Lord, I nearly melted right there in the snow. To know he had thought about all of this made me love him even more.
Hunter pulled me along while I tried to look through the trees at the spot he was talking about. I ran into the back of him when he came to a sudden stop.
“Ooph.”
“You okay?” Hunter asked.
“Why did you staaap…”
My voice tailed off as I looked at the large white gazebo that stood only a few feet away from us. It was beautiful. White pieces of fabric hung all around the structure and blew in the breeze. A table sat in the middle holding beautiful place settings for two, along with a huge vase of flowers and candles in large votives. It was the most romantic thing I’d ever seen.
I slowly shook my head and whispered, “How…when did you do this?”
He looked down at the ground and sheepishly kicked at the snow before looking back at me. “I had a little help from Greer and Abby. Candace too.”
“Candace? She knew about this?”
“She made the lunch for us.”
“What? When?” I asked with a surprised laugh. “She’s at the café.”
“I planned it all a couple of days ago, before I left to go fishing.”
The most beautiful sense of warmth wrapped around my body and my heart…oh Lord, my heart nearly combusted. “Oh, Hunter.”
“There are two heat lamps in there, but if you get too cold, we can pull the curtains around and that should hold the heat in.”
“Wait…the gazebo. You built it, didn’t you?” I asked, walking toward it. “I remember this. That one night, up at the sky lodge when everyone went out, we stayed back and you asked me…you asked me—” I brought my hand up to my mouth, attempting not to cry as the memory flooded back and I realized what Hunter had done.
Hunter cleared his throat. “I asked you to describe to me the gazebo you wanted when we finally had our own house. We drew it out together. I kept that drawing and worked off it. Kyle helped me build it.”
Turning to face him, I let the tears fall freely. “But what if things hadn’t worked out and we didn’t—”
He put his finger to my mouth. “I won’t lie and say there weren’t times I thought it would never happen. I gave up on us a lot over the years, but a part of me always held onto the dream, Bella. The dream of us. When you love someone like I love you…” He shrugged. “Well, I don’t think it ever goes away. And I once made you a promise that my heart would always belong to you.”
I turned and stared at the gazebo. “And knowing what happened to me…it doesn’t change your mind about wanting to be with me?”
He looked stunned by my question. “I told you last night that it doesn’t change the way I feel about you, Bella. It fucking breaks my heart that I haven’t been there for you. There isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for you. I’ll stand by your side no matter what happens. I’d lay down my life if you asked me to.”
Hunter walked up to me and cupped my face in his hands, brushing wetness from my cheeks. “I hate seeing you cry. But when you do, I want to be the one who wipes your tears away. I don’t want to fight your fights, Bella. I never have. What I want to do is stand next to you and help you fight them.”
A sob slipped free as I reached for Hunter’s arms and held onto them. “I want that too. And I’m so sorry I pushed you away. I was so scared you would look at me differently.
“I won’t. I know this is two very different things, but I wasn’t exactly an angel while we were apart. Do you look at me differently?”
I shook my head. “Of course not.”
He smiled. “No matter how long it takes, Bella, I’m going to prove that what happened to you that day doesn’t change the way I feel about you. How much I love you. Desire you. The dream of spending our lives together, having kids, is still very real for me. I want that more than anything.”
My chest rose and fell as I struggled to keep my breathing even. “I want that too.”
“And if you ever try to push me away again, I’m pushing right back. Whatever it takes, I’m here for all of it. The good, the bad, the ugly, and the beautiful.”
I lifted my head and met his eyes. The love I saw in his gaze nearly left me breathless. “I won’t push you away. I promise you.”
His lips brushed softly against mine as he held me close. And in that moment, I knew with all my heart that the final piece of the wall I had built fell to the ground. Piece by piece, Hunter had restored me. Brought me back to life. Brought me back to the woman I was before I was raped. Oh, I knew I still had things to work through…but knowing Hunter was there beside me, I wasn’t afraid anymore.
Hunter
Bella shivered in my arms, and I wasn’t sure if it was from the cold or not. I drew back and looked down at her. “Let’s get you under those heat lamps and eat lunch, okay?”
A brilliant smile spread across her face, and I felt my chest tighten. I loved seeing her happy instead of crying. I’d seen enough sadness in those eyes of hers to last me a lifetime.
“I cannot believe you did all of this! It’s so beautiful!”
She glanced around, and I laughed, knowing she was looking for her friends. “Greer and Abby left right before we got here. There’s a back road that takes you out onto Ricker Road, so they took that one.”
Bella shook her head in disbelief. “That’s the road that runs along the flower farm.”
I nodded.
Bella placed her hand on her chest as she took everything in. “I’m going to have to do something special for them.”
Pulling her chair out, I leaned down and placed my mouth against her ear. “You already have, from what I’ve heard. Picnic baskets and planning romantic weddings.”
She turned her head and looked at me. Our lips were only inches apart. “I was only helping my friends.”
“And they’re returning the favor.” I quickly kissed her cheek, and made my way around the gazebo to close almost all of the drapes and trap in the warm air from the heaters. I sat down in my chair and noticed Jack had already positioned himself next to Bella. Another reason to love that dog.
“You still like lasagna, right?” I asked, taking the lid off one of the dishes. There was a small candle under the metal container to keep everything warm.
“Yes! I’m a fool for lasagna.”
“Greer told me Candace makes some of the best she’s ever had. Makes her own noodles.”
Bella licked her lips and took off her coat. The two heaters were doing their job keeping the area warm, so I took off mine, as well, and placed it on the back of my chair.
“Do you want me to dish up the salad?” Bella asked, lifting the lid on one bowl.
“Sure, and I’ll get the lasagna.”
We worked in silence while I placed a large piece of lasagna onto each of our plates. Bella put the salad in the bowls and took out two pieces of garlic bread.
“Oh my gosh, did she make this bread as well?” Bella asked, her blue eyes wide with excitement.
“I believe so.”
She giggled and danced in her seat, causing Jack to look up and check on her.