Oh, if she were a lesser woman those three words would have brought her to her knees. But she managed to stay on her feet, even if it was with a slightly goofier grin on her face than had been there before. He'd read her gesture just as she'd meant it. Even if she had been slightly afraid to say the words again. In case they were the magic words that would break the spell. If they were, it would have broken right there, wouldn't it?
"I didn't say those words often enough, before. But I do love you, heart and soul. And I would carry you, if I dared." But she didn't. Instead Shepard looped her arm into his and started leading the way to the Normandy. "I'll be flat honest. I... haven't been inside it for the last eighteen months. Except for when Hem needed it. JARVIS has kept it clean though."