“Aly, none of that is exactly news for me. I don’t get where you’re going with this.”
She took a steadying breath and continued. “I heard a song a few weeks ago, and one of the lines said that fear is at the heart of love. I thought it was ridiculous, that it made no sense. But now I get it.”
She killed the last couple feet of space between them. Her warm vanilla scent wrapped around him, weakening his resolve to hold himself in check and keep up the wall he’d erected to protect his battered heart.
“To love someone is to know fear. Gut-wrenching, soul-crushing fear. Fear that your love won’t always be enough. Fear that something terrible could rip them away from you. There are dozens, hundreds of scenarios, but they all come down to the same thing: when you love someone with all your heart, the scariest thing imaginable is having to live without them.” Bright blue eyes stared up at him, imploring him to understand. “Wouldn’t you agree?” she asked softly.
He had to clear his throat before his voice cooperated. “Okay, yeah. So what are you saying here, exactly?”
She took a deep breath and exhaled. “If there’s one thing I’ve always been certain of in my life, it was that you would uphold your promise to always protect me. What I realized tonight is that you included yourself in that promise. You wouldn’t have asked me to overcome my fear of abandonment to be with you if you thought that for one second there was a chance you’d ever leave me.”
She pressed her hands to her belly as though physically trying to suppress her nerves. “I love you, Dillon. With all that I am and all that I ever hope to be, I love you. I can’t tell you that I’m not scared, because I am. I’m terrified. But not as much as I am at the thought of living without your love, for however long you’ll give it to me.” Alyssa blinked back the moisture gathering in her eyes. “So if the proposal I never let you get to still stands, I’d like to accept.”
His heart raced as his brain processed her words. She wanted him the way he wanted her. She loved him the way he loved her. He heard her say it, and he had plenty of witnesses. No way in hell he was letting her hide behind their parents’ mistakes anymore.
A broad smile stretched his face as he reached into his pants pocket and withdrew a soft black velvet box. He tilted the lid back and revealed the stunning two-carat diamond ring he’d picked out for her. “I was going to give you this tonight on our first official date.” He got down on one knee and there was an audible gasp from the peanut gallery. He’d forgotten they had witnesses, but he didn’t give them a second thought as he lost himself in her bright blue eyes.
“Alyssa, I would be honored if you would let me help you tip the statistical scales in favor of successful marriages, prove that our parents’ pasts have no bearing on our future, and break the Miller Curse once and for all. Will you marry me?”
Tears fell unabashedly down her cheeks. “Yes.” She laughed and nodded emphatically. “A thousand times yes.”
Heart soaring, Dillon stood, held the sides of her face, and kissed her like a man starved. He tasted her salty relief as it flowed down her cheeks and between their lips. It wasn’t slow and sweet, but deep and all-consuming. He, too, now recognized the different fears that came with love. Even the irrational kind that told him if he let the kiss end, he’d find it was all a dream.
At last he had the woman he’d loved all his life—not only for a weekend or the occasional night, but for a lifetime—and he’d be damned if he was ever letting her go. Coming up for air, he rested his forehead against hers. “You know this is forever, right? No way I’m ever leaving you or letting you leave me. You’re mine, now and for always.”
Her eyes twinkled with tears of joy. “Sounds perfect. I can’t wait to get started.”
“Places, everyone!” The Mardi Gras ringmaster started arranging people like he was moving pawns on a chessboard. Before any of them knew what happened, Elvis stood behind the ticket podium with Alyssa and Dillon in front. Marilyn was placed next to Alyssa with the TSA model guy on the other side of Dillon. Everyone else was ushered into the seats behind them.
Alyssa raised her brows at him. “Um, Trent? What are you doing?”
“Isn’t it obvious?” he said, gesturing to his handiwork proudly. “You said you couldn’t wait to get started, so I’m getting you hitched. I know the airport terminal is a tad gauche, but I figured since Elvis is a minister and we have plenty of witnesses, we can do this lickety-split and you two can move on to the honeymoon phase.”