“I wish you didn’t sound so surprised.” He chuckles and pulls me onto his lap so he can hold me in his arms. “I love you, you know.”
“I know.” My eye catches the remnants of the vase all over the floor. “I’m so sorry about tonight.”
“Don’t be. It definitely shows us what we need to work on, besides your pitching arm.”
“Thank you.” I kiss him again, enjoying the slow movement of our lips together, “and thank you for Lynx.”
“It was the smart move. Besides all the dust your story is going to kick up, it wouldn’t look right if my company held majority control of the magazine owned and edited by my future wife.”
“Yes,” I agree, before realizing what he said. Wait, did he actually say that? “Future wife”? A huge smile starts building on my face. It wasn’t a proposal but it’s good enough for now. I beam at him, feeling warm and fuzzy inside.
“It’s like I told you before. We don’t have a deal or a contract to lean back on. You don’t need anything from me, and I hold nothing over you. The only way we can keep going down this road is if it is your choice.”
I pause for a moment, letting my finger outline the bridge of his nose.
“You know,” I finally manage to say. “When my father died, and I thought I lost Lynx, and you, I thought I had nothing left. Everything was stripped away. Without it all, I found me. That was me standing up at my father’s funeral. That was me going into the lion’s den to get that folder. That was me sprinting through the courthouse without shoes. That was me controlling my emotions when I could have spit in Blake’s face. That courage, that honesty, that control, that passion, that power, that was all me.”
“Yes, it was.” Mark nods his affirmation. I take his hand and hold it open.
“Now, this is me,” I say leaning over to kiss his palm, then put his hand over my heart. He looks at me quizzically.
“This is me, choosing you.”