Such Great Heights - Sydney Logan Page 0,54
my hand.
“In that case, I guess it’s time for me to make some plans.”
I nod. “You should definitely call Marcus. Natasha said she wants the divorce finalized as soon as possible.”
“I’ll call him first thing tomorrow, but I was thinking of more personal plans . . . something to make all this a little more official for all of us.”
Official?
“If you’re going to make my son the happiest boy in the world by being his mother . . .”
He whispers mother so reverently that it makes my skin tingle with joy.
“Then I think it’s only fair that you make his father the happiest man in the world, too.”
I slide my arms around his neck. “I would love to do that. Tell me how.”
His crystal blue eyes gaze at me with so much love that I think my heart might burst.
“Marry me, Olivia.”
The proposal is out of my mouth before I can stop it, but I don’t regret it. I love her. She loves me. For the first time in my life, I’m truly happy. Why wouldn’t I want to marry this woman as soon as humanly possible?
But if her shocked gasp and wide, green eyes are any indication, perhaps tonight wasn’t the best time to bring it up.
“Olivia, I . . .”
She blinks rapidly and climbs out of my lap.
“Just . . . give me a minute.”
I nod. Olivia starts to pace the length of the balcony. Back and forth.
Okay, tonight really wasn’t the night.
She abruptly stops and gazes at me. I thought I was a pro at reading her face. One of the many things I love about this woman is that she doesn’t hide her emotions well. I never have to wonder what she’s really thinking because it’s always etched across her beautiful face. And in this moment, it’s obvious that she’s . . . angry?
She places her hands on her hips.
“Did you seriously just propose to me?”
Yep. She’s mad.
I clear my throat.
“I did. Maybe tonight wasn’t the—”
“Jackson, you can’t be serious.”
“Why not?”
“Why not?”
She starts to pace again. I slowly stand from my chair.
“Seriously, Olivia, why not? I mean, if you’re going to be my son’s mother, doesn’t it make sense that we—”
“A thousand things have to happen before I can be his mother! You’re a lawyer. You know this! And I don’t even know that she was serious. Or sane. As if that conversation wasn’t emotional enough, and now you . . . you propose to me?”
Olivia walks over to the edge of the balcony. With a heavy sigh, I follow her, sliding my arms around her waist and holding her close to my chest. Maybe the proposal wasn’t romantic enough. Maybe I needed flowers. Candles. Music. A ring. But I don’t have any of those things. Not tonight. All I have is me.
“Olivia Stuart, I love you.”
She exhales a shaky sigh and turns around in my arms.
“I love you, too. Love isn’t the problem.”
“What’s the problem?”
“Jackson,” she says, her voice breathless with emotion, “It’s too fast and way too soon. I’ve known you for just a few months. I don’t know your family. You don’t know mine. We haven’t even gone out on a real date.”
“You’ve met my family, and you and my sister have been best friends for years. And, if memory serves, we went to the gala.”
“Okay, we’ve had one date. But none of those things are the actual problem.”
“What’s the actual problem?”
“You’re still a married man.”
“That’s a problem that will be resolved very soon.”
Olivia smiles sadly and shakes her head.
“Jackson, I understand that our love story has been very . . . out of the ordinary so far. But I think that, when it comes to a marriage proposal, we girls dream of this moment all our lives. We have certain expectations. Maybe they’re silly, but we do.”
“So I have gone about this all wrong.”
“You have.” Olivia smiles up at me. “I want the bended knee. I want the ring you’ve chosen just for me. But most importantly, I want the man I love, the man who’s asking me to spend the rest of our lives together . . . I want to be able to say yes when he asks. And I can’t say yes tonight.”
“Because I’m still married.”
She nods and buries her face against my chest while I hold her close to me. Of course, I knew we couldn’t get married anytime soon. I just wanted her to know that this is my intention—to make her mine in every sense of