Releasing a sigh, I turn to face the water again. It hurts to look at him, it hurts to be near him now, but it also hurts to be away.
“I’m sorry I hurt you, and that I was a part of it all,” I say, thinking of the drug money drop, and heroin redistribution. “I’m sorry that I ran from you that night,” I whisper, glancing back at him. “I care about you, Kenton, I’m in love with you. I don’t know how I will be able to go on without you in my life.” Tears fill my eyes as I fear the worst is yet to come. “So, before we end things for good, I had to make sure you understood that I never meant to hurt you. I just wanted to keep my family safe. Also,” I add, my voice an octave higher, “I don’t do drugs, I have never done drugs. I do drink, though. Underage drinking, it’s kind of something I do with Charlie,” I grin, remembering our night out at the club. Looking back at him, I remember that I am talking to the chief of police. “Ugh, think what you want, arrest me, fine, whatever, but since we're being honest, that is something we do while we’re out and about.”
Suddenly, he bursts into laughter shaking his head. “Of course,” chuckling, “nothing like a little underage drinking to spice up the summer,” he says shaking his head.
“That’s really not the reaction I was expecting,” I say smiling at him.
“Well I’m not an idiot. I know that my daughter drinks and you’re her friend. She just turned twenty-one, of course she’s going to buy you alcohol. I’d be an idiot if I thought otherwise.” Shaking his head and rubbing his hands up and down his face, as if to scrub away the anxiety and exhaustion from the day.
“Well, I guess that’s true,” I say laughing with him, and leaning my head sideways, resting it on his shoulder. “I love you,” I say. “It almost seems random, I know. Especially with the conversations we’re having, but I love you so much, and I don’t want to lose you,” I whisper, fighting back the tears.
“I don’t wanna lose you either,'' he whispers, turning his head to look at me. “I’m really upset that you didn’t tell me about your dad and your grandfather.” His eyes are watching me, full of sadness.
“Well, in my defense,” I add before he continues, “I didn’t know about my grandfather until way after the fact. Actually, I didn’t know much about my grandfather until a couple of hours ago.” I shrug, looking back at him.
“Oh, really?” he frowns, looking down to his shoes, moving a stick around in the mud.
“Yes, I think that my family has a lot of secrets, and I am only starting to learn them,”
“I see,” he mutters with a nod, drawing lines in the mud.
“I don’t want us to have any secrets, though.” Reaching over and brushing my hand on his arm. “I want us to be able to be honest with each other because I want to have a life together. I don’t wanna spend the rest of my life wondering what could’ve been between us.”
“What do you want for us, Lucy?” he asks, not looking at me. “Do you even know what you want in life?”
The words sting me because I am already afraid he thinks I am too immature for this relationship. I worry that our age gap is something that he will regret one day.
“I know what I want,” I swallow hard, forcing down the lump in my throat. “I want to spend my life with you. I want to be happy and get married. I want to have children someday,” I say trailing off and looking at the stars now. “I want us to be so fucking happy that we can’t imagine life without each other,” I gush, as I feel his eyes on my face.
Closing my eyes, my face turning high to the sky, I feel a tear trickle down my cheek. I want so much from him, it hurts.
Feeling a hand on my face, I slowly lower my face and turn into the palm, resting my cheek against the rough skin.
“Do you really truly want to spend the rest of your life with me?” he asks, his face a breath from mine.
“Yes, I really truly do,” I gasp, as the tears spill freely, flowing down my cheeks, dampening his palms.
Turning his body toward mine and facing me now. He reached his hands up, touching my face gently, then cupping my chin. His eyes are hard on mine as they search my face for signs of falsehood. He must have found what he was searching for.
Closing his eyes and leaning forward, I feel his full lips press against mine in a gentle caress. The simple meeting of lips sends my heart beating faster in my chest. Now, the tears I shed fall for different reasons. These tears that fill my eyes, are full of love and relief, knowing that I am loved too.
Sliding my hands up around his neck and pressing myself into his lap, I sigh into the comfort of his body.
“I love you Lucy Knight, I love you more than I have ever loved anyone. More than I ever thought myself capable of. I want to spend the rest of my life with you,” he says looking into my eyes, his own are full of promises that I desperately want to believe.
“Do you really?” I ask, repeating myself again and feeling foolish.
“Yes,” he says with a laugh, leaning forward and kissing me again. “I can’t imagine my life without you, and I don’t ever want to be anywhere without you.
My heart swells in my chest, and I can’t believe he feels the same way, especially after all that we went through together in such a short amount of time.
Looking up at him, I can’t help but feel an immense sense of relief. The evening had gone so differently than expected.
