“You all deserve it,” I told him as I sank down next to him on the couch.
“You’re not having any?” Jax asked.
I picked up his spoon, took a bite, and then handed the utensil back to him. “I’m still full from dinner, but it’s really good.”
He leaned forward, kissed me, and licked a tiny smudge of chocolate from the corner of my lips. “Delicious,” he agreed in a husky, suggestive tone that sent every single one of my female hormones into attention mode.
That was Jax’s I-want-to-fuck-you-right-now voice, and God, how that sexy baritone got me thinking about getting him naked in a matter of seconds.
And he used it really, really often, much to my delight.
I wasn’t about to complain that Jax’s desire for me only seemed to get more intense as time went by.
Our love grew deeper, and our bond became stronger every single day.
Did we occasionally have disagreements?
Of course we did, but even those squabbles taught us things about each other.
Jax had learned just how highhanded he could be until I pushed back.
And I’d learned what things I could let slide because I loved him, and I knew everything he said and did was out of concern for my wellbeing.
Neither of us fought dirty or mean, and those fights never lasted for very long. We simply respected each other way too much for that to happen. Plus, since the makeup sex was over-the-top amazing, we were usually eager to get to a resolution.
Jax made it a point to find new experiences for both of us to do together as often as possible, but for the most part, we were just happy to…be together.
After a long day at work, there was nothing that made me happier than just hanging out with Jax and the dogs.
I’d finally given up my own apartment, which had made Jax incredibly happy. He’d told me that he’d known from that moment that I was here to stay.
Really? Like I’d actually plan on going anywhere else? Had I known it would please him that much, I would have dumped my apartment immediately. I’d never had any doubts. It had just taken me a while to get everything out of my apartment because I’d been so busy at work.
I couldn’t imagine my life without Jax anymore, and it wasn’t a scenario I even wanted to contemplate.
“It means a lot that you went out of your way just to get an ice cream cake for me,” Jax said gruffly.
I snuggled up to him, and he wrapped his arm around me before he resumed demolishing the enormous piece of cake.
It meant a lot to me that he never took anything I did for granted.
“There’s nothing I wouldn’t do to put a smile on your face, handsome,” I said earnestly. “I don’t want to be the only one who’s spoiled in this relationship.”
Jax bent over backward to make me happy, and I knew exactly why he did it. I loved seeing his smile and hearing his laughter, too, and I’d cheerfully go out of my way a million times for either one of those things.
He offered me another bite of his dessert, and I shook my head, so Jax polished it off and set the bowl on the coffee table.
“I have one more thing for you, but it’s not exactly a Valentine’s Day present,” he told me as he dug into the pocket of his jeans.
“You promised no more surprise trips for a while after our New Year’s in New York City,” I reminded him.
That had been a spectacular, magical trip, and my first time flying in Jax’s private jet. But I had several important projects in the works at Montgomery right now, so I’d asked him to hold off for just a little while on any spontaneous events that would take me away from work until they were completed.
“It’s not a trip,” he said, sounding slightly amused.
Okay, so now I was curious. Since he’d specified that it wasn’t a Valentine’s gift, it could be anything. Jax Montgomery had no idea how to do surprises in anything other than a very big way. Well, they were always enormous to me, anyway. For him, maybe not so much.
I looked up at him. “What is it? Please tell me it’s not another sports car. You’re all out of garage spaces, buddy.”
That wasn’t an exaggeration since all ten of them were now full. The last available spot now housed my Christmas present from Jax, a brand new Porsche 911 Turbo S Cabriolet.
Like I said, he had no idea how to do anything in a small way, and I found out that was especially true when it came to Christmas gifts.
My new vehicle could definitely do zero to sixty in under three seconds. However, I’d mostly driven it like a little old lady for the first month or two because I was terrified that I’d scratch the beautiful red exterior. I was starting to relax a little with it now, and I was just starting to really enjoy driving it.
For the most part, I had gotten used to Jax’s outrageous gifts, but I’d been hoping that I would get a nice long break to recover from the shock of the Porsche.
It would kill me to see the disappointment on his face if I didn’t accept one of his presents, but that one had tested me mightily.
He grinned at me. “It’s not a key to another car.”
Thank God!
I accepted the small box with a sigh of relief.
I’d asked Jax if we could just exchange little things for Valentine’s Day, and he’d agreed.
Technically, he had stuck to that promise, but since I hadn’t specified how many smaller gifts we could get for each other, I’d gotten an excessive amount of presents earlier.
I sighed. Some day I was going to finally teach that man that just having him was more than enough.
I fingered the small, red velvet box. “Do you want me open it?”
Usually, Jax’s presents were giftwrapped, but this particular box wasn’t.
I watched him curiously as he visibly swallowed and then nodded. “Open it.”
I smiled and found the catch on the box with my nail that popped the lid open when I pushed it.
Once the contents were revealed, I let out an audible gasp as Jax slipped to the floor next to me, and took my hand.
The hand holding the box was shaking as my eyes met Jax’s solemn, purposeful gaze.
“Maybe it’s too soon,” he said hoarsely. “But I know what I want. I’ve known for a long time now. I love you, and you’re it for me, my once in a lifetime. I wouldn’t have a damn clue how to live without you anymore, because you’re part of me, and I’m a better man every day because of that. Marry me, Harlow, and I’ll feel like the luckiest bastard in the world for the rest of my life.”
As he’d said those words, my heart had melted into a puddle at my feet.