As Frank drove away with Mei Lin, Lucien felt a pang of regret. Who knew if they would ever meet again? And Mei Lin had been part of his life for so long, even when he thought she was dead. Jean reached out a hand to touch his arm, sensing a certain sadness in him, and he took her hand in his.
Pulling her closer, his hand to her cheek now in that gesture she loved from him, he leaned down to kiss her. Rather to his surprise it was Jean who rapidly closed the gap between them, kissing him with an urgency that neither of them had expected. She held the back of his neck, ruffling the slight curls that escaped there, and savoured the moment she could finally claim him as hers.
Lucien rapidly recovered from his surprise and responded with longing. The kiss was brief but passionate, and then they waited for a moment, foreheads touching, reluctant to move on.
Then Jean turned to go into the house, somewhat embarrassed by the display of emotion, only to be called back by Lucien.
"Jean, there's something I need to ask you..." He smiled at her and she made eye contact again. "May I finish what I started to ask you before? Will you marry me, Jean?"
She couldn't resist smiling broadly at him. "Of course I will, though that has to be the longest proposal ever!" she replied. "But I don't think we should be engaged until you are free to marry, so can we just agree that I'll promise to marry you, and leave having a proper engagement till the divorce comes through?"
"If you'll marry me, whatever you want is fine," said Lucien, hugging her close again, "just as long as I can kiss you," and he broke off to do just that, "and hold you." With that he held her tightly against himself and lifted her just off the ground, making them both laugh.
"We'll be attracting attention from the neighbours if we go on like this," said Jean, and when he set her back on her feet she took him by the hand and led him inside. When the front door closed behind them, she turned and gave him a firm kiss on the mouth, brief but very definite, and full of an assurance she hadn't felt until just then.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
That evening, with the dishes washed and drinks poured out, Lucien came to sit beside Jean on the couch. Putting his arm around her shoulders, he kissed her on the cheek and whispered in her ear. "I'm so happy you've said yes, Jean. I do love you."
He took from his trouser pocket the ring box with his mother's ring in it. "I'd like you to have the ring back, Jean. I felt so unhappy when you left it on my desk. It's your ring and I want you to have it now, even if you don't want to wear it yet."
She took the box and opened it, then picked up the ring and slipped it on her finger for the first time. "I hated leaving it for you like that," she murmured, " and I'll be proud to wear it when we are properly engaged." She held up her hand for him to see the ring on her finger, and kissed him on the cheek. "It's beautiful, thank you." And with that, she took the ring off and replaced it in the box, then put the box in her pocket. Reaching for Lucien's hand to hold, she kissed him lightly and whispered back that she loved him too.