Tara’s face droops a little. “Nate…I don’t want you to do that for me. I don’t want to take this away from you.”
I reach out to cup her cheek.
“I’m not giving anything up. I’m leaving one adventure behind and starting a new one. Because the thing is, working the cruise liners would mean being away from you. I don’t want that anymore, not even for a day. Call me sappy, but my woman is much more important to me than my career.”
“I just…I want you to have both.”
“What if I told you that my other reason for quitting is so that I can see the world with you?” I say, taking her hand in mine and kissing it. “I know that having kids is going to make traveling more of a challenge but that doesn’t mean I don’t want to do it. I want our kids to see amazing things, too. And we have time before the baby comes. I’ve drawn up some ideas for places we can go, things we can do and see, just like you always wanted.”
Tara’s eyes are misty. “Those are my dreams, not yours…”
“I told you I wanted to travel too. And now, I can. Now I have someone to share this amazing experience with. This is a good thing, baby. This will make me so happy. I don’t have any regrets at all. If I wanted to stay in my job, I would, but I don’t. This is my chance to start afresh and I want to do that with you.”
Tara’s face softens. “Are you sure?”
“I’m positive. This is all I’ve ever wanted in the world,” I tell her. “This…and one more thing,” I add.
I know it’s time to ask the question. My heart is hammering hard like it’s ready to jump out of my chest and land right in her hands. And I can’t wait to see the look on her face when I get down on one knee.
I stand from the table and watch her eyes widen in shock. She watches me sink to my knee and immediately registers what’s going on. She covers her mouth in shock, gasping audibly. I grin at her. I knew she wouldn’t be prepared for this. And it makes it all the more special, to see her eyes lighting up.
I already know what her answer will be, but it doesn’t mean she doesn’t deserve a proper proposal.
I look deep into her eyes, smiling lovingly at the love of my life.
“Tara, baby…from the moment we met, I knew you were special. I knew you would be important in my life. But I never expected that we’d make it to this point. It all seemed too good to be true because I’ve never been so happy in my life. Yet here we are…and here I am, a man on my knee asking you to be my wife.”
I can see happy tears pooling in her eyes and I can’t stop smiling.
“You make me the happiest man alive, Tara. I thought that I’d missed my chance at love. I assumed I just wasn’t made to love somebody, despite all the love locked in my heart. But now I know I was just waiting for you to come along and prove me wrong. You’ve opened my eyes. You’ve shown me the world in a new light. I didn’t know true happiness until we came together and now, I have no intention of ever letting you slip away from me.”
She’s trembling, watching me with her misty eyes.
I reach out to take her hand and brush my thumb across her knuckle. She relaxes into my touch, and I know she feels safe in my presence, even when life gets hard. I can see the love in her eyes, the same love that I feel rooted deep in my heart. I take a deep breath.
“I love you so damn much. And if you say yes and become my wife, then my life will be complete. I could die a happy man, knowing you’re mine and I’m yours forever. So with that in mind. Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”
I watch her face break into the biggest smile I’ve ever seen, she looks so damn beautiful right now. I want to kiss her so badly, but I’m still waiting for the answer to leave her lips. The words I’ve waited so long to hear.
She nods fervently, tears spilling from her eyes.
“Of course, I’ll marry you. Yes! A thousand times yes.”
My heart feels close to bursting with utter joy. I stand and sweep her out of her chair, spinning her around with ease. I feel so damn lucky.
As I put her down, she kisses me like she’s never kissed me before. The passion between us is so heated that I almost forget to put the ring on her finger. I take her hand as we’re kissing and slide the band over her delicate finger. It looks so perfect on her that she has to hold it up to admire it in awe.