The Summer of Sunshine and Margot(110)

“Sunshine, what happened while I was gone is my fault. I’d had too much to drink and I gave in when I shouldn’t have. I knew better and I did it anyway.”

He shrugged. “I think we both know I have an, uh, admiration for you, but that’s my problem, not yours. I apologize for disrespecting you and your position in our household. This is a place where you should feel safe. I’m deeply sorry.”

“It’s my fault, too,” she told him. “Obviously. I started it and I wanted to do it just as much.”

His gaze was steady, so she forced herself to keep looking at him when what she really wanted to do was curl up and scream into a pillow. Heat burned on her cheeks, but she ignored it.

“In the moment,” he corrected, his voice gentle. “You’ve made your wishes very clear.” He gave her a slight smile. “You’re not that girl.”

She dropped her gaze to her clenched fingers. “Apparently I am.”

“No, you’re not. As your employer and your friend, I was dead wrong. Again, I apologize. I hope you can see past what I did to the person I strive to be.”

“You don’t have to keep apologizing. I know you feel bad. I do, too. Everything is different now. I don’t know how to go back. I don’t know what you want and if we can’t go back, then is there any point in going forward?” She looked at him. “I don’t know how to fix this.”

“I don’t, either, but I have a couple of ideas, although I’m not exactly sure how to say this.”

He hesitated. In that second, she realized he was going to fire her. Nicely, of course, with a good severance. He was going to tell her that they’d crossed a line and that while she’d been great, it was over and she should move on.

Her chest tightened and she couldn’t breathe, couldn’t speak. No. No! She loved him, loved Connor. She didn’t want to go. They were great together. Why couldn’t he see that?

“I’m in love with you.”

She heard the words but didn’t understand them. At least not at first. “I’m sorry, what did you just say?”

He raised a shoulder. “I’m in love with you. I love how you are with my son. I love that you went back to college and you’re making it work. You’re honorable and funny and you have the biggest heart of anyone I’ve ever known. So there we are. And I know it’s complicated. Believe me, I’ve thought of little else. Do you quit and then we date? Do I fire you and then we date? I know you can’t work for me while we date, so that’s a problem, but Sunshine, I love you and I don’t want to lose you, so just tell me what you want and that’s what we’ll do.”

He looked hopeful and nervous, as he spoke. “Oh, and if it’s too soon, then I’m just suggesting but if it’s not, will you marry me?”

He was in love with her? As in he loved her? Wait! He wanted to marry her?

Her mind went blank, then slowly started filling in the pieces. He had told her why he loved her and he’d never once mentioned how she looked.

She stood up. He did the same. They stared at each other, then she ran to him and wrapped her arms around him. He drew her close and pressed his mouth to hers.

Their kiss, their first kiss, was sweet and tender, filled with love and promise and everything she could want. She tilted her head and parted her lips. He deepened the kiss, igniting passion in every part of her.

She leaned into him, wanting to feel his body against hers. He was as strong as she had imagined and she fit him perfectly. This, she thought happily, was where she belonged.

“I love you, too,” she said, easing back enough to look into his eyes. “That’s what made everything so awful. I didn’t want to leave, but it was all so different and I was scared you didn’t see me as more than a convenience.”

He chuckled. “You’re many things, Sunshine, but easy isn’t one of them.”

“Easy isn’t the same as convenient.”

“Yes, but they’re close enough. So what do we do? Tell me what makes you happy and I’ll do everything in my power to make that happen.”

“Is the reason you think I can’t stay here and still be Connor’s nanny while seeing you is because I’ll feel used?”

“Yes.”

She smiled. “Of course it is.”

She stared into his eyes and thought about the wonder of a man who had been through what he had with Iris and yet was still open and willing to get married again. She thought about how he respected what she wanted and was willing to do whatever it took to make her feel whole. Every day he’d shown her what a great guy he was. He loved her and he wanted to give her the world. She was in love with him and could easily imagine spending the rest of her life with him. What, exactly, was she waiting for?

“Marry me,” she said, resting her hands on his chest. “Marry me, Declan. Let me help with Connor, have babies with me, grow old with me.”

He whooped and grabbed her around the waist, lifting her into the air. As she eased back to the floor, she leaned into him and kissed him.

He kissed her back, then laughed. “Looks like we’re getting married. I should probably warn you I promised Connor a vacation this summer, and he wants to get a dog.”

“Sounds good to me.”

“You really want to have kids? Because I think that would be great.”