I can see the pain in her eyes. I put my hand over hers. “You don’t have to tell me more.”
“Thanks, it was just a yucky situation and I don’t like talking about it. But.” She looks up at me, that hurt still in her gaze. “There’s something else.”
My heart stops. Here it comes, the part when she lets me down gently, realizing she’s too good for me. She’s going to break us up.
“Tell me. Now.” I soften my tone. “Please.”
“It’s just that…” Her cheeks pinken and she looks away. “I—I don’t want to officially move in with someone unless we’re…married.”
My God—marriage?
Is that the only thing standing in the way of me waking up every day with her by my side?
Easy fix.
I want to take a knee right now.
Tear a strip of bark from a palm tree and wind it into a ring.
Ask her to be my wife.
But she deserves more than a knee-jerk proposal and a palm bark ring.
My babygirl is worthy of a proper, planned out engagement, with a real ring…
A diamond that’s as precious as she is.
I brush my lips across her cheek. “I understand.”
“You do?” She gives me a shy smile.
“I do. I love you.” And in a few weeks, she’ll have the rock on her finger to declare my love. I’ll miss her while she’s at her new apartment, getting her feet wet in her residency, but I’ll be keeping myself busy, making plans for our future.
Chapter 14
Emmeline
Rawley kisses the back of my neck as I slide the key in the lock of my new apartment for the first time, unlocking the door. I giggle as he scoops me up in his arms. I wrap my arms around his neck.
“You’ve got to let me carry you over the threshold when you go inside for the first time.”
“That’s only for brides.” I feel as if my comment looms in the air over our heads, like I’m hinting or pressuring him, and I quickly resend it. “Not that I’m getting married anytime soon.”
He leans down, kissing the tip of my nose. “Not if I have my way.”
A warmth creeps up in my chest. Ever since our conversation in Fiji, when I told Rawley that I wouldn’t officially move in with someone until I was married, he’s been hinting at a proposal. I try not to read too much into his teasing comments, but each time he makes one, I grow a little more hopeful that an engagement is in our future.
I like the secure feeling it gives me, knowing he wants to be with me for the rest of his life.
He sets me down on my feet and I take in the place.
It’s nothing like I remember.
Some little elf has had a hand in getting it ready for me.
I look up at Rawley. Well, he’s no elf. More like a muscular Santa Daddy coming down the chimney and spoiling me with goodies. My wide eyes scan the room. “Rawley, it’s too much.”
He comes behind me, wrapping his arms around my chest and props his chin on my shoulder. “Nothing’s too much for you.”
The furniture has all been replaced. There’s a buttery leather sofa in a yellow tan color, a modern sleek wood coffee table, and a new television hung from the wall. In the eat-in nook there’s a pretty black lacquered dining set that seats six.
The adorable, sunny kitchen remains untouched.
“It’s perfect. Thank you.”
He nuzzles his stubbly jaw against my cheek. “Want to see the new bed?”
My body heats as he runs his hands down my sides. But there’s no time. “We’ve got company coming in one hour and we still have boxes to haul.”
He nips at my earlobe. “Why are you so stubborn? We could have paid people to do this for us.”
I playfully push him away. “I like doing things for myself. We’re building memories together.”
He concedes. “You’re right. You’re right a lot. You know that?”
“I’m very well aware of that fact. I’m glad you’re finally realizing it.” I grab his hand, giving it a tug. “Come on, we’ve got work to do.”
We haul the boxes from our cars. Each one has been carefully labeled with my hot pink Sharpie, with the room it goes in, a little heart around the word so our helpers will know where they go. We stack the boxes in the living room for now and Rawley calls in an order for Chinese to be delivered. He requests hot and sour soup, wonton soup, three chicken dishes, fried rice, noodles and a few green salads and extra fortune cookies. He goes overboard, as always, knowing I’ll store the leftovers in the fridge and have food for the week.
The food arrives at the same time as our guests. Lexi and Shane and Darius and Katie come pouring in, filling my little home with laughter, their hands filled with gifts. They bring me bottles of wine to put in a beautiful wine rack, ceramic pots with lush plants for my windowsills, and fluffy down pillows for my new bed.