Page 90 of Distracted
For his part, Ellery’s ex-husband was in more trouble than any one person could ever want to be in. He not only had the kidnapping charges against him, but with all that Leo had managed to find with regard to the gun possession and peddling, Ellery’s eyewitness account of what happened to Ivan Moreno, his body being found, and the involvement of the ATF now, he was facing a lot of years in prison.
I was merely grateful that Ellery was out from underneath it, and I was certain she was overjoyed to be done with it, too.
“You’re the one that’s done all of the hard work,” I noted. “I was merely here to support you on the way.”
She shook her head, her fist tightening around me. “No, Kane. You did so much more than that. My creative well dried up years ago, and this last year with you has changed that. Ideas keep popping into my head, and the words are pouring out of me. I’m writing. Do you know how wonderful it has been to dream again?”
That was the other thing that seemed to help put Ellery in such a good place. Her work. She’d continued her work as an editor, partly because she enjoyed it, but mostly because it gave her an income. When she wasn’t editing, and the two of us weren’t spending time together, she was pouring all of her time into writing.
Yesterday, she’d finished writing her first book. For months, I’d watched as she worked tirelessly on it. There were moments I’d see her staring off into space, and sometimes, her expression would change. I realized those were the moments when she managed to work out something she’d been struggling with in her manuscript.
“I’m so proud of you,” I told her. “And I hope you get to realize all of your dreams. I want all of them to come true for you.”
She moved her mouth closer and hummed against me. “What about you?”
“What about me?”
“What dreams do you have?”
I cocked an eyebrow. “You mean, besides the one I’m in right now where you put me back inside your beautiful mouth and suck me off?”
Laughter and delight came over her. “Yes. Besides that one.”
I had a million thoughts about how I was going to do this, and I wasn’t exactly thrilled with the idea of having to move from the spot I was in. But if we were going to have this conversation, this was the time to have it.
“To marry you.”
I didn’t know how it was possible, but Ellery’s fist tightened, and she blinked her eyes in surprise. “What?”
“I’ve been waiting for the divorce to be finalized, because I’ve wanted to ask you to be mine for a long time now. You got those papers, and it’s over. I want you to be my wife. That’s it. That’s all I want. Well, that and maybe a few babies.”
Ellery’s lips parted, and I had to fight every urge inside me not to jerk my hips up. “Are you serious?”
My hands slid from the back of her head and along her jaw. I watched my thumb as I dragged it along her trembling bottom lip. “Yes, princess. I’m serious. And as much as it pains me to say this, if you let go of me, I’ll get out the ring and do this the right way.”
Instantly, I felt the loss of her hand, but I couldn’t stop myself from letting out a laugh. Because the truth was that even if my cock wasn’t in her mouth right now, I’d be able to slip a ring on her finger and ensure a lifetime of so much more than just that.
So, it was worth it.
I got up, got the ring, and returned to the bed. She was sitting on her shins, still completely naked, and I didn’t think she could look more beautiful if she tried.
Wanting to do it right, even if we both had nothing on and I was fighting a raging hard-on, I got down on one knee, held out the ring, and said, “Life sometimes kicks us in the teeth in the most horrific ways. I hate all that you’ve endured, all while loving that it’s the very reason you were brought into my life. I can’t say we’ll never experience our fair share of hardships, but I know that if I’ve got to face anything in this world, it’ll be much better to do with you by my side. And if anything comes your way, I want to be there to fight back whatever tries to bring you down again. I love you, Ellery. I want to spend the rest of my life by your side, lifting you up, and watching you fulfill all of your dreams. Will you marry me?”
Ellery remained silent as I studied her face.
I thought I knew how she’d react, and this wasn’t it. Never had I felt so vulnerable in my life, but being here, stark naked, and down on one knee asking the woman I loved to marry me only for her to remain silent, it was safe to say I was I wasn’t feeling so unshakable.
Long moments passed. Her eyes had filled with tears.
“You really are going to give me everything,” she finally rasped.
Air rushed out of my lungs as I started breathing again.
Fuck, that was torture.
“Yes, princess, I’m going to give you everything,” I promised.
She struggled to put a smile on her face, because she couldn’t get a handle on her emotions. The tears spilled out as she whispered, “Yes, Kane. Yes, I’ll marry you.”