Page 67 of Sultry Nights

"Sid wants to have dinner tonight. How do you feel about that?"

"I'd love it."

He replied to Sid. "Tonight is good. Six?"

He got a thumbs-up in reply.

He resumed his position of sitting next to Hanna with his arm around her shoulders as they enjoyed the serenity of the day.

She sighed. "It really is beautiful out here."

"It is. That's why I built here. I've never been as at peace though, as I have since you've been here."

She tilted her face up to his. "Aww, that's really sweet of you."

He chuckled. "Why don't you move in?"

Her brows shot up. "Really? Isn't it soon?"

"Well, maybe for some. But we're not teenagers. We've been through an awful lot, and I know in my heart, I want to be with you forever Hanna Valentine."

She sat forward and turned to face him. The blue of her eyes was his new favorite color. He brushed her cheek with the back of his fingers softly and grinned. "I love you, Hanna Valentine."

She swallowed. "I love you too, Quinn Kurtz."

"Do you want to move in with me?"

She finally smiled. "My mom will be over the moon."

"As nice as that is, what about you? Will you be over the moon?"

She took in a deep breath, set her coffee cup on the little table in front of the sectional, and took his hand in hers.

"I will be over the moon. I already am. I've never felt more loved or protected or cared for than I have in the time we've been together, which is really only about a month."

"Why does the time matter so much to you?"

She swallowed. "I just don't want us to be caught up in the moments of these peaceful mornings and forget that I leave my shoes too close to the door sometimes. Or you leave your dirty underwear on the bathroom floor. That we'll have things that we disagree on and we both have businesses to run."

He leaned forward and kissed her lips softly. "Are you saying you won't move in because I leave my underwear on the bathroom floor?"

"No." She took a deep breath. "Quinn." She swallowed. "I have honestly never loved anyone like I love you. That's stupid to say because I was married. But it was never like this." She motioned between them. "I now know my relationship with Isaac felt more like a duty and a chore because I made the decision to marry him and I didn't want to be wrong. So I tolerated too much."

He sat for a moment, staring into her eyes. His heart felt close to bursting. "Okay. I'll pick up my underwear if it’s that important."

She laughed. At first it was a small laugh. Then she laughed a bit harder.

He sat forward and took her hands in his. "I understand it's scary. It is for me, too. I didn't have an easy first marriage. But, sweetheart, it was never like this. I never called her sweetheart. I never wanted to spend mornings with her, doing nothing and talking. It was a duty for me in ways, too. This isn't. When you were kidnapped, all I could think was I didn't want to live my life without you in it."

He slid down to the floor, with one knee down, her soft hands in his, her eyes beginning to well with tears. "Hanna Valentine. Will you marry me?"

She swallowed and sniffed lightly. "I certainly will."

He kissed her lips. Pushing himself up onto the sectional, he lay over her soft, pliable body, holding himself up on his elbows. His hands cradled her head as he stared at her. "I love you, Hanna."

She giggled. "I love you, too."

He kissed her lips fully. Her arms wrapped around his body and pulled him close. He'd honestly never felt so loved in his life. And he'd never felt so ready to offer unconditional love before. Other than his kids. But he was all in, one thousand percent.

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