Rush(135)

He smiled and nodded and then urged her toward the front. Surprisingly, no one protested their cutting in front of others, and in fact, a group made room for them at the very front where the aisle cut up to the stage.

“Oh this is perfect!” Mia exclaimed.

Ash and Jace chuckled and then Mia’s attention turned to the singer performing Christmas carols.

Oh but it brought back so many warm memories of her and Jace. She reached over to catch Jace’s hand and she squeezed it tightly, her heart overflowing with love for her brother. He’d been her rock for so long, and he still was. She’d have never made it through her breakup with Gabe if it weren’t for Jace and Ash both.

“Thank you,” she whispered close to his ear. “I love you.”

Jace smiled. “Love you too, baby girl. I want this night to be special for you.”

There was fleeting sadness in his gaze and before she could ask about his cryptic words, the song ended and the singer began talking to the crowd. It took her a moment before she realized he’d said her name.

She blinked in surprise, and then a spotlight bounced over her and remained solidly in place, illuminating her spot in the crowd. She glanced up to Jace in bewilderment, but he’d stepped back along with Ash, leaving her alone in the spotlight.

“A very merry Christmas and warm holiday wishes going out to Miss Mia Crestwell,” the man said. “Gabe Hamilton wants you to know how much he loves you and how much he wants for you to spend this holiday season with him. But don’t take my word for it. Here’s the man himself to tell you in person.”

Her mouth gaped open when Gabe appeared at the end of the carpeted aisle that led up the steps to where the man had been performing. His gaze was fixed solidly on her, and in his hands he carried a brightly wrapped box with a huge bow on top.

The crowd around her cheered as Gabe drew near, and then he went down on one knee, the box still held out in his hand.

“Merry Christmas, Mia,” he said in a husky voice. “I’m sorry I was such an idiot. I should have never let you walk away from me. You’re right. You deserve someone who will fight for you always and I want to be that man if you’ll just give me another chance.”

She had no idea what to say, how to respond. Tears welled hot in her eyes and threatened to fall.

“I love you,” he said fiercely. “I love you so damn much that I ache when I’m not with you. I don’t ever want to be apart from you. I want you in my life always. Do you understand that, baby? I want you to marry me. I want forever with you.”

He held out the box to her and she took it with trembling fingers. They bounced erratically over the bow as she tried to pry the top off. Inside was a velvet jeweler’s box. She nearly dropped it as she pulled it out.

Around her flashes went off. People with cell phones were recording the moment. There were loud cheers and yells of encouragement. But she shut everything out but the man in front of her. Nothing else mattered.

She opened the box to see a gorgeous diamond ring nestled inside. It glittered in the light and blurred in her teary vision. Then she glanced down at the man on his knees in front of her. He was begging her with his eyes.

Jesus, but he was crawling.

“Oh Gabe.”

She went to her knees in front of him so they were on the same level. She threw her arms around his shoulders still holding on to the box with the ring.

“I love you,” she breathed. “I love you so much. I don’t want to be without you.”

He grasped her shoulders and pulled her back, his eyes fierce with love and possessiveness. Then he reached into his coat and pulled out a thick document. Oh God, it was their contract.

And then he slowly and methodically tore it in two, his gaze never leaving hers.

“From now on our relationship has no rules,” he said hoarsely. “It will only be what you and I make it. What we want it to be. No constraints. Nothing but our love. The only signature I want from you is on a marriage certificate.”

He took the box from her hand and pulled the ring free. Then he picked up her left hand and slid the glittering diamond onto her third finger.

The crowd erupted around them, and then Gabe pulled her into his embrace, his mouth hard and fierce over hers. She clung just as fiercely to him, absorbing this moment, committing it to memory. It was one she’d never forget as long as she lived.

When she and Gabe were old and gray, she’d remember this night and play it over and over. It would be a story to tell their children, their daughters.

And then she realized she had no idea if he even wanted children.

“I want babies,” she blurted out.

Then she blushed wildly as she realized how far her voice had carried in the crowd. There was laughter around them and one called out loudly, “Give them to her, man!”