Page 80 of Prudence
Paloma’s tour with Rosanna Dove had come to an end, which meant she’d returned to Ireland, and Gigi and Pablo were spending half the week at their mother’s house again. It freed Derek up to spend more time with me, but I knew a part of him missed having his kids living with him full-time. Getting to know Paloma had been an intimidating prospect, especially since she was so confident and worldly. She’d been a little frosty at first but soon warmed up to me, and now we had what could be considered a tentative friendship, though I suspected we’d never be bosom buddies.
It was early spring when Derek was driving us home from lunch with our friends, all of whom had expressed their delight at our relationship. It had been almost a year since Deirdre and I had moved from London, and I couldn’t believe how much our lives had changed over that period. I’d settled into my lecturer role, but admittedly, it had been a learning curve at first as I got used to speaking in front of rooms full of people. Once I began relying on my expertise and my vast pool of knowledge in the field, I’d started to take it in my stride.
“Did Rhys show you the photos of baby Nadine? I can’t believe how much she’s grown over the last few months,” I said as I stared out the window on the drive home.
Derek and I weren’t yet living together, and it was getting to be a bit of a struggle. I missed him on the nights we slept apart, and I was desperate for us to move in together. The problem was, neither of our places were big enough to house both us and our kids, so we’d been shuffling between his apartment and my house. It had started to feel like a chore, but the thought of renting a larger place was daunting, and purchasing a house together, even though we could certainly afford to, seemed like a big step that would take a lot of discussion.
“Yes, I saw the photos. She’s adorable,” Derek replied with a fond expression before turning on his indicator and parking up on the side of the road.
I glanced at him in question because we weren’t anywhere close to my house. “What’s going on?”
He turned off the engine and tilted his head to me. “Don’t you recognise where we are?”
Peering out the window, I saw the blooming cherry blossoms because it was that time of year. I used to adore them as a girl when I would walk home from school and find myself admiring the flowers as my mind wandered through daydreams. Then it hit me. I knew exactly where we were, all that was missing was the sudden hailstorm.
“This is where you picked me up that first time,” I said, my chest fluttering at the memory. I’d been in such a state of disbelief at the time that someone like Derek Balfe had even known my name, let alone had offered me a lift home and an escape from the downpour.
“It is,” Derek said, and I cast him a curious glance.
“Why are we here?”
He shrugged. “Just feeling nostalgic. Shall we take a walk?”
“Sure,” I said, unfastening my seatbelt. The weather was nice, and I was in no rush to get home. Also, I’d missed my cherry blossoms. It was nice to see them again, especially since they held such a dear memory.
I stared up, the blue sky vibrant amid the pale petals, and smiled to myself. We’d been walking along in quiet when Derek’s warm palm suddenly captured mine, his thumb brushing at my pulse as he gave a gentle tug, stopping me in my tracks. Looking up into his handsome brown eyes, my breath caught because there was a spark of something, like a secret about to be revealed. He looked confident, completely at ease with himself, and when he started to lower to one knee, I gasped so loud the people living in the nearby houses probably heard me.
“Camille,” Derek began as he slid a velvet ring box from his pocket. He flicked it open, and I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. Was that the same one he’d—
“Will you marry me?” he asked, cutting short my train of thought.
My heart skipped a beat, racing so fast I could hardly think. Despite this, I knew with certainty my answer. Unlike the last time he’d asked me the very same question, I had zero hesitation as I nodded fervently, tears pooling behind my eyes as I managed to blurt an emotional, “Yes.”
Then he rose, a handsome, fiercely possessive smile gracing his features before he slid the ring over my finger. “Derek,” I breathed. “Is this your grandmother’s ring?”
He nodded, pure, unadulterated affection in his eyes when he said, “It’s always been yours.”
Emotion thickened my throat. “I just thought you would’ve given it to Paloma back when—”
“No,” his expression clouded. “That never felt right. This ring was never meant for anyone else. Perhaps some part of me knew one day I’d get another chance to give it to you.”
We stood in front of each other on the quiet, tree-lined street, the gentle spring air drifting past, and I was so overwhelmed I might cry. The thought of Derek keeping his late grandmother’s ring all these years was too much.
“Come here,” he murmured, pulling me close and wrapping one arm around my waist. With his free hand, he lifted our fingers, twisting them to kiss my knuckles as he gazed down at the ring. “I love seeing it on you. I even stole one of your rings a couple weeks ago to have it resized.”
“You’ve been planning this for weeks?” I asked, my belly all aflutter, though I didn’t know why I was surprised. Derek had always put a lot of advance planning and thought into the things he did.
“Yes, but I’ve been thinking about it for a lot longer,” he confessed, and my belly flutters multiplied.
“How long?” I whispered.
A faint look of chagrin passed over him. “Since London. When you told me you still loved me, I knew I was going to ask again. I just had to wait until the right moment.”
“That’s so …” I trailed off, not knowing what to say.
“So?”
“Some part of me feels like I should’ve been the one to ask you. It doesn’t feel fair that you had to take the chance after the last time.”
