Total pages in book: 190
Estimated words: 185785 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 929(@200wpm)___ 743(@250wpm)___ 619(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 185785 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 929(@200wpm)___ 743(@250wpm)___ 619(@300wpm)
I swallow as I absorb this.
“In a church and hall or even a big outdoor thing in the spring by the water at our Tillamook house. Whatever you want.”
67
Killian
“I wanna marry you tonight,” I say. “You’re mine and I’m not giving you back. Ever.”
She swallows. “There’s no one to give me back to, Killian. It’s only you. Are you worried because he’s out of jail?”
I shake my head. “He will not ever come between us again. I’m not worried about that, believe me; I just want you to be a hundred percent mine in every way. I don’t wanna wait. Don’t make me wait, baby. We’ll do the family thing however and whenever you want, but tonight, do this for me. For us.”
Her beautiful eyes search my face.
“I need this,” I tell her. “I want this more than anything in the world, Violet. Well, second-most.”
“What’s first?” she asks.
“If I could go back three years… you know this. That’s the only thing I want more than to marry you tonight. No one can give us that, but we can give one another this.”
“Why does it have to be tonight?” she asks.
“Violet…” I groan. And then I rub my eyes and dig to find the words. “It’s been fucking with me hard the truths about the three years apart, about that shit stain fucking taking that from us, about what happened to you when you should have been mine. I don’t want to wait anymore. It’s my job to try to undo what he did to you, and-”
“It’s not your job to do that. And I’m feeling bulldozed.”
I pull my lips tight for a second and then speak. “I’d apologize to you, but that’d be lying, because I do not feel bad for wanting to tie the knot with you so tight that it’ll never be untied. I know I’ll sleep better at night when that happens.”
“Are you not sleeping well?” she asks, looking concerned.
I shake my head. “Forget about me right now. Do you have reservations about marrying me? Do you feel like you don’t have enough information about what life with me will be like? Because it’s gonna be everything it’s been, baby. Me taking care of you. Me being there for you in any way I can be.” I grab her hand and kiss it. “We can do the family wedding too. Let’s just do this tonight. Who gets hurt by that?”
“If I’m fibbing to my family… I can’t do that. I don’t like lying, Killian.”
“How about you call them and ask them what they think? Ask them if they wanna come. We’ll have them come. I’ll fly them out. Susanna, too. If that’s what it’s gonna take…”
She takes fists full of her hair on both sides of her head.
And it hurts that I’m causing her distress. But I’m not backing down here. I give no fucks. This woman is going to be married to me this weekend, one way or another. I need it.
Is it because today’s the anniversary of my mother’s death? Maybe that’s playing a part. Is it because of some things going on right now that I can’t talk about with her? Maybe that, too.
Bottom line, I want this. Need it.
She stares at me.
“Give me your phone,” I say.
She stares. “What are you gonna do?”
“Do you trust me?” I ask.
She nods.
“Then say yes. Say you’ll marry me tonight. And give me your phone. I promise you that if you trust me, everything is gonna be okay. Okay?”
She nods slowly and then reaches for her purse across the aisle from under the seats we’d been buckled into.
She passes me her phone. And I feel like pounding my chest in triumph because I love how much she trusts me.
I scroll until I find her father’s contact details. I call him.
“Hello?” he greets.
“Mr. Gates, it’s Killian.
68
Violet
“Sir, I wanna ask you an important question. Is your wife there with you? Can you put the phone on speaker so I can talk to you both?”
He moistens his lips and then takes my hand.
“Hi Mrs. Gates. I’m good, thanks. How are you?”
His eyes twinkle as I watch. I like that he likes my mom. I know she likes him a lot.
“So, Violet and I are on a plane, on our way to Las Vegas for the weekend, and I just proposed to her.”
I hear my mother squeal through the phone.
I shakily lift my champagne and take a hearty gulp.
“Sure, one sec,” he says and puts the phone on the table in front of us, touching the command to put it on speaker. I take another gulp of champagne.
“You’re on speaker Mr. and Mrs. Gates.”
“Hi Mom, Dad,” I say.
“Congratulations, honey!”
“Th-thank you,” I say shakily.
“Mr. and Mrs. Gates, please forgive me for not calling first to ask for permission,” Killian says.
“It’s okay, son. You would have got it if you had,” Dad says.