When did quick and easy ever equal happy?
Touché. Still make it quick.
An hour later, I’m walking on the pedestrian path along the Golden Gate Bridge. I haven’t done this since I was a girl with my dad. We used to try and see if we could run the whole way across. I always ended up not even halfway across with a cramp, holding my side and laughing.
Traffic is still pretty sparse at my back, and I stop in the center, looking out over the waves far below. It’s dark, and I close my eyes, remembering a time when I believed I could hear the angels singing over the waters.
It’s been a long time since I believed that.
I don’t even get sad anymore.
“Hope?” The deep voice pulls me up short, and my eyes flash open.
My breath disappears, and my body trembles all over. What’s happening right now?
He comes closer, breaking into a jog until he’s right in front of me.
I still can’t find my voice, and now I’m having a hard time seeing his face. Tears blur my eyes.
“Did he…” He looks over his shoulder in the direction he came, and I take the chance to reach up and lightly touch my fingers to the ends of his dark hair.
At last I find my voice. “What are you doing here?”
Ice-blue eyes blink back at me under a dark, furrowed brow. He’s so brutally handsome, for a moment I’m lost in the sight of him.
“My phone.” He stops short, shaking his head like he’s in disbelief. “The guy you gave my phone called Scout and said he couldn’t fix it… But he was able to retrieve the file you needed. The last video.”
An ache fills my throat, and I almost can’t speak. “He got it?” Blinking, a crystal tear hits my cheek.
JR reaches up to wipe it away with his thumb. “You saved me.”
His body is so close to mine, I can smell his luscious scent of soap and sweat and spicy-man. “You made the recording. I only took it to the repair guy.”
His fingers slide along the side of my hair, and I close my eyes, leaning my cheek into his palm. He lifts his other hand, tracing the side of his thumb along my bottom lip. He touches me like he’s remembering something…
“The judge dismissed the case. She threw out my conviction. They cleared my name.”
My chest tightens with every word, and I huff an excited laugh. “She did?” My hands rise to my lips.
“Not only that, GA did some digging. Found out my mom left us a trust fund when she died. A pretty big one.”
“You didn’t know?”
“Our dad used some of it to start his gym. Which means we own all of it. The house, the gym, his wellness line of products.”
Blinking, I try to understand what he’s saying. “It’s what you said you’d do…”
“It’s what I figured I’d do. Now I fucking own it all.”
“Is that good?”
His eyebrows rise, and he nods slowly. “Yeah. It’s really good. Trust me. It’s better than good.”
Rising on my toes, I clasp my hands together under my chin. I want to hug him. I want to kiss him and tell him he’s amazing and he deserves every good thing that’s coming to him. I want to tell him I still love him…
Instead, I stick to the basics. “How’s Jesse?”
“Great.” Warmth permeates his tone. “He’s here. We’ve been spending every minute together since I got out. I’ve taken him everywhere… but he keeps asking about you.”
“Me?”
“Yes.”
A bloom of warmth floods my chest. “But why are you here?”
“My brother said a dream I had would come true if I showed up here tonight.”
“A dream?”
“Something I didn’t know I wanted until it dropped in my lap on the road between San Francisco and Los Angeles.”
I can’t hold back a laugh. “What is it?”
Strong arms wrap around me, lifting me off my feet. My legs wrap around his waist, and I rest my hands on his cheeks. Looking into his blue eyes, I see heat and desire and longing and… something more?
“I’m glad to see you smiling.” My voice is soft. “What will you do now?”
“I was thinking I’d settle down, maybe get married, give Jesse the home he deserves.”
“You’re a handsome man, JR Dunne. Any woman would be lucky to have you.”
“Is that so?” He lowers me to my feet, and I look up at him, nodding. Warm hands cup my cheeks, and he leans closer. “Only one man could be lucky enough to have you.”
My nose wrinkles, and I lift my chin. “Who might that be?”
“This man.” His voice is rough, sending heat sizzling all the way to my toes. “Can I kiss you?”
“I wish you would.”
Warm lips cover mine, pushing them apart and sweeping his tongue inside. A high whimper escapes on an exhale, and I’m off my feet again. My legs are around his waist, and I hold him, chasing his lips, doing my best to keep up with his kisses. It’s divine and delicious, and bubbles of happiness rise in my chest.
I lift my chin, and his lips trace a hot line down my neck. Lowering me to my feet, he cups my face and holds my head as he takes a long inhale of my hair. Shimmers move from my head to my toes.
“Hope?” He steps back, putting both hands on my shoulders. I blink my eyes open in dreamy satisfaction, meeting his gaze. “I love you.”
My throat tightens at the words. Heat fills my eyes, and I have to blink quickly to clear it. “You…”
“I love you so much. I want you to marry me. I want you to come home with me to Fireside, and I want us to find a place for your restaurant. I want your life to be with me. I want to make your dreams come true. I want your dreams to be my dreams. I want you to be my hope eternal.”
“You…” I can’t speak. It’s too much for my blissed-out brain to handle.
“You don’t have to answer me now. I only want you to know that’s what I want.” He leans forward, kissing the tip of my nose, the top of my lips. “The rest is up to you.”
Mist is so heavy in my eyes, I can only grin and kiss him back. “I can answer you now. My answer is yes.”
Warm hands slide along my waist, slipping beneath the hem of my white sweater, rising higher to cup my back. My entire body is humming with delight.
We’re here together. We’re making promises. It’s the culmination of my dream, and it’s with the man of my dreams.
Closing my eyes, our lips reunite, and electricity races from the tips of my hair to the tips of my toes. JR’s lips capture mine, and our tongues slide and curl together. It’s incredible. It’s everything, and when my eyes flutter open to gaze at the brilliant stars above us, it’s there.
To the average pedestrian, it might sound like the hum of tires on the metal bridge, but it’s not. Far away, over the ocean, it’s them. Angels are singing. It’s the first time I’ve heard them in a year.
Lifting his head, he looks into my eyes. “Do you hear that?”
My eyebrows quirk, and my stomach flutters. “Hear what?”
He looks to the side and waits, but after a moment, he shakes his head, a sexy smile curling his perfectly full lips. “I thought I heard singing.”