Page 179 of Beautiful Storm

“Ooh, sorry.” I bite back a laugh. “Go on.”

“Thank you. Winning the Super Bowlwasmy life goal. My dream. But when we won, the first thing I wanted to do was see you. Yes, I loved celebrating with the team, but I realized my thoughts had shifted to include other goals. Other dreams. And you and Juliet are a huge part of that.”

He stands up and it may be the low light, but I swear he looks nervous. “You know, I’ve never once dreamed about getting married,” he begins, catching me off guard. “I never wanted to be a husband and I never wanted a wife.”

My brows furrow and Luke smiles, his nerves seemingly dissipating.

“Hold your disgust until I’m finished,” he says, his smile lighting up the room. “I never once dreamed of any of that, but I dream of being marriedto you.And before you say anything,”—he reaches forward, covering my mouth with his hand, anticipating my remark—“before you argue, I don’t mean our online marriage of convenience. I want to see you walk down the aisle while I struggle to hold back the tears. I want to say all the sappy things people say to each other in their vows. I want our daughter in a cute little dress throwing ridiculously expensive flowers at our friends and family as they all whisper about how perfect she is. And I want to take you back to a fancy hotel and fuck you senseless while you wear a white dress telling the world how pure you are. But I only want those things because it’syou. You sucked me in when I was a kid and that poor little version of me had no idea just how deep you were going to sink your claws. Hell, the adult version of me still had no clue. I wanted to hate you more than I wanted anything else in the world. Football aside. But maybe that should have been a dead giveaway. All that energy wasted on the wrong emotion.”

I try to laugh, but my own emotion clogs my throat as tears fall from my eyes. I’ve never been an overly romantic person, so I had no idea how much I wanted to hear someone profess their love like that. Until now.

“And here I thought you were with me because of our daughter,” I joke but my words come out raspy. Luke knows I’m lying. He didn’t need to smirk for me to see that, because we both know, I don’t think that at all. Never did. He’s been all infrom the moment I told him I was pregnant. Maybe even before that. I was just too blind to see it. And while I tried to pretend our night together didn’t mean anything, it meanteverything. More than either of us will ever know. It gave us Juliet and, in the end, brought us together.

“Amelia Joy Rosenberg…” Luke says my name like he’s scolding me before walking over to his suitcase and rummaging about inside, hiding something behind his back. “Amelia,”—his voice softens—“you have my word that this is the last secret I’ll ever keep from you. But I promise, it’s a good one.” He drops down to one knee and reveals the small box he was hiding, opening it to show me a square-cut diamond engagement ring and a simple white gold wedding band. I gasp as I lean forward, but before I can say or do anything more, Luke continues on. “I plan to spend the rest of my life making you and our daughter happy because I have never been happier than I am with you. No amount of accolades or Super Bowl wins will compare to the joy you’ve brought to my life. And while I’ll always regret the years we lost, I know that they brought us to this moment. To our happily ever after. So, Amelia J Rosenberg, will you do me the honor of officially becoming my wife? I want you to be mine. Forever.”

I’m speechless as tears roll down my face. All I can do is nod before flinging myself into his arms.

“I’m going to need you to answer me, Ace.” Luke pulls back. “As cute as the blubbering is.”

I shove at his hard chest before smiling through the waterworks. “Luke, I have never wanted to sass you more than I do right now,” I rush out, my voice wavering. “But I also want to shower you with kisses and show you how much this moment means to me. Thank you for pushing me to see how amazing life could be with you by my side. You and Juliet are my world, and I couldn’t imagine my life without you.”

“So that’s a…” He rolls his hand, encouraging me to get the words out.Sassingme.

“Yes.” I giggle. “I’d love toofficiallybe your wife.”

“Good.” He nods a few times, pretending he’s unaffected as his eyes well with tears.

“Good,” I repeat, my heart pounding so hard, I’m sure he can hear it. “Happy now?”

“So fucking happy.” He quickly stands and cups my face, pressing his lips to mine, kissing my mouth, my cheeks, my nose, my forehead, making me laugh as more tears fall. “I love you so fucking much, Amelia.” He pulls back and grabs the ring box again before kissing my hand and slipping both rings onto my finger.

Words get stuck in my throat as I stare down at my hand. I didn’t think much about wearing rings again. But now that I have them on, it feels like a direct connection to my heart.

I’m married to Luke Bennett.

And I’ve never been happier.

When I don’t say anything after another beat, Luke chuckles before kissing me again. “You need to get naked,” he whispers against my lips. “Before Angel wakes up again. You’re mine for at least the next hour.”

“Wrong.” I push him back, my hands locked on his biceps.

“Wrong?” He raises a brow.

“Yep. I’ll always be yours, no matter what.”

Luke’s eyes darken before he curls his hand into my hair. “God, I love hearing that. I can’t wait to make you my wife again.”

He leans forward but I hold him at arm's length, my chest tight with more emotion than I’d usually be able to handle. “This is the real deal, isn’t it?” I ask, my eyes flashing between him and Juliet. “We’re really going to make this work.”

“Absolutely.” Luke smiles, the warmth of it coating my skin in goose bumps. “I told you, whatever it takes.”

“Whatever it takes,” I agree before pulling him down on top of me and wrapping my arms and legs around him.

And for the first time in years, I feel like I’ve found my place and I don’t plan on losing myself again. Not that Luke would ever let me. It’s all up from here.

EPILOGUE TWO

Luke - Three years later

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