Chapter Text
When Juliet opened her eyes, the first thought she had was that this must have been the longest, most confusing dream she ever had. It involved a billionaire falling in love with her, a kiss in the rain, Richard coming to America, ex girlfriends hunting her, and a year of living in solitude for some reason.
The second thought erased all that. She blinked in the dim light of the pretty cozy hospital room, trying to open her eyes fully without a shot of pain rippling through her brain. She groaned at the feeling of pain coming from her abdomen momentarily invading all her other senses, and she saw an older woman sitting at the edge of her bed looking relieved and murmuring something under her breath.
It sounded like a prayer .
Juliet didn’t remember anyone ever praying for her before.
But before she could try to say anything, the door burst open to reveal a man trying to make his way inside, and two others holding him from the sides, the ruckus startling the woman next to her, on her feet. Through the slight ringing in her ears, Juliet could hear them:
“Thomas, she’s vulnerable right now, you are going to scare her .”
“TM, just…let’s take you home first…”
“Kumu’s right, I mean you look like a fright right now, and I’m telling you my friend you need a shower asap, that smell is not attractive.”
“I need to see her!”
She closed her eyes trying to push all the loud voices and agitated breaths aside, but she could already start to feel her heart trying to beat out of her chest. Next thing she heard was the monitor beeping louder and louder , agreeing with her thoughts.
Her pulse was skyrocketing.
“You need to get out, now!”
Doctors in pristine white coats were pushing past the trio tackling in the door, their voices even louder and angrier.
“Mister Magnum, I am going to call security on you, I do not give a single hoot that you’re basically funding this hospital! You’re scaring the patient and putting her life in danger! Is that really what you want?
Juliet was already starting to slip into unconsciousness again, but the last image that flashed before her eyes was the pure, agonizing grief that crossed on the face of the man that first entered her room.
She wondered hazily who he was.
But more importantly she wondered who she was to him .
She never saw that look on anyone in her life before.
The next time she woke up, she already felt a bit better. There was no more pain, and her pulse seemed to be stable. Before she even opened her eyes, Juliet tried touching her chest, to feel it.
She wanted to feel her heartbeat in her chest, and wanted to be sure she was alive .
But when she tried to move her hand, something stopped her.
Something warm .
Opening her eyes slowly, she took into the image before her again. Nothing much had changed, except for the blinding rays of sun from earlier; they were now warmer, golden, less hurtful to the eyes.
Oh, and the kind older woman from before, was now replaced by a heavy set man .
Juliet’s gaze sweeped over the collapsed body on the edge of her bed. He was asleep, his hands gripping hers in his sleep, his head lying next to it, his snoring adorably filling the quietness of the room with a sense of humanity.
She felt her lips curl into a smile.
A full head of raven black hair was within her reach, and before she could think about her impulse, she grasped at it with gentle fingers, her short clipped nails scraping a bit at the scalp by mistake.
She retracted her hand like burned when she felt him stirring, but it was too late; he saw her fingers wiggling in the air and with a jump of surprise and pure unaltered joy he grasped at them like they were his most treasured artifact.
“Higgy, my God… my love, you’re…”
She didn’t get to hear the rest because his lips were busy pressing infinite kisses on her palm, and knuckles, fingers and wrist. Her eyes widened at the gesture, her skin buzzing with goosebumps from the act, her mouth opening slightly to form a silent “o”.
Who was this man?
When he finally stopped to look at her, his smile hanging from ear to ear, his hopeful eyes told her she should already have that piece of information. She should know who he was.
And yet, eyebrows scrunching and eyes crinkling in the process, however much she tried remembering his face, she just couldn’t place it. It was a very handsome face: brown, soulful eyes lined with crisp, flaked lashes, strong jaw and nose, plump, soft looking lips…
Her gaze stopped at them, her fingers detangling from his to caress his stubble covered cheek. His smile decreased in brightness at her search and the deep embers of his eyes looked concerned.
“Higgy?”
The weird name could only be a shortening of her surname “ Higgins ”. She knew that. She knew she was Juliet Higgins .
But she had the feeling she didn’t exactly know who Juliet Higgins was anymore.
Because, this man clearly loved Juliet Higgins with a passion.
And the Juliet Higgins she knew, was never loved like that in her life.
She still couldn’t speak. The doctors explained to her, —like she was three, that based on some sort of accumulated trauma she experienced before her accident (they were just referring to the wound she could feel on her body, on her abdomen to be exact , as an accident and nothing more), she was now unable to form words.
