The Once and Future Father
Page 20
He caught her hand, stopping her before she could get wound up. “Can I finish?”
She grinned, inclining her head. “Okay.”
“I realized at that moment that I didn’t want to live in a world that didn’t have you in it.” He saw the smile fade from her lips as she stared at him incredulously. Was he making a terrible mess of it? he wondered as he pushed on. “That I couldn’t live in it. And I realized that if you weren’t around, there’d be no reason for me to go on.” He paused, fumbling. “Help me out here.”
And then the smile returned as she shook her head. “Nope. You’re doing fine on your own.”
With one hand, he was at a disadvantage. All he could do was hold hers with it. “That’s just it, I’m not. I haven’t been for a long time.” He thought that over. “Maybe never. I don’t want to be alone anymore. Loving you has changed everything.”
“Loving me?” she echoed, stunned. She’d been hoping for some word of affection. To have him utter the final pronouncement was far beyond what she thought she would ever hear. “You love me?”
“I love you.”
Speechless, she forced each word out individually. “When did this happen?”
“I’m not sure. It kind of snuck in early on when I wasn’t looking. But I’m looking now and I want to go on looking at you—and Elena—for the rest of my life. Marry me, Lucy. Elena needs a father—and I need you. More than anything else in the world, I need you.” What she had said was right, he realized. He knew it now, in his soul, a soul he only had because of her. “I don’t have to turn into my father. I haven’t up to now.”
“And you won’t.” She cupped her hand to his cheek, so full of love she didn’t know how it didn’t just come pouring out of her. “There’s a kind, caring man inside there behind those bars you put up. He just needs a little coaxing to come out.”
He ran his hand along her shoulder, his eyes teasing hers. “You up to coaxing?”
“I think so.” Her mouth curved mischievously. “You know, I’m not wearing anything under this. I just threw these on so I could go with you in the ambulance.”
His eyes indicated the curtain that hung from the ceiling and ran along the perimeter of his bed. “Why don’t you pull that closed?” he suggested.
She did as he asked, then came back to him. He took her hand, drawing her to him.
She hesitated, concerned about his condition. “What about your shoulder?”
Dylan feathered his fingers through her hair, cupping her cheek. Silently pledging his life and his soul to her with his eyes.
“Right now, my shoulder is the furthest thing from my mind.”
And as he kissed her, she believed him.
ISBN: 978-1-4268-6839-9
THE ONCE AND FUTURE FATHER
Copyright © 2000 by Marie Rydzynski-Ferrarella
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