She'd needed this a lot more than she thought. Even though she had good friends whom she could rely on, John was the only one who made her feel comfortable letting herself be weak. John was the only one she could ever cling to like this. They were facing a huge challenge, but she could feel his acceptance in his arms and she knew: he would face this with her. They would stand side by side.

Marry me. The words made her heart skip a beat. She had long known that there couldn't be anyone for her but him, that he was the one she wanted to spend her life with. Intense joy flooded her, but it was instantly tempered by concern. "I want to marry you. I want to spend my life with you, but... Promise me you'd still want this even if we weren't going to have a child."