Page 65 of Atlas
I press my gas pedal to the floor and speed down the road, praying that she’s just napping.
I don’t even parkmy Tahoe in the garage, I leave it running out front as I race through the doors and to the elevator. I would take the stairs, but if she’s in the elevator…
I get in and breathe a sigh of relief when it’s empty. I hit her floor and pace as the elevator takes its sweet fucking time reaching my destination. That’s it, we are moving. A house, something with no fucking elevators that I have to watch crawlup to our floor when I need to be therenow.The doors don’t even open fully as I squeeze myself out. I try the door, it’s locked. I unlock it and I feel my knees go weak and buckle under me.
Ren is laying on the couch in my hoodie, snoring away with Bruno curled up by her butt. I completely collapse to my knees when I reach her. Her nose is red and sounds stuffy. I touch her head with my hand, she’s a little warm.
A cold. She just has a cold. Looking around, I find her phone tucked into the couch cushions. I feel like crying. She’s okay.
“Atlas?” Her scratchy, sleepy voice may as well be angels singing in my ears. I look at her reddened eyes and smile softly.
“Hi baby,” I whisper and kiss her head. She shoves me back.
“I’m sick, don’t touch me.” She goes to cover her face as she sits up but stops when she looks me over. I’m in dark wash jeans, a white button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up and a deep blue vest. “Wow,” she breathes and winces. Her throat must be bothering her. I stand and go to the kitchen, returning a second later with a cold bottle of water.
“Why are you so dressed up?” She asks after taking a long drink. “I thought we were going to pet cows.”
I rub the back of my head. “Yeah, well, I thought maybe a nice dinner beforehand or something.” I mutter, feeling the heat rise to my cheeks. I would have to text Fox and Janie and make sure they didn’t say anything.
“Let me go change and we can watch a movie, okay?” She smiles softly and I grab my cell out of my pocket, needing to also see if the front desk had towed my car. There is a small thud as something else comes out of my pocket with the phone. My eyes widen as I watch Ren grab the small box off the floor for me.
“Here–wait… what is this?”
Shit! This isn’t right. I look at her and my shoulders slump over.
“I’m sorry Princess,” I say lowly as I grab the box and kneel in front of the couch again. “I had the whole night planned, lights, flowers, music, I even memorized a speech… okay partially memorized. I wanted everything to be perfect for you. I wanted you to have the super special grand gesture engagement that you wanted with the ring you deserve.”
Ren stares at me quietly for a moment, her eyes calculating.
“You were going to propose again?” She asks, surreptitiously. I nod, slowly “Because I deserve a grand gesture?” I nod again, staring into the brown depths of her eyes
“Yeah, you do,” I breathe out. Knowing that I would do anything for this woman.Anything.
“And what? You marrying me to make sure I had what I needed to stay alive wasn’t a grand gesture?” I furrow my brow and look at her.
“What? No! That wedding wasn’t what you deserved!”
“Yeah, I thought that too.” She whispers softly. “I thought for a long time that I deserved the men that used me. That, my size, my illness, meant I should be grateful anyone would pity me enough to go out. But then, you came along. Not just the friendly flirting, but you came and helped me with Andrew, and then without question you protected my name, and when you found out I was losing my health insurance, you selflessly protected me again.” She stops and coughs lightly before taking a drink and continuing. “When I stood in that chapel, in a dress that you got me because the ones they had there were too small, I didn’t feel like I deserved any of it. But not because it wasn’t enough.”
She pauses and I can see her emotions pooling in her eyes, “Atlas. Baby, you are a grand gesture! You’ve given me all that you could without a second thought and I’ll be damned if you try to take my proposal and wedding from me. It may not have been what others would call romantic, But I’m telling you now, ourlove story, exactly the way it’s been, is the greatest love story I’ve ever heard, and I would never want to rewrite any of it.”
I crash my lips into hers, even though she temporarily protests about her cold. Fuck that cold, I’ll gladly get sick. I grip a fistful of her blonde hair as I pull her as close as I can, I need to feel every part of her against me. I need to know that this is real, that she is real and I’m not going to wake up from some amazing dream.
Ren pulls back and I see her eyes go soft and wide. “Y-You’re crying!” She gasps as she wipes the tears off my cheeks.
Pulling her to me, I inhale her scent so deeply it touches my soul. “Lauren,” I whisper her name into her neck. “Thank you.”
“For what?” She asks, pulling me into her tighter.
“For giving me what I didn’t know I deserved too.”
Epilogue
ATLAS
TEN MONTHS LATER
“I’m not kidding!” Ash groans over the speakers of my car bluetooth as I continue the drive.
