Chapter 109: Chapter 109

''With all my heart, with every inch of my soul, with every breath that I take, I promise to love you forever. With every cell of my body, with every beat of my heart, I will cherish you forever.'' - Rituparna Darolia

Claire's POV

We left for Jason's mansion, early the next morning as the traffic would be least.

"Welcome home, love," he said, picking me up and carrying me to the front door. However, he placed me down once we were inside, his arm guiding me up the stairwell to his bedroom. He deposited my luggage there. "Let's rest for some time, then we will go down for breakfast," he said and I agreed.

I already had a sandwich and coffee at aunt Emily's house. At this rate, if I ate, I was afraid that I would get fat in no time, but I couldn't make them understand the logic. It was like talking to a wall. So I ate anything they gave me, whenever they gave me, and however much they gave me!

We went down for breakfast which his housekeeper had prepared especially for me. "Mandy, this is Claire, take good care of her. She's special," he said as I blushed. Why did he have to give such a vivid description of me? What Mandy would think of me?

Mandy was a large woman in her early fifties, "Yes Jason, Sarah told me about her. She's cute and you two look perfect together," she said and my eyes widened at the news. I wondered what aunt Sarah might have told her about me! Did she tell her that I was a lovesick teenager who was crazy about her son?

"Claire, this is Mandy, she's been with me since I was born," he said and Mandy grinned at the two of us.

"Oh, then I'll ask her all about your baby mischiefs," I joked and Mandy grinned.

"Wait till you and I get some time alone," she said with a wink and left to get our food.

We gobbled the delicious pancakes, bacon, egg, cheese bagels, and fruit salad till we couldn't eat anymore.

"Let's go for a walk on the beach. At this rate we will have to roll instead of walking," I said as Jason chuckled and got up.

"Get ready and come down in five minutes, we'll go to the beach," he said and I rushed upstairs to get ready.

We strolled hand in hand on the beach, simply enjoying each other's presence. I was thankful for getting the love of my life back.

When we reached a secluded area, there were rose petals strewn in the shape of a huge heart on the sand and a heart outlined too. Jason took me there and holding me in his arms asked, "Will you be my girlfriend Claire?"

I was stunned by the simple question. I couldn't believe that it was really happening, that Jason was really asking me to be his girlfriend. It was a dream that I had nurtured in my heart during my growing up years and still do. Finally, that dream was about to come true!

"Yes Jason," I whispered and he kissed me tenderly. We came back to Jason's house as his girlfriend, my face glowing with happiness.

"You're moving in with me, love," he said and I stared at him, shocked.

"No Jason, dad will kill me," I said panicking.

"No, they won't. I have permission from both sets of parents," he said and I was dumbfounded. How did dad give him permission so willingly?

"So, will you move in, baby?" he asked me with so much feeling that I couldn't say no.

"Yes Jason," I said and he hugged me tightly.

"You've made me the happiest man alive," he said sincerely. 'Me too, Jason. You've made me the happiest person alive too.' My inner mind prodded me to tell him but I was tongue-tied and couldn't utter a single word more.

He had to go to his office to sign some documents and attend an important meeting, so he left and I spent the time, sleeping and exploring the garden area.

He called me to inform me that we had a dinner invitation at his parent's house in the evening. So, I got ready wearing a powder blue knee-length, sleeveless dress with a boat-shaped neckline and light folds from the hip. I tied my hair up in a French twist securing it with a powder blue comb.

Jason came from work and after freshening up, came downstairs to the kitchen where I was sipping water. "You're looking very beautiful and elegant," he said as I beamed happily. "And very very grown up," he whispered taking my breath away.

"Oh," I gasped and he smiled seeing the effect he had upon me.

"Shall we go?" He asked and I nodded and we climbed into his navy blue BMW.

The whole ride we chatted about different things we liked. "Why did you always ignore me before? You never spoke to me. You never even acknowledged my presence," I complained, finally finding the courage to ask him.

"What else could I do? You were a child then. How could I tell you that I loved you?" he said and I stared at him dumbfounded by his confessions.

"You love me?" I asked in disbelief.

"Yeah, it's obvious, isn't it? When you were born, dad and uncle Nate told me that you were mine. My five-year-old brain accepted you and fell in love with you then. I have loved you ever since that day. Later when you turned eighteen, Uncle Nate and dad fixed our marriage, but I wanted you to fall in love with me the way I love you. I wanted you to be my girlfriend, to go on dates with me. I wanted to experience everything with you," he said as I just listened to him mesmerized by what he was saying.

"But I already love you. I had a crush on you when I was younger though," I said and he chuckled.

"I know, so I kept my distance. I didn't want to take advantage of our situation, but you were turning more beautiful every time we met and I had a tough time keeping myself away from you," he said and I smiled.

We reached his parents' house and rang the doorbell. Uncle Kevin opened the door and ushered us in. Aunt Sarah came out of the kitchen and hugged me. "Oh, my favorite girl is here. You are glowing, sweetheart. I'm so glad that Jason could make you feel better," she said and I blushed.

Another couple came down the stairs. The guy looked exactly like Jason, with no difference at all between them and I knew it was Jordan. He had changed and looked exactly like Jason although he didn't resemble him so much when younger. "Claire, this is my eldest son, Jordan. You might have met him when you were younger. They both look identical, only their eye colours are different. Also Jordan has a tattoo on his left arm," said uncle Kevin as I smiled shyly at Jordan.

"This is Jennifer, Jordan's fiancée. They're getting married next week," said aunt Sarah.

"You guys already know Claire, my girlfriend," said Jason possessively as aunt Sarah smiled at us indulgently.

"You have to attend our wedding since you are a part of the family now," said Jennifer as I nodded.

Dinner went well among a constant chatter. Aunt Sarah ensured that I ate well. She even suggested that I lie down for some time before leaving. I assured her that I was alright. We left early as I was getting too tired.