“Tell me what the future holds,'' I say, desperately wishing to know how he sees me in our life together.
“I see,” he starts, “you and I are blissfully happy. We are married with two children, and we spend our days together fishing and hiking while we chase our children, keeping them safe, but also teaching them the importance of having adventures.”
“I like that,'' I say, smiling at him. It amazes me that he can imagine a world where we are so interconnected, so happy. I wonder if this is how my parents felt when they were young, and my mother was alive.
“I like it too.” He grins. “I see us being the best parents we can possibly be, and I see us traveling,”
“Where will we go?” I wonder. There is so much of the world that I want to see, and I want to see it all with him.
“We can go wherever you want.” He leans down, and kisses my lips softly, lingering for a moment, enjoying the taste, before rising tall above me, and pulling me to my feet.
“Is there a wedding ring in my future?'' I ask, my eyes wide and hopeful. It isn’t silly to wish for a ring, right? After all, he did mention family and children and marriage.
“There is, in fact,” he says, smiling and kneeling back down on the lakeshore before me.
“What are you doing?” I ask, unsure of what to think. He isn’t proposing now, is he?
“I have this ring,” he whispers, looks down, pulling out a box from his pocket, “but I don’t know if you’ll like it.” He looks up, his eyes unsure of his selection.
My eyes are wide in shock. The man literally has a wedding ring in his pocket. How is this possible? Forcing myself to breathe slowly, I take a steadying breath.
“Why wouldn’t I like it?” I wonder, genuinely curious. “It’s not one of those silly ring pops is it?” I joke, hoping that he isn’t playing some ridiculous joke. If he’s messing with me, I will kill him and hide his body in this very lake.
“Well,” he laughs, “I think the ring might be a little too simple for a girl like you,” he whispers, his voice gentle as the lake laps playfully around his boots.
“A girl like me?” I ask smiling down at him again.
Looking at the box, he opens it and exposes a single solitaire diamond ring. It is absolutely beautiful, and definitely not too simple for me. The size of the ring alone draws attention in a way that all but sings, “Lucy, wear me. Lucy, be mine.”
He looks nervous now, as he slowly looks up from the ring to my stunned face.
“I knew I wanted to marry you this morning. I woke up in bed next to you, and I couldn’t stop thinking about you. I thought about our life together.” His
voice trails off as he remembers the morning we had together.
“It really was a perfect morning before you found the sweatshirt,” I giggle, remembering the incredible morning sex, the declarations of undying love, and the amazing banana pancakes. He had such a lovely singing voice, I remember.
“Yes, and that is exactly what I want for us to have every day for the rest of our lives,” he says, his voice full of joy, his eyes sparkling with light. “After I spoke with your father and everything was sorted out, I drove to the jewelry store. I know it’s a little sudden, but Lucy, you and I have been together and have known each other for almost twenty years,” he adds smiling at me. I don’t know if anyone knows you better than I do, or if anyone knows me better than you do.”
I nod, saying nothing, afraid to interrupt. Could this be a dream? If I ask a question, will I wake and find myself back home, dreaming about a life with the man before me?
“Marry me Lucy, be my wife, make me the happiest man I can possibly be,” he pleads, his eyes searching my face for a sign.
I stare into those eyes for a long moment. It's amazing how he can reach me on such a deep level. I don’t know that anyone has ever known me better or made me feel more alive than he does when I am with him.
“Okay,” I say, as my heart skips a beat, “I will marry you,'' I giggle, completely in awe of where we were now.
In a move so sudden I can barely cling to him to prevent myself from falling, he picks me up and spins me in a circle, the world and stars spin around us for a perfect moment as I hold on, tightly pressing my face into his neck and kissing him softly.
I don’t know that life has ever been any better than it is right now. I can’t imagine it getting better. So much has changed in the last year so much has changed for the better. Twirling one more time, Kenton stops, facing the lake, holding me close in his arms.
“Lucy, you have made me the happiest man in the world.” He grins, leaning forward and kissing me, as my arms tighten around his neck, pulling him close in the perfect embrace.
“Does this mean we can finally tell people about us?” I ask, hopeful, and desperate to share the good news.
“Yes, I suppose we should,” he grins, placing me back on my feet, and grabbing the ring from the box, still clutched in his hand.
Sliding the ring onto my finger, we both pause and appreciate the way it sparkles under the moon and the stars.
“It’s perfect, Kenton,” I gush holding it closer to get a better look. I can’t believe we are getting married!”
