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My eyes drop, looking for him, and I blink in surprise. Paddy is down on one knee in front of me, looking as gorgeous as all get out, holding a jewelry box. Oh. My.God. Is this really happening? Tome?
“Paddy?” I whisper, uncertainty in my voice.
“Lass.” He smiles softly at me. “Mo chroí. I need ye. I need ye in my life. I need to wake up with ye in my arms each morning and fall asleep with ye in my arms each night. Ye crept into my heart and made yerself at home there, and now I can’t imagine a day without ye in it. I need ye to marry me.”
I blink. Paddy is off his knee instantly, seated beside me, cupping my cheek and brushing the tears away with his thumb.
“Lass?” he asks, sounding nervous. “Are ye all right?”
I hiccup and nod. I have never been more all right in my entire life.
“You want to marry me?” I whisper. His face relaxes into a beautiful smile.
“I don’t just want to marry ye,” he clarifies. “Ineedto marry ye. Will ye have me?”
I stare at him again. Is he serious? In what universe would I say no to this question?
“Yes,” I finally manage to choke out. Paddy sags with relief.
“Well, thank Christ for that,” he mutters, hesitantly holding up the jewelry box.
We both stare at the closed box, and I cautiously reach my hand out for it.
“It’s not round or white or sparkly,” Paddy blurts out, my hand freezing in midair.
“I’m sure it’s beautiful. You picked it for me.”
“That I did, lass. But Niall seemed to think that it was all wrong.”
Who gives a shit what Niall thinks?
“Niall’s not the one asking me to marry him.”
Paddy smirks, looking a little more like his confident self. “Good thing or I’d have to gut the prick.”
I snort at his earnestness. He sighs, tentatively placing the box in my upturned hand.
“Before ye see it, I want ye to know why I picked it.”
I freeze. Is it wicked ugly or something? I know I will love it because Paddy is giving it to me to symbolize to the world that he wants me to be his wife, but he seems wicked worried right now.
“It’s the color of yer eyes.”
I blush. He picked an engagement ring the color of my eyes? Paddy hesitates like he’s unsure he should say what he’s about to but presses on.
“When I first saw ye, lass. Ye were sitting beside Seamus with Connor’s arm about your neck, and I remember thinking that while ye were pretty, there were prettier lasses for Connor to pay attention to.”
My blush deepens. I know he has asked me to marry him, but no one wants to be told they are merely “pretty” and there are “prettier” girls. Sensing my discomfort, Paddy rushes on.
“Then ye looked at me, and all I could see were yer eyes. I couldn’t look away. It’s like ye hypnotized me. Ye sat next to me on that bench while I was covered in blood and sweat, and ye told me ye needed my help, and ye looked at me with those fecking mesmerizing eyes, and I’ve not seen another lass’ face since.”
Okay. That’s wicked sweet. I didn’t think it was possible to love him more. I can’t believe he’s beenmesmerizedby me since we met. I thought it was just me who felt like that. But Paddy isn’t finished.
“This ring is like that. When ye first look at it, ye think; that’s a pretty ring. But when ye really look at it, ye realize it’s just about the most stunning thing ye’ve ever laid your eyes on.”
He blows out a breath, opening the ring box. But I’m not looking at the ring. I’m staring into his eyes, trying not to cry because if I weren’t in love with him before, I would have tumbled headfirst in love at that speech.
“I picked this ring because when I look at it, I think of ye,” he whispers. Paddy breaks eye contact to look down at the ring, his eyes softening like when he’s stroking my hair in bed at night.
