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EMMA

W ill you marry me?

Those four words echo in my ear.

I can’t believe this is actually happening. I let fear and doubt consume me. I told myself that good things don’t happen to me. I was so scared that it was all in my head.

But it wasn’t.

He feels the same way about me.

He’s kneeling before me now, holding the most beautiful diamond ring I’ve ever seen. I would have been happy with a paper ring if it meant that I could have our love back.

It was all a misunderstanding. He was trying to protect me this whole time.

He’s the only man who ever looked out for me like this.

“Yes,” I say. “I’ll marry you.”

He slides the ring on my finger. I’m not surprised that it’s a perfect fit. Klaus is anything if not detail-oriented.

He clasps my hand in both of his and kisses it. And then he stands and holds the back of my neck.He tugs me closer until our bodies are flush together, until I can barely breathe.

Finally, he kisses me.

The ground beneath me falls away. I feel like I’m levitating, like I have wings.

Everything in me reaches for him, finally resting in the knowledge that he never really meant to hurt me. I assumed the worst about him, but none of it was true.

My heart squeezes hard in my chest. I didn’t think it would hurt this much to love another person. The intensity of my emotions is still frightening, but it’s okay.

It’s okay because he loves me too.

Our hearts were scared to love, but this bond demands surrender. It demands us to let go of control and trust each other completely.

He presses hisforehead against mine.

“You’re crying,” he says, wiping my tears away with his thumb.

“I’m scared,” I say. “What if all of this is just a dream? What if it’s all in my head again?”

He cups my cheek, making me look at him.

“It was hell,” he says. “Every second I spent away from you, convincing myself that I didn’t love you, it was hell on earth.”

“It was hell for me too,” I say. “I never want to feel that way again.”

“I’ll never give you a reason to feel that way again,” he tells me.

“Can you promise me something, Klaus?”

“Anything,” he says.

“The next time we have any conflict, I want you to promise you’ll fight with me,” I say.

“I don’t want it to come to that,” he says, looking hesitant.

“No, I want you to fight with me, Klaus,” I say. “Because all of this could have been avoided if we had just talked it out.”

In some ways, the two of us are too similar. It’s easy for us to let ourselves be consumed by passion, but we’re still guarded when it comes to our hearts.

“We almost lost this beautiful relationship because of a misunderstanding,” I continue.

“If you told me that Adam was at the club that night, I would have understood why you had to say those things about me. I just don’t want something like that to happen again.

I don’t want us jumping to conclusions without knowing the full truth. ”

The rise and fall of his chest tells me that he’s still worried about something. There are still things that weigh heavily on his mind.

“There are things I need to tell you, Emma,” he says. “You deserve to know the truth.”

He walks away from me and sits on the edge of the bed. I watch him for a moment.

It feels like there’s a string tied between our hearts. And it tugs at me now, telling me to go to him. I walk toward him, stopping between his spread thighs.

He looks up at me.

It doesn’t matter how many times I’ve had his eyes on me. Every time he looks at me like this, it feels like the very first time. I get butterflies every time.

“Whatever it is, I’m not going to judge you for it,” I say.

“I’ve done some bad things in my life, Emma,” he says. “Terrible things. I’ve tortured men for days. I’ve killed people. I?—”

“It’s all okay, Klaus,” I say, running my fingers through his hair. “It’s okay.”

“No, I want you to listen,” he says. “I’m a flawed man. I’m broken in so many ways. I don’t know how to show love or compassion. Even when I feel those things, I don’t always know how to express it.”

“Not everyone shows love the same way, Klaus,” I say, tugging on his hair softly until he looks up at me.

“Yes, but my actions have consequences, Emma,” he says.

“If I had done things differently, none of this would have happened. Instead of being a strong man, I let my demons get the best of me. I was cold to my own family. I locked myself in my office instead of being there for the children. I didn’t do enough. I wasn’t enough.”

“Stop that,” I say.

He’s breaking my heart with every word.

“And most of all, I’m afraid that I won’t be enough for you,” he says. “What’s going to happen when my demons return, Emma?What if I end up going back to my old ways?”

“You asked me to be your wife,” I say. “We’re going to be a family, Klaus.No matter what happens, you won’t ever have to go through things on your own ever again. I’ll be here for you, just like I know you’ll be here for me.”