I am so happy. I feel as if I might burst. This must be the way Abbie feels right now. We are so lucky to have found our soulmates at such young ages. There is a sense of security in that. We don’t have to worry about what life will be like in twenty years because we already know. We will still be with the men we love, living life the way we have always wanted to.
Turning away from the lake and taking my hand, we walk back through the woods together, led by the light of the lantern he’s carrying, and the moon above. It is incredibly romantic. I feel as if I am a princess in some fairy tale, except instead of wearing a romantic gown, I am wearing my favorite gym clothes. I can’t help but laugh. It isn’t the way I expected it to happen, but I am glad it happened the way it did when it did.
“When do you think we should get married?” I ask, easily keeping pace with him as we step over fallen leaves and dodge low branches.
“I don’t know,” he says, his voice thoughtful. “When would you want to get married?”
“Well, Abbie’s wedding is coming up soon. What if we did a double wedding,” I gush, excited by the idea. I don’t expect him to be on board, but it’s fun to watch his face as he tries to think of a polite way to decline.
“Well,” he chuckles, glancing back at me as he lifts a branch for me to step under, “what if we eloped instead?”
“You want to elope?” I ask. It seems surprising, I thought he would want a big party, especially because he is the chief of police.
“I think it could be fun,” Kenton says as we leave the woods and stop at the street, pausing long enough for a car to pass.
“Hmm, would I still get to wear a pretty white dress?” I ask, unwilling to accept any answer other than yes.
“You can wear whatever you want,” he chuckles, “it is your wedding too, isn’t it?”
“Yes, I suppose that is true,”
I will have to talk to Abbie about this as the wedding day grows closer. I don’t want to choose something that is identical to hers, and at the same time, I want her take on the dress. Even if we elope, I want it to be special, and I want a photographer and my dad there. I don’t know how my dad will feel about it.
“Kenton,” I ask, as we grow closer to my front door. “How did my dad respond when you told him that we were together?”
“Well…” he pauses, thinking of the words to say, before stepping under the porch light.
“Oh my god,” I gush in horror. “What happened to your jaw?” Reaching up for his face and turning it back and forth to inspect the purple bruise that is forming on his jaw.
“Did my grandpa do this?” I demand, pulling him through the door and toward the kitchen for an ice pack.
“No,” he mutters, turning his head and inspecting the swollen mark on his handsome face. “Your dad did.”
“He hit you?” I exclaim, “Why would he do that?” I demand, yanking an ice pack from the freezer and placing it gently on his jaw.
“Because I am dating his daughter,” he says with a small shrug as if it were a completely normal response. “It wasn't entirely unexpected. I think I would do it too if he were with Charlie.”
Men, I think, wondering how they can be so archaic while managing to lead ordinary lives and avoid extinction. They will be their own end, I know.
“Did you hit him back?” I wonder, pushing him down onto the chair so that I can get a better look at his face.
“No, of course not,” he laughs up at me, his eyes full of amusement. “I mean, I considered it for a moment, when he walked into the police department. I was really close to laying him out.” He frowns, gently testing the skin under the ice that is no doubt numb now.
“Why were you going to punch him when he came in?” I ask, a little curious about the change in circumstances.
“I was angry with him because you were in that situation. I knew it was you that ran away and I was furious that you were in a position where you needed to run like a fucking cheetah from a cop,” he mutters, obviously not over the incident.
“I am pretty fast,” I laugh. “I figured I could match your speed in a race, it didn’t occur to me that I would leave you in the dust,” I laugh, enjoying the memory.
Now that it’s over, I can appreciate that I triumphed over him in a foot race. It’s not like he wasn’t trying either. He really chased after me as hard as he could. It only improves my mood.
“Yeah, yeah,” he says, rolling his eyes, and pulling me into his lap, “I could have caught you if you hadn’t had the head start.
“I don’t know,” I tease. You were spying on me, you knew I was there the entire time, you could have been poised to pounce at any time. I think I would have gotten even further if I were properly prepared for the race.”
“Race? Is that what we are calling it now?” he asks with a small laugh, his eye bright with humor.
“Yes, that’s what I’m calling it,” I giggle, removing the ice pack and laying it on the small square table.
“I love you, Lucy,” he whispers, his hand brushing my long hair behind my ear.
“I love you too.”
Leaning forward and closing my eyes, I press my lips against his, enjoying the way they mold against mine, filling me with warmth as I melt into his arms.
THE END
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Kelli writes billionaires, bad boys, and alpha protectors that are hot-as-sin and filthy to the core. If you want to stay up to date with all things Kelli, sign up to her mailings list here.
Also by Kelli Callahan
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The Officer Page 15
