Page 112 of Sinful Promises

I jerked back. “Oh no, no, no. You can’t leave your family. I won’t let you do that.”

“Yes, I can. All my sisters have traveled the world. Donatella spent four years overseas hopping from country to country. She drove Mamma crazy not knowing where she was. But she eventually came back. They all came back. It’s my turn.” He cupped my cheek. “With you.”

My heart danced as I pictured us exploring the world. But then a brick dropped in my chest. I couldn’t let him do it. I placed the envelope on the bedcovers. “Oh, Roman.” I squeezed his hand in mine. “That all sounds so nice, but . . .”

“Okay.” He sat back, hands squished between his knees, a mixture of seriousness and cheekiness on his face. “I’m ready. Hit me with your buts.”

“I’ll hit you on the butt.”

He stood and bent over, pointing his glorious ass at me. Giggling, I smacked his bottom. “Sit down, you crazy idiot.”

“Come on. Let’s hear all the reasons why we can’t take off and explore the world together.”

“Not all the world,” I corrected.

“True. Not Europe.”

I rolled my eyes. “First and most important is that your family needs you. Your parents need you.”

“They’re as strong as oxen, and my sisters are here to help them.”

“But what if they get sick, really sick?”

“Dais, you can’t go through life thinking like that or you’ll never do anything. If something happens, we’ll cross that bridge.”

“What about your nieces and nephews? They love you.”

“And they’ll still love me when we eventually return.”

My shoulders slumped. “But I can’t return.”

“You can if we get married.”

My jaw dropped. I blinked at him.

He got down on one knee. My heart thumped so hard it hurt. My trembling hand shot to my mouth. “What’re you doing?”

“Daisy, I knew from the first time I heard you laugh that you were the woman for me.”

Tears pooled in my eyes.

He reached for my hand, capturing my attention with his stunning eyes. “Daisy, I promise never to hide my feelings from you again. I promise that side by side the two of us will have an amazing life together. And I promise to love and protect you forever. Daisy Chayne, will you marry me?”

“Oh, God.” My throat swelled so much I couldn’t breathe. Tears blurred my vision. Everything about me was dying to say yes. But I couldn’t. Not yet. “I want to, Roman. I want to so bad it hurts.”

“So, say yes.”

“But we have so much to work out. We don’t even know what country I can live in.”

“None of that matters. What matters is that I love you more than anything in the world.” Roman looked right into my soul. “I wake in the morning and with you at my side, I’m stronger than I’ve ever felt in my life. I sleep at night knowing my world is complete. I love you with all my heart.” He reached into his pocket, pulled out a tiny velvet box and flipped the lid. An engagement ring with a simple princess-cut diamond was nestled inside. “Daisy, I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you do me the honor of marrying me?”

My heart skipped a beat at the genuine love in his eyes. Tears trickled down my cheeks. “Yes. Oh, God. Yes. Yes. Yes.”

He glided the ring onto my trembling finger, and I admired it for a few seconds before I launched forward to wrap my arms around him.

He toppled backward and we flopped onto the floor, me on top of him, giggling.

I clutched his cheeks and kissed his nose, kissed his forehead, then squished our lips together. I pulled back, admiring the single diamond. “I can’t believe you already bought a ring.”

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