Total pages in book: 130
Estimated words: 129571 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 648(@200wpm)___ 518(@250wpm)___ 432(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 129571 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 648(@200wpm)___ 518(@250wpm)___ 432(@300wpm)
She held her hand to her chest. “I ... I don’t know if I’m even ready to discuss what could be inside of that box.”
My fingers almost shook, but I calmed myself. “Just say yes, tesoro.”
“What? Just say yes? That’s ... look ... we’ve known each other for less than a year—”
“And been through more things than people in twenty-year marriages have been through, and we’ve survived.”
Nude, she got up from the bed and backed away. Her full, bare breasts in front of me, didn’t help my mind stay concentrated on the topic. “Come here.”
“I need some space.”
“You’ve had your space.” I stood, picked up the box, and climbed on top of the bed.
“What the hell are you doing?” She edged away.
On the bed, I towered over her like a lunatic. “I’m coming over there to put my ring on you.”
She waved her hands. “You can’t just put a ring on my finger. We need to talk about this, and think about all of the possibilities.”
“No.” I traveled over the bed, hopped down, and got in front of her.
“Stop, Chase. I’m serious. We can’t just jump and do something like an engagement. I’m young and I can’t even take care of myself.”
“Sometimes when you talk like this, it just sounds like womp womp womp. Did you know that?”
“Maybe you should fix your ears.”
“Maybe you should fix your attitude.” I lowered down to my knees.
“What are you trying to say?”
“Just because my name is Chase, doesn’t mean I plan to race around the world after you. You know what? Who am I kidding? I will chase you all over this goddamned planet.” I opened the box and pulled out the ring. “Say yes.”
“So much has happened. Let me just deal with everything before answering you and then—”
“No. Now say yes.”
She looked down at me. “This is not how you propose marriage to a woman.”
“Fuck it, you’re mine.” I grabbed her hand. She sighed, but didn’t move away.
On bended knee, I gazed up at her. “Will you be my wife?”
“Chase ...”
I just looked into her eyes and tried to let her truly see me. The man behind the money and popular name, the alpha boss stare and the playboy reputation. I tried to reveal the sensitive man inside of me that couldn’t live without her.
I tried to show her my heart.
We stayed like that for the longest minute of my life. I refused to get up, and she couldn’t speak. When I couldn’t wait anymore, inch by inch I slipped the ring up her finger.
Don’t hurt me, Jasmine. If you take it off, you’ll kill a part of me. Don’t run away. Let me love you.
“Chase.” Her voice left those parted lips as they shivered.
“Yes?” I stared at the ring on her finger, feeling the weight of this decision much heavier than when I’d proposed to Dawn. This time it was all different. Dawn had done it all like a business arrangement, and in some ways it was just corporate benefits and reasonable companionship. No passion lay within our deal.
But with Jasmine, I could barely breathe as I studied the ring on her finger. It was as beautiful as her—an elegant vintage, marquise-shaped, 10 carat diamond mounted in platinum. If Jasmine knew how much it cost, she’d probably take the ring off and sell it to feed all the poor in South End.
“Chase,” she whispered, “are we ready for this?”
“Yes.”
“It’s huge.”
“You’re lucky you can lift your finger. The jeweler almost convinced me to go twice as large.”
“I don’t think you can go larger than this.”
“Trust me. You’ll know how large diamonds can get with each anniversary. I’m going to add a carat for each new year.”
She pulled her hand away. “That’s okay.” Gazing at it, she blew out a long breath. “Let’s just concentrate on the minutes.”
“That’s a good idea.”
She breathed in and out. “Chase ...”
“Yes, tesoro.”
She nodded. “My answer is yes.”
“Yes?” I stood up and raised my eyebrows. “Yes?”
“Yes.” She glanced at the ring again and sighed. “Hells yes. I’ll ... holy fuck ... I’ll marry you.”
I almost knocked her over, when I grabbed her. “Yes is my favorite word.”
“Of course it is.”
My phone rang. I didn’t want to let her go and answer it, but I knew that it would have to be from the security team and probably important. I released her. “Don’t move.”
“I won’t.”
I headed to the phone. “Remember, we’re planning our engagement party. That should draw Benny out. I don’t like this event being a part of this situation, but it would be a good memory, if we succeed.
“And if we don’t?” she asked.
“We’ll think of something.”
“Do we have the party in London?”
“No. Benny is international, and he’s not stupid. We do it here and fast, he’ll know it is a trap. If we wait and do it back in the States, we have a better chance.”