He shrugged. “My version of the romantic gesture. I was feeling a little unmanned by your song dedication earlier.”
She flushed and turned away. “I’m sorry if I embarrassed you.”
“Hell no. I wasn’t embarrassed. It was kind of sexy, but don’t chicken out now. What was that all about?” He stepped into the interior of the gazebo and stood close behind her, just shy of touching her.
Despite her earlier declarations, he was hesitant to touch her, to take that step. She wrapped her arms around herself, rubbing her hands up and down her arms in the nighttime chill. He shrugged out of his jacket and draped it over her shoulders. She turned and smiled gratefully at him.
“I quit my job yesterday.” She said it softly, but the words affected him like a physical blow.
The words fell like a ton of bricks between them and he stared at her, trying to process the words. “I don’t understand. You loved your job.”
She smiled. “Not as much as I love you. And, if you recall, you got me to admit that I don’t love my job at all.”
“You quit your job for me? I never asked you to do that. Don’t put this on me.”
As he was gaining steam, she raised her hand and placed it on his lips. “I didn’t quit for you. Although, to be fair, you hated my job and the demands it placed on me. Admit it.”
He snorted, but couldn’t deny it. “I hated that it forced you to abandon your friends and was killing you physically. But I never made quitting your job a condition of being with me.”
She arched her eyebrow. “I wasn’t finished. I didn’t quit for you. I quit for me. You were right. It was killing me, and I wasn’t happy there. Grady, no matter what, my life wasn’t going to change if I stayed. My job is ruled by billable hours and how many clients I bring in. I don’t work forty hours.”
“Neither do I.”
“But you own your own business and can make adjustments. You’re ready to move into the next phase of your life, a family, a home. If I stayed where I was, I’m not sure when I’d have that and I’m not sure I like the family life I would have there. I liked your vision of a family. Dinners together. Vacations. Not worrying about work or clients or hours. I don’t know how to have balance and I’m not sure it’s even possible. You made me see I want something different.”
He cupped her cheek in his hand and rubbed his thumb over the soft skin. “No, I was wrong too, Brigid. Your job scared me. I was afraid that you wanted something out of life that I could never give you. That you would leave me when you saw I didn’t fit in there.”
She nodded. “Like your mom.”
He grimaced. “I spoke to her today.”
Brigid’s eyes widened. “How did that go? That must have been difficult.”
“I couldn’t let it go. I’m still too angry with her and couldn’t make my peace with her. Too much has happened to sweep it under the table. Either way, I’m wrong to demand that you change your whole life just because I’m afraid you’ll leave.”
She was shaking her head at his words, bringing up one of her hands to cup his. “No, I was keeping you at arm’s length, giving you that impression. I was so wrapped up in what I thought I wanted that I didn’t see that you’re the one I want. Do you think we can get past all of this and figure out our next steps together?”
A slow grin crossed his face. “I think we can do that.”
She rose on her toes. “I love you, Grady Coughlin. More than I can tell you.”
He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. “I love you too, Brigid Anderson.”
She pressed her lips to his, twining her arms around his neck, tangling her fingers in his hair. He had cut his hair for the wedding, but there was enough for her to grab, to tug him down to her lips. She had missed this, the connection they shared. Her body relaxed, muscles unclenching for the first time since she had left two days prior. She had finally come home, in his arms.
He pulled back and gazed down at her. “So, where do we go from here?”
“Do you know a place where I can stay? I might be homeless in a few months unless I can find work.”
He threw back his head and laughed. “I think we can figure something out. I know this great Victorian house that might even have space for an office if a lawyer wants to hang out their own shingle.”
She cocked her head. “Hmmm, I hadn’t thought about that. I guess I have a lot of options.”
He pulled her close and rested his chin on her head. “You can do anything you want.”
“As long as we’re together.”
“Forever,” he murmured against her hair, arms holding her tight so she could barely breathe. But she didn’t mind. She was where she belonged, home and loved.