of the hotel. I gave my name and room number to the maître d’. He scanned a list then gestured for us to follow. As I’d requested when I’d made the reservation, he stopped beside the most secluded booth in the restaurant.
I ushered Athena to sit, then slid along the plush leather bench beside her. She gave me an odd look but didn’t question why I’d chosen to sit beside her.
“A bottle of the 1959 Dom Perignon,” I said.
“Certainly, sir.”
The maître d’ backed away to place the champagne order with the sommelier.
I glanced at the menu. “I’ve heard the crayfish isn’t to be missed, and the duck is excellent.” I closed it over and placed it on the table. “Shall I order two portions of each?”
“Only if you’re extra hungry,” she replied with a teasing grin.
“Okay, that’s one duck for me and the octopus for you.”
She elbowed me in the ribs. “You’re such an asshole sometimes. You know I’d hate the octopus. Tentacles…” She shuddered. “No thank you.”
The sommelier returned with the chilled champagne and poured two glasses. I picked up both glasses, handed one to Athena, then touched mine to hers.
“To us.”
“To us,” she repeated, taking a sip. “Delicious.”
I waited for her to set the drink on the table, then captured her hands in mine. “I’ve been thinking.”
“Uh-oh,” she said. “That usually means trouble.”
I plowed on as though she hadn’t spoken, knowing if I didn’t, I’d probably lose my nerve and regret it later.
“These last few weeks with you have been the happiest of my entire life. I never believed such deep joy existed. And since last weekend when we visited Mom, I’ve done a lot of soul searching about the future, about what I want for me, for ROGUES, for us. I had a long chat with Mom on the telephone a couple of days ago, and, in her inimitable way, she helped me put a lot of things into perspective.”
My throat felt like sandpaper. I drank some champagne, adding much needed lubricant.
“We might’ve only been dating for a short time, but I’ve loved you virtually my whole life. I know there will never be another woman for me. You’re it. You’re the one. I never should have put my love for Elliot above my feelings for you. When we tell him on Monday—after the Addison’s deal is signed—I have no idea how he’ll react, but one thing I do know. He’ll have to find a way to come to terms with it, because I’m not giving you up. For him. For anyone.”
“And if he can’t accept that we’re together?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
I shrugged. “That’s his problem. I adore your brother. He’s my family, but you’re my heart. I can survive without family, but my heart is something I simply cannot live without.”
I reached into the inside pocket of my jacket and produced a small black box. After talking to Mom, I’d known exactly what I wanted to do. I’d always swerved commitment, and my reaction at Mom’s when she mentioned weddings and kids had been the result of channeling the old me. But now, with Athena, I realized I no longer feared it. In fact, I welcomed it.
I opened the box, revealing a ten-carat diamond set in a platinum band. I’d have bought a fifty-carat diamond, but Athena wasn’t a flashy girl. Even at ten-carats, I was pushing it.
“I know this is the part where I’m supposed to get down on one knee, and I will, later, in the privacy of our villa where I can truly show you how much I love and adore and respect you. But for now, Athena Bancroft, will you marry me?”
She raised a trembling hand to her face, clamping it across her mouth. Her eyes darted between the ring, nestled in black velvet, and me.
“Oh, Ryker. I love you.”
I grinned. “Is that a yes?”
“Yes, Christ, yes. A thousand times, yes.”
She flung her arms around me, hugging me so tightly I could barely breathe. My lips found her ear, her neck, eventually her mouth. See, this was the reason I’d reserved a booth.
We broke apart, and this time, I couldn’t stop her tears from falling. I clasped her hand, drawing it toward me, and slipped the ring onto the third finger. She stared at it for a few moments.
“I’d like to say I’ll never take it off, but when we return to America, I’ll have to. Until we tell Elliot.”
I didn’t like the idea of her removing