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“I’d prefer to marry you first, but yes, then I’d love to move in with you. That is—if you feel the same way?”
She tried wiping the tears from her eyes, but they kept falling. “I do.” She nodded.
“The words, Vivian. I need to hear the words.”
A brilliant smile lit up her tearstained face. “Of course, I love you, too. When can you move in?”
With a laugh, he gathered her close and kissed her. “There is something I need to do first.”
Dropping down on one knee, he opened the small box in his hand. Airports, he’d discovered this morning, were amazing places. Even a week after Valentine’s Day, they still had red roses. In fact, they had just about everything you needed for a marriage proposal. And, fortunately, he also had a sister who was more than happy to assist. His future sister-in-law, he was happy to report, also had great creative ideas.
Oh, damn, the roses and the other stuff. He jumped up quickly.
Vivian’s eyebrows rose.
“Um… there is something… just a moment.” He turned to rush out, but he simply had to taste her again. Pulling Vivian close, he kissed her. Within seconds, he was in danger of forgetting why he had to get to his car. Gulping in air, he grinned. “Just a minute.”
*
Bewildered, Vivian watchedAiden rushing down the stairs. What was happening? He’d said he loved her, he’d been on his knee, but now he’d left her standing here?
Minutes later, footsteps were rushing up the stairs again. When he appeared in the bedroom doorway, she still hadn’t been able to move. In his one hand was a huge bunch of red roses and in the other one was one of Annie’s throws. Her heart kicked her in the ribs.
“This is for you.” Aiden gave her the roses.
Overwhelmed, excited, scared, she buried her face in the deep fragrance, trying to calm down her galloping heart. Something huge was about to happen. Her heart already knew what it was, her stunned mind, though, was still trying to catch on.
Aiden laid the throw on the floor. “Sorry, I’d forgotten about this.” Before she took another breath, he was down on his knee again, the little box back in his hand. With his blue eyes resting steadily on her, he opened the lid.
Her breath caught somewhere in her throat. On a bed of black velvet was an exquisite diamond ring, flanked by two beautiful, shining blue stones.
“Vivian Miller, I fell in love with you the moment you opened the curtains in your ER. I’m sure you could do so much better than a cynical reporter from Portland, but nobody would ever love you the way I do. If you’ll have me, I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I know there is no guarantee we’d have a long life; we’ve both had to deal with losing our parents way too soon. But that’s why I want to be with you as soon as possible. How all of this would work, I’m not sure about yet, but I am sure I always want to be with you. Will you please marry me?”
It took her stunned, befuddled brain another few minutes to make sense of what was happening. Aiden loved her. He wanted to marry her. He wanted to be with her, live in this house with her.
His smile was slipping. “Vivian?”
Without taking her eyes off of him, she took out her phone. “I’ve been listening to this song. The one we danced to at the Valentine’s ball?” She pressed the button, and the music filled the room.
She waited for the specific words.
And I know I’m home…
Then, with her heart in her throat, she dropped down in front of him, put the roses down, and held out her hand. “We’ll have to see, won’t we?”
A slight frown crinkled his forehead. “What do you mean?”
“Whether it fits.”
“Woman,” he growled, grinning in relief, “you’ll give me a heart attack.” Without taking his eyes off hers, he took the ring out of the box and slipped it on her finger. It was a perfect fit. As she lifted her hand, the stones sparkled in the rays of the sun dancing through the window.
“It’s beautiful and a perfect fit,” she said. “Thank you.”
“Thanks to our sisters. Annie gave Riley the size for the ring,” he said. “When I saw the two blue stones, I knew this was the ring I want to give you. Your eyes… they’re the exact shade. Sapphires, they told me. If you’d rather have something different…”
She threw her arms around his neck. “It’s absolutely perfect.”
“You still haven’t answered my question.”
