“If we siblings had all been groomsmen and bridesmaids, there wouldn’t have been enough room on the altar for Mom and Jack.”
“Well, it was beautifully done. And best of all, the women didn’t have to wear ugly bridesmaid dresses.” She smiled at him with emotion that reached to her eyes.
And gave him hope.
“I can’t imagine anything looking ugly on you.” Perhaps not the most romantic statement in the world, but he was trying.
“Thank you.” Her smile wobbled a bit. “Maybe it’s that pregnancy glow.”
Their baby. He swallowed a lump of emotion. Of love. “If so, you wear it well.”
She blushed, looking down for a moment, scratching Paige’s ears in a way he’d begun to learn meant she was nervous. So he pressed ahead with small talk for now, putting his speech on hold rather than risk upsetting her. “You’re right about the wedding being pretty,” he continued, not wanting her to leave the balcony. “I’m not one for grand romantic gestures, but I have to confess that I was moved by how happy they both are. I didn’t expect to see my mom married again, but I’m glad for her.”
“You did well today. You’ve fulfilled your family’s wishes and beyond. I’m sure they’re happy and proud.”
Music from the wedding reception drifted out onto the balcony, a live band performing a vintage love song.
“I owe that to you. You’re an incredible teacher.”
She was much more than that to him. He needed to find a way to make her understand that.
“You did the work.”
“We’re quite a team. At least, we were.” He prayed they would be again. Any other outcome was untenable. He took her hand lightly in his, determined to make the most of this moment alone with her. “Are you still angry with me for the way I reacted when you told me about the baby?”
“I won’t lie. I was hurt. But we have time to sort through things. Months, in fact.”
He couldn’t wait months to have her in his life. He’d missed her deeply this week. Needed to have her close to him every day going forward, for as long as she would have him.
“About that, what if we were to decide things now?”
Wariness lit her eyes, but she wasn’t moving away. She squeezed his hand. “Before you launch into your latest push to get married, I have to tell you I’m tired. So can we just walk and celebrate that today was a good day, and that we’re talking again?”
“I know how you like to live in the moment.” He kissed her knuckles, then the inside of her wrist just over her pulse. “But the truth is, I can’t go another moment without you, and I need for you to understand how much I want you in my life. Not because of the baby, but because you’re...you.”
She blinked up at him, her breath catching just a little, but she didn’t try to interrupt him or halt him. Perhaps now was the time for his speech, after all. If only he could remember it.
He opted for the simple, amazing truth instead. “Isabeau Waters, you have turned my life upside down, but in the best of ways. Being without you even these past couple of days has made me realize I can’t face spending another day apart from you. I am completely, irrevocably in love with you.”
Her mouth fell open. Her fingers lifted to cover her lips for a moment. “Wow.” She dropped her hand and there was something warm and wonderful in her eyes. Something that looked like possibility. “Just wow. For a man who claims not to like speeches, you have a gift.”
“I have the truth of how I feel. And an inspiring muse in you.” Love for her filled him all over again.
“There’s no way I can match that, except to say, I feel the same. I love you and I can’t deny it’s scary to have my heart and happiness so connected to having you in my life. But it’s more painful to think of being apart from you.” She clasped his wrist and brought his palm to her stomach. “I want us to live this fairy tale and raise our child together.”
He dipped his face to hers, breathing against her lips. “I am so damn glad and relieved.” He stroked her stomach lightly, reverently. “Because that’s exactly what I want, as well.”
Then he kissed her once, twice, holding, absorbing the feel of her and the reality that they could have a future. Together. “You’re glamorous and stunning and I’m scared as hell life out in the wilds of Alaska will ultimately send you running from me. I’ve seen what happened between Royce and Naomi. It gives me pause. I don’t want these past weeks to make you think I could thrive in a city. It’s not who I am.”
“I don’t want to change you. And I think you sell me short. I’ve loved seeing Alaska through your eyes. And it’s not like you’re a hermit living in a cave. You participate in the running of a large ranch. Your life is full.”
“But what about your life? Your career? That’s who you are, and I don’t want to change you, either.”
He’d been weighing that in his mind for weeks while they waited to see if she was pregnant, but he’d been trying to live in the moment with her, unwilling to rush. But now, they needed a workable plan for a future together.
Something rock solid that wasn’t going to come unglued the way Royce and Naomi’s romance was ripped at the seams. Seeing their pain made him all the more determined to get this right.
“I’ve been thinking about working more