I made so many assumptions about Klaus, but he’s just a man who’s misunderstood.

I see him for who he really is now. He’s the silent protector, a dark guardian angel, a man who would do absolutely anything for the people he loves.

He got attacked by my stalker in the middle of the night. Instead of getting rid of me like he should have for the kids’ safety, he amplified every protective measure.He never told me how much stress he was under even though it was my problem.

When he saw Adam again at the ice rink in Chicago, his entire mood shifted. I could sense that something was troubling him, but hedidn’t let me worry about it.

Even after our big fight, he kept the promises he made. He made sure that my grandmother received the treatment she needed. He didn’t throw me out of his house even though he had every reason to.

That’s just the kind of man he is.

He’s sweet, dependable, and so completely selfless in his love.

“I wasn’t there for my sister when she needed me, Emma,” he says. His eyes are cast low now. He won’t even look at me. “She was going through so much at the time,but I made her feel like she couldn’t confide in me. I was a terrible brother.”

“That’s not true,” I say.

I get down on my knees to look at him.He looks so tormented right now, like he’s trying to pull himself together even though everything in him wants to break apart.

“You’re human, okay?” I say. “It’s human nature to change and grow and evolve. It’s human nature to make mistakes and learn from them. You can’t go back and change the past, so you have to allow yourself to move forward.”

He shakes his head. “Sera was hurting. And I didn’t even know about it until it was too late.”

I see that Klaus isn’t going to forgive himself for this overnight. But I’ll be there for him until he does.

I reach up and press my lips against his. I taste the salt from his tears. I taste his remorse and his melancholy.

I’ve found a home in him, and I want him to have a home in me.

He cups the back of my head, deepening the kiss. His lips open against mine, making everything inside me burn. He groans against me, not breaking the kiss as he lifts me and lays me down on the bed. His weight settles on top of me, stealing the breath from my lungs.

“You should be scared of a man like me, Emma,” he says. “I’m no good for you.”

He’s wrong about it.

“You’re all I want, Klaus,” I say.

“I’ve killed men with these hands,” he says, dragging his hand down my breasts and waist. He cups my hips, holding me possessively. “I’m no Prince Charming or knight in shining armor, Emma. I placed cameras in your room to watch you sleep.”

It’s the wrong reaction to have, but I arch into his touch, grazing my hard nipples against his chest.

“I have recorded footage of you getting dressed in your bedroom,” he says. “There was this one morning you did yoga in your little shorts. I must have watched that clip at least a hundred times.”

The way I react to his admission is shameful.

I’m wet and sticky between my thighs. I spread my legs wider so he can settle in.

“I crossed the line one too many times, little darling,” he says. “You were doing such a good job as the nanny, and I was violating your privacy. But you can’t really blame a man for wanting this. I mean, look at you.”

His hand closes over my breast and squeezes hard, trapping my nipple between his fingers.

“This body was made to make a man lose his mind,” he says.

“Which video was your favorite?” I ask, biting down on my bottom lip.

His eyes are nearly black with desire now. His snarl is menacing as he watches me squirm underneath him.

“It’s hard to choose, there were so many,” he says.

“The yoga one was definitely top three. But if I had to pick a favorite, it would be the one where you were horny in your sleep. It was the early hours of dawn. The morning light fell on your skin as you writhed in bed. You spread your thighs and touched your little unfucked pussy. Right before you were about to come, you moaned my name.”

Heat rises up my cheeks. “I don’t remember this.”

“You were mostly asleep,” he says. “I cranked up the thermostat in your room just so you would push your covers off. And you did not disappoint. You put on a whole show for me. Your pink pussy glistened in the morning light, begging for a man’s cock.

And your tits were barely contained in your silk nightgown.

I could see the rosy hint of your nipples as they shifted against the fabric. ”

“That’s so wrong,” I say.

He pushes his hand inside my panties and cups my aching pussy.

“I dreamed of touching this pussy,” he says.

“I was so desperate that I was contemplating tying you up just for one pump inside this tight cunt. I didn’t know then that you would be a little slut for it.

You liked the idea ofan older man having his way with you.

You liked the idea of me introducing you to the dark side. ”

He slides his index finger up and down my slit, making me restless and achy.

“Do you like the idea of me tying you up, Emma?” he asks.