by Trish Morey
‘Oh, Daniel.’
‘So now… So now I need to know. Is there any chance for us, do you think? Is there any chance—after all the wrongs I’ve committed, after the nightmare I’ve put everyone through—that you might return to me and return my love?’
Her heart was singing so loud it was a wonder he couldn’t hear its song of joy himself. ‘I thought…I feared…’
‘You thought what?’
‘That you’d changed your mind. Realised that you’d made a mistake. I don’t know. I just worried, when I hadn’t heard from you, that I’d imagined you ever telling me.’
He put his arms around her. ‘Not a chance. I haven’t thought of anything else these last few weeks but how much I do love you. Marry me, Sophie. Marry me and make me the happiest man on earth.’
And suddenly there were more tears to contend with. Tears of joy, tears of relief, tears that welled up from a heart that swelled with love for him and washed away all the pain. ‘Daniel, I love you so much!’
He pulled her, spinning, into his embrace and kissed her until she was dazed and drugged with the taste of him. Then he stopped spinning and dropped her feet to the sand. ‘So you’ll marry me?’
She smiled up at him, loving him, knowing she would love him for ever, knowing this tiny thing was not too much to ask. She pulled his head down and whispered in his ear and he smiled before pulling her back into another kiss.
It was late by the time they made it back to the reception; the cake had already been cut. They hung around the back of the pavilion so as not to interrupt, but Millie saw them entering, Sophie’s hand encased in Daniel’s, the sprig of bougainvillea he’d picked and woven into her hair, and she beamed and skirted around the tables towards them.
‘It’s the most magical wedding,’ she said, taking in their knotted hands and the flush to their skin, her generous eyes both curious and hopeful. ‘Just magical.’
‘It’s what Sophie’s business promises,’ Daniel grinned. ‘One Perfect Day, to make perfect memories to last a lifetime,’ and Sophie laughed.
‘You memorised our advertising slogan!’
‘I thought I might need it one day, if I ever needed a wedding planner.’ He curled his arm around her and pulled her in tight. ‘Turns out I might.’
Millie clapped her hands over her mouth. ‘Oh lord, is it true?’
Sophie hugged the older woman. ‘Daniel’s asked me to marry him.’
Millie whooped with joy. ‘And you said yes?’
‘I told him I’d like to, but I want to make sure someone else gives their blessing too.’ And she looked around, to find Daniel already threading his way through the crowd until he found his target. She watched him slap her brother on the back, she watched her brother frown as Daniel leaned close and then she saw his look of surprise as he sought her out, his frown transformed into a broad smile the second he saw her face and realised it was what she wanted.
She squeezed the older woman’s hand. ‘I think you better not hang those cake pans up in a hurry, Millie.’
Millie whooped again and hurried off to share the good news, not that Sophie was alone for long. Daniel was back and he picked her up and spun her around in his arms until she was dizzy. ‘Thank you,’ he said. ‘How did you know that would feel so good? I feel like it’s over. It’s finally over.’
She laughed as he lowered her feet to the floor, dizzy with happiness as she cupped his face with her hands and held his gaze. ‘No, Daniel. The way I prefer to think of it, it’s only just beginning.’
His smile widened, his eyes radiating love. ‘I like the way you think, Sophie Turner.’
And she feigned disappointment. ‘Oh, and there was me thinking you liked the way I did something else.’
He growled his appreciation. ‘Oh yes. I like that too. I like that a lot.’ He looked around, suddenly agitated, that look back in his eyes. ‘Is it too early to leave the party, do you think? It is my sister and your brother getting married, after all.’
She smiled up at him on a shrug and tugged on his hand. ‘Sometimes you just have to be prepared to let go. Are you prepared to let go, Daniel?’
‘Every night of my life.’
And she smiled and pulled him into the night. ‘Then I’ll keep coming back. For ever.’
‘For ever,’ he echoed as he swept her up into his kiss.
ISBN: 978-1-4268-7927-2
RECKLESS IN PARADISE
First North American Publication 2011
Copyright © 2010 by Trish Morey
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