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He placed his hand over hers on his chest. "Yes. See? This right here is good communication. Amanda and I never would've talked things out like this."
She narrowed her eyes and said, "I like this interrogation style. My turn to ask you some more questions. Amanda's only been gone for a year now. Are you sure you're ready to move on?"
Mason squeezed her hand and smiled softly. "Yes. Absolutely. What's it going to take for you to let Amanda go? She and I just weren't a good fit."
Lucy's eyes widened, and she sucked in a breath. "Me let her go? What about you? When are you going to let go of the guilt of her death?"
Mason paused for a moment, enjoying her smile, the sound of her voice.
Then her words penetrated his brain, and he said, "I think I started to let her go on that cliff in Hawaii. The pain and guilt have lessened over the past few months."
Lucy frowned. "Did you love her?"
He nodded. "I thought I did. I had asked her to move in with me after all."
He saw the confusion and sadness on her face and kissed her softly.
"What I felt for Amanda is nothing like what I feel for you, Lucy. This is the real deal. I've never felt like this with anyone else. It's all consuming. I can't get you out of my head, my mind, my heart, my soul. And I don't want to get you out of there. I just want to be with you all day and night, see you smile and laugh and even just watch you work on your book."
Lucy put a hand on her chest and wiggled on his lap with a frown. "You—just what does that mean, Mason?"
He smiled, running his hands down her back and staring at her with those gorgeous blue eyes. He teased her. "That's not a yes no question, Lucy. Come on, play the game right."
She grinned, then bit her lip and glanced down nervously, hunching her shoulders in the cocoon of his arms. She looked back up, her expression fearful.
"Mason, do you love me? You're saying all kinds of things, and I'm very emotional right now, and I just need to know if you love me."
Her words were rushed, and he felt his heart break. He crushed his mouth to hers, trying to pour all his emotions into this one moment.
Chapter 50
Mason cupped her cheeks and lifted her face as he pulled back from the kiss, a flood of warmth spreading through him at the words.
When she finally met his eyes, he said, "Yes, I love you, little bird. You knocked the breath out of me when I saw you walk up that aisle in December. It was love at first sight, but every minute I spend with you, I fall a little deeper in love."
Her eyes misted with tears again, but she didn't bother to wipe them away. If she could be brave and ask, then so could he. She was always encouraging him to go big and reach for the stars, even when she didn't intend to. She just inspired him every day to be a better person.
He wanted to be that for her. He took a deep breath and asked, "Do you love me?"
"I—I love you, Mason." Her voice was so soft, but then she rushed on, stumbling over her words.
"I mean, how crazy is that? I haven't ever really had a real boyfriend before, so I have nothing to compare this to, this feeling inside when I'm with you or think about you. I—I love you. It wasn't part of the plan, but here we are."
He chuckled, kissing her softly on the lips before pulling back. Joy filled his chest, making him feel lighter than air. He grinned, peppering kisses across her lips. "Surprised you, didn't it?"
Her hands caressed his chest as she nodded, another tear falling down her cheek.
His heart ached for her. He wanted to be closer to her, and he didn't think he'd ever get enough of her. "It surprised me too, little bird. All I want to do is wrap you up in my arms and love you forever."
"I—I feel like that too. I'm going to worry about you running all over and fighting bad guys. But if we're going to make this relationship work, we need to communicate and let each other do our own thing. You're going to have to let me take risks and be myself too. I'm going to want to go on adventures and see and experience new things. Can you handle that?"
He nodded, kissing her again softly. "I'm willing to work on it. If I'm working out of town for a few days at a time, I literally won't be able to step in and interfere with your life. I never want you to feel trapped or like you can't do what you need or want to do."
"I want you to be part of that life and help me make good decisions, maybe talk me out of doing stupid stuff that we both know will make me pass out or something."
They both smiled, remembering the parasailing incident. Then she continued, "But I want to be an equal, sharing everything."
"That works for me. So, will you officially be my girlfriend and see where this relationship takes us?"
