Page 93 of I Dreamt That You Loved Me

“Anything,” I said, brushing a lock of hair off his forehead.

“Two promises. First, my lawyer is on the way. I put everything in writing so there’s no confusion. I want you to handle my music career. All final decisions are yours. I don’t want any of the new music to be released. It all sounds like shit. So make sure they don’t release it. If anything happens to me, you’re in charge. No one else is allowed to make decisions on my behalf.No one. Not my lawyer. Not the record label?—"

“Nothing is going to happen to you.” I was trying not to hyperventilate. “After you heal from your surgery, you’ll be able to take care of all this yourself.”

“I need you to promise me.”

I swallowed. “I promise.”

“This new label I signed with is going to push for this album to be released but don’t let them bully you?—”

“Gabriel. Please stop talking like this.” I buried my face in the crook of his neck. “You promised me you would live?—”

“Cleo. Look at me.”

I released a shaky breath and propped my head on my hand and mustered a smile. “I could look at you forever.”

He smiled. “Good. I’ll hold you to it. But if I wake up from this and I’m not the same man, I still need you to do this, okay?”

God. This was all too much. I wanted to break down and cry like a baby, but I had to stay strong for him. I’d have plenty of time to cry later so I nodded. “Okay. I promise.”

“Now for the most important thing. Marry me.”

I traced his eyebrows, his nose, his mouth then leaned over and kissed his lips. “I already said yes. We’re getting married in May.”

“Not May. Now. Today. Right here. Marry me, Cleo.”

“Gabriel.” My voice cracked. “We don’t have time for this. The doctor said you have two hours…” I released a shaky breath. “I’m going to marry you in May and we’re going on a romantic honeymoon. We’ll feed each other fruit and laze around in a hammock with the sea breezes?—”

“I want to do it now. Just in case?—”

I put my fingers over his lips. “Shh. Don’t say it. Please don’t say it,” I pleaded.

“I’m not having surgery until you marry me.” He pressed his lips together and got that obstinate look on his face that I knew so well.

It was the same look he had when he fought with the record label executives over the cover for his first album and won. The same look he had on his face when he told his A&R guy to go to hell and signed with a new label after fulfilling his contract obligations.

I’d seen him go into battle to protect his artistic vision so many times.

On a personal level, I knew that for as stubborn as we both were, we’d learned to choose our battles.

This was the hill he’d chosen to die on. Not literally. Dear Lord, please no.

“We’re here now, together, and if anything does happen to me, I want to make sure you’re taken care of,” he continued. “Everything I have is yours and there will be a lot less red tape if we’re married. And I know you’re big on giving away all your money to charity but this time, I need you to keep the money. I need to know that you’ll have enough to take care of yourself and that you’ll have the freedom to do whatever you want and live the way you want?—”

“I can’t believe you’re talking about money right now,” I cried. “You don’t care about money. I don’t care about money. I don’twantyour money.”

“There are only two things I care about in this world. My music and you, and not in that order.” He traced my lips with his index finger, not caring one bit about the IVs hooked up to his right arm. His non-dominant side. Gabriel was a leftie.

“You are the love of my life and no matter what happens, you will always be my first love and my last. I want to marry you because I love you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you because you are my home. My only home.Pleasemarry me, Cleo.”

“Yes,” I whispered, then louder, “yes, of course I will.”

How could I deny him anything? When I looked into his deep brown eyes, I saw our whole future.

This would not be the end for us.

He was going to pull through this surgery and when he woke up, he would still be the man I fell in love with.