Let the fire born again

Ariel's POV As I guide Arielle to the waiting chopper, my heart is racing frantically. I have closed more multi-million dollar deals than I can remember, yet I have never felt terror like I do now. She says, "Are you okay?" as I fasten her seatbelt. 'You're so quiet." I sat down beside her and nodded, not being able to control my nerves. "Where are we heading?" Through the headphones, Arielle asks roars. I smile at her. "You'll discover." I firmly grasp her hand as we take off in the direction of the cottage where our adventure begins. Though I am aware that thinking back on hypothetical scenarios is pointless, I can't help but wish that events had turned out differently lately. What if I had genuinely remembered my night with Arielle and had consumed a bit less alcohol? Years ago, would we have been contentedly married? Together, we would have created a tonne of more memories and spared each other a great deal of suffering. "Whoa!" With a broad smile on her face, Arielle gestures out the window, revealing the hundreds of flowers that had been scattered around the grass. She is so gorgeous. It still amazes me that she's mine at last.When we land, I tell her to "come on" and hold out my hand. I can never get enough of the way she looks at me. As I lead her to the platform I had constructed, surrounded by hundreds of floral arrangements, my heart accelerates. I've tried my best to make the situation look as romantic as possible, but I'm concerned it's not enough. When I look across to Arielle, she giggles. Ariel , what is this? I take a moment to bite my lip to regain my courage. Hell on wheels. My hands feel clammy, indicating how anxious I am. For me, this is undoubtedly a first. However, since she's the only person I ever lose my cool around, it makes sense. 'Arielle," I tell her. "I have a question for you, so I wanted to take you back to the beginning of everything." I take out of my pocket the ring box that I have had for a lot longer than I would like to confess and open it. As Arielle's eyes enlarge, I bend down to one knee. "You are the love of my life, Arielle Warren. I'm not sure I could tell you when I first fell in love with you since, in all honesty, I can't recall ever not loving you. All I can say is that I adore you more and more every day. You are my favorite part of every day, the joy of my life, and the best thing that has ever happened to me. You are the woman I've always wanted and felt I lost out on. Baby, I wish I could go back in time and make up for all the wrongs we've experienced. But I can't. All I can do is assure you that every single day we have together, I will make up for the time we lost. I'll do everything in my power to keep your smile safe and make you happy if you let me. Arielle, there is nothing I won't do for you. I inhaled shakily, my hands quivering slightly. "There are many things that you and I missed out on when we were married. My dear, let's start a new because there are so many things you were not able to experience. I want you to have everything we would have had together, and everything you deserve. So, where we kissed for the first time, here I would want to ask you again. Will you marry me and make me the happiest man alive, Arielle? I stare up at her, a peculiar fear keeping me imprisoned. Arielle nods and smiles, tears welling up in her eyes. Indeed, Ariel . I'll marry you. If I could do it all over again, I'd still choose you. You will always be my first choice. I shove the engagement ring I purchased her onto her finger, right up against her wedding ring, and smile as relief floods through me. It fits perfectly. I stand up and throw my arms around my spouse. "Arielle, you are loved." Let's repeat the entire process. Let's start from the beginning. I envision you in the wedding gown of your dreams, in a location we both adore and surrounded by people who genuinely matter to you. I want a wedding that's entirely about us, and not about our commitments or our families. You are mine. She nods and casts a tearful gaze at me. "You know that you truly are my every dream come true?" She looks down at her ring, astounded, and then back up at me. "How did you find out?" she queries. "This is precisely what I desired." I hesitate and brush her hair out of her face. "Recall the day I invited you to go shopping with me and we visited a jewelry store? For a brief while, you were examining rings, with your gaze resting on a ring resembling this one. She nods, probably remembering that it was Loretta for whom we had gone shopping that day. A day later, I gave Bumble a call and asked him to build this ring. I wanted something that no one else in the world would have, yet it was reminiscent of the ring you fell in love with in that store. It was foolish since, at the time, I couldn't possibly give it to you, but I had to have it. I'm not sure, but perhaps a tiny part of me always knew we would end up together. "On that day," she murmurs. "I remember thinking to myself that I couldn't imagine marrying anyone but you when I saw that ring." My heart aches as I lower my forehead to hers. I mumble, "We lost so much time." If I could go back in time and have another chance, I would do anything. Should I have it to do again, I would make sure that nothing or no one ever stood in our way. 'Maybe we did," she adds, 'but maybe this is for the best. We both had time to grow, to become better versions of ourselves than we would have been when we were young. Ariel , our lives have changed each other, and although I wish we could go back in time and forget some of our memories of each other, there is also a part of me that is happy that we are standing here as a couple today. I'm thankful for every lesson we learned and every diversion our life took since they all ultimately brought me back to you. I nod and cup her cheek gently. I lean down and say, "It did," my lips grazing hers. "And I promise never to let you go."