Page 94 of Mid-Thirties Slightly Hot Mess Female Seeking Billionaire

"I fucked up. I know I fucked up," he says, "and you have every right to hate me and think I'm a tool and be heartbroken and sad and curse me out, and whatever you want to do. But I want to say something.”

"I am listening," I say. My heart is racing now and I'm not sure why. What did he mean when he said he fucked up? I don't want to read anything into it. I can't read anything into it. I don't want to get my hopes up.

"Guess what I have here?" he says, holding up a newspaper.

"I don't know. A balloon?"

"Really, Sarah?"

"A teddy bear?"

He chuckles. "Very good sense of humor, but no."

"Okay. What then?"

"It's tomorrow's paper."

"Okay, so you have tomorrow's paper in your hand. Whoop-dee-doo, good for you. Who are you, Superman?"

"Ouch. I know I deserve this cold treatment from you, but it burns."

"Maybe you should get that checked."

“What checked?”

"You know. The burn? I hope it's not gonorrhea or something."

"It's not," he laughs. He opens the newspaper and shows it to me. I read the headline.New York's Most Eligible Bachelor Taken. I frown for a couple of seconds.

"What is this?"

"I'm hoping that you're not going to make me a liar."

"You're going to be a lawyer?" I ask him, deliberately mishearing him.

"I said I hope you're not going to make me into a liar. L-I-A-R."

"Why would I be making you a liar?"

"Because I'm hoping you're the one that's going to be in possession of my heart." He grabs my hands and stares at me. My heart is thudding even faster now. “I’m the billionaire bachelor that is now taken.”

"What?" I squeak out. "What are you talking about?"

"I messed up, Sarah. I know I messed up. I know I hurt you. I know I was a fucking idiot telling you that I didn't love you and that I couldn't be in a relationship and…” He sighs. "I was scared. I know that's not a good excuse. I know that that doesn't make the pain go away, but I've never felt like this before and I never expected to feel like this. And I guess I kind of was more of a jackass than I thought I was. I just want you to know that I know I messed up. I know that you deserve better than what I've given you. And I hope I can prove to you that I love you and want to be with you and want to show you just how much you mean to me and how much I need you in my life and how much I love you and how much I never want to let you go and... Am I rambling too much?"

"I don't even know what you're saying, Ethan."

"I'm saying that I love you, Sarah. I'm saying that I've never felt like this before in my life. I'm saying that you have captivated me. You've captured my heart. You've grabbed it from my soul and you've released something in me that I didn't even know existed and it scared me. When I tell you it scared me, I'm not even exaggerating. I mean that it scared me so much that I didn't know what to think. I didn't know what to do. And my parents, they had the worst marriage and my mother, every night she would cry and sob because she loved my father so and he was a jackass and I didn't want to be in that position and I didn't want to put anyone in that position, least of all you.

"And I know none of this is making sense. I know you don't understand. But I want you to know that I will do anything in my power to win you back. I will do anything in my power to make you love me again, to make you give me a second chance, to make you-"

"Ethan," I say, grabbing a hold of his hand.

"What?" he says. "What is it? Is it too late?" I stare at him for a couple of seconds and I don't say anything.

"You got something wrong," I say softly. "What?" I say. "Do you hate me so much that you're not willing to give me another chance? Do you hate me so much that-"

"No, Ethan. I love you. My love didn't go away in three weeks because you told me you didn't love me. That's not how love works. Yes, you broke my heart. Yes, I've been crying. Yes, I've been sorrowful. But I still love you. I love every piece of you. We don't know each other that well, even though it feels like we've known each other for a lifetime, but I love you and of course I forgive you. Of course I understand. I didn't even know that you had a background like that. I didn't know that your parents went through that. I come from a really solid family. I have amazing parents. I have an amazing set of brothers who tease me mercilessly and make me hate them sometime. But I know that they love me and I know that they would do anything for me and I know they always have my back. And I just want you to know that you can always count on me. My love is not going to change. My love is something that will always, always be here."

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