Page 61 of The Probability of Us

“What was that for?” I can hear the smile in his words.

“That.” I take a deep breath. “Was because you are also incredible, and I’ve never thanked you.”

He pulls back. “Thanked me? For what?”

“For always standing up for me, especially when I wasn’t in the room. For not letting others take credit for the work I did. For not being intimidated by me, and always telling me my strength and my voice were my superpowers. For making sure I didn’t let their words stop me.” A tear drops down my cheek and he kisses it away. “I took for granted your unwavering support, and I don’t want to do that ever again. If I’m incredible, it’s because you helped make sure I was.”

“Analise, you shouldn’t have to thank me for doing the right thing—for treating you the way you deserve.”

I kiss his nose then his lips. “You have always been one of the good guys. I have always been so grateful to have you in my life.”

“I love you,” he says between kisses. “I will always love you.”

“Can you take me home now so we can continue this,” I mumble.

Home.Home is not a place, it’s a feeling. A feeling I’ve only ever had with him.

“I wish I could, but we have reservations tonight and I need to run by my hotel room first. I left my date night outfits there.” He smirks and I laugh.

“You brought date night outfits?”

“Just in case.” He shrugs and I shove him away, but he grabs my wrist and pulls me back into a deep kiss. “I’ll be at your place as soon as possible.”

* * *

I’m just zipping up my dress after doing my hair, makeup, and taking about ten minutes to figure out how the many straps on this dress work when there’s a knock at the door. I run over and throw it open without looking before I move to the dining table to steady myself as I slip on my heels. “Hi, I’m almost ready to go.”

He doesn’t say anything, so I glance up before leaning down to buckle up my heels just in time to catch the door closing, a bouquet of blue tulips dropping onto the table, and Warren dropping to one knee before me.

I stop breathing. If the table hadn’t stopped my fall I would’ve stopped standing.

He’s not doing what I think he’s doing, is he? Because that would be absolutely insane.

Wouldn’t it?

But if it’s crazy then why has my stomach morphed into butterflies made of that liquid, sunshine gold that has his name on it? Why is my heart trying to claw its way out of my chest to land in his hands where it belongs? Why is my mouth forming the word“yes”that’s been waiting to come out since that night?

Lips press to the inside of my thigh, just above the knee, as his hands snake down to the straps on my heels. A stuttering laugh of a breath slips out as my eyes flutter closed.

“Who’s being cruel now?” My voice isn’t steady at all, nothing about me is steady right now. I was just preparing myself for him to propose, I must be going insane. And I really do start to lose it as his lips travel across my legs as he straps on my shoes.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” he whispers against my thigh and my leg twitches. It’s physically impossible for my body not to react to him. I can feel his smile grow against my skin. “Is there something else I should be doing down here?”

“I can think of a few things,” I mumble, letting my head drop back until cool air replaces every place he was touching me and my head snaps back up. He’s watching me with eyes that make me feel like nothing else exists in this world but me and him. Like I’d float away if it wasn’t for this connection between us that never went away no matter how much distance or time separated us.

He shakes his head like he’s waking up from a dream. “How is the most beautiful woman in the world somehow mine?”

“Yours?” I smile, loving the way it feels to say the words that have always been true. I have always been his . . . but he once walked away from being mine. So, I snap my legs shut in front of his face.

His eyebrows pull together at the wall blocking where he was planning to go. “Is there something wrong with that?”

“Oh, not at all.” I stand and with a finger under his chin guiding him, he follows. I slowly unbutton his cream-colored short-sleeved button-up. “I have always been yours. I willalwaysbe yours.”

I kiss him as my hands run down his bare chest and move to his belt and the button on his navy-blue chinos. He kisses me back without hesitation, pulling my dress up over my hips, but before he can go any further, I reach behind him and pull out a dining chair. He pauses and pulls back to look at me but with one light push on his chest, and with his pants and boxers around his ankles halting movement, he has nowhere to go but down onto the chair.

He watches me, eyes burning, as I place my legs on either side of the chair and slowly lower myself down. As I get close, I reach down to pull my underwear out of the way and position him in place so I can lower myself right onto him. He groans and drops his head back, closing his eyes and I fight to keep mine open, wanting to take in every second of this as he did when the roles were reversed. Butgod,he feels so fucking good.

Once I’m all the way down, I roll my hips and he curses, his hands flying to grip my hips. He tries to move but I keep him pinned down so he can’t move until I let him. I lean forward and thread my hand into his hair. After pressing my lips to his neck, I move them to his ear. “I think it’s you who needs the reminder that just as I will always be yours, you will always be mine.”

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