As if his words were a trigger for the sleepiness to take over, I let out a long yawn. “I am. Your baby is draining me already, Mr. Banks. Can you imagine what she’ll be like when she’s here, terrorizing everyone, just like you?”
Roman tosses his head back and laughs, taking my hand in his, as we walk back inside. “How can you be so sure it’s a girl? Could be a little boy in there destined to terrorize.”
“A mother knows these things.”
He swats my butt, jerking his head toward the bedroom. “Go lie down. I’ll bring you some water.”
I sigh. “You’re too good to me.”
Crawling onto the bed, I let out a tired huff of air. These spurts of sleepiness hit me randomly. I can feel completely fine, until I climb onto this bed, then, unbeknownst to me, I’ll fall asleep. It’s not even like I’ve been working crazy hours; my schedule at the clinic has been relatively light compared to when I first started. If anything, Roman should be the one who’s tired. He puts in so many hours at the garage for George. I know he does it because he loves it, but I still worry about him overexerting himself. Though, I guess all the years he put in at George’s have come in handy. George mentioned he was looking for someone to take over the garage when he was ready to retire, and he was looking at Roman. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him look so damn proud of himself.
Max trots into the bedroom, stopping at my side of the bed. Resting his head on the edge, he stares up at me. I reach over, scratching behind his ears and petting his smooth coat.
“Hey, buddy. Are you feeling tired, too?”
Max lifts his front paw onto the bed, and it’s then I notice the little box attached to his collar. I frown. The box is small, dangling from a string that Roman must have tied onto it. Sensing someone’s gaze on me, I glance up near the bedroom door and find Rome, leaning against the doorjamb, arms crossed over his chest, watching me.
“What’s this?”
“Just a little gift for you.”
“For me? What for?”
His mouth inches up, like he wants to grin. “Open it and find out.”
My stomach dips, and I reach for the box, sliding it out of the string. It’s light in my hands, and my heart is suddenly pounding in my chest, as I slide off the lid. My breath gets lodged in my throat, and my hands tremble, when I see the velvet lid of the smaller box inside.
Sucking in a lungful of air, I drop the velvet box in my hands, and when I open it, a hand flies to my mouth to stifle the gasp.
“Roman,” I whisper in awe, staring down at the ring. It’s gorgeous. The large diamond in the center reflects the light, sparkling beautifully.
During the last year and a half, we’ve talked a lot about marriage, and whether it was something we wanted or not. But because I didn’t want to get my hopes up, I mentioned numerous times that I wasn’t sure if I wanted to get married. How could I, when our future wouldn’t be promised? So every time the discussion was on the table, I vetoed it. Pretending it wasn’t what I wanted. But of course, Roman saw right through my lies. He always does.
I do want to get married to this man. More than I’ve ever wanted anything. I just didn’t want to be selfish. I didn’t want to force the issue, but the fact that he’s here with a ring, proposing to me, anyway? It’s everything.
He is everything.
When I glance up and find him beside the bed on his knee, the first round of tears slides down my cheeks. I slap a hand over my mouth, trying to quell the urge to scream in joy. There are so many emotions rioting inside me, I’m having a tough time pinning it down to just one. All I’m really sure of is that I’m happy. So goddamn happy I can’t even breathe.
“I had this extravagant dinner planned out, where I was going to ask you to marry me, and it was perfect, but I couldn’t wait any longer. I love you, Olivia Rene Hales. I love you like I’ve never loved anyone before. You have my entire heart. Your grasp on my soul is eternal, and I want to spend the rest of my