Chapter 21
Emma
Leave it to Lucas to completely disrupt my plans. It seems as if he has always done that.
I feel his weight sink on top of me, feel where we are still attached. His lovemaking had been slow, sweet.
Completely thorough.
I love this man more than anything else in this world, - I silently acknowledge.
I wrap my arms around him as I stare up at the sky, the balloons floating in and out of my sight and I know I’ve never been so happy as I am right now.
As our breaths return to normal, Lucas lifts his head to plant kisses all over my face. I sigh deeply, contentedly, accepting them all.
Bringing his lips to mine, he whispers against them, “I don’t know why you are here or how long you are staying for but right now I’m focusing on making sure you are real.”
Kissing him deeply, I assure him I’m real as I run my hands over his back, absorbing him.
I missed this.
This closeness I had only with him.
But there’s still something I need to tell him.
Pulling back from him, I whisper, “Lucas, we have to talk.”
He lifts his head, worry entering his eyes. I run my thumb over his lip, allowing him to bite down gently on it as he continues to look at me cautiously.
Inhaling deeply, I take the plunge.
“I’m here to stay,” I whisper.
I feel him catch his breath.
“What?” he asks, not seeming to comprehend.
“I hired a general manager for the restaurant and sorted things out with Eric. Other than flying back occasionally to check on things, I plan to stay right here. With you. If you’ll have me,” I confide softly, somewhat timidly.
A wide grin spreads across his face and then he kisses me swiftly before rolling us over until I’m on top of him.
“Lucas!” I sputter as I hastily pull my dress down around us, covering where we are still connected.
“Shhhh,” he says softly. “I just want to watch your hair in the sunlight.”
He’s silent as he lays underneath me, staring up at me.
“You’re so beautiful, Emma,” he whispers, reaching a hand up to tuck a stray lock of hair back behind my ear. His eyes look troubled as they search my face. Finally, he asks, “Are you sure this is what you want? To be back here?”
Nodding, never being so sure of anything in my life, I answer him truthfully, “Although I missed you, it wasn’t the only thing I missed, Lucas. I missed everything about this place too because this place is you and it has also become a part of me. Walking the vines with you, seeing the contentment on your face when the vines surpass your prediction, watching the sunrise in our little piece of the world, I missed it all. LA wasn’t what I had thought it was going to be. It was a childhood dream, a dream that I had to fulfill but I now realize dreams change. I’ve changed as well. So yes, without a doubt, I’m sure.”
His eyes had watched mine as I spoke, and I know he is evaluating and weighing every word.
“I was coming to you,” he confides quietly.
“What?” not comprehending.
“I was coming to you. In LA. I had discussed with my parents about hiring an operations manager so that I could move to LA with you. I couldn’t stay here any longer without you,” he ends on a whisper.
Shocked, I ask, “Really?’
“Yes,” he says without hesitation. “And that’s still an option if you want it.”
Leaning forward, I gently kiss him, honored that he would have given all that he has worked so hard for up for me. His arms come around me, squeezing me tight and then he is rolling me again until I’m on my back.
Lifting his head, looking into my eyes, he asks without any hesitation, “Will you marry me, Emma?”
I can’t control the smile that breaks across my face. Placing both my hands on each of his cheeks, I feather my lips across his as I whisper my response, “Yes.”
Lucas presses me back into the ground for a deep kiss before lifting his head to say, “Next month. Here. Right in this spot.”
Dismayed, I protest, “But that’s really quick to plan a wedding.”
He lightly kisses me again before he says, “We don’t need anything other than what we have right here, right now, other than a justice of the peace. And I don’t want to wait.”
Then he’s grasping my left hand, placing a kiss to my ring finger before lifting his imploring eyes to mine as he murmurs, “Say yes, Emma.”
Looking at this handsome beautiful man, pleading with his eyes for me to marry him, there’s no way I can refuse him. Nodding, a tear escapes my eye, trickling into my hair at my temple. Lucas wipes it away, understanding that it is a tear of joy before pressing a kiss to my temple.
He lifts his body from mine, pulling my dress down before he rises and quickly straightens his clothes. His hand reaches down to mine and he pulls me up to him, swinging me up into a hug as he whispers, “You’ve made me so happy, Emma. I somehow knew from the moment I met you that we were meant to be, even though you tried your best to remain unentangled from me. But like my vines that have grown into my heart, you have done the same. Entangling me forever.”
My heart soars at his words.