Which was utterly stupid and immensely frustrating because she was bloody able to form thoughts . Why couldn’t she form words too?
And why, oh why couldn’t she remember…, her eyes flicked to the man still holding her hand and looking at her like she just kicked his puppy,… him . She so wanted to remember him, if not for her, than for him.
He just looked so sad.
It broke her heart that she wasn’t able to give him something back that he apparently gave to her already.
Her heart.
“So you’re basically saying she has amnesia.” the woman from before, Kumu,—she amended in her head, summed up the doctor’s long winded speech for the men in the room. The other two, Rick and TC, just stood, silently throwing worried looks towards the man and understanding one's towards her.
She felt so terribly guilty .
“Not exactly. I mean, we won’t know until we make more investigations, but my professional opinion is that this is most certainly caused by the shock of the accident coupled with the trauma and stress of everything that went before it. It was my understanding that Miss Higgins worked in a rather…” she glanced at the doctor, her palm still tingling from the man’s touch, and saw his eyes shift a bit, “strenuous domain of activity.”
She nodded without thinking.
Strenuous being the understatement of the century.
The man, — Thomas , her mind added softly, squeezed her hand.
“She nodded. That means she can understand us, right? I mean…”
He struggled, trying and failing to look somewhere else but at her. His eyes seemed to well up with tears, and the guilt in Juliet’s heart doubled in size. She acted on pure impulse again, grabbing tighter and pulling at his hand with both of hers, her eyes pleading with him.
‘Don’t be sad because of me, I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I wish…”
“Juliet.”
Her heart leaped out of her chest at his voice, and she pressed her hand on her heart. That wasn’t her , that was…this new Juliet Higgins that she had yet to meet. Recognizing him, leaping out of her cage to grasp at him; she might not remember this man with her mind, but something within her…her heart, her soul, her body, all of her senses told her…he was it .
He was the most important person she will ever have in her life.
She just didn’t know it yet.
“The most important thing,” he addressed the doctor, but his gaze stayed firmly on her, “is that she’s alive.”
One of Juliet’s hands flew to the phone next to her, —that Kumu kindly provided, and quickly typed a message for him.
‘Can we talk? In private?’
Her heart in her throat she turned the phone to him, and beside his eyebrows furrowing for a second, he didn’t seem to waiver. He nodded, his smile small but utterly defeated. When they were alone, she started to play with her hands in her lap, the fingers folding and unfolding the edge of the hospital blanket, —that, Juliet just noticed, was much nicer than she was used to, for a hospital, anyway.
‘Oh, yes, he’s a billionaire.’ she remembered stupidly. Kumu has said as much.
And yet, he seemed to be the saddest billionaire alive, now, in front of her. She sighed and typed again.
‘I’m sorry.’
When she passed him the phone, their fingers grazed and electricity just sparkled, undisturbed, unintended, but undeniable.
Thomas ran a hand through his hair and stood up, suddenly.
“You have nothing to be sorry about. It’s not your fault, in fact…it’s mine .”
She frowned, but his whisper-y voice continued, without looking at her.
“All that happened to you, it was because of me .”
He was pacing the floor in front of her bed, his hands wringing and pulling at his hair, like he was haunted and he didn’t know how to stop it. He looked like he hadn’t been sleeping in a year.
Which might have been true.
Despite his claims of guilt, her heart was unafraid and she caught his arm, pulling at it, her smile blooming when she saw how startled he was at her touch. Lifting the phone, she let him read:
‘You’re making me dizzy! Is this how you treat your savior? Please sit and let me look at you properly, I might remember everything with just a look, but you just won’t sit still.’
She added a ‘eyes rolling ’ emoji for emphasis.
A tiny laugh escaped his lips and she took it as a win with a smug grin. He sat and took her hands in his again, closing his eyes, leaving himself open, completely vulnerable to her.
Juliet was struck at the utter trust and devotion that could feel coming from him in waves. She freed one hand to grab the phone again, but before she could add anything, he just whispered:
“I love you, by the way. Just so you know.”
Her fingers stopped on the screen, her gaze stuck to the words she had written:
‘What if I never remember…’
An ache deep in her heart started unfurling and creating a sort of hurricane of feeling inside her; she could feel it forming and adding to itself, leaving only destruction behind. And there she was, caught right in the eye of it.
He touched her hand holding the phone, looking at it. A beat. Silence.
