Guilt and hurt clawed through her.
Then fury.
“How dare she go to HR about thisforme? I trusted her with this.”
“I know.”
How was he so surprisingly chill about this?
She wiped angry tears from her eyes. “Did you get fired?”
“I resigned.” Callum shrugged as though it was nothing. “I didn’t want you to have to deal with an HR circus when we returned. And since, as of twenty minutes ago, I’m the new owner ofLa Hacienda Tropical, I might be heading on an alternative career path anyway.”
She blinked at him, mouth parting in shock.
“What are you talking about?”
“It’s a long story. Suffice it to say, Sophia was pressuring my mum to sell. I decided to try to reconcile with my mum and buy Sophia out, but then I found out that the American man Sergio told you about? Sophia was going to sell her part of the property to him. He’s an American investor and was going to sue my mum for the sale of the property through the courts. It would have forced my mum to sell. So I made a deal with Sophia that would be too good for her to refuse, so long as she accepted it immediately.”
Liddy tried to process everything he’d said.
No wonder she’d barely seen him today.
He’d been busy.
“And all this happened today?”
“Unbelievably.” Callum reached for her, tugging her closer to him. Taking her hand in his, he lifted her hand to his lips and kissed the back of it. “Liddy, I . . . can’t lose you. I know what I said about ruining you, but the fact is, you ruined me. I can’t return to London and pretend none of this ever happened. I’m falling in love with you. And it terrifies me. But the only thing that scares me more is facing a future without you in it.”
She stared at him.
Is this a dream?
“You want to be with me?”
He smiled, and Liddy wasn’t sure she’d seen this smile on Callum before. Except when he’d been eating his favorite ice cream...when I’d noticed pure delight on him.It was a good look.
“Yes. And for more than tonight. You challenge me and drive me mad, but you’re also the woman who will hold my hand when I’m drunk and . . . I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone as fiercely loyal as you.” He dropped to his knees. “I’m begging you, Liddy. Be with me.”
She laughed, then dropped in front of him, putting her arms around his neck. “You’re ridiculous. Of course I will be. All you had to do was ask. But what aboutLa Hacienda?Are you going to live here now?”
Callum held her face in his hands. “I’m the owner and the investor at this point. Isla is going to move here and run it with my mum. I’m going back home.”
She searched his gaze. He wouldn’t use that term lightly. “Where’s home?”
“Home is wherever you are, Liddy Winnick.”
She kissed him hard until they were both breathless.
Flash.
Liddy blinked, unsure, for a second, where the light had come from.
Then more flashes.
A photographer was taking their picture.
Then she heard a voice saying, “Did they just get engaged?”