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Roman could barely swallow as he approached Chloe across the room. His throat felt so tight and swollen as if someone was invisibly strangling him. His tongue was gritty, like sandpaper.
“I need to show you something,” he confessed with a wild and frenzied tone reflecting in his voice.
Chloe’s face was ashen with anxiety. “Okay,” she visibly gulped.
“Follow me,” he whispered, taking her hand. To his relief, she agreed even though he wasn't very forthcoming of information.
They left the hotel and journeyed down the street, hand in hand. To Roman’s surprise, she didn’t ask him any questions along the way. She remained stoically silent. If she didn’t press him, the suspense would build higher until it exploded, but that was the way Roman preferred it to be. Energy buzzed between them, and he was grateful she kept herself together and didn’t pepper him with questions. He swore his body was coming apart at the seams, his nervousness through the roof.
As soon as they reached the Eiffel Tower in its grandiose, magnificent poise, Roman halted his pace and took a deep breath.
Chloe glanced at him; confusion splashed across her features. Her curious blue eyes were as wide as the Seine River as she wordlessly questioned him with a curious expression.
Roman’s heart was pounding in his chest. He didn’t know if he could go through with this, but in his mind, it was now or never. He had come so far to turn back now. His destination was right in front of him, but at the same time, it was only the beginning of his journey, a path that he never wanted to walk alone or trail across without Chloe by his side.
He squeezed her delicately feminine, dainty hands in his enormous ones. God, he hoped this made her happy. That soon, there would be tears of joy in her eyes.
“What are we doing here?” Her voice cracked.
Roman didn’t answer. He couldn’t answer. Everything was happening in slow motion. People pushed past him, robotically and mechanically going about their days, entranced in their own little worlds.
In one fluid motion, he got down on one knee. He glanced up at Chloe. The sun was reflecting through her silky blonde hair. The rays of the sunlight were glowing through her hair, providing an illusion that she was an angel as she gazed down at him.
“Chloe...” he began. “I love you so much. I’ve loved you since Hawaii. I never want to spend another day of my life without you.”
Chloe’s worry faded and gradually shifted to confusion, then triumphant joy as she realized exactly what was happening. Glassy tears pooled in her eyes and ran down her pinkened cheeks.
“Oh my... Roman...” her voice trailed off as a sob took their place.
Roman could then see a crowd of onlookers beginning to form a circle of curiosity around the two of them, but he didn’t care. He only had eyes for Chloe.
“You make me feel so amazing,” he confessed. “Every time I’m with you, I feel like we could conquer the world together. Will you be my wife?”
The question hung in the air like a feather fluttering towards the ground. He held a tiny open box from Tiffany’s exposing a beautiful and flashy center princess cut diamond, proudly on display for Chloe’s approval.
He held his breath and tensed every muscle in his body as he waited for her answer. If she said no, the entire world would know about it within hours. Worse, he’d feel it in his heart for the rest of his life.
Please don’t say no.
Chloe began to nod at first, apparently unable to populate any words from her brain.
“Yes...” she croaked, nodding gleefully through sniffs and tears. “Yes, I’ll marry you!” She wrapped her arms around him as she squeezed tightly.
He swung her around as euphoria took over. Placing her back on her feet to the cheer of the crowd, he took the ring from the box and placed it gently on her finger.
Chloe beamed, flashing the diamond around as she swirled her hand in a circle of disbelief that any of this was actually happening. Roman kissed the joyful tears off her cheeks.
“I just couldn’t wait another second to ask you,” he breathed into her neck. “I can’t wait to announce the engagement at the last show tonight,” he confessed.
“And I can’t wait to be your wife,” Chloe said with pride, glancing down at her ring with elation.
He had come full circle. The beginning of the tour had come with such a bleak perspective, but he had made it through the storm to once again see the rainbow on the other side.
Chloe was his pot of gold, and he would love her for all of eternity.
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HAVE YOU READ HEARTS Collide – Book 1 in the Infinity Prism series yet? Read the blurb below.
Former groupie, Emelia Greene's social media skills have landed her backstage with a band she's loved since high school. When her boyfriend's company is hired by the lead singer to handle their first world tour it's a dream come true. But discovering her boyfriend's true colors while on the road becomes a nightmare.
Her heart is torn as the past and present collide, threatening what could be.
Lead singer, Trevor Jameson has trouble written all over him. The world only sees him as the bad boy rock star. But he’s got a heart, bigger than his reputation and he shows it when he’s determined to look out for Emelia.
Undeniably drawn together, their friendship quickly smolders into something more. Something neither of them was looking for.