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That had to have cost a pretty penny.
“You like it?”
I whirl around with a gasp to find Gage standing before me, clad in an Autumn Harvest T-shirt, much like the one I used to wear, and a pair of jeans. He looks delicious, tired, happy, sad, and worried.
I can relate to him on every single thing except the delicious part. I’m not feeling very delicious.
“It’s beautiful, Gage,” I whisper, bracing myself when he approaches me.
“I did it for you.” He reaches for my hands and holds them loosely in his. “I did it all for you. The revamp of everything, the grand reopening, all the new advertising materials, all for my girl. The local paper is going to do a write-up about you too. You’ll be famous.”
I’m only stuck on a few choice words he mentioned in that pretty speech. God, I missed him so much. Having him in front of me, so handsome but looking so unsure, makes my heart swell with overwhelming emotion for him. “Your girl?”
Slowly he nods, his fingers tightening around mine. “You’re mine. Whether we’re together or apart, I know it. I think you know it too.” He takes a deep breath and exhales slowly. “I’ve been miserable without you in my life. I need you, Marina. I need you by my side, working with me, laughing with me.Loving me.” His eyes glow as he steps closer, and I hold my breath, waiting for him to say something more. “Tell me you still feel the same.”
Gage
Iwait with near unbearable anticipation to hear what she has to say. Ivy bringing her here to see the bakery and me is a good sign. If she hated me, she wouldn’t have come in.
At the moment, I’m looking for any sort of positive sign—I’m that desperate.
“What you’ve done here is so beautiful.” She smiles at me, her eyes shiny with unshed tears. “Thank you. I don’t deserve this.”
Ah, that’s where she’s wrong. She deserves all of this and more. So much more. “I know we’ve gone through our ups and downs. We’ve both made some dumb choices. But I don’t ever, ever regret meeting you. Arguing with you. Having angry sex with you.” My voice lowers. “Falling in love with you.”
Her lips part, a shaky exhalation leaving her, and I pull her in, slipping my arms around her waist so I can crush her to me. I never want to let her go.
“Oh, Gage.” She presses her face against my chest and begins to cry, leaving me feeling helpless by her tears.
“Don’t cry,” I whisper against her hair as I stroke it with my fingers. “I love you.”
“I love you too,” she sobs into my shirt.
I smile despite her tears. What she just said is a good thing. A very, very good thing. “I want you to marry me,” I whisper close to her ear.
She withdraws from my embrace but I don’t let her go too far. “What did you say?”
“I want you to marry me. We’ll live here in St. Helena in the little house I’m having renovated and we’ll keep the San Francisco house for all the cars. They all can’t fit here. We’ll only have a single-car garage,” I say, earning a smile.
“Only if you promise to build a garage so we can keep a few of your cars here. I’d want to take them out for a test drive.” She nibbles on her bottom lip, driving me wild just watching at her. “You know. Just for... fun.”
Ah, damn this woman. She is just perfect for me in every way. “You’ve got it. Whatever you want,” I vow.
“What about your real estate business?”
“I can do that from here.” I have been for almost two months and everything’s worked out fine. “We’re not too far from the city so I can drive in when needed. It’ll all work out. As long as we have each other, we can make it work.”
She smiles up at me, her pretty eyes sparkling at me. “What about that proposal you mentioned.”
I frown. “Proposal?”
Marina frowns back. “Yes, you know. The one where you mentioned marriage?”
“Ahh.” I’m a complete bonehead. Reaching inside my front pocket, I pull out a small box and hand it to her. “Here you go.”
She opens the box with shaking fingers, a small gasp escaping her when she sees the glittering two-carat diamond nestled inside. “It’s too big,” she immediately protests, glaring at me.
“It’s perfect.” Taking the box from her, I withdraw the ring and grab her left hand, sliding the solitaire onto her ring finger. It fits. “You’re perfect.” I kiss the tip of her nose.
