That startled a watery smile out of her. “Don’t get melodramatic. The rest of your life is a long time.” She paused. “I hope.”
“Do you?” He slid his arms around her hips and laid his head in her lap. “No matter how long it is, it’ll be too long without you.”
Whoa. Following up his advantage, the crafty, presumptuous bastard. He’d caught her in a weak moment, and now he was just waiting for her to cave. And oh, how she wanted to cave. So badly.
Nancy put her hands on his shoulders, with a vague notion of pushing him away, but as soon as they made contact, her fingers dug in. His muscles seemed leaner, harder than before. He trembled.
She couldn’t push him away. She had no strength for it. She found herself bowing down like a wilting flower. Draped over him, her hands splayed over his ribs, feeling the rise and fall of his breath.
“How’s your nose?” she asked.
“Healing,” he replied. “No big deal.”
“It was for me,” she said. “It was huge, for me. You saved my life. Again. Thanks, by the way.”
He lifted his head, and frowned. “Speaking of which. You should not be alone here. It’s not safe.”
She sighed. “Don’t start. If it comforts you, my sisters have been babysitting me. I just needed to be alone.”
He looked dubious, but let it go. After a moment, he cautiously tried again. “So. Ah, how did it all go?”
“How did what go?”
“The gig. Peter and Enid. Are they megasuperstars now?”
“Not one bit of sarcasm out of you, or it’s out the door, Knightly.”
He lifted his hands in quick surrender. “Sorry.”
She harrumphed, unmollified. “It went well,” she said coolly. “It was a big boost for both their careers. And mine, too, incidentally.”
“Ah. Well, good. I’m happy for them. And you.”
She was appalled to realize that she was trying not to smile at his supercareful, kid-gloves tone. “That’s very big of you, Liam.”
“I hope they appreciate you now.” The edge was back in his voice.
“I think they do. They even paid back the money they owed me.”
“No shit?” He looked impressed. “How’d you swing that?”
“I put my foot down. I admit, that approach does have its uses.”
He looked away. She couldn’t see his mouth, but she could feel that he was trying not to smile. “Funny how you should say that,” he said. “Myself, I’ve been working on the concