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“You love every inch of me?” she breathed.
“I do,” he said. “I love you, Blair. Hell, I want to spend the rest of my life with you, but I don’t want to push you,” he said.
“You promised that you wouldn’t push me for more, Blaze,” she reminded.
“I get it, but I need to know that you at least see yourself in the future with me, Blair. I’m not going to pretend that I’m not in love with you. Can you see yourself marrying me?” he asked.
“Marrying you?” she squeaked.
“I don’t just want you to move in here with me, honey. I want it all with you. Marry me, Blair,” he said. Oh God, he was flat out asking her to marry him now, and all Blair could feel was panic. It started in the pit of her stomach and seemed to travel to her throat, closing it off and leaving her completely speechless.
Blair stood and walked over to the sink, discarding her unfinished breakfast and coffee. “I can’t do this,” she croaked. “I have to go.”
“Where are you going, Blair?” he asked. Blaze didn’t stand or make any move toward her. Instead, he let her panic from across the room. She wasn’t sure if she wanted him to hold her or let her go.
“I don’t know,” she said.
“Don’t run, Blair,” he whispered, “stay and we can talk about this.”
“I don’t have anything to say,” she said. The tears had started and were now streaming down her face. She didn’t want Blaze to see her that way. Hell, she hated crying in front of anyone. It made her feel weak, and that was the last thing she needed to feel.
“I just need some time to think, Blaze. Can you let me think?”
“I won’t stop you from going,” he said, “but, sooner or later, we’ll have to talk about this Blair. Loving you isn’t an option for me, and I know you love me too. I can see it in your eyes every time you look at me.” He was right—she did love him. She just never imagined that he could see how much every time she looked at him. Blair needed to go somewhere that she could think things through and right now, that place wasn’t with Blaze.
“Please, I just need some time,” she begged. Blair ran up the stairs to the master bedroom and threw a few things into her bag and quickly got dressed. She’d worry about the rest later. Right now, all she could think about was getting out of Blaze’s townhome and calming down. Then, she’d find a way to consider what he was asking from her because the one thing that she was sure of was that she couldn’t live without Blaze in her future.
Blaze
He was finished sitting around and hoping that Blair came to her senses. Instead, he got dressed and drove over to her apartment, hoping that he’d find her there, or at the very least, her brother might know where she was.
“Where the fuck is she, Dell?” Blaze asked. “I’ve looked all over town and she’s nowhere to be found.” He had checked all her regular spots where she liked to hang out. He even checked down at the Smokey Bandits, and Ryker told him that she had missed her last two shifts. He knew that wasn’t like Blair and a part of him worried that she was in some kind of trouble.
“What makes you think that I know where she is?” Dell asked. “I’m not my sister’s keeper.”
“I get that,” Blaze said, “but, she’s taken off and I’m worried about her.”
“Let me guess—you told her that you love her and asked her to move in with you again and she bolted,” Dell asked.
“Not quite,” Blaze said. “I never stopped telling her that I’m in love with her, but I also asked her to marry me. That’s when she freaked out and took off, and it’s been two days since I’ve seen her. She won’t answer any of my calls and I’m worried about her. Tell me that you’ve been in contact with her.”
“I haven’t heard from her,” Dell insisted. Blaze wasn’t sure if he believed the guy or not. “Come on in and let’s see if I can track her down.” He followed Dell into Blair’s apartment and into her tiny kitchen.
“How much longer do you have in the boot?” Blaze asked, trying to make small talk.
“Another week,” he said. “I get out of this boot at my next visit, and we will see then if my leg has healed properly.”
“Will you go back to work if that’s the case?” Blaze asked.
“Not for another month. I have some physical therapy that I’ll need to complete before work will let me back. I’m hoping to get back out there in about a month or so, why?” he asked.
Blaze shrugged, “Just trying to get to know you better. I mean, I do plan on marrying your sister and everything.”
“You really think that’s still an option?” Dell asked. “I mean, she did take off on you and isn’t answering your calls.”
“Right,” Blaze said, “but, I’m also not the kind of guy to just give up when I want something—or in this case, someone. I love her, man and I won’t ever give up on her. Blair can run to the ends of the earth, and I’ll follow her.”
“I like you, man,” Dell said. “I think that my sister needs someone like you.”
