Never taking his gaze off hers, he slowly moved toward her, closing the distance between them.
She swallowed hard and shifted anxiously on her feet as she watched his approach, that pretty dress of hers fluttering around her legs. “Jackson . . .”
He reached her the same moment she said his name, and he pressed his fingers over her lips, cutting off anything she’d been about to say. “Do not say a goddamn word,” he said gruffly, refusing to give her any kind of possible opportunity to reject him. “Not until I’m done talking to you.”
She just blinked up at him with those gorgeous blue eyes, silently complying, and it was so difficult to ignore just how soft and warm her mouth felt. It also took extreme effort not to replace his fingers with his lips on hers and kiss her until she melted against him and all those fears that had prompted her to bolt in the first place drifted away. Until there was just the two of them and none of this tension remained.
“I just need you to listen to me, okay?” he said in a gentler tone.
She nodded, and he moved his hand away, focusing on the reason he was here. “I love you, Tara,” he said, watching the wonder and awe that shifted across her features. “I love everything single thing about you. From the moment I walked into the bar, I was drawn to you, and it didn’t take me long to figure out why.”
She stepped closer and settled a hand on his chest, right over his beating heart. “Tell me,” she whispered.
He placed his palm over hers and searched her upturned face, reveling in the open, receptive way her gaze held his. He didn’t know what had prompted this change, but he took full advantage. “Because you’re the other half of me that I’ve been waiting to find and the only woman who has ever made me feel whole and complete. I spent my entire life feeling like I wasn’t a part of my own family, and years searching for that one place I belonged. And I found it, right here with you, and I hope to God you feel the same way.”
Happy tears sparkled in her eyes. “I do. I love you, Jackson. So much it scares me.”
He groaned in relief at her declaration, and sheer joy filled him to overflowing. “Sweetheart, there’s no reason to be afraid. Ever. I’ll always be here for you.” It was a promise he intended to keep forever.
“I know. And I’m so sorry about what happened today at your office.”
“You have no reason to apologize. You didn’t do anything wrong. Brynn’s reaction was the problem. Not you.”
She let out a long breath. “I realize that now.”
“Good. You can’t let your past mistakes and actions define who you are now. You’re a courageous woman who had the strength to make a better life for herself, despite the odds against you. That’s the woman I want to marry.”
“Marry?” she asked, her voice high-pitched and shocked.
“Yeah, marry.” Grinning at her, he cupped her face in his hands and brushed his thumbs gently over her soft cheeks. “Will you be my wife, Tara Kent? You’re the woman I adore and love and the only person I want to spend the rest of my life with. I want to protect you, cherish you, and make you mine. Forever.”
“Yes,” she breathed, and gave him a radiant smile. “You make me happier than I ever believed possible. I’ve been through the struggle, and you’re the happy ending to my story.”
“Thank fuck,” he said, and brought her mouth up to his, kissing her slow and sweet at first, which quickly escalated to hot, deep, and demanding. God, this woman was his everything, and he planned to spend every single day making sure she knew it, too.
After a while, he lifted his mouth from hers, and his lips quirked with a sinful grin as he looked into her desire-filled eyes. “You know, I ought to put you over my knee and spank you for running out on me and putting me through hell.”
She bit her bottom lip, as if holding back a smile of her own. “Yes, I was very, very bad, and you should take me home right now and punish me.”
Jesus. He grabbed her hand and pulled her toward the office door. She didn’t have to tell him twice, not when he knew exactly what she both wanted and needed. And he intended to provide her with everything. Always.
Epilogue
Jackson was going to be an uncle. The thought made him grin as he walked into the hospital waiting room holding Tara’s hand and met up with the rest of the Kincaid clan waiting for Clay and Samantha’s baby to arrive. The past few months had been exciting ones. Two weddings—Levi and Sarah, then Jackson and Tara—and now the first baby bein
g born into the family.
“Any news on baby Charlotte?” he asked, glancing at his two brothers.
“Not yet,” Levi said from where he sat on a tweed chair with his wife, Sarah, by his side. The two of them had recently announced that she was pregnant, too, and they couldn’t be more thrilled. “Samantha’s going on six hours of labor, so hopefully soon.”
Jackson smirked and didn’t miss the opportunity to goad his sibling. “So, then we already know that Charlotte is going to be stubborn like her uncle Mason, right?”
The girls laughed in agreement and Mason flipped him off. “You just wait. She’s going to love her uncle Mason best. I’m going to be the cool uncle in the family.”
“Don’t worry, Jackson,” Katrina chimed in, her gaze suddenly taking on a mischievous glint, even as she moved closer to Mason and slid her hand into his. “There’s another little niece or nephew on the way, and I’ll make sure he or she loves each uncle equally. No playing favorites.”
Mason frowned at Katrina in confusion. “What are you talking about?”