He Left Me Broken Now He Wants Me Back Chapter 42
I watched him pull a small, velvet-covered box from his pocket.
“I know that starting over doesn’t erase what happened before. And I know that you saying yes to me now doesn’t mean you have to say yes to me every time.”
He opened the box.
“Olivia, will you marry me?”
I didn’t answer immediately.
Rowan’s hand began to tremble.
“You can think about it. Take as long as you need.”
“What if I say no?”
His face paled.
“I’ll be sad. But I’ll accept it.”
“You won’t show up at the theater every day with the ring?”
“No.”
“You won’t ask Dr. Bennett to coach you on a better proposal?”
“I didn’t ask him this time.”
I couldn’t help but smile.
He still looked at me, his expression tense.
I held out my hand.
“Yes.”
Rowan didn’t move.
“What, you changed your mind?” I teased.
“Yes.”
He said it too fast, just like the first time I told him we could try again.
“Yes.”
As the ring slid onto my finger, the house lights were already dark.
Only a single, bare work light glowed over the stage.
A year later, we were married in the theater.
Jenna fixed my veil. Evan and the rest of the cast were tasked with keeping Rowan, who looked like he might burst into tears at any second, hidden behind the stage curtain.
The ceremony was short.
No one talked about who had saved whom.
I wasn’t saved by Rowan’s investment. And he didn’t go back to the OR because of me.
We had both, finally, learned to make our own decisions. And then, while moving forward, we had simply chosen the same direction.
When the ceremony ended, Rowan took my hand and led me out of the theater.
He opened the car door for me, then paused.
“Can I drive you home?”
I looked at him.
Years ago, standing outside the publishing house, he had opened a car door for me just like this.
Back then, I had thought loving someone meant letting them lead you where they wanted to go.
Later, I understood that real love isn’t about being taken home by someone else.
It’s about knowing where you want to go, and having them willing to walk beside you.
“Yes,” I said.
The Chicago night wind swept down the street.
We went home together.
The End