Page 28 of Burn for You

“What if I asked you to marry me right now?” I replied.

Marlee blinked in surprise. Then she huffed and shook her head.

“I wouldn’t believe a word that comes out of your mouth.”

“So, what would it take to change that?”

Marlee took a breath to speak then let it out in a rush. She sighed and rubbed her forehead.

“I don’t know.”

Crossing the distance between us, I cupped Marlee’s face in my hands and tilted her head up until she met my gaze.

“I don’t want something casual with you, sweetheart. I want it all. I want a home you designed with our family in mind. I want to fall asleep next to you every night and I want to wake up by your side every morning. I want a sassy little daughter who looks like the spitting image of you. I want a son who is a holy terror, just like me when I was a kid. I never wanted this with anyone else, but when I’m with you, it’s all I can think about.”

Marlee bit her lower lip as her eyes turned misty.

“You’re just saying that because you know it’s what I want to hear.”

I held her gaze, unwavering.

“Do I look like I’m lying?”

She searched my face for several seconds. A dozen emotions flashed across her expression—worry, fear, hope, doubt, and something soft, fragile. Haltingly, Marlee brought her hand up to rest against my chest. Then she let her eyes slip closed and she circled her arms around my middle.

“I’m scared,” she said, barely above a whisper.

That must have taken a monumental amount of courage for Marlee to admit. She didn’t let anyone see the chinks in her armor for a reason. After a father who dismissed her hopes and dreams, and a cheating ex, it was safer to lock away her heart where no one would get to it.

The fact that she opened up to me now, especially after my ex-girlfriend had fucked up Marlee’s life, was a privilege I wouldn’t take lightly. I kissed her forehead, the tip of her nose, and finally her lips.

“Then we can take it as slowly as you need to.”

She snorted.

“You’re a firefighter who runs into burning buildings for a living. You don’t know how to do anything slowly.”

A wry smile tugged at the corner of my mouth.

“I told you before—I can be a gentleman when I put my mind to it. And if that’s what my girl wants, that’s what she’s going to get.”

Marlee opened her eyes and looked up at me. I traced my thumb along her lower lip.

“You really mean that,” she said, bewildered.

“Yeah. I do.”

She considered for a moment, circling her fingertip down my button-up shirt.

“What if we end up having two little girls and you don’t get the son you want?”

I shrugged.

“I’ll be ready when they start bringing boyfriends over for dinner.”

Marlee hummed in thought.

“What if we have all boys? Are you prepared to handle that?”

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