“Madison’s back?” I ask.
“Oh yeah. For a few weeks now. It’s good for her to be helping him out.” She winks.
“She always enjoyed doing that stuff,” I say, feeling the pang of how out of the loop I’ve been.
Maybe my siblings had a point with all the recluse jokes.
“Enough chit-chat—you’re getting married! Ready to get this show on the road?”
Chloe flashes me a quick, nervous look.
“Can we have one minute?” I ask.
“Of course!” Harper ducks to the back. “I’ll be right outside.”
Chloe’s breath quickens, and I can’t tell what she’s thinking.
“Last chance,” I tell Chloe, low. “If you want out, say it now. No hard feelings.”
This isn’t entirely true. I’d have plenty, just not about the money.
“I don’t want out,” she whispers. “I’m just… nervous. Last time didn’t end well, and this time isn’t exactly conventional. I always thought if I did it again, it would stick.”
And she still said yes. I don’t deserve her—not by a long shot.
“We may be doing things differently, but there’s no one else I’d stand here with.”
Which is the absolute truth.
“Me either,” she whispers, and I wish I could physically frame that truth so I could look at it whenever I need a reminder.
“I can’t promise where we’ll be in a year,” I say, brushing her cheek, “but I can promise I’ll do my best to make sure you and Phoebe are taken care of. And safe.”
I don’t know yet if I can keep this promise, but I know I’ll die trying.
“You don’t owe us that. We’re not yours to worry about.”
Her voice is so low I’ve got to strain to hear her, but I get the message. I want to be patient—it’s all happening so fast. But I want her to know she’s not alone.
“The minute it’s legal, you are. You’ll be my wife.” My voice cracks on the word, raw with nerves. I swallow, steadying myself, and try again because I need her to feel this. “My wife, Chloe. I’ll fight to make sure you have what you need, what you want. That makes you mine to worry about.”
A shaky breath escapes her, lips parting as she tries to steady herself. She wets her lips, eyes shimmering with emotion she tries to hide.
“Fair point,” she whispers, lacing her fingers with mine.
Here we are, blurring lines again.
“Don’t hide from me, Chloe,” I rasp. “You’re safe with me.”
The steady stroke of her thumbs calms my pulse and makes it race at the same time. But I mean every word I’ve said to her, and more I haven’t.
I didn’t fight hard enough last time. I’ll fight harder this time.
“One last thing,” I add, struggling to speak around the lump in my throat. “I won’t promise forever. It wouldn’t be fair. But I’ll promise to show up tomorrow. And the day after. And the day after that.”
Chloe’s eyes go glassy. “That’s enough,” she whispers.
The restraint it takes not to kiss her, right here, is staggering. I’m not imagining things here—she feels it, too. The want that snaps between us, the unbearable tug to gather her in my arms and prove with actions just how much of my heart she’s holding in her hands.
