Maya’s POV
I stared at him like he’d lost his mind.
“Marry you?” I repeated, because maybe the words had sounded different in the humid air and I’d misheard.
“Marry me,” he said again, like that should explain everything. His jaw was hard, his eyes too bright. “Marry me, Maya. I want you. I want to wake up to you. I want you under my name. I want to protect you. Stop saying it’s not real. Make me believe you’ll stay.”
My laugh came out thin. “You’re serious.” The laugh hid the part of me that wanted to throw myself at him and say yes so loud the island would hear me.
“Liam…” My voice trembled though I tried not to show it. “You think marriage is just something you wake up one morning and decide on?”
“It’s been on my mind for a while now,” he said, putting a strand of hair behind my e
