“Hmm.”
“And if your mother wants to come live with us, I’ll do everything to make her feel at home,” Eva adds.
“Maybe when she’s Brigitte’s age,” I say. “And even then… She hates Fort Vauclairt as much as Brigitte hates her house.”
Even as I speak, I wonder if I could forgive Brigitte one day.
Maybe. I don’t know.
What she did was morally wrong. But when I ask myself if my own mother would do the same for me, the answer is yes.
And Eva for her daughter?
Another yes.
And me, for my niece?
If Millie ever caused someone’s death in the heat of an argument, without premeditation, and I had the power to cover it up, would I?
Fuck me, I think I might.
An unexpected smile tugs at my lips. Eva shifts toward me. God knows all I want now is to kiss her. But there’s one more thing I need settled first.
I raise my hand. “Wait. Think about the implications. I make good money, yes, but you’re in a different league.”
Her eyes flash. “Thanks to you.”
“Eva,” I begin, holding her gaze, “are you sure this isn’t a gratitude proposal?”
She slides closer, her voice firm. “Listen to me carefully. I had controlling parents and a domineering husband.”
“A domineering scumbag husband,” I cut in.
“Yes,” she agrees. “The way I survived? I submitted. I endured. But now, for the first time in my life, I’ve tasted freedom. And I love it. I’m neverenduringagain, Alex. Not with you, not with anyone.”
“Not a gratitude proposal, then.” I lean back, mock businesslike. “Glad we cleared that up.”
She blows out her cheeks, exasperated. “Alex, please.”
“Yes.”
Her eyes widen. Her lips part.
And just like that, the mask of detachment I’ve been wearing crumbles to dust. “Yes,” I repeat. “I’ll marry you.”
This time, I pull her in. Not roughly but with the certainty of a man who knows what he wants. My mouth claims hers, hot and unyielding.
Her fingers fist in my shirt like she’s drowning and I’m the air she needs.
The kiss is messy.
The sex that follows is messier still.
And desperate.
And perfect.
EPILOGUE
