Chapter 1212:
Wesley’s laugh was bitter and harsh. “I went to the exact location she gave me and walked straight into an ambush. Torin had a whole army of assassins waiting. Just like him to fight dirty. I got shot in the gut, and the only way to escape was to jump into the sea. Someone from the Gaxora fished me out of the water. I was unconscious for days and only woke up a few days ago. To keep Earle from tracking me down, I had to cut off all communication.”
“The Gaxora?” Elena’s eyebrows shot up in surprise.
Wesley studied her face carefully. “Yeah, why? What about it?”
Elena’s voice was quiet. “I was on the Gaxora today.”
“You were there?” Wesley’s eyes went wide with shock.
Elena nodded, her voice growing softer. “Were you staying on the fourth floor? I searched the first three looking for you, but you weren’t there.”
Wesley’s face shifted through a dozen emotions at once—surprise, concern, love, and something that looked close to tears. Without warning, he grabbed her and pulled her against his chest, holding her so tight she could barely breathe. She had been looking for him the whole time.
She had never stopped trying to find him. He was never going to let her go again. Not in this lifetime, not in any lifetime.
His voice came out rough and emotional as he whispered against her hair, “Elena, will you marry me?”
Wesley had been planning to propose to Elena the moment they returned to Klathe, but the emotions building in his chest made him ask her to marry him right then, in that very moment.
As soon as the words left his mouth, though, he felt like a complete fool and wanted to take them back. He didn’t have anything proper for a proposal—no diamond ring, no bouquet of roses—and he was badly injured. Asking her to marry him in this shabby room in a foreign country felt like an insult to her.
Before Elena could even respond, he quickly blurted, “Forget it. Just pretend I didn’t say anything.”
Elena stared at him, her mouth hanging open in shock. She had definitely heard him ask her to marry him, clear as day.
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Just as she began to speak, Wesley pressed his hand over her mouth to stop her. “Don’t answer me,” he said desperately. “This one doesn’t count. I’ll do it properly in the future.”
Elena grabbed his wrist and pulled his hand away, rolling her eyes at him like he was being ridiculous.
As he held her tightly against his chest, all the fear and worry that had been gnawing at him melted away. She wasn’t going to leave him behind, and he wasn’t going to let her go anywhere without him.
Elena’s voice was gentle as she asked, “So why did you leave the Gaxora?” The ship had been a safe hiding place for him, so why hadn’t he just stayed there until his wound healed or until Arian tracked him down?
Wesley wasn’t about to admit that he had rushed over like a madman because he’d heard Torin had proposed to her and was terrified she might actually say yes. “Once I found out you were here in Yoswye, nothing in the world could have stopped me from coming to find you,” he said, hoping it sounded better than the truth.
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