Chapter 19 Luka
LUKA
Her forehead rests against mine, her breath brushing across my lips each time she exhales, warm and trembling from the emotions that move through her.
Her tears dampen my shirt where her cheek presses against my chest, and the soft hitch of her breathing sinks into me in a way that makes every part of me tighten with fierce protectiveness.
The world around us drifts out of focus.
The construction site is quiet in the cooling mountain air.
I wrap my arms around her, drawing her in closer, feeling the small shudder that moves through her ribs as she tries to collect herself.
Her hands curl against my chest, her fingers warming through the fabric as if she is holding on to something she never imagined she would have.
Her breath falls unevenly across my skin where her mouth touches the base of my throat.
My heart beats hard enough that I know she feels it.
“I love you, Luka.” The words leave her as if they are being pulled from a place she kept locked away, full of truth and vulnerability. Her lips brush the side of my throat as she speaks, and the sound of her voice slides under my ribs and roots there.
Her arms tighten around me in a way that feels like she is choosing me with her entire body.
I smooth my hand along her back, the soft cotton of her shirt warming beneath my palm, the fabric clinging to her slightly from the dried sweat and sawdust of the long day.
Her body molds into mine, her breath syncing gradually with the pattern of my inhale and release.
Vega circles us once, then settles a few feet away with his head lowered onto his paws as if he understands that something important is beginning here.
The faint breeze carries the scent of pine and cut lumber, blending with the sweetness that clings to Sage’s skin no matter where she stands.
For the first time in a long time, the world feels like it is exactly where it should be.
Her tears soften, her breathing slows, and she lifts her face from my chest, her eyes still glistening.
Her fingers slide up from my shirt to the line of my jaw, her touch trembling and certain all at once.
Her thumb moves across my cheekbone, tracing the faint stubble that has always grown too quickly.
She studies me the way she always does, like she is memorizing the details.
I rest my hand over hers, holding it gently against my face. “Your heart is powerful, Sage,” I murmur, watching the way her breath stirs unevenly as she absorbs the words. “You do not bend. You rise.”
Her lips part, her breath uneven again, but this time the emotion that moves through her feels lighter. Her fingers curl slightly against my jaw, her touch so tender it tightens my throat.
“I didn’t know if I would ever have this,” she whispers. “Any of this.”
“You have it,” I answer, lowering my forehead to hers once more. “All of it.”
Her eyes fall closed for a moment, and a quiet exhale leaves her chest, a soft release of tension and disbelief. When she opens her eyes again, I see something new in them. Acceptance, hope, and trust that no longer need to test every boundary before it steps forward.
This is where I begin.
I slide my hand to her waist, my fingers resting just above the gentle curve that holds our child.
The warmth beneath my palm centers me with a force nothing else ever has.
She inhales softly, her body leaning instinctively toward the touch, and the meaning of this moment sharpens in my chest. Everything turns still and narrows to her.
“I want to give you something,” I tell her quietly.
She lifts her head slightly, searching my face with curiosity. Her fingers brush the collar of my shirt, as if she can sense there is more I am holding back.
The ring box presses lightly against my hip through the denim of my jeans. I have carried it all day, waiting for the right moment and for everything around us to fall into place. This is that moment.
I slip my hand into the pocket. The velvet box fits perfectly into my palm, cool, small, and impossibly important.
My pulse climbs as I draw it out, not because of nerves, but because I understand the magnitude of what I am placing in her hands and what I am asking her to share with me for the rest of our lives.
Her eyes widen as the black box absorbs the last streaks of sunlight. She covers her mouth with her fingers, emotion sweeping across her face in a wave so unguarded it pierces through me.
“Luka,” she breathes, her voice carrying wonder and disbelief.
I tighten my grip on the box, taking in the sight of her, the way her lashes glisten from the tears she has not yet wiped away, the way her lips tremble with a softness that feels like a gift.
I move slowly, lowering to one knee on the concrete slab that will one day become her café’s foundation again.
The contact of my knee against the ground echoes through my body with a certainty that calms my breath.
Sage presses her hand to her chest as if she can hold her heart in place.
Vega lifts his head, watching us intently as if he understands that this moment belongs to the three of us.
The breeze moves her hair across her cheek. She tucks it behind her ear with a trembling hand, her eyes locked on mine with a depth of emotion that makes everything else fade away.
I open the ring box.
The flawless round diamond reflects the warm light, framed by filigree that curves around the band in delicate, vintage patterns.
Tiny diamonds nestle along the sides, not ostentatious, but crafted with care, each detail chosen because it reminded me of her.
