Page 89 of And Then There Was You
“Chloe Fairway,” he said, his voice steady now, sincere, “straddling you naked, in a B and B, wasn’t the classy proposal I imagined. But here goes.” He cleared his throat. “I love you, body and soul. I feel the same about having been out of step with time before. Maybe we loved each other in another lifetime, and we’ve been trying to find each other since.”
“Since the Minoan golden age,” she suggested, eyes glistening with emotion.
“Yes. That was it. I remember now.” He smiled, eyes intent on hers. “So, as I might have asked back then, will you walk with me into the seasons?”
“You’re not going to ask me in Ancient Minoan?”
“I would, but we don’t know what language they spoke. There’s a script called Linear A, which no one has managed to translate, but—”
“John.”
“Sorry. I got lost in the footnotes again, didn’t I?” He took a beat. “Chloe Fairway, will you marry me?” Then he grinned in delight, eyes fixed on hers. “I always wanted to ask you that question.”
“Then yes,” she said, her whole face lighting up with a smile. “Yes, please.”
Richard let out a low woof. He never barked, so they took that as a sign of his approval, or perhaps a sign of his indignation that no one had asked for his input or permission.
They didn’t make it to the costume party until late, too lost in the reality of each other to rush to the world of make-believe.
THE END
