Saving Us(51)

Conner and I drove back to Kentucky that afternoon. I was so giddy that I scooted over to the middle truck seat and snuggled up close to him. He put his arm around my shoulder and tickled my skin with his fingers, while he drove. For the first hour, neither of us said much. I was excited but also still in shock. I couldn’t believe that what happened was real. I was going to be free from Rick. I didn’t have to wait a year. It was surreal.

The burning question in my head was how did I proceed with things. Obviously, Rick’s ex was going to have to be a part of it. Without the information she’d given me, I wasn’t sure if the courts would believe me. It wasn’t like I had a copy of my fake marriage certificate and Rick’s birth certificate. He kept all of the paperwork in the marriage.

If that wasn’t enough to worry about, what was really on my mind was what Conner was being so quiet about. Of course, I was thinking the worst. I felt like Conner kept telling me that he wanted us to have a future, because he thought it could never really happen. What if he never planned on marrying me? Would I be okay with that? Would he get tired of me and find someone younger? It was driving me crazy and as much as I wanted to mention it, I couldn’t.

We stopped around four to grab something to eat at a popular chain restaurant. Conner, who had been unusually quiet for the whole ride, finally started to talk, once the waitress had taken our orders.

“I need to say somethin’.”

This was it. This was where he told me that all we were ever going to be was what we were this very second.

“I’m listening.” I gave him a half smile and waited for him to break my heart.

“Ever since I met you, I knew you were different. I didn’t care what I had to do, I just knew that I had to have you. For over a year, I have waited so patiently to finally be able to say that you were mine without any other baggage. I had no idea that this trip was going to make that happen for us. I feel like I’m dreamin’. You do know what this means for us, right?”

I shrugged. If this was him trying to tell me that he was never going to put a ring on my finger, well he was really sucking at it.

“Blaze, you know I love you, darlin’. I think I’ve proved just how much I am willin’ to do for you. I realize that it’s goin’ to take some time to prove that you’re a free woman, but as soon as it happens, I want you to think about gettin’ tied down to me. I ain’t good with bein’ romantic. Hell, I don’t know a damn thing about flowers. Valentine’s Day was always a bullshit holiday. I don’t like apologizing, and you know how stubborn I get, but you can always count on me to be there. I will never lay a hand on you. I will be the best daddy to our child and I will love you for all of the days of my life. That’s about all I can offer.”

I think my mouth hit the floor.

I just sat there, flabbergasted.

Did Conner really just say that to me?

New tears were down my face, but they weren’t because I was sad, or because I felt sorry for someone, or because I was in any pain. It was because the most perfect man had just offered me a life; a life with him.

He reached over the table and wiped my eyes. “Are these good tears or should I be worried?”

“They’re good tears.” I started sobbing. “I just can’t believe this is happening. I’ve wanted it for so long. I just…I just thought you wouldn’t want me anymore.”

“Why in the hell would you ever think that? I told you from the beginnin’ that I wanted you for myself. It was never a joke to me.”

“I didn’t know. I mean, I wanted you to love me, but I couldn’t ask you to. I just thought you were offering me a forever because you knew it would never happen. You really want that?”

He grabbed my hands and kissed them. “Amy, please stop cryin’. Of course it’s what I want. It ain’t because you’re carryin’ my child, or because you don’t have other options. I want you because I love you like I have never loved before. If you don’t want me, I know I will never find another that compares. Our future is in your hands, Blaze.”

“Do I get a ring?” I didn’t want a giant ring. I didn’t even care if it was a diamond. An emerald would be just as great. I just wanted something that I could shove in all those little bitches faces. I wanted them all to know that he was mine.

He started laughing and shaking his head. “Is this some kind of test?”

I shook my head. “No, I just want to know.”

“Do I need to go get it now?”

“Why, do you already have one?”

“Maybe.”