Page 54 of Claiming Bennett
Bennett has his moments of being soft and sweet, but I can’t imagine him being so gone on someone. Insecurity flares in me,worry that he doesn’t care as much about me as he did about her, but I do my best to ignore it. He’s built his walls up to keep himself safe from someone hurting him like that again, and he’s trying to tear them down to show me the softest parts of him now. I hate the thought of someone else having him when he was still soft and trusting and just throwing it all away.
I squeeze his hand to encourage him to keep talking, feeling like it’s better to just listen for now.
“She told me she was pregnant a few weeks after we graduated,” he continues. “I was so excited to be a father, proposed right on the spot. She insisted we get married before she started to show, so we rushed to plan. She liked fancy things, so I splashed out on everything. Eventually, I found out she was cheating on me with Jason—my best friend—two weeks before the wedding. Fucking broke me in two, but I was willing to forgive her. She swore it was only once that he started it. He and I got into a huge fight, and he told me everything. Said they’d been together behind my back since before she and I even started dating, that they’d been planning this all along.”
I wince in sympathy, trying to ignore the fury simmering in my chest. I settle for squeezing his hand even tighter, needing the confirmation that he’sherenow, that all of that is in the past.
“They both just ripped into you like vultures to get what they wanted, huh?” I ask bitterly. “You didn’t deserve that. None of it.”
His face twitches with something like amusement, and he looks down at me with warm, adoring eyes. He squeezes my hand right back as he pulls us to a stop beneath the shade of an old oak tree.
“I know,” he says softly. “They cheated on me, lied to me, and planned to take everything from me. In the end, they didn’t even care that they hurt me, just that they didn’t get what they wanted. It’s hard to trust anyone after being betrayed like that,and you caught me off guard when you showed up. It doesn’t excuse the way I treated you, but I hope it gives you a little context.”
I smile at him, affection welling in my chest. Sure, the way he talked to me hurt, but I’m no stranger to overreacting when things go in an unexpected direction. I don’t have any huge revelations to offer him, but I know one thing that I can say to make sure he knows that I understand.
“You remember my brother, Bo?” I ask.
Bennett’s brow furrows in confusion at the out of place question, but he nods.
“There was this girl back in Montana who spiked his drink and then brought him back home so they woke up together, even though nothing happened between them. She pretended to be pregnant and was trying to force Bo into marrying her.” It’s not exactly the same scenario, but it’s close enough that I know Bennett will understand why I’m bringing it up. “It almost ripped him apart. I get why it’s hard for you, especially with the baby.” I place a hand over my stomach, rubbing absently. “That sort of thing leaves scars.”
I don’t plan to leave any new scars.
Bennett’s eyes go wide as he reaches out and places a shaky hand over my own, his thumb brushing across my stomach.
“I want to try again,” he says pleadingly. “The proposal, us, everything. I’ve kept everyone at arm’s length for so long, even my family, but you… you’re right for me, Magnolia. I know it.”
My heart aches at the thought because I know Bennett is right for me too. Something inside me just clicks into the right place when I’m beside him.
“I want that too,” I whisper, looking up at the face I’ve come to adore so much.
“I spent last night working on a better proposal,” he says with a shaky grin. “If you’re willing to hear it.”
I curl my fingers in the collar of his shirt and tug, shutting him up with a firm, insistent kiss. He goes still for a second, shocked, then yanks me closer anddevoursme. He kisses me like he’s starved for it, holding me close with shaking arms. We don’t part until our lungs scream for air, and we don’t take a single step away from each other when we do.
“Give it your best shot,” I say teasingly, knowing I’ll say yes no matter what.
He draws back just enough to look me in the eyes, callused hands cupping my face delicately. “I’ve fucked up enough times, and I won’t forgive myself if I don’t do this right. I don’t want to go through life without you. I want to wake up every morning next to you, I want to do the dishes and change diapers and tell you you’re pretty every day. I want to love you every day, Magnolia.”
That single word steals my breath from my lungs, and I clench my fists in his shirt to stop myself from passing out from sheer happiness.
“Say it right,” I demand, choked with emotion.
He laughs indulgently, bending down for another kiss, and whispers the words right against my lips. “I love you, sweet Magnolia.”
“I love you too. Fuck, Bennett, you idiot, I love you.”
He steps back, slow like he doesn’t want a single inch of distance between us, but there’s a determined set to his brows. One hand leaves my waist to fumble in his pocket, and the world tilts on its axis yet again as he drops to one knee in front of me. I don’t take my hands off his shoulders,can’t, even as he pries open a little velvet box.
The ring is breathtaking, glittering brightly in the morning sun.
“It was my grandmother’s,” he says. “Third time’s the charm, right?”
I nod, already shaking and overwhelmed, and he hasn’t even gotten the words out.
“My sweet, perfect Magnolia,” he breathes, “will you marry me?”
I barely even let him get the words out before I collapse against him, covering his gorgeous face with frantic kisses.
