Then shock once more as Gideon Maddox, god of all he surveyed, grabbed the cordless mic, stepped off the stage, and slowly made his way through the crowds and elegantly decorated tables, toward her.
Adrian and Cora were watching Gideon with wide eyes, drinks halfway to their mouths, and Kendra couldn’t blame them.
Suddenly terrified of what any of this meant, she shot to her feet, unsure if she was going to make a run for it or throw herself into her husband’s arms.
Finally, he was standing in front of her, tall, darkly beautiful, masculine, sexy beyond belief, and looking at her like he needed to kiss her or he’d die.
But he didn’t kiss her; he did something else that would steal her breath.
He got down on one knee, took her hand in his, and kissed it…gently. Reverently.
Gasps sounded around them, but Kendra couldn’t really hear them, not when all she could see, hear, and know was kneeling before her, desperate hope in his eyes.
Microphone to his mouth, Gideon spoke, clear and deep, “I love you, Kendra Maddox, my wife, my love, my everything.”
More gasps, but the loudest was from her.
“Gid-Gideon,” she rasped, hand to her trembling lips. “What are you doing?”
He smiled lopsidedly, his green eyes pools of mirth and raw emotions.
“Get up,” she muttered, trying to pull him to his feet, and he let her, but he didn’t move an inch to the left or right. “You’re insane.”
He chuckled, pulled the mic from his face to lean in and whisper, “Foryou, I amunhinged.”
Eyes wide, she couldn’t stop staring at the man who was throwing her for more loops than any rollercoaster could.
Speaking into the mic once more, Gideon said, “Of all the Christmas gifts I’ve ever received in my life, none of them are as precious to me as the love of the woman standing here…a woman I, like a jackass, took for granted. But not anymore. There isn’t a dime I’ve earned, a contract I’ve signed, or a company I’ve built that matters more to me than my wife.”
Oh God…this was…too much!
Her breathing erratic, she fought the urge to flee, to hide, to steal a moment where she could think—because none of this could be real; her husband, a man who only married her for her womb and naivete, wasn’t proclaiming his love to her in front of two-hundred-plus gossipy New York elites who’re, more than likely, already sharing every word Gideon spoke on their TikTok and Instagram accounts.
Within the hour, everyone—everyone—would hear what he said, would see him on his knees.
Tears burning the backs of her eyes, Kendra croaked, “Why are you doing this,” her voice so ragged she could barely hear it herself.
But Gideon did.
Peering into her face, he dropped the mic, pulled her into his arms, and murmured into her ear, “Words don’t matter, so I’m showing you that I meant what I said in Schroon Lake—I love you, I want to be with you, and I regret the last three years more than you could ever imagine.”
Chapter Nineteen
After Gideon’s “speech” the evening became a blur of well-wishers, jealous wives, furtive glances between Adrian and Cora, and Gideon’s undivided, intense and unflinching attention.
She couldn’t breathe, couldn’t eat, and her thoughts were spinning so fast she was dizzy from it.
“Let’s go home,” Gideon murmured into her ear two hours after they arrived, and before she could remind him that she wasn’t going home, that their issues were far from resolved even after his totally crazy and utterly uncharacteristic, emotional outpouring, he continued. “There’s something I want to show you…. Please.”
Thatplease, spoken like a prayer in a voice that only ever made her think all sorts of wicked things, Kendra couldn’t deny him.
Curious and exhausted, Kendra—against her better judgement—let Gideon call for the car.
She was going home with him—but not to stay. She’d sleep in the guest room, then leave in the morning and grab a hotel room. Tonight, though, she needed sleep; pregnancy wiped her out, and the emotional upheaval from the night wasn’t helping.
Determined to not let Gideon charm her into his bed, she stiffened her spine and let him lead her into the elevator to the penthouse, wholly expecting to enter a place that no longer felt like hers.
Like theirs.
