“Okay, two things. One…” Molly holds up a finger. “I don’t need your money, nor would I ever try to take it. Two…” Another finger. “People don’t need a prenuptial agreement unless they’re actually getting married.”
“Okay, one.” I mimic her and hold up my own finger. “The paperwork is to protect your assetsfor you, not the other way around. If you ever decide to try to leave me, you won’t have to worry about me going after anything that belongs to you. And two.” Another finger. “I am going to marry you.”
Molly smiles at me. “Do I get a say in this?”
“You always get a say. As long as the answer is:Yes, Alfie, I’d love to marry you. Let’s go out and find a chapel right now.”
Molly laughs, which I fucking love. “That’s not happening. Why do you want to marry me?”
“Because I fucking love you,” I tell her, and realize I’ve never said those words before. “I love you,” I repeat so she really hears the words. “When I woke up tied to a chair, my first thought wasyou and that I was glad you were headed to my house. I thought if you were here, you’d be safe. I wasn’t concerned for myself, Molly. I was worried about you.” I run a hand through my hair and pause. “And then, when they brought you into the room, my heart stopped. I couldn’t even look at you, because I knew if I did, I would break. And I needed to stay focused so I could get you out of that room alive.”
“That’s why… you wouldn’t look at me?”
“Yes.”
“I want you to know that I love you too. And when the moment is right, I will marry you. But now, I need to go home. I need to be there for Angus’s parents. And I need to spend some time with my mom, while I still can.”
I nod. “Okay. We’ll go to Portland tomorrow.”
“You don’t need to come with me.”
“I do, because I’m selfish and I don’t like the idea of being away from you, especially states apart.”
“I don’t know how long I’m going to stay in Portland, Alfie.”
“I’ll stay as long as you need.”
“You know that I will still have my acquisition team here working on the deals for those remaining two buildings. You might want to be around for that, so you can pretend you still have a chance at stopping me.”
“My father can handle it.” I shrug. “I also don’t really care anymore.”
“Really? What happened to not wanting anyone moving in onyour city?” she asks while using air quotes.
“Well, it’s going to beour citywhen we’re married.” I wink at her. “Besides, who better to help you open a casino or whatever than me?”
“I’m not opening a casino.” Molly snorts.
“Why not?”
“I hear they’re all run by a bunch of mobsters. I’m going to refurbish those buildings. Turn them green, transform them into the biggest retail center the Strip has ever had,” she says.
“That’s what your plans are?”
“What did you think they’d be?”
“Your company builds office towers, extremely-pricey office towers. I figured that’s what you’d be doing here.”
“I build what suits the demographics of the area. For this city, retail is what’s going to make me and my investors money.”
“I’ll have the jet ready to take us to Portland tomorrow.”
“You know, wecanfly commercial, Alfie. It’s way better for the environment,” Molly suggests.
“Okay, commercial.” I can’t help but screw up my nose at the thought.
“Don’t be such a snob.” Molly splashes water at me before holding up a hand. “Help me out.”
I’m glad she’s stopped crying. Her eyes are red, and I know those won’t be the last of her tears, but for now, I managed to distract her.
