Chapter 10
ROSE
My cellphone rings. I answer without looking at the screen, thinking maybe it’s Lex. Silly idea—we didn’t even exchange numbers. But my desperation to see him blots my thoughts for a second.
It’s Roger Kent, the property developer. “You’ve made your point.”
“Excuse me?”
“Please, do me the courtesy of not playing dumb. Your lawyer just called. I’ve got no idea how you afforded him, but I understand, okay? Please tell him to back off. You’ll never hear from me again.”
What the hell is he talking about?
I take a moment, my mind whirring.
Lex.
It had to be.
I make my voice firm, like I’ve got a full grasp of the situation. “If I ever see you again, I’ll throw the full weight of the law at you, Mr Kent.”
“I—”
He hesitates.
“Apologize?” I snap.
He clears his throat. “Yes, yes, I apologize.”
“Good. Now, leave me to honor my mom’s memory in peace.”
I hang up, a smile touching my lips for a moment. This was Lex’s final parting gift. But I’d give anything in the world to have him with me again. To feel his warm arms around me. To feel like I mattered more than anything in the world.
A rattling sound jolts me from my thoughts.
I turn, heart skipping into my throat.
Lex has just jumped over the chain-link fence. He’s wearing stylish suit pants with a tucked-in shirt, the top button undone to show his muscular chest and tattoos. His hair is wet, like he’s showered recently. He’s got a warm smile on his face and …
A jewelry box in his hand.
“I thought you were gone,” I whisper as a sob attempts to choke me.
“I couldn’t leave you,” he says huskily. “I tried. But I couldn’t ignore what we have.” He tenderly strokes his hand over my face. “So I came back. I confronted the man who sends killers after women and children. I ended him, Rose. I ended him for you—for us … so I could do this.”
When he falls to one knee, my world tips upside down.
Love used to be a distant dream, but it’s an indisputable reality now. It shivers through me in waves like a soulful orgasm. I blink as tears roll hotly down my cheeks.
He strokes his hand over mine.
When he speaks, he’s choked up.
“I lost my parents when I was a boy. Joined the Bratva and made a name for myself. I thought that was all I’d ever be, Rose, a man with his head down. A loner with blood on his hands. I’ve still got blood on my hands. But with you … I think I can be something more, someone more. I love you.”
“I love you too,” I whisper, forcing the words past choked noises of emotion.
“I know it’s fast. I know people who don’t understand will call us crazy. But you’re mine, Rose. Mine and mine alone.”
Letting go of my hand, he opens the ring box, shows me a full glistening diamond set within a platinum band.
“Rose Hart, will you marry me?”
“Yes!” I cry, no hesitation, jumping into this sparkling new future with both feet.
He slides the ring onto my finger, stands, then pulls me in for our most passionate kiss yet.