His gaze flicked to hers. “Ask me.”
“I can’t tell you how much I appreciate you moving to California. Because I can’t leave Mom and Dad right now. I want to be here when the baby comes. But after…when things have settled down, we can go back to Italy, if you want. I know you’re leaving at a hard time for your family too.”
“I made these plans before I knew about the baby or your accident, Sam. I want to be where you are.”
She nodded, her heart bursting to full. She pressed her mouth to his chest, the thundering din of his heart soothing her. “Will you tell me what is truly in your heart? What do you want from this?”
He gathered her to him and buried his face in her hair. Hiding the vulnerability he felt, she knew. When he spoke, his voice was hoarse. “I promised myself that I won’t railroad you. That I’ll let you choose the shape of our future. You have all these dreams and plans, and I don’t want to take over your life and…your mom’s complaint that I’m too old for you…it’s not unfair.”
“Not the answer to my question.”
He looked at her, and those gray eyes captivated her. And that she had the power to grant all the wants in them was a trip of its own.
“I would marry you tomorrow. I would wrap you in Bubble Wrap and steal you away to my bedroom. I would…”
A soft gasp escaped her. He pressed a hand to his eyes, and shook his head. “I knew it was a bad idea.”
“No. Listen, Alessandro. I… What about one out of the two?”
His head jerked up. “What?”
“The first one…the marrying part.”
“But you want to go to college and—”
“And I can’t if we marry?” Sam clasped his jaw and willed him to believe her. “Before I met you… I wanted what I thought was a normal life. College and parties and raves and dating…all the stuff I missed out on. But I hate parties, and the whole idea of dating terrifies me, and I wouldn’t touch anything at a rave. I think men in their twenties are mostly immature.” She clasped his cheeks, her heart overflowing with love. “Everything fades into gray scale when I think of my life without you. You’re my grand adventure. My excitement. The one man who sees me…all of me. College and painting and building my own business… I can still do all of them with you in my life,sì? We will just fight as husband and wife instead.”
He laughed, kissed her, swirling his tongue against hers with a possessive urgency. “Then, marry me tomorrow. Be my wife. Give me all of you.”
Sam burrowed into him, her mouth at the hollow of his throat, her heart running away. “You have all of me, Alessandro. And yes, I’ll marry you. As soon as you can arrange it.”
Sam cried again, and Alessandro gathered her to him, and they fell asleep like that, all tangled in each other, waiting for the new dawn that would tie them together forever.