“I’ll still love you, I will always…”
She lifted her watery gaze to meet his twin one, tears already streaking down his cheeks, down to his sharp jaw and onto the white blanket. The spots they left behind were grey and sad.
“… love you . You saved my life, you, you… are my life.”
The next question didn’t need to be written down, he already had an answer for it.
“Even if…” he smiled through his tears, pulling at their hands, and kissing her knuckles, “even if you never remember me, even if…you’ll never love me again .”
Kumu was helping her disrobe, to get into the tub (her hospital room had a bathroom, with a tub, that was insane ) when she saw the message Juliet had hastily written on her notepad.
‘Where is he?’
A full week had passed, a week full of recovery and treatment, and speech exercises —that were still utterly unfruitful, and more importantly, full of people trying to make her recover her memory by telling her enough to spark interest, but not enough to overwhelm her.
Which was proving to be a difficult and frustrating thing for her, honestly. She just wanted to know everything; but the doctors were adamant that she should take it slowly.
And in the midst of all this, Thomas had disappeared completely. He still came with Rick and TC, Kumu updating them on everything daily, but he never stayed more than a few minutes. Which made Juliet feel… unmoored .
Disconnected from everything around her, like some part of her was missing when he wasn’t there.
‘Which is stupid!’ she chastised herself, when she sat in the slightly misty warm water.
It smelled like vanilla and raspberry and she sighed automatically, dipping her body in its warm embrace, up to her shoulders. Kumu smiled.
“He’s out buying the presents for the kids, Christmas is near. But he’ll be here soon, don’t worry.”
Juliet wrinkled her eyes and grabbed her notebook, the paper damp when she returned to the woman with the message ‘I’M NOT WORRIED’ scribbled in all capitals on it.
Kumu just smiled and patted her on the shoulder.
“Of course not . Shout if you need me to dress your wound, I have a TV show to catch up on.”
Juliet smirked at her friend, —because even if she didn’t remember her, she could tell Kumu cared about her, and grabbed a sponge to scrub at her arms, feeling blissful because of the water and the smells…and…
She closed her eyes, trying hard to remember her dream from last night. Or was it a memory, maybe? She should ask him .
Naked bodies tumbling into crisp sheets, the damp blue satin of a dress being bunched up her leg, while he kissed her neck hungrily, his smile when she tasted the ice cream and moaned, the crinkle of his brow at his jealousy over someone, while they stood in a pool with the sunset beating down their backs…
Smiling to herself, and happy with her soak, she stood, confident in her decision. They had to be memories, not just dreams. Wrapping a towel around herself, she stopped, the edge of it half curled under her left breast.
There was something there, something written…
‘Your heart and my heart are very, very old friends’
She jumps a bit, her skin almost wanting to leave her body and her heart beating wildly, when she pushes a bottle of something in her way towards the door, the object falling and crashing loudly. Forgetting that her legs aren’t still fully recovered, she falls in the middle of the sparkling, broken pieces.
“Juliet? Are you OK, in there?”
Kumu opens the door to find her like that, and starts peppering her with questions and exclamations, the older woman stopping only at the sound of her weak but certain voice:
“Kumu? Where is he?”
Thomas is in the middle of choosing between a velvet colored bear, and a chocolate colored one, when Rick bumps his side:
“My friend, you are scaring the kids and even some adults in the store with that Grinch looking face. How about you dial it down a little?”
He just nods without looking at his friend or acknowledging his joke, his mind fully in business mode. This was the only thing distracting him from the internal rupture happening in his soul right at this moment, from last night's talk with Juliet.
She keeps looking at me like…
I’m a stranger.
Because I am one.
Because for her, I am nothing.
Nothing .
She’ll leave me soon, and I’ll be left with…
“Dude, you’re about to rip that bear’s head off! Chill !”
Rick’s voice pulls him out of it, just enough for his panic attack to subside and didn’t have time to develop. Remembering doctor Ogawa’s techniques, he breathes through his nose and mouth, counting in his head.
When he opens them, Rick’s blue eyes watch him pityingly and he sighs. The moment is suddenly interrupted by the shrill ringtone of his cellphone, and when he pulls the item from the pocket of his jeans and sees Kumu’s name on the screen, his anxiety spikes up again.
Is it her? Is she ill? Is she finally done? Did she leave in the middle of the night declaring she wants nothing to do with him?
He answers, knots in his throat, but tries to rationalize his maddening thoughts away.
