Page 44 of Darla's Christmas Knight
“I’m not proposing tonight, Darla.”
“Good.” Then his odd tone hit home. She shot him a side-eye. “But?”
“But diamondsareinvolved,” he added, opening a compartment on the side panel closest to him. Her eyes widened as he extracted a flat, black rectangle box adorned with an elaborate gold bow.
She bolted upright. “Robert?” she squawked, recognizing the logo of the local jeweler.
He didn’t offer it to her, just pulled the bow loose and lifted the lid.
“Oh.” She placed a hand to her mouth, staring in utter fascination at the glittering object nestling against the black velvet.
Diamondswereinvolved.
It was a pendant, shaped like a heartbeat displayed on an EKG monitor, covered in the glittering stones. “It’s beautiful,” she breathed, staring at it in wonder.
There was a card wedged in the lid. That was what she reached for first, but she withdrew her hand at the last minute. “You’re not going to go allPretty Womanon me, are you?”
Bobby frowned. “I’m sorry?”
“Right. You’re not a rom com fan. But hello, we’re talkingPretty Womanhere.”
He merely blinked.
She huffed. “The movie?Pretty Woman? Richard Gere. Julia Roberts. It’s a classic.”
“I’ve heard of it.”
She rolled her eyes at his dry tone. “In the movie Edward, that’s Richard Gere’s character, presents Vivian, that’s Julia Robert’s character, with a jewelry box. When she reaches for the diamonds, he snaps the lid closed, almost catching her fingers.Ugh. You have to see it to appreciate the moment.”
“No lid snapping. Promise,” he added with a wink.
She snatched the card (a snowscape with trees and a small cabin and the number fifteen) and scanned the short sentence.
You’re my heartbeat.
“You don’t play fair, Robert,” she whispered, blinking rapidly,cupping his face. His scent enveloped her in a haze of soap and citrus and spice.
“There’s a lot at stake here, Darla,” he returned, his expression serious.
“Will you put it on me?”
“Of course.” He lifted the delicate chain, and she twisted, giving him access to her neck. His fingers brushed her skin as he threaded the cool gold beneath her hair and hooked the catch. He adjusted the chain, and it settled against her skin just above her neckline. She turned to her reflection in the window. “It’s beautiful,” she said.
“Not as beautiful as you,” he replied, He lifted his head, and their gazes met and held in the window. “I love you, Darla Joyce Miller.” He took hold of her hand and placed the back of it against his chest. She felt the hard thump of his life-giving organ through the fine cotton of his shirt. “With every beat of my heart. And I promise to spend the rest of my days proving to you how deep and wide and endless that love is.”
14
Darla swallowed hard, observing Bobby’s reflection.
His eyes gleamed, brimming with love. And commitment. Promising her forever.
This man had once shattered her heart, and she had vowed to never be foolish and place herself in a position where she could experience that all-encompassing pain again. Yet shehadopened that door,with the same man, despite everything in her screaming it was a reckless move.
But maybe deep, deep down she had known he would never betray her again.
She hadchosento trust him.
And he had come through for her.
