Page 55 of Hiding Rose
I grinned. “I love you, and I know it’s time to prove I trust you.”
He laughed and kissed my lips. “We just made love on the deck of a yacht at seven-thirty in the morning in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. I think you trust me.”
“I trust you with my body, yes,” I answered, “but I’m still learning to trust you with my heart.”
“But you love me?” he asked, his voice confused and his eyes clouded.
I nodded. “It’s complicated.”
He barked with laughter. “It’s not complicated, not at all. I know you’re coming from a different place, though. I’ll give you time to heal and to learn to trust with your heart again. In the meantime, I’m going to be with you every step of the way.”
“What about work?” I asked him.
He pointed toward the front of the boat. “There’s the island. We’ll be docked in ten minutes. Gideon has me out for the day already. He didn’t want you going alone to your appointment off the resort. He wanted me to drive you, even if you didn’t ask me to go in with you. I guess Kate isn’t feeling well and he wouldn’t want to send the two of you alone anyway.”
“What’s wrong with Kate?” I asked, sitting up straight. “Is it her heart.”
He gave me the palms up. “He didn’t say, but you know Gideon is on top of whatever it is. We’ll check in with him when we get back to the hotel. Just relax.”
I lowered myself back to the chair. “What about this afternoon during the therapy appointment? It’s during your prep time.”
He kissed my forehead and whispered. “Trust me, okay. I’ve got this.”
I nodded and his lips bobbed up and down with the motion of my head. “Promise me if you ever feel like I’m asking too much of you, you’ll tell me. I don’t want to be a burden to you.”
He held my chin, his eyes an intense blue as he stared me down. “I’ve told you before and this is the last time I will say this; you are not a burden to me or anyone. I will never get tired of helping you and you’ll never ask too much of me. My dream is one day you’ll ask me to be your everything in this world. I’m going to be here to do just that.”
Staring into the depths of his deep blue eyes I watched my future unfold. The good times, the bad times, our joys and our sorrows were all there for the taking. Our lives together could be everything I ever dreamed about once I learned to trust myself. I sucked in a breath as an electric shock went through me.
He sat up and grasped my shoulders, steadying me. “Spasm?” he asked. “Are you okay?” He wiped a tear as it fell from my eye at the pure surge of emotion ripping through me.
“I…I…we’re soulmates,” I stuttered, the word bursting forth in capital letters from behind my eyes. “I always thought it only happened to the Kate and Gideons of the world, but I saw my future in your eyes. It’s not about learning to trust you. It’s about learning to trust myself, and not second guessing my judgement anymore.” I put my hand to my mouth, the slight tremor giving away how overcome with emotion I was. “I don’t want to live like this anymore. I want to stop punishing myself for doing something every normal person does, which is date and get to know people. I want him out of my life. I want my life back and I want to be with the person I’m meant to be with.” My hand moved to my chest and his hand covered it, a smile on his face.
“Beautiful, you have no idea how my heart exploded to hear you say those words. I’ve known you were my soulmate since the first day you came to the resort and I brought you soup and bread. Your face was lined with bruises and pain, but you took my breath away. You can bet I will protect you until we get him out of your life, and we will get him, but then you’re mine, forever.”
