She breathed a sigh of relief. “Exactly.”
With his free hand he reached into his tuxedo pocket and withdrew something small that glittered in the sunlight.
“Why can’t that be me?”
The diamond ring sparkled in his fingers.
“Darian…” His name was a mere whisper. “What are you doing?”
His soft laugh filled the air. “You can’t expect to make me realize you are the first person I’ve loved in my adult life and not expect me to do whatever I can to ensure I spend my years with you.”
“I didn’t ask you to do this,” she said, her eyes on the ring. “I’d never want you to be someone you’re not.”
“It’s because of you I’m becoming the man I should have been before my destiny was changed. You’ve been putting my pieces back together, Ali. Don’t desert me now.”
She shook her head. “This is crazy. This is not how things work.”
“There are no rules to follow,” he replied. “Give me a chance. We can have the ordinary life you planned for.”
She scoffed at the notion. “You don’t do ordinary. It’s not in your DNA to be anything other than extraordinary.”
“Then be extraordinary with me.” He pressed the ring into her hand. “I don’t care if you put it on today or five years from now. My question won’t ever change. I mean to convince you, Allison Reed, even if it takes the rest of my life.”
“Don’t say things like that.” It made it too hard to focus on reality. “This is insane. We’ve only been together a month. We can’t get engaged.”
“We’ve been sleeping together a month,” he corrected. “We’ve been together for four years. By that measure we’re rather behind the appropriate timeline.”
“That’s ridiculous.”
“Is it?” He pulled her closer, wrapping an arm around her waist. “You know me better than anyone else, my sister included. And I’d like to think I understand a great deal about you. Can’t you see taking this next step with me?”
Her fingers clenched the ring. She wanted to. God, how she wanted to believe the words she was hearing were true.
“It was the scarf.”
She glanced up. “What?”
“I figured it out, you see. It was the night you gave me the scarf. That’s when I started to fall for you.”
She swallowed hard. “That was years ago.”
“Apparently I’m a slow learner.” His smile was beautiful as he gazed down at her. “I’m in love with you, Ali. That’s why I reacted so badly when I thought I was losing you. You are the one person I can’t live without.” He leaned forward, resting his forehead against hers. “Please, don’t tell me I’m too late.”
“For a man as brilliant as you, you certainly went around this the wrong way.”
She heard the smile in his voice. “Agreed. But I didn’t have you to help me. Do you want to take a moment to rescript my proposal? I’m sure you could make it better.”
“I haven’t heard the proposal yet,” she said.
He drew back, hope in his gaze. “Shall I get down on one knee?”
“Don’t you dare.” She paused for a moment before asking for the only thing she wanted. “Just tell me you love me again.”
“I love you,” he said, taking the ring from her hand and turning it palm down. “I want to spend the next fifty years ordering Thai takeout and fighting over who’s the worst cook.”
“You are.”
“I want a rematch.”
“Fine.” A smile tugged at her lips. “But I interrupted you. Please go on.”
“I want to wake up with you in my arms every morning and fall into bed with you every night.” He touched her ring finger. “I want to build a life with you full of all the things I’ve tried to train myself not to miss.”
She tore her gaze away from the ring to look up into his eyes.
“Marry me.”
She grinned. Not exactly a question, but then again, what else did she expect from him? He was a man who took what he wanted in life. And to her eternal happiness, it seemed what he wanted was her.
“Yes.”
What other answer could she possibly give?
He slid the diamond ring onto her finger. It was an unfamiliar weight she looked forward to getting used to.
Wrapping her arms around his shoulders, she smiled up at him. “You can’t pay me enough to plan another wedding.”
“I don’t pay you at all,” he replied. “Anymore, at least.”
“If you want a big wedding, we are hiring a wedding planner.”