“And how can I believe that?”
He winced. “I… all I can give you is my word. I will not rush you. I will never ask you to force your feelings for me. If it takes a year, I will wait. If it takes ten years, I will wait.”
“And twenty?”
“Twenty…” He grimaced and then stood tall. “The rest of my life. I want a family with you, Lucy. I want a life with you. I…” He considered her, his eyes turning to James. “Might I hold him?”
“Oh.” She blinked at the suddenness of the request. “Of course.” She handed James to Marcus, and he took the boy without hesitation.
The way he scooped James into his arms was done naturally, as if he was born to it. James immediately turned and clung to Marcus’ shirt, and Marcus smiled to see the baby’s obsession with him.
“I will always be there for you and James,” he assured her as he held the baby. “Take your time to decide how you feel about me. Make me prove myself. What I did today, that was a start, one I hope you recognize. But if it is not enough, I accept that.”
“Today?” She frowned as if she did not understand. “Oh… you mean coming to my rescue, facing down my attacker, and forgiving my sister as I asked you to? And without argument or question? Is that what you mean?”
“Well… yes.”
“Being by my side, you mean,” she continued with a coy smile. “Being there for me. Showing my family how you feel about me, and what you are willing to do to protect me. Is that what you did?”
“I…” He frowned with confusion. “Yes, that’s… I told you I would help, Lucy, that I would see justice done. I did that. I did it for you.”
“No,” she corrected, her smile growing. “You did it for us.”
He blinked. “For us?”
Marcus had James in one arm, so she took him by his spare hand. “You’re right, Marcus. Too many times I gave you a chance to prove to me what you wanted, that this life was something that you and I could share together. And too many times you broke my trust.”
“I –”
“But I never doubted your words,” she spoke over him. “I never doubted the truth in them. That was not the problem. The problem was that you were not willing to believe them yourself. And for a while there, I thought you never would.” She squeezed his hand as she held his eyes. “But you know what? I think that time has passed.”
“Re – really?” he said hopefully.
“Look at yourself,” she said with soft laughter. “Two weeks ago, you would never have asked to hold James. You would not have even been in the same room as him. Now, I can hardly separate the two of you.”
He grinned. “He is rather adorable, isn’t he.”
“And today,” she continued. “I know you think that you were doing that for me, but you were really doing it for us. You did it so that we could be together, so that nothing could come between us. That is the action I wanted to see, and that is the action that you gave me.”
“Does that mean…” He swallowed. “That you forgive me?”
“It’s not about forgiving you.” She sighed and shook her head. “It is about believing you. And yes, I think that finally I do.”
Lucy had known that she would come to this decision for some time. It was the day she woke up from her sickness and saw Marcus playing with James on the floor that had done it. It was not that he sat by her bed for three days straight. It was not that he apologized and asked for another chance. It was that he finally accepted who he was, even when he did not think that she was looking.
For weeks now, Lucy had felt herself falling in love with Marcus. She had fought back those feelings. She had denied them. Now, she saw no point in doing such a thing, because the look he held her in told her how he felt: that he loved her.
“I love you, Marcus. I probably should not, you have given me every reason not to but…” She sighed and let her smile show. “I suppose I am a slow learner.”
“As am I,” he beamed. “I love you too, Lucy, and I cannot wait to spend the rest of my life showing you just how much.”
“Why wait?”
With those words said, there was but one thing left to do. Marcus still held James in his arm, and she saw him look about to put the baby down. But Lucy stopped him from doing that. Their love was not just for them, but for James too, as he was a part of this family. He was their son.
So, she stepped forward, one hand resting on James’ back, the other keeping a hold of Marcus’ hand. She leaned up, her eyesflicked to his lips, and he moved to her as if pulled by an unseen force.
It was their second kiss, but it felt like their first.