“Kumu. Is she OK? Did something happen?”
But it’s not Kumu’s voice greeting him from the other side of the line.
“ Thomas… ”
Her lovely voice is such a jolt of joy wedged straight into his heart, that he actually drops his cart and runs outside the store to take a big gulp of fresh air. Bending from the middle, he almost collapses in the center of the sidewalk, at the next words from her mouth:
“ My love, please come to me. I need you; Thomas, please, come back to me.”
She was sitting in her wheelchair, her hands wringing helplessly in her lap, her hair still damp, when he got to her.
“ Juliet !”
When she turned at the sound of his voice, her beautiful hazel orbs were flooded with tears, cheeks puffy and red from crying; she extended both her arms towards him, and he just collapsed at her feet, their hands entangled, her lips pressing desperate kisses on his brow.
He felt surreal, a week ago she would barely touch him, and now…
“What happened? Are you OK?”
He noticed her bandaged arms first.
“What’s this? What happened?”
When his gaze swept over her face, scanning her for further injuries, his eyes stalled on hers; gazes locked. She was staring him down with so much love it was almost too much, it almost hurt him to watch.
‘She remembers.’
Her palm covered his stubbled cheek and more tears sprung from her eyes.
“ I’m sorry, my love. I’m so sorry, I remember you, I remember everything . I love you so much, please don’t leave…”
He was already pulling her out of her chair and into his lap, grasping at one of the couched chairs from the hallway, shushing her with soft kisses on her warm cheeks and forehead.
“Don’t be silly, I love you, I will never leave you…”
“Where were you? I couldn’t find you !”
She seemed in a state, so Thomas tried to reign his own mixture of panic and joy and bliss, in order to curb hers. Caressing her still slightly damp curls, he kissed her forehead and hugged her tighter to his chest, rubbing her back in gentle circles, trying to calm her down.
“I was at the office, I wanted to give you some space, I thought…”
He felt her pulling at his shirt.
“Don’t ever do that again, I thought you were…”
He could hear her starting to sob again.
“I woke up…and, I…I thought…you… were gone .”
“I’m here, I’ll always be here. I love you. ” he consoled her, his nose inhaling her delicious berries smell. Oh, how has he missed that.
“I love you more.”
And with that, she kind of seemed to collapse in his arms, and he stiffened for a second. Luckily, Kumu appeared to calm him down.
“She’s got herself so worked up after her bath, I thought she was gonna try to look for you in that wheelchair. She’s probably just fallen asleep, so I'll call the doctor.”
“What happened…” he looked at her bandaged hands that were already starting to stain crimson with her blood.
“She fell and got cut by some broken pieces of a glass bottle. I don’t know why exactly, but after that, she said she remembered everything. The doctors examined her, and said everything seemed normal, but they wanted to do more scans.”
He looked down at the sleeping, warm figure of his former bodyguard, and smiled a little.
“She didn’t let them?”
Kumu snickered, starting to leave to get the medic.
“Not until you were here.”
He stood, carrying her to her bed, his heart in shambles but a million times happier than he was this morning. She was alive, and she remembered him.
Everything was finally going to be OK.
Thomas looked in adoration at the sleeping form of Juliet Higgins, her body cuddled snugly over his right arm, his fingers rubbing her back tenderly; he felt like he was in a dream from which he didn’t want to wake up. Yesterday, he was trudging miserably through the empty spaces of his house, thinking about how selfish he was being.
She was alive, and well, inside a hospital, recuperating from a wound he was responsible for, and yet, his mind and heart were bugging him incessantly about the fact that she didn’t remember him, and maybe, she will never remember him.
His thumb swept lovingly over her brow bone, his eyes counting the freckles that dotted the bridge of her nose, his lips curling into a smile without him meaning to. He just loved her so damn much.
If she really would have forgotten him forever, he really would have had nothing to live for.
Feeling her body softly move under the arm draped over her waist, his smile grew and the moment she opened her eyes, his breath caught and stilled in his throat.
‘Do you remember me?’
She just lifted a hand to cradle his cheek, his whole body trembling at her touch.
“ Hi .” was all that she said, her voice still raspy, sounding unused.
“ Hi .”
They just stared at each other for a moment longer, the seconds stretching into minutes, their gazes just lovingly entwined in each other, speaking a language only the most intimate of partners know.
“I’m sorry,” he began.
She blinked, not seeming to hear him.
“What happened?”
His sigh was deeper and he told her everything; his grief mixed with desperation, the months that dragged like snails without her, his stupid pan and the resolution of it. She waited patiently, her fingers brushing gently at his hair, her tears slipping over her cheek, and into the pillow with every word.
“She’s dead ?”
“Yes.”
They both sighed, and kept silent for a while, the ticking of the clock the only sound in the room, except for their mingled breaths.
“I’m sorry too .”
His gaze snapped to her hazel, sparkling eyes. Another tear fell, and his thumb caught it, brushing her cheek in the process.
“For what? You have nothing to be sorry about. You saved my life , Juliet.”
His next words mostly stumbled out of his mouth, his voice cracking with grief.
“Almost losing yours in the process.”
Without notice, her soft, dry lips kissed his, her love pressing into his soul like a refreshing balm, cauterizing his wounds with an ease and gentleness that he never felt before now.
Without separating, she whispered, close to him, his hand holding her waist tightly.
“For leaving, for breaking your heart. For your suffering. For everything .”
She backed away a bit to just look at him.
“I’m just sorry for everything that happened to you, but I’m here now . And I’m always going to be here, for you, I promise .”
His heavy tears fell, his sob almost chucking out of him; her tenderness healing him in ways he never thought he would ever be healed. So he let himself cry, for her, for Hannah, for his mom, and…for himself . For everything that was in the past.
He let himself move on and cried in the arms of his love .
They must have fallen asleep, because when he woke again, Kumu was gazing at them, her grin infectious.
“Hey, what’s the time?”he asked, rubbing his eyes a little.
“It’s almost midnight. Are you gonna stay overnight?”
“ Yes .” he answered immediately, and Kumu just smiled.
“ Good . I’m gonna go, but tomorrow morning I’ll be back with changes of clothes for both of you. The doctors let her be for today, but they wanna do those investigations soon.”
She winked and waved, making her way outside:
“Be good, and sleep well.”
His chuckle must have woken Juliet, he felt her stir under his numb arm and she turned to hug and kiss him, as soon as she could. Thomas moved gently with her wounded and fragile body, his hand cradling her neck and his lips gliding over hers with care.
She made a disproving noise when he tried to stop the kiss, and he felt her, tugging at his shirt in protest. Between his laughter, he said:
“My love, you’re still recovering…”
With a move of her tongue into his mouth she effectively shut him up, her hand pulling at his short hair at the nape, her back arching into his embrace. His hands tightened over her back and lowered slowly to cup her rear and pull her into himself even more.
There wasn’t any space between their bodies anymore, but he felt he needed to stop. She wasn’t ready for things to be progressing that fast, that soon.
“Higgy…” he warned gently, when she started to bite at his jaw and neck.
“ Hmmm… ” was all he could get out of her.
“We need to stop.”
She opened a button on his shirt, to place an open mouthed kiss onto his chest there, and he almost groaned. He had to stop her, and soon.
Catching her wandering hands, he pulled her to eye level again, her glazed gaze making him smirk.
“You don’t even know how much I want to continue down this path, but…”
She let out a huff, straightening herself, and snuggling into his chest again.
“I know, I know .”
Laughing and carding his fingers through her soft curls he kissed her forehead and tightened his embrace.
“We have all the time in the world now, we’ll get there. I know how much you want to have your way with me, but you’ll just have to restrain yourself for now.”
His eyebrows wiggled when she looked up at him, her nose wrinkled in mock disgust.
“You drive a hard bargain, mister Magnum; and I am, after all, your employee, so I should listen to my boss .”
His belly trembled with a spike of lust at her tone, but he just shook his head, and kissed her chastely on the forehead again, feeling her settle into his embrace.
“You’re a menace , has anyone ever told you that before?”
She giggled into his chest.
“Only to you.”
“It still hurts a bit when I’m walking, but not enough to make me use that annoying contraption.” Juliet made a vague gesture towards the wheelchair, while her other hand was holding onto the metallic rail.
Cole Vaughn, her recovery physician laughed and moved closer, to help with the last of her daily exercises.
“It’s only been a month since you woke up Juliet, I think you can be forgiven if you would still want to use it once in a while, just to rest a bit. You’re doing marvellous !”
His enthusiasm was infectious, and she smiled, even if she was feeling exhausted.
“Nope, I’m a big girl, I can endure the separation.”
He smiled again, and she clocked a nurse looking at them with a bit of a side eye.
‘Was she interested in the man?’
She was about to make a remark; Cole was a wonderful physician and a very kind human being. From what he had told her over the last month, his wife had died in a tragic accident, and he was now the sole parent for a ten year old girl, Ella.
Maybe he would be intrigued at the idea of a colleague showing interest towards him.
She didn’t have any time to begin the round of gossip though, because the next moment she was being bombarded by loud voices coming from the corridor, which she immediately recognized as T.C. 's, Rick’s and Thomas’s. She smiled automatically.
“C’mon TM, you know an ocean view restaurant, is way better than a mountain view!”
“My friend, you are not thinking big enough, I mean…Thomas here is an actual billionaire, he could fly to Italy, or Paris, or, or…Sweden !”
Juliet giggled at Rick's enthusiasm, although she had no idea what they were talking about.
“Sweden, really? What would we do? Go to the sauna?” Magnum deadpanned.
When they entered though, all of them stopped, as if they were surprised.
Juliet unconsciously pulled at her oversize shirt and leggings. They looked like they were hiding something, like boys caught with their hands in the cookie jar.
“ What ?”
Thomas was the first to recover and came to her with the speed of light.
“Hey babe, I didn’t know that you started your exercises already, I thought…”
He looked at his watch, and then at Cole suspiciously, and Juliet arched an eyebrow in question. He was being extra weird today, she noted.
“I moved them earlier today, Cole was free and…” she sighed deeply, holding tighter onto the rail, kissing him softly on the lips. “I wanted to be done with them, with me leaving the hospital tomorrow and all.”
“ Doc ..” Magnum nodded towards the man that was waiting for Juliet with the wheelchair at the ready.
She shook her head.
“Nope, I told you, I’m not using that anymore.”
“Juliet, your legs probably hurt by now, I can tell…”
Magnum just ended the discussion by shoving one arm under her legs, and curling another around her back, lifting her up and into his arms with a smile.
“ There . Problem solved.”
She snorted into his chest, Cole’s astounded face at her partner’s spontaneity reminding her of her own, in the early beginnings.
Without waiting for anyone else, Magnum started walking her slowly towards her own hospital room, her sneaker clad feet hanging in the air. People were watching them like they were nuts, but she just smiled and hid into his shoulder, only looking up at him when they were inside the elevator.
“Thomas, are you somehow… ” she pulled at the corner of his collar, her grin starting in one corner of her mouth.
He gave her his whole attention.
“ Jealous ?”
“Over doctor Grey McHottie over there? Nope . Not at all, why do you ask?”
She giggled again, whispering into his neck:
“This is the Ethan thing , all over again.”
“Hmmmm…maybe.”
She rolled her eyes but kept her head resting on his chest, her lips kissing his neck for a second, surprising him. Her need for him was starting to overwhelm even her, she couldn’t wait for them to be alone again.
“ Easy there tiger, we’re in a public space.”
She just shrugged shamelessly, making him laugh.
Back inside the room, Juliet was settling on her bed, and thinking how was she going to ask Thomas to remove her sneakers for her, when she saw him pacing the room, mind elsewhere.
Smiling gently, she caught his arm mid air.
“Are you OK?”
His answer was…anxiety riddled.
“Me? yeah, yeah, yeah. I’m good , I’m fine. Why ? Don’t I seem fine?”
She just burst out laughing.
“ No , you behaved totally odd from the time you entered the room. Thomas , what is happening? Is everything OK?”
Her hand rubbed at his arm, comfortingly, her smile inviting. He sighed and shook his head.
“I’m fine, let’s just …let’s just help you into bed, alright?”
She wrinkled her nose, dropping the subject, but remaining alert.
“Oh, so now you want me in bed, hmm ?”
His brow was very high up his forehead when he looked at her from the floor, where he was tugging at the laces of her sneakers.
She started humming, her chest feeling warm and peaceful . The last month had been difficult, with her recovery and treatment, and the infinite number of tests the medic wanted her to do, but also…extremely happy .
She didn’t remember ever feeling this happy, for such a long period of time. And all of that was because of the man currently untying her laces.
She almost laughed again. Her boss, her friend and now… her most trusted partner. The love she could not live without.
“Juliet?”
Startling out of reverie, she looked down and gasped. At her feet, Thomas Magnum stood with an open box that held what was probably the most beautiful ring she ever saw in her life.
Her jaw was on the floor, her mind was turning into mush and her voice seemed lost again.
“Will you marry me?”