Page 72 of Abstract Passion

“I’ve never loved anyone the way I love you, Shelly. It scares me while my heart begs for more. Before you, I avoided things that scared me. With you, though… I’ll gladly walk through hell. Because I know you’ll be on the other side, waiting with arms wide open.”

Tears sting the backs of my eyes. Emotion clogs my throat as I try to swallow the excess saliva flooding my mouth. The urge to wrap Devlyn in my arms and hug the breath from his lungs surges in my veins.

What did I do to deserve this man?

Why did I question his reasons?

Things between us have never been simple. From the start, we toed the line. Devlyn fought the undeniable love he had for me. At that point, it may not have beenlove. Perhaps, extreme like. As for me, I only sheltered my feelings because he was reluctant. Without a doubt, I knew he felt something stronger than friendship between us.

Friends.

God… Devlyn made that word my least favorite. I hated it more thanmoist. Only because I knew, deep in my bones, he wanted more than friendship. His resistance to see us beyond more than friends didn’t hurt. He had been broken. Thrown away. Used until no longer necessary. Had that happened to anyone else, their trust and willingness to love would be shattered too. Hence why I didn’t blame him.

But all that changed.

The night he gave in to what he felt for me, the night he kissed me, everything changed.

At first, not for the better.

We suffered on our own for several days. And when I finally found a way to breathe again, I opted to let go. To move on. To say goodbye.

That single text led us to where we are today. Lovers. Parents. Connected in a way I never thought possible with another person.

So why did I hesitate? Why did I question the path that led us to this moment?

Devlyn proposed and I doubted his reasons for asking. It was foolish and absurd. I love him, plain and simple. I love Devlyn more than I have loved another person.

“Ask me again,” I whisper.

He scoots the table away from the couch, then drops down to one knee. One hand digs in his pocket while the other takes my left hand. Tears burn the backs of my eyes once more. Clasped tightly between Devlyn’s thumb and forefinger is a ring with more diamonds than my eyes can count with one glance. At the heart of the ring… an oval-shaped dark-blue stone with the occasional sparkle.

His eyes lock with mine and I stop breathing. His thumb draws small circles over my ring finger as he worries his lips between his teeth.

“Shelly Nicole Reed,” he says just above a whisper. “I have loved you longer than I was willing to admit. Maybe from the first moment I saw you more than two years ago.” A small smile tips up the corners of his mouth. “But there’s no use in denying it another minute. Shelly, you make me whole. Make life worth living. Your light and warmth and kind heart are what I was missing. Your love and passion and gaiety.You.” He takes a deep breath and swallows. “Before you, I merely existed. With you, I see every color. Every facet. Every angle. Light and beauty and brilliance. With you, because of you, I know love. Real love. True love.” His thumb trails my ring finger from knuckle to tip. “Will you marry me, Shelly?”

Tears spill down my cheeks in parallel lines. Though Devlyn is a blur, I refuse to wipe the tears away. I swallow past the thick ball of emotion in my throat and slowly nod.

“Yes,” I croak out. Swallowing again, I repeat myself with more gusto. “Yes, Devlyn.” My lips roll between my teeth. “I will marry you.”

The biggest smile brightens his face. I get lost in the sight as he slides the ring into place on my finger. As he lifts my hand to his lips and kisses my ring finger. As he wiggles his way between my legs on both knees, frames my face in his hands, and kisses me senseless.

In a matter of seconds, our clothes are peeled away and we are connected in every way possible. Mentally, emotionally and physically. We make love on the couch, in the middle of the day, without a worry in the world.

It is simply him and me and a love to rival all others.

EPILOGUE

DEVLYN

June 30th—the following year

If someone toldme two years ago I would fall in love, welcome the most precious little girl into the world, and marry my best friend, I’d have laughed in their face. Because two years ago, love felt like an impossibility.

Until Shelly.

The love of my life. My fiancée. The woman who I get to call wife in… I look down at my watch. In thirteen minutes, Shelly will be my wife.

God, just thinking the word seems surreal.

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