Over the Edge (Bridge #3)(78)

“We’ve already broken all the rules, Will. Trying to follow them at this point for the sake of tradition feels a bit backward, don’t you think?”

“Yeah,” he said with a small nod, his gaze drifting away from me.

Guilt rushed in over my earlier panic. Maybe I’d misread him completely and I’d totally ruined a moment. “I’m sorry.”

“You have nothing to be sorry for. I completely agree with you. I just was hoping I wasn’t crushing your hopes and dreams by totally botching a potential proposal. I figure this is every girl’s dream, right? Really good-looking rich guy offering jewels and a big white wedding.”

His humor filled me with relief. “Were you prepared if I’d said yes?”

His smile softened and his eyes glimmered with emotion. “I was. I’m always going to be ready to give you whatever you need, whatever you want.”

My heart stopped and my smile faded. “Will…”

He reached into his pocket and withdrew a thick white ribbon. It was tied around a delicate diamond ring. He untied the bow and held the ring between his fingers.

“It’s my mom’s. Used to be my grandmother’s before my dad proposed. I want you to have it. And if you change your mind, you tell me, and we’ll put a band next to it. We’ll say all the right words in front of God and our families and all the New York City elite. In the meantime, this just means I love you, and I plan on loving you for the rest of my life.”

My lips parted, and tears formed at the corners of my eyes.

“What do you say, Olivia? Do you solemnly swear to be mine…forever?”

I nodded, breathless and overwhelmed by love—the love I had for him, the love he radiated back to me. “I do.”

He slipped the ring onto my finger and kissed me tenderly.

“I have one more surprise for you.”

I smiled against his lips. “You are full of them lately. I can’t wait.”

“This is the best one.”

He turned his head and narrowed his eyes, like he was looking for something in the distance. I followed his gaze, searching for the surprise that already had my heart beating fast.

Then, on the walking path, illuminated with light, I saw him.

But it couldn’t be him. In a split second, I convinced myself it was his French doppelg?nger. Until I glanced back at Will, who was smiling down at me.

“You didn’t think I was going to let you leave Paris with a broken heart, did you?”

“Will.” I brought my hand to my mouth. My whole body trembled with emotion.

Ian’s figure grew larger as he approached. I could see his face clearly, removing all doubt that it was truly him.

He was smiling, hands in his jean pockets, wearing a gray-brown sweater that did little to obscure the muscular chest beneath it. I pushed off the bench and went to him. Slowly at first. Then I couldn’t wait. I didn’t think about whether he still loved me or any of the things I’d wanted to say to him since he’d left. I just ran to him and threw myself into his arms.

He lifted me, and I wrapped my legs around his waist. I clung to him, and he held me so tight I could scarcely breathe. We stayed that way for what seemed like forever. If it had been forever, I would have happily accepted an endless fate in his arms after our agonizing separation.

“I can’t believe you’re here,” I whispered, nuzzling his neck. His scent filled me and brought me back to memories I had tried so hard to let go of. My chest was tight, but I couldn’t find the tears. I’d cried too many. I was too full of happiness right now to drown them with a drop of sadness.

When I pulled back, my breath caught. Every instinct told me to kiss him. I ached to feel his lips on me, to communicate without words that I still loved him desperately.

“Kiss me,” I whispered.

His gaze was dark, storming with emotion and drifting down to my mouth. But he didn’t kiss me. Instead, he loosened his grasp so I slid down the front of his body. My feet found the ground, but his arms around me held my weight.

My mouth was dry and my throat was tight as I considered the worst. What if he didn’t love me anymore? What if too much time had passed? He’d broken my heart, but I knew he’d been hurting too. Maybe it was too much to bear.

Didn’t matter. I had to tell him because I might not get another chance.

“Ian, I love you…so much.” My eyes brimmed with tears. “No matter what, I want you to know that. I wanted to tell you so many times—”

He hushed me and brought his hands to my face, keeping us connected, like we were tied together by some invisible force.

“I’ve never stopped loving you, Liv, and I’m never going to stop.” He swallowed, and his lips parted gently. “I know I’ve put you through hell. This has been the worst kind of agony for me. I only hope that one day you can forgive me.”

My heart twisted painfully in my chest. I squeezed my eyes closed, and a single tear flowed down my cheek and into his hand. Brushing it away, he brought his lips to mine with a kiss so soft and tender, I could only sigh into it.

“Take me back,” he whispered.

I opened my eyes, and in an instant, the weeks of missing him dissipated. The heartache was overrun with a love so powerful, it took my breath away. What was left was only us, here, together again. The fault line in my heart healed, because I knew now what I’d known all along. Ian belonged there beside Will, in my heart, in my future.