Page 129 of Burn

What is happening?

The snow flies around us, and his eyes meet mine when he continues, “All I could think about in that moment, was how fucking in love with you I was.”

Oh my…

“I don’t even think I’d told you yet. I reflect on that moment when things get hard, work is brutal, or we get into a fight, as infrequent as those moments are. I reflect on it when I feel weak, lonely, or when my mind is unsettled, and my dreams are desperate nightmares. It brings me comfort.”

The first tear slips down my cheek.

He swallows. It’s slow, and I watch the way his Adam’s apple bobs. “That memory is my north star. It helps me find my way home, because home is wherever I’m with you.”

As he says the last word, he shifts and slowly lowers to one knee. My hand flies up to my mouth to stop the sob working its way up my throat. Tears flow freely down my cheeks, and the icy wind whipping around us makes my skin burn. There’s a momentary beat while he stares up at me, and I stare down at him. This beautiful man, in my favorite position: on his knees before me. I didn’t even notice the small velvet box in his hand, but I do see the slight tremble when he reaches to open it with his other hand.

The ring is beautiful. I think. I can’t tear my eyes away from his; beautiful, warm, with thick snowflakes lining his lashes.

“Alexandria Donnelly, I won’t make you any false promises of a perfect life. This is probably the most selfish question I’ll ever ask, because it’s one hundred percent for me, and me alone. Will you do me the greatest honor of marrying —”

He doesn’t get the last word out before I drop to my knees and wrap my arms around his neck. The dirty parking lot snow seeps into my pants, soaking me. The snow falls around us, and there’s a moment of silence where the only sound is the wind and our beating hearts. His arms slowly wrap around me, pulling me in between his legs. He blocks out the wind, and warmth floods my body.

My voice is shaky and so quiet when I say, “Yes.”

He must not hear me over the snow, because he asks, “What?”

I lift my lips to his, my head spins, and I’m breathless. If he wasn’t holding on to me, I think I’d float back up into the sky, but my second answer is louder. My tears fall onto my lips, and when I lick them, they’re salty and sweet all at once.

“Yes.”

His hand moves to my cheek, urging me back so he can look into my eyes. When he does, his forehead drops to mine, and he breathes a sigh of relief.

“You sure?”

Those two words — as if I could ever deny him, so I say the only other words that come to mind.

“This life, the next, and every life thereafter.”

Epilogue

Lex

One Year Later

It’s unseasonably warm this spring, and as we crest a hill, the roadside shrubs and weeds are replaced by thick, vibrant lilacs in shades of purple.

“Whoa,” I sigh. “They’re so beautiful.”

Adrian reaches across the center console to grab my hand, glancing toward me with a smile on his face. The early morning light shines over his shoulder, illuminating his golden skin and making him look like a fallen angel. It reminds me of the story he told me the night he proposed. Most days, we move in unison; he steps, I step. Today, though, my heart flutters and the butterflies in my stomach take flight as I watch him drive. I’d happily follow him to the ends of hell.

I roll the window down, and the smell of lilacs fills the truck’s cab, making my stomach churn. I wrinkle my nose and immediately close the window. He chuckles softly.

“Not a fan of the smell?”

I shake my head, taking concentrated breaths through my mouth, “I guess not anymore.”

When we turn onto a gravel road, I shift to face Adrian. “You lost?” I ask.

“We’re not lost,” he says in that deep voice that soothes my soul.

I pull my phone from my purse and open the maps.