Page 49 of The Billionaire's Bargain
“I can’t...” She shook her head. “Darius, I know you love Aiden. And we...we...” God, she couldn’t get it out.
“We burned together, Isobel,” he supplied, and her breath snagged in her throat. “But that’s not all that was between us. Is still between us. Before I knew who you were, I trusted you with things I hadn’t spoken to another living soul in years. I didn’t need to see your face to tell you were special, loving, kind and compassionate. You didn’t change, Isobel. I did. I turned on you. I allowed the past with Faith and Gage to warp what my heart acknowledged all along.”
He shifted closer, but still didn’t reach for her. But his gaze... It roamed her face, and she shivered as if his fingertips had brushed her skin.
And inside...oh, inside she couldn’t battle hope anymore. It broke through her shields and flowed into her chest, filling her.
“I love you, Isobel.” He raised his arms, and after a moment’s hesitation, he cupped her face between his palms. “I love you,” he whispered. “Remember when I told you about my fear of the dark and falling asleep in our burning building?” She nodded, his tender clasp, his soft words rendering her speechless. “I didn’t tell you everything. I believe I heard my mother and father shout my name, and that’s what woke me up. I know how insane it sounds, but even from where they were, they saved me. And now I think it’s not just because they loved me, but because they knew what waited for me. You and Aiden.
“I’ve waited for you. And I hate that I almost threw away our future,us. Sweetheart,” he murmured, sweeping his thumb over her cheekbone. “I promise I’ll never place anyone else above you and our son and any more children we have together. But if I’ve hurt you too badly and you can’t give me your heart and trust right now, I understand. Know this—I’ll still provide for you and Aiden until I can convince you to forgive me. Because, sweetheart, my heartisyours. And I refuse to give up on us ever again. I’ll love you perfectly.”
He’d gifted her with her own words. She blinked, trying to hold back the tears, but they slipped free. And he pressed his lips to her cheek, kissing them away.
“Talk to me, sweetheart. I need to hear your beautiful voice. You’re the only thing keeping me sane,” he whispered, his voice carrying her back to that dark hallway where they’d first connected. Where she’d started to fall for him.
Where they’d begun.
“I love you.” She circled his wrists and held on to him. “I love you so much.”
He crushed his mouth to hers, taking and giving. Savoring and feasting. Loving and worshipping. And she surrendered it all to him, while claiming him.
“Sweetheart,” he said against her lips, scattering kisses to her mouth, her jaw, her chin. “Tell me again. Please.”
“I love you.” Throwing her arms around his neck, she jumped, and he caught her, his hands cradling her thighs. Laughing, she tipped her head back, happiness a bird catching the wind and soaring free. “Now take us home.”
Epilogue
Six months later
Isobel groaned through a smile. “This is your fault. And you’re going to deal with the fallout.”
Beside her, Darius snorted, laughter gathering in his chest and rolling up his throat. “Do you want to go over there and tell him to leave the bouncy castle?”
She scoffed. “And face World War ThreeandFour? God, no.” She elbowed him in the side. “I thought we had a conversation about this party, though. Low-key. Nothing too big or grand.”
Darius scanned their backyard, where they were holding Aiden’s third birthday party. The aforementioned bouncy castle claimed a place of honor right in the middle of the lawn, surrounded by a petting farm, a huge slide, games, face painting, clowns... Their place could double for a carnival.
He shrugged. What could he say? Having missed Aiden’s previous two birthdays, he’d really wanted to handle this one. So, he might have gone a little...overboard. Still, as Aiden’s high-pitched laughter reached Darius, he had zero regrets.
“Well, he is having a blast,” Darius noted, watching their son slide down the “drawbridge” of the castle. “And look on the bright side. At least the party is out here, so in case of a blackout, no one can get trapped inside. With all these animals.”
She laughed. “True.” Smiling, she slid an arm around his waist and leaned her head against his shoulder. “He’ll never forget this. All of his family here to celebrate him.” Including Isobel’s mother and brothers. They mingled with the children and parents with ease, laughing and talking.
Well, not with Darius’s family. Since Baron had confessed the truth to Helena and Gabriella, they’d dropped the custody suit. Discovering Gage’s faults hadn’t been easy on them, and even now, months later, they still struggled with the magnitude of his lies. And his death. Though he knew Isobel held sympathy for them, relations between her and the Wellses had been put on hold. It would take a while to heal years’ worth of pain, and Darius refused to push that reconciliation. Isobel had to move forward when she was ready, and until then Darius had her back. At least she’d allowed Aiden to see them, but only if Darius was there to supervise. And he would never betray her trust again.
It’d been six months since he’d gone to Isobel to plead for her forgiveness and love. Six months since she’d given him both, plus her trust, her heart and her body. She’d given him his family back. That had been the happiest day of his life. And the days that followed were just as wonderful, filled with laughter and joy.
She’d been accepted into the University of Illinois and was majoring in psychology to become a domestic-violence counselor. He wholeheartedly supported her. Isobel was living proof that a person could emerge from a destructive situation stronger, whole, and with the ability to find happiness and peace.
“And just think,” Darius said, sliding behind her and settling his hands over the small bump under her tank top. “In another five months, we’ll have another one to spoil. A girl. Just imagine the princesses and unicorns that will be prancing around here in another two years.”
Isobel groaned, but it ended on a full-out laugh. The joy in it flowed over him.
“Thank you,” he murmured, pressing a kiss under her ear. And when she tipped her head back, he placed another kiss on her generous, lovely mouth. “Thank you for filling my life with love and family. I love you.”
Her grin softened, and she lifted an arm, cupping the back of his neck. “I love you, too. Always and forever.”
“Always and forever.”