Grace woven into strength. Intricacy balanced with simplicity.
Beauty shaped by intention rather than extravagance.
Her breath breaks in her throat, her fingers quivering near her lips as she stares at the ring as if she is afraid to blink and lose it.
“Sage.” My voice comes low from the emotion tightening every word.
“When Vega and I found you on the sidewalk that first morning, I did not understand that my life had already begun to change. I thought you were trouble I could set aside once I learned your name and your story. Instead, you became the beginning of a life I never believed I could have.”
Tears gather in her eyes again, spilling over as she lowers her hand from her mouth and presses it to her heart.
“You challenged me,” I continue, rising slightly so she can see my face clearly.
“Not with shouting or accusations, but with the way you look at the world, and the way you hold on to hope even when everything around you breaks. You pulled me toward a future I did not think existed for a man like me.”
Her chin trembles. Her eyes shine with so much feeling that it loosens a truth buried deep inside me.
“You have given me a home in ways no building ever could,” I tell her, my thumb brushing the edge of the ring box. “You gave me a chance to protect something I love instead of something I fear losing. You gave me a child, and you gave me yourself.”
Sage’s knees buckle slightly, and I reach out with my free hand, sliding my palm along her hip to support her. She leans into the touch instinctively, her breath faltering in a way that feels like a vow made without words.
“I want to build a life with you,” I murmur. “A life that belongs to us and no one else. A life where our child grows knowing their mother is the bravest woman I have ever met.”
Her tears fall freely now, tracing warm paths down her cheeks. Her lips shake as she tries to speak, but her voice escapes her, carried away by emotion.
I lift the ring, letting the band shine in the fading sunlight. “Sage Bellamy,” I ask, my voice thickening with the depth of what I feel for her, “will you marry me?”
Her breath leaves her in a soft rush, almost a sound of disbelief breaking open inside her in the most profound way.
She presses both hands to her face, her shoulders lifting with a shaky inhale.
Tears slide through her fingers. She lowers her hands slowly, revealing blue eyes so full of emotion that my breath stumbles in response.
“Yes,” she whispers, then shakes her head quickly as if the word is too small. “Yes, Luka. Of course, yes.”
Relief breaks through the tension in my chest, expanding through my ribs with a force that nearly knocks the breath from my lungs. I rise from my knee just enough so I can take her left hand in mine.
Her fingers flutter when they meet mine. I lift the ring from its velvet cradle, the metal cool between my fingers. The filigree along the band glints softly, and the flawless diamond reflects the beams framing her future café, the mountains beyond, and Sage herself.
I slide the ring onto her finger carefully, watching as it settles perfectly into place. Her other hand rises to cover her mouth again, and a small sound leaves her, half laugh, half sob. She lifts her ring hand toward the light, admiring the way the stone reflects the last rays of the sun.
“It’s beautiful,” she whispers, her voice thin with awe.
“I spent weeks trying to capture even a fraction of your beauty in this ring, and it still isn’t enough,” I confess as I rise.
Her eyes meet mine, and in the next breath, she is in my arms. She steps forward with so much force that the impact moves through both of us, her hands sliding around my neck, her face pressing into the side of my jaw.
Her tears dampen my skin as she clings to me, her body molding against mine as if this is the only place she feels safe enough to unravel.
I wind one arm around her waist and lift her slightly off the ground.
Her legs slide beneath her, brushing against mine as she buries herself deeper into the embrace.
My other hand cups the back of her head, my fingers threading through the soft strands of hair that smell faintly of vanilla and wind.
She draws in a long breath, then another, until her breathing finds a rhythm against my chest. The warmth of her body so close to mine reminds me of everything I once thought I could never have. A home. A family. A future.
“I love you,” she murmurs against my skin, the words brushing my jaw with every syllable. “I love you so much.”
I press my cheek to her temple, inhaling her scent. “You have given me more than you know.”
She leans back slightly, her hands smoothing along my shoulders and sliding down my arms until her fingers find mine.
She keeps her ring hand in front of her face, admiring it again, her expression full of wonder.
Her lips part slightly as she turns her hand, watching the diamond glimmer in the soft evening glow.
“I can’t believe this is happening,” she murmurs, her voice warm and breathless. “I never thought I would stand in this place again, much less… this.”
Her voice trails off as she gestures to the ring with a small shake of her hand, like she still thinks the moment might disappear if she touches it too long.
I guide her hand down gently, closing her fingers around mine. “You deserve a life filled with moments like this.”
She leans into me, her breath warming the space between us as the mountains fade into evening. I hold her hand a little tighter, knowing this is only the beginning of the life we are building together.