Page 83 of Virtuous Vows

He squeezes my sides, and I laugh. He rests his chin on my shoulder, and it’s nice. It’s easy and comfortable, and I wish we could stay like this forever.

“I’m serious, though. What are you doing with your life?” he asks.

I blow out a breath. Wow! It’s like the conversation with my parents all over again. Except I don’t feel like I’ll be judged by Dawson, and he will hear me out earnestly.

“I really don’t know,” I say thoughtfully. “I’m not like Rya. And with everything after the arranged marriage falling through, I want a moment to decide what I want. And I suppose three months isn’t enough to figure that out yet.”

He considers me, his grip around my waist tight, which is comforting. “And will you go back to Italy?”

I stir the sauce, contemplating that for a moment. “I really don’t know.”

Silence passes between us, then he presses a kiss to my cheek before moving beside me to slice the bacon into small cubes.

“Not just a pretty face,” he says, and I smile.

This feels… domestic, and I’m almost surprised by his shift but grateful to know that we can do something other than have sex even though it’s mind-blowing.

This is… nice.

And I wonder if we would remain like this if I decided to stay in New York. Or would our fling end at some point, and we’d part ways? And that thought leaves a bitter sadness that I don’t want to confront.

“I know what you’re going to do. I’ll buy you a restaurant.”

My heart skips a beat, and I turn to him. Did he really just say that he plans to buy me a restaurant? I’m not sure how to take that. Does he not remember that I have twenty million of his dollars already? The one he never took a cut of? How much money does this man have? Starting a restaurant in this country is not cheap, especially in a city like New York.

And then there’s all the butterflies it adds to my stomach.

Surely, he doesn’t offer every girl these things? But I’d be a fool to think I’m special. I push those feelings aside, not entirely sure what to do with them.

“W-what?” I finally stutter out.

He smiles like it’s the best idea he’s ever had. After adding bacon to the sauce, he grabs his wine and sips it.

“It’s your passion, right? So why not? Hell, I’m sure Crue will love the idea, so he can money launder through it.”

I give him an incredulous look.

“Okay, maybe not the last part. But if this is what you love, then why not do it?”

He has a point, but I’ve never thought about having a restaurant. How does one even go about that? I do like the idea, and in my head, I’m already picturing all the types of food I could serve. But maybe a café would be easier? Something small to start, where I can bake every day? And serve some decent coffee.

“You can picture it now, can’t you?” He grins, and I smile back.

“I can. Maybe a bakery and coffee shop could be fun as well.”

“Good.”

“But I wouldn’t even know how to start a business.”

He nudges me. “Lucky for you, you know someone who is especially phenomenal at starting businesses.”

My heart feels light, and my body buzzes with excitement. I don’t know why I never thought of it before. It could be fun. “I won’t take your money for it, though,” I inform him. “Did you forget I already have most of your money?”

“You have a small fraction of my money, Honey.”

“More than enough to start a business.” I poke my tongue out. He laughs, and I have the impression he’s far from claiming defeat.

I dish up the plates and slide his over to him. Giving him a fork, Dawson doesn’t wait before he starts eating. He closes his eyes, moans softly, then looks up at me. “Marry me.”

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