Page 125 of Gabriel
“Amara, just spit it out,” I spat. “The suspense is killing me, and I’m not in the best shape as it is.”
She cleared her throat, and I could practically feel the tension rolling off her and permeating the air.
“How do you feel about… marriage?”
I hesitated, then asked, “Can you elaborate, so we’re on the same page? Who exactly would I be marrying?”
She paused.
I wished I could see her face. Just a flicker of expression—her eyes narrowing, her lips pressing together, the tilt of her head. Anything. A clue. A thread to follow in this darkness that I couldn’t crawl out of. But instead, all I had was silence and a sea of black behind my eyelids.
Then—soft as a breath, almost too quiet to believe—I heard her.
“Me,” she murmured.
Her voice had never sounded like that before—barely above a whisper, fragile in a way that didn’t suit her. Amara was fire, all sharp edges and wild grace. But now?
Now she sounded almost scared.
“I don’t think I heard you right,preciosa.”
An audible gulp bounced off the walls. “I don’t deserve this, and I certainly don’t deserve your mercy or saving, but I’m still asking you. Will you marry me?”
My heart stuttered. “What did you just say?”
“It’s messed up, I know,” she said, her words stumbling over each other. “And the furthest thing from romance, and you… You’ve been so wonderful and deserve so much more—so much better—than me and this fucked-up situation.”
It wasn’t exactly how I envisioned the next step in this relationship to go, but life rarely went the way we planned.
“I have one question before I answer that,” I stated somberly. “Tell me why you’re asking me to marry you.”
The soft beat of the clock was so loud between us as I waited for her answer.
“I don’t want to lie to you,” she said softly. “It wasn’t something that crossed my mind, especially after I cost you so much. And I’m sure you don’t want me, not after what my siblings and I have done to you. Kian demands it so we can keep the peace.”
Disappointment flooded me and refusal was already on the tip of my tongue, but then she continued, “But that’s not the only reason, Gabriel. I love you. I’m not sure where, when, or how, but somewhere along the way, I fell for you. There isn’t a man on this planet who’s more patient, kinder, or greater than you. There isn’t a man I want as much as you. And there isn’t another man who I love. Only you.”
My chest fucking trembled, and I swore I felt like an emotional wimp, but I loved every word I heard. And fuck it, I wanted to hear it again.
“Repeat that,” I instructed, my voice raspy.
“God, really?” she breathed. “You didn’t hear me?”
“I’m blind, Amara. Not deaf.” I blinked, but darkness still dominated, and I cursed silently. “I want to hear you say it, hear the emotions in your voice. I fucking hate that I can’t see you, so I depend on hearing your feelings in your voice.”
“I love you, Gabriel,” she said slowly. “I crave you. I desire you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, but if you don’t share those feelings, I wouldn’t blame you. And dammit, if it causes a war between our families, then so be it, but I will not fight you. You can do what you will with me, because I deserve your wrath, and I will forever mourn what we had.”
“So you’re asking me to marry you because you love me or because you want to prevent the fallout of your actions? Or are you asking me because Kian demanded it of you?”
“I guess all of the above,” she admitted. “I love you, but I don’t deserve your forgiveness, so I wouldn’t have the courage to ask you to marry me if not for Kian’s stipulation.”
I sighed. “I don’t like that Kian’s putting ultimatums on you.”
“Honestly, I deserve for him to cut me off from the family after my actions.” I could hear shame weaving through her words. “I deserve no better.”
“Amara, you deserve the best,” I countered.
“Your brother was ready to wreak havoc, and Kian is furious. Not at him, but at Elira, Jet, and me.” She hesitated. “In fact, Raphael was prepared to murder us all and go after Kian, so I told everyone that I’m pregnant.” A beat passed. Then two. “I’m not. Obviously, I’m not. And I don’t care that I lied to them all, but I don’t want to lie to you.”
