Page 149 of Icebound Hearts
“And when I think about all the things that had to fall perfectly in place for that meeting to happen when and where it did, it blows me away,” he murmurs. “If I hadn’t taken Jake to Reese’s place, and if he hadn’t left Chewy there…”
“And if I hadn’t had to leave Chicago abruptly right when I did,” I add, and he nods, his eyes warm.
“Exactly. All these things fell right into place. And as much as I don’t want to give him the credit for it, your brother played a big role in all of this. If he hadn’t suggested the crazy idea of you nannying for me, we probably wouldn’t be here together right now.”
I guess I hadn’t thought about it like that before, but now that Sawyer has laid it all out, I see how right he is. There were so many points where things could’ve gone totally differently, and in a weird way, if it weren’t for things going horribly wrong for me with Elijah in Chicago, it’s possible Sawyer and I never would’ve crossed paths again.
But we did, and now our paths are inseparable.
“And that’s why I want everything with you,” Sawyer adds with a fierce intensity in his eyes. “A family, a future, an entire fucking life.”
Tears spring to my eyes, but he reaches up to wipe them away with his thumbs.
“I mean it,” he continues. “I’m not really sure how it’s possible, but every second I spend with you, things just keep getting better. You’re the first thing I think about when I wake up in the morning and the last thing I think about before I go to sleep at night.”
I nod through the sting in my eyes and throat because he’s describing exactly the way I feel about him.
“When you moved out to California, I felt like I’d lost a limb or something,” he says in a low voice. “I could technically survive without it, but I didn’t feel whole anymore. You’reeverythingto me, Violet. Everything. I don’t know how I ever lived without you before. Fuck, I wasn’t really living at all back then. And I won’t live without you ever again.”
“No, you won’t,” I tell him firmly, my voice suddenly rushing back to me. “Because I can’t live without you either. I learned that the hard way out in California. No matter what I did or how hard I tried, that apartment always felt so damn empty. I kept looking for you, turning around and expecting you to be there. But you weren’t, and that was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to live with.”
“It’ll never happen again. I promise you that,” he insists, and pulls my head toward his to kiss me tenderly, his lips barely brushing against mine at first. But passion overtakes him, and his tongue parts my lips to give me the kind of deep kiss that says everything I need to know about how he feels about me.
When he pulls back, he holds my gaze with something burning in his eyes. “Will you marry me?” My breath catches in my throat. I can hardly believe what he just asked me. “I’ve been trying to find the right time to ask, the perfect moment. But nothing has seemed quite as perfect as this moment, in this house I want to share with you.”
I swallow. “Yes. Yes, I’ll marry you.”
Sawyer kisses me hard, sealing the promise between us. He tries to reach for his pants, but with me still in his lap, he can’t quite get there.
“Will you help me?” he asks, wiggling his fingers toward his pants on the floor behind us. I laugh and scoop them up off the floor by one pant leg with him holding me up for support, then drop them on his chest. “Thanks.”
I watch him rummage in the pockets, searching for something. The first pocket doesn’t turn up what he’s looking for, so he switches to the other and his brows raise when he finds it. He pulls out a small jewelry box, and my throat seals shut. I’vealready told him I’d marry him, but seeing him holding a ring makes it feel so much more real.
He shrugs. “I’ve been carrying it around for weeks, just waiting for the right time, like I said.”
It touches me to know that he’s been working on this for so long, and that he’s known he wanted to pop the question. He opens the dark blue velvet box and reaches for my hand, then pulls the ring out and slips it onto my finger. It fits perfectly.
I gaze down at the brilliant, sparkling diamond shining back at me. It’s so beautiful that it takes my breath away, and my heart feels so full with love for him that it could burst. Sawyer reaches for my chin and tips it up to bring my gaze back to his.
“I can’t do it until the season ends, but as soon as it’s over, I’m going to get my vasectomy reversed.”
My eyes widen. “Really?”
He nods seriously. “I told you I want everything with you, and I meant it. I want this too. I know you want kids, and I want to have more with you.”
My heart swells, and I throw myself at him to kiss him again, losing myself in it. I feel like I’m in some sort of amazing dream, and I don’t ever want it to end. I cling to him, my body vibrating with love, and Sawyer’s cock swelling inside me again convinces me that all of this is real, and that he’s not going anywhere—now or ever.
He’s mine.
Epilogue
Violet
Several Months Later
I snug up Jake’s blue-checkered tie, getting it as tight as he’ll let me, and smile at him because I almost can’t stand how cute he looks in his little tuxedo, complete with polished shoes.
“Look at you! With an outfit like this, you’re gonna be the next one getting married.”