I don’t miss the shadows in his eyes.
Or the way he quickly tucks them away. “Yeah?”
“Thanks,” I say. “For everything.”
He nods. I close the door.
And then I’m walking toward the woman I love.
Vaguely, I hear him turn his car around and drive off. But it’s a distant thought because every cell in my body is focused on the woman in front of me.
“Hey,” she murmurs when I get close enough to take her hand.
“Hey, cookie,” I say, drawing her against me. “Why the subterfuge?”
“Because I needed to give you something.”
“What’s that, gorgeous?”
She passes me an envelope.
“What’s this?”
“Open it.”
Confused, but intrigued, I tear open the flap, pull out the paper, not processing what I’m reading at first.
Because it doesn’t make sense.
“I had Attie pull some strings,” she whispers. “Turns out her boss knew someone in the patent office. She managed to fast track your application.”
I can’t believe what I’m looking at.
Can’t begin to process it.
“You did this for me?”
“It was nothing, handsome,” she says. “And really, it was Attie who did most of the work.”
“It was you.” I carefully fold the paper, tuck it in my pocket, then I move closer to Marie and cup her face gently in my hands. “Thank you for opening up that gorgeous heart to me. You can’t know what it means?—”
“I do.”
Of course she does.
Because this—us—means just as much to her.
“Still,” I whisper. “Thank you.”
Her smile is so beautiful, it takes my breath away. “I’m the one who should be thankingyou.”
“Let’s keep arguing about it for the rest of our lives, yeah?” I tease.
“I’d like that very much,” she whispers, sending my pulse skyrocketing because the sincerity in her tone is almost blindingly intoxicating. And I know it’s because she’s finally allowed herself to be mine. “I, um,” she murmurs. “I also had Brooks bring you here because I wanted to show you something.”
I’m not sure I can handle anything else, but still, I say, “What’s that, cookie?”
She shifts, jerking her chin behind me. “That.”
