“Arthur, why is the music room locked?”
Arthur didn’t even look up from the dining room table. He was setting it for breakfast. For two.
“I’m sure I don’t know, Miss Reid.”
I’d been at the house almost every day in the last eight months, and no matter how I’d tried, I couldn’t get him to call me Charlotte. Or really, anything other than Miss Reid.
I sighed and took off my glasses, rubbing my forehead. “Well, where’s the key?”
This time he did look at me. His expression was completely unreadable.
Again.
“I’m sure I don’t know, Miss Reid,” he repeated, and I wanted to dive across the beautifully-set table and strangle him.
“Morning, doll.”
Kyle slipped his arms around me, leaning down to nuzzle my throat. He’d marked me again last night, and I was still feeling a little sore. And not just on my neck.
I glanced at him over my shoulder and smiled. “Hey, rock star.” He grinned and kissed me lightly. “What’s on your schedule for today?”
He chuckled, and that warm, low sound still made my whole body tingle. I wasn’t sure I’d ever be able to get enough of his voice. Or him.
“Isn’t it your job to tell me that?”
I turned around and smacked him lightly on the stomach, and he laughed. Ever since my contract had ended, he’d been teasing me about hiring me on again, just to keep me around. As if he’d need to.
I still sang for the band on occasion, but they’d gone back to being a four-piece. Joey was over the moon about it. They were still Parallel Destiny, and still as popular as they ever were. Their latest CD had gone platinum, and they were all floating on air.
Kyle had asked me to move in, but I still hadn’t decided – which was a little foolish on my part. Why have my own apartment when I spent most of my evenings at his place, and most of my mornings waking up in his arms? That was his logic, and I had to admit, it was a pretty sensible argument.
“Do you have the key to the music room, Kyle?”
He looked thoughtful. “Yeah, somewhere,” he said, digging in the pocket of his jeans. “Why, you need something?”
I frowned. “Well, no, but –”
He held up an old-fashioned key, and I blinked. For some reason, I’d been expecting something more modern.
“Here you go, doll.” He dropped it into my open hand. “Go ahead and unlock it. I’ll be right there.” He dropped a kiss on my forehead. “I gotta grab something from upstairs.”
We went our separate ways in the hall. I had the very devil of a time trying to get the door unlocked, and by the time I’d managed it, I could hear his boots on the marble floor of the foyer. I pushed the door open and stepped into the music room, and just stared.
It was filled with roses.
Every surface was covered. Loosely scattered or set in crystal vases, it looked like someone had painted the room in red and white, and the air was filled with their sweet, heavy scent. There were roses on the coffee table, the piano, and the top of the filing cabinet that still sat in the corner of the room. There was even a rose threaded between the strings of Kyle’s Gibson.
I felt his presence behind me, and heard his whisper.
“Happy birthday, Charlotte.”
Before I could turn around, he brought his hands over my head. There was a gorgeous diamond necklace between his fingers. He lowered his hands and set the necklace against my throat, and as he clasped it at the back of my neck, my heart started beating in double time.
“Kyle...”
He leaned down and kissed my cheek. “Roses and diamonds, Charlie,” he murmured. “I told you I’d give you roses and diamonds for your birthday.”
I touched my fingers to the necklace. There were tears stinging the backs of my eyes, and for a minute I thought I might faint. I felt him shift behind me, and then his hand came around me again, holding a small, black box. It was open, and the diamond ring that winked and glittered against the velvet was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen.
My heart skipped a beat, and I turned around to face him. He smiled down at me, then sank to one knee and held up the box.
“I love you, Charlotte Reid.” His voice was soft, muted even more by the forest of of roses around us. “I love you. I need you. I’d chase you to the ends of the Earth, just to see you smile.” I bit my lip and stared down at him, into his clear blue eyes. “Please say you’ll marry me.”
I couldn’t find my voice. All I could do was nod as tears rolled down my cheeks. Kyle reached up and brushed them away with his fingertips, then cupped my face in his hand and drew me down. The love and tenderness in his kiss was more than I could take, and I threw my arms around his neck.
“Yes,” I whispered. “Yes.” I pulled away and smiled at him through my tears. “I love you, Kyle.”
He reached back and closed the door, then lowered me to the floor. And there, among the roses and diamonds, he showed me just how far he was willing to go for me.
Again.