There wasn't much chance of that happening. My heart starting melting once you told me about your talk with daddy. I was yours the moment you said you loved me. I feel as if I've been waiting my whole life to hear you say it.”
Hunter caressed the side of her face, then traced the outline of her lips with his forefinger, his every gesture full of devotion. “Do you know when I knew for certain that I loved you?” Hunter asked.
She shrugged. “Not a clue.”
“The day I left town and you carried on as if you were losing your right leg.” He smiled down at her, pride and love beaming from his eyes. “I wanted to stay so badly for you, Olivia. I wanted to stay and show you how much I truly did love you.”
“I wanted you to stay too, but it's okay that you didn't. You needed to become the man you are today. The man I love with all my heart.”
“And you needed to become the talented, brilliant woman you are today. We both had to walk our own paths to find our way back to one another. Although I’m fairly certain God gave us a push in the right direction.”
He leaned down and placed his lips on hers, his kiss full of tenderness and love. She placed her palm on the side of his face, softly caressing him as she kissed him back with the same amount of joy and an equal measure of love.
When they broke away from the kiss she stared into his obsidian eyes and asked him, “Do you have any idea of how long I've loved you?”
Hunter's face held a baffled expression. “Not a clue. Since yesterday?” he asked with a chuckle.
Olivia swatted him with her hand as they both enjoyed a laugh. She wiped the smile off her face and said in a serious voice, “I've loved you ever since that moment in the moonlight with the ham. I watched you from the downstairs window after daddy and I came inside. When I saw you pick up the ham and dust it off, I knew I'd love you forever.”
“Forever? That's a mighty long time,” he said solemnly, his onyx colored eyes piercing right through her.
