Her head came up. “He what?” This was news to her.
“He meant well. But God knew it just made me realize that I was beginning to care too much for you.”
Judith blinked. “I’m going to kill him.”
“It’s okay, babycakes. It’s okay now.”
“It’s not okay. You bloody idiot—”
Gently he laid a finger across her lips, stopping her words. “No. It wasn’t just Joseph. It was the thing with Dad, too. You made me feel, so I pushed you away, telling myself I didn’t want to be me anymore. That I wanted to be someone else who didn’t care.” His finger dropped. “I meant what I said back there, Jude. I want to be a man you can trust. A man who deserves you. I don’t want to let you down ever again.”
Her heart began to expand, filling her up, making it difficult to breathe or speak. “You have my trust and you always were that man. That’s why I fell in love with you a second time.” She took another, halting breath. “And that’s why I’m going to say it now.” She looked up at him. “I love you, Caleb. One day you will let me down. And one day you’ll hurt me. And I’ll probably do the same to you because nobody’s perfect. But as long as we love each other, I think we’ll be okay.”
“About Australia…”
“You can’t give that up.”
“And you can’t give up your business for me, either.”
“No, but I can take time off.” She smiled. “You can, too. We’ll work something out, huh?”
“We will, darling. We will.” He bent his head and kissed her. For a long time.
Then she said, “What have you got in your hand?”
Caleb grinned and opened his palm, and her breath caught as she saw the necklace in it.
“You kept it?”
“Of course I kept it. I even got the catch fixed. I was going to mail it to you but I thought you’d probably send it back. So it’s become my good luck charm.”
“Can I…Can I have it back?”
His grin became a smile. “I thought you’d never ask. Turn around.”
Judith did so and he hung the necklace around her neck, the little bird resting against her skin. It felt good to have it there, the bird the symbol of the freedom she’d always found with him.
“You’re pretty amazing, Cal. You know that, right?”
“Of course I know that.” He put a finger under her chin, tilting her head back for a kiss. “You were the one who showed me after all.”
“So arrogant, studmuffin.”
“And you love it, babycakes.”
Then he kissed her again.