‘You’re apologising?’
His mouth tilted. ‘I guess I am. How about that?’
‘I forgive you.’
He let out a breath as if he’d been holding it in for ever. ‘I was so wrong to react like that. It’s a bad habit I have. I’ve been doing it since I was a kid. Pushing people away, hurting people before I get hurt. It’s pathetic. It has to stop.’
‘I’ve done it, too,’ Lily said softly.
‘I panicked at the wedding. I saw all those people staring at us. At me. I overheard two women earlier talking about us. It was awful. I couldn’t get it out of my head. I couldn’t bear the thought of people thinking you were with me out of pity.’ He let out another breath. ‘When I saw you holding that bouquet I shut down. It was like a reflex.’
‘I didn’t do it on purpose,’ she said. ‘I was trying to avoid it but it practically hit me in the face.’
Raoul smiled. ‘Like love, oui? I have it on good authority that it can either sneak up on you or smack you in the face. I think it’s been a bit of both.’
That bubble of hope in Lily’s chest was growing by the second. ‘What are you saying?’
‘I love you,’ he said. ‘I’ve never said that to anyone other than my parents.’
She felt her own eyes fill with tears. She dropped to her knees in front of him and, wrapping her arms around him, buried her head against his chest. ‘I love you, too.’
Raoul stroked her silky head as it lay pressed against his heart. ‘I’m the one who is supposed to be kneeling in front of you. We’re really murdering this fairytale thing, aren’t we?’
Lily lifted her head to look at him. ‘I can’t believe you’re here. I keep thinking I’m going to wake up and discover it’s all been a dream.’
He stroked a finger down her cheek. ‘You are my dream, ma petite. My dream come true. I know I’m not ideal husband material. I’m not going to be great at putting the garbage out or changing light bulbs. But, what the hell, I can pay people to do that. So will you marry me?’
Lily smiled through her tears. ‘Yes.’ She threw her arms around him again and hugged him tightly. ‘Yes. Yes. Yes.’
Raoul lifted her chin up so he could see her face, her beautiful, loving face. ‘You are the best thing that ever happened to me. I’ve hated every minute of being in this chair but if I hadn’t been in it I would never have met you. I can’t even imagine how awful my life would have been without you in it. I was physically able but emotionally crippled. You’ve made me see how important it is to be whole emotionally.’ He wiped at his eyes with the back of one of his hands. ‘Look, I’m even able to cry now.’
Lily tenderly blotted the pathway of his tears with a series of kisses. ‘I love you. I love you. I love you.’
He captured her face in his hands and looked deep into her shining eyes. ‘I can’t carry you over the threshold, but do you think you could perch on my lap instead?’
Lily got up from the footpath and sat on his lap, winding her arms around his neck. ‘Are we going to ride off into the sunset now?’
‘You bet we are.’ He grinned at her. ‘Hold on, ma chérie. You’re in for one hell of a ride.’