Page 152 of Come to Me

"I'll take that as hello." His voice is smooth, calm. But there's a hint of amusement, of... brightness there.

It's a good sign.

"Did you, um..." My legs are shaking, but I hold onto the tree to stay upright.

Luke swoops in, catching me before I can hit the ground. His hands are on my waist, firm and supportive.

I meet his eyes. "Did you... Did you read everything?"

I feel like my heart is going to beat out of my chest.

He nods. "Every word."

That's a good sign. Right?

"And...?"

"It's everything I wanted."

My legs want to buckle, but he squeezes me tighter, pressing my body against his.

He wouldn't be holding me if he was about to dump me. Right?

God, I'm going crazy here!

I take a deep breath and exhale slowly. I need to be clear here, put all the chips out on the table. "I want to make this work. No matter how hard it is."

His hand finds my lower back and he presses my body into his. I close my eyes, rising up onto my tip toes to meet him.

Our lips connect and it's the sweetest, softest kiss we've ever shared. Everything is in this kiss--everything we've finally managed to say, every bit of hurt, of joy, of need.

Of love.

The kiss breaks and he looks into my eyes. "I want to be with you. Even if you're scared. Fuck. Even if you'll never be ready to marry me."

I take a deep breath, squeezing him to keep from crumbling. "Then prepare to be pleasantly surprised."

I reach into my purse for the ring box and attempt to lower myself to one knee. I only barely manage not to fall over, but I do it.

I take Luke's hand and look into his eyes.

That's the man I want to be with forever.

I've never been more sure of anything.

"I know this isn't really traditional," I start.

He nods, looking a little mystified.

I peel open the ring box, displaying it for him.

It's a men’s wedding band. Simple. White gold. Exactly the kind of thing he'd pick for himself.

I hope.

"I've done a lot of thinking." God, I feel like I might pass out. Is this how every guy feels when he does this? "And I realized that there's no one I'd rather share my life with. Luke... you fill me with so much. Not just happiness, but also laughter, excitement, passion. Hell, you fill me with this renewed will to make every day better than the one before. To try as hard as I can to stay on the path of recovery. To be a better version of myself." I stare up into those beautiful eyes of his and squeeze his hand tightly. "I would be honored if you would marry me."

He doesn't wait to answer, doesn't keep me in suspense.