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“Jamie,” she whispers. “Is this….?”
What I think it is, I finish silently, but she trails off.
“Come on,” I say.
Before she can answer, I step forward and scoop her into my arms. She squeals in delight as I cradle her to my chest. It’s the same way I carried her a couple of nights ago, taking her to bed and then softly setting her down.
She rolled over, looking at me over her shoulder, her tattoo a reminder of the passing time and growing love, need, and everything we have together and will have. We’re the universe to each other.
Now I carry her up the stairs and into my studio, placing her down and looking around the room.
I’ve cleared out all the equipment, laying candles on all the surfaces, giving the room some mood lighting. Three of the walls are the same. The fourth is covered with a sheet held up by sticky tape, ready to be pulled away.
There are rose petals on the floor and a table, ready for our celebration meal….
If it’s a celebration.
She sighs as I press my body against hers, then I reach up and remove her blindfold.
Looking around, she finally spins in my embrace and looks up at me. “This looks beautiful,” she whispers, her voice cracking.
“I wanted to do it here,” I tell her. “Where it all started. We started before that, Jennifer. My love for you….”
She gasps, and I realize what I’ve said. Love.
“Isn’t it obvious?” I say passionately. “I love you, Jennifer. I love you so much it hurts.”
“I love you too,” she whispers.
Then her lips are on mine. I open my mouth and kiss her in return, passion almost threatening to derail us.
But then – with a massive effort – I step away but keep my hands on her shoulders.
“I love you,” I repeat firmly. “My love for you, Jennifer, started the first time we met. When I had to stand there, trying to fight what I already knew, trying not to act on my desires because it would mean….”
“You were protecting Kelly,” she says softly. “But the whole time….”
“We wanted….”
“Needed….”
We’re moving closer again, our lips magnetizing.
“Each other,” I growl. “Always. That’s why I need to do this because you are mine. Those aren’t just words. You belong to me, and you always will. Just as I’ll always belong to you. Jennifer Evans.”
I fall to one knee as my hand slides into my pocket.
Taking out the ring box, I open it to show the full diamond and the elegant band.
“Will you… look behind you?”
She slowly turns as I reach over, grab the piece of string and give it a harsh yank. The sheet falls away from the wall, revealing the words Will You Marry Me in big letters.
All around it, I’ve painted scenes from our relationship.
There’s me standing at the party, watching my woman across the room.
In this room, there was our first kiss when she was in the chair.
There’s Benny and Lucifer and my woman in the safe room.
Then we’re at the cabin, tastefully naked, and more….
Scenes from the past couple of weeks, ever since we left the cabin, the closeness, the love.
“Yes,” she whispers, then raises her voice as she turns to me. “Yes, Jamie. Freaking yes.”
I slide the ring on her finger and then leap to my feet, pulling her into my arms and kissing her hard. She returns the kiss, all the love in the world burning through us.
EPILOGUE
TWO WEEKS LATER
Jennifer
I stand at the mirror, my back turned, looking over my shoulder at the tattoo.
The rest of the reflection shows mine and Jamie’s bedroom. It felt right instantly, moving into his place, sharing a room….
We’d been sharing a room before that, basically living together, but it was official after the proposal.
A smile spreads widely across my face as I study the tattoo closer, Mom and Dad and Kelly…and Jamie, his name the newest of them, the sorest, the sweetest.
I don’t have much room on this tattoo for any more names, but….
My hand spreads across my belly, a tingle running through my body.
Turning, I properly look over the room.
My textbooks are on the bed, the sheets messy, the curtains open to let in the late-morning sunlight. Music plays softly, and from the kitchen, I can smell the scent of bacon that Jamie cooked this morning before leaving for work.
Benny and Lucifer are curled up on the floor, though now Lucifer has got his head cocked, studying me, wondering what I’m doing. Matt has started working at a gym, and so he’ll often leave Lucifer here when he needs to. It’s great seeing the little guy.
“I’m waiting, boy,” I say, thinking of the test with the two glorious lines.
Lucifer yaps as if asking what I’m waiting for.
“For Jamie,” I tell him, my smile widening.
I could text him or rush to the studio to find him. But he has a half day today, and I may end up missing him, getting there just after he’s left.
