Page 102 of The Ice Queen in the Corner Office

He grinned. “Amazing, right.”

“So good. Why aren’t you eating?”

“Not feeling so hungry right now. I also brought you here because I understand why you’d still hesitate to give me another chance. I haven’t done much to disprove your original theory about my commitment issues.”

“And this hotel will do that?”

“I hope so.” It was hard to make out every detail of his face in the dim light, but he looked genuinely nervous. “My parents brought the family here for a vacation when we were kids. Dad had some sort of meeting downtown and we didn’t have the money to tour the city, so Willow, Rick, and I spent a lot of time in this hotel with my mother. We played games and she read to us, we watched movies and got an epic game of hide and seek going with some other kids. It’s one of my best memories of my mother, and one of the last. I’ve never forgotten this hotel and I kept my eye on it for years, waiting for it to go on the market. I’ll renovate it and get it up and running, even if it bankrupts me, because it means something to me. It feels like a part of my family in a way.”

“As your CFO, I have to advise you against bankruptcy.”

“Noted.” He reached across the table and took my hand. “The point is that I don’t forget the people or the things in my life that I love, and I love you. I want to give us a real shot. You’re the only woman I want, will ever want. Do you think you can forgive me for being an asshole and trust me never to do it again? At least not on purpose.”

I studied his handsome face in the dim light, and I knew he was it for me, too. He had my heart and he…Felt like home. Even so, I still wasn’t sure what the right choice was. I wanted to excuse myself and call my mother or May, but if I was going to commit to Alex, if I was going to even consider being with him, I needed to be vulnerable with him. “I’m scared. I’ve never felt this way about anyone before, like you have the power to make me happier than I’ve ever been, but also to crush me completely.”

He reached across the table, sliding plates out of the way to take my other hand. “I want to make you happy, Jill. Give me another chance. I won’t screw up again.”

“Third time’s a charm?”

He smirked. “I’m a slow learner, but I learn well.”

I wanted to throw myself into his arms but… “You know how scared you felt at the ropes course? That’s how I feel right now. Like one little gust of wind could knock me to the ground and shatter me.”

“The scariest thing about that day was the idea that I could lose you. If I have to do that ropes course myself to prove to you that I’m serious, I’ll do it.” He leaned in closer. “But I promise you, I will always catch you. I’ll always support you and I’ll never try to pin you down or make you into something you aren’t.”

And I couldn’t ask for anything more than that. His warm glow lit me like the city outside and I knew the bigger risk would be walking away from him. “Okay. Let’s do this. For real. No secret cabin rendezvouses. I’ll buy the stock and we’ll go public as a couple.” He smiled and opened his mouth. “Unless it would be better for me to work somewhere else? I—”

He was around the table, had picked me up and set me on his lap before I could finish my thought. He wrapped his strong arms tight around me. “Let’s enjoy the moment before we start worrying about logistics.”

I melted against him and did my best to turn off my brain. His lips against mine helped. I soaked in his taste, the feel of him against me, and the magic of the moment.

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