Well, damn this man for being the most amazing person I’ve ever known. The person I want to laugh with, to snuggle up by the fire with, and the person I want to rip off my clothes and throw me on the nearest piece of soft furnishing. Or floor. Or kitchen counter. Or whatever’s handy, really.
He’s beaming now. “The rush I got from the expression on his face was better than any deal I’ve ever done. I had no idea that not taking the money could feel better than taking it.”
My eyes prickle as the reality of what he’s done sinks in, and a solitary tear slips down my cheek. “But, why would you do that?”
“Do you honestly not get it?” He brushes the tear away with his thumb and tucks a stray curl behind my ear. “Because I want to be with you.” He cups my cheek. “I want to putusfirst.”
He thinks there’s anus?
A mess of emotions swirls inside me. I never thought anyone would ever choose me over enough money to buy a small country. What do you do when your body doesn’t know whether to laugh, cry, or pass out?
I’m on the verge of doing a bit of all of them when he dips his head and brushes his soft, delicious lips against my mouth. I melt into him, sure it’s where I belong.
He rests his forehead against mine and lowers his voice to a husky whisper. “I’m going to ask Elliot to run everything for a few days, so I can take a week off. I thought maybe I could stay a while longer. With you, I mean. If you’ll have me.”
All my worries, my fears, my doubts dissolve. If he can make a monumental shift in his priorities for me, the least I can do is crack open my solitary shell and let him in.
“Oh, hell, yes.” I throw my arms around his neck and his body presses into me. He’s like an island of warmth amid the chilly air.
His lips are soft, warm, and mine. The gentle touch of his tongue sends shivers to my soul, to the depths of my heart, and to a spot between my legs I am desperate for him to touch.
He pulls back, holds up the blue tin that had been pressed between us, and straightens the crumpled ribbon. “Hey, careful.”
I feign surprise. “Is that for me?”
“Maybe. But you have to answer some questions first.”
“Like what?”
“Do you like cranberries?”
“Ugh, well—”
“Oh, that’s not the right answer.”
“It’s just that my grandmother made awful sour cranberry sauce every Thanksgiving.”
“Hmm, okay.” He puts a finger to his lips as he screws them up in thought. “What’s the last movie you saw?”
I close my eyes and chuckle. He’s playing me at my own game. “I can’t believe you’re doing this to me.” I shake my head. “And you won’t believe the answer.”
“Try me.”
“Frozen.”
He throws his head back and laughs. “Seriously?”
“Yup. Last night. Or rather the early hours of this morning. Couldn’t sleep. Thought I’d see what all the fuss was about.”
“And?”
I put my hand to my chest and widen my eyes. “It’s amazing.”
I sobbed my heart out at the end of the movie, and now standing here, looking at this beautiful man who’s given up what he thought he wanted because he’s realized what he actually wants is me, the tears flow freely again.
He kisses my cheek as a river runs down it.
“I guess I don’t need to ask you the last time you cried,” he says softly against my skin.
