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All eyes turned in his direction—including his father’s.
Alessio had expected condemnation from him. Instead, there was acceptance. They had both come a very long way, he acknowledged. Bridges had been built, and those bridges were now making it possible for them to communicate with trust and affection instead of suspicion and defensiveness.
And he knew that the woman looking at him, her expression guarded, had played a huge role in building those bridges.
His keen eyes noted the way her back straightened. She was ready to defend herself, braced for confrontation.
He remained standing there and looked at everyone. He recognised a few faces. The rest he would get to know over time.
‘I’m sorry,’ he said slowly, turning to face Sophie and his father.
‘There’s no need,’ Leonard said heavily. ‘Life happens. I should be fuming, but I’m touched that you did what you did to try and protect me.’
‘Alessio...’
‘Sophie...’
He wanted to reach out for her hand, but she had both of them clasped in front of her.
‘I’ve already explained the situation to your father,’ Sophie said dully. ‘There’s no need for you to play back-up guy.’
‘That’s not why I’m here.’In for a penny,he thought,in for a pound. ‘Gather around, everyone. It’s important you all hear what I have to say.’
‘What are you doing?’ Sophie asked sharply, and he shot her a wry, self-deprecating smile.
‘What I would have done a while back if I hadn’t been so damned foolish and so damned stubborn and set in my ways.’ He paused, and his dark eyes zeroed in on her confused face. ‘You told me you loved me,’ he said gravely, ‘and I heard you and shut the door on you. It was a mistake. That door...the door that safeguarded my heart...was blown open by you a while back, but I was too entrenched in my attitudes to realise it.’
He glanced across to his father, whose eyebrows were raised, and Alessio threw him a sheepish, wry smile.
‘No more little white lies, Dad. The truth now, and nothing but the truth.’
His dark gaze rested on Sophie, and he felt a tug of love and need and want that was so powerful it nearly blew him off his feet.
‘Sophie, you got under my skin. And I was kidding myself when I thought that didn’t pose any danger for my peace of mind, or my tried and tested self-control.’ He breathed in, long and deep. ‘I’d spent my life protecting myself from being vulnerable. I’d managed to convince myself that that was a state of affairs that would never change because I would never allow it to. The truth is, Sophie, I stopped caring about my precious self-control within seconds of meeting you... You made me laugh and you made me think and you made meneed.’
The room had disappeared. The only person in it now was the woman he had fallen head over heels in love with.
‘Are you just saying that...? Do you mean it, Alessio?’
‘Every word. I was a smug, foolish, short-sighted idiot...’
Sophie smiled, heart bursting as she moved towards him to stare up at his dear, perfect face.
‘Now Iknowyou’re going to regret saying that.’
When she reached to stroke his cheek, he captured her hand in his and closed his eyes to kiss it.
‘How could I have known?’ he asked in a roughened undertone. ‘Known that when love struck my defences would all be washed away like a sandcastle in the path of an advancing tide? I’d been a bystander my entire life and I seriously believed that no one could possibly come along to challenge that. But you did, my darling, and I don’t want you to ever stop challenging me. You make me the man I want to be.’
He got down on one knee.
‘I have no ring, Sophie, so you might not think much of the grand gesture, but it’s made from the very bottom of my heart. I love you more than words can say, and in front of everyone here I’m asking...will you marry me?’
As grand gestures went, Sophie didn’t think they could come any grander. Their eyes met and she could see heartfelt sincerity burning in the depths of his dark gaze.
Her heart was bursting. She wanted to pinch herself. Because did dreams like this ever come true?
But he was waiting for her answer.
Everyone was waiting for her answer.
She smiled slowly and said, shakily, ‘I can’t think of anything I would rather do...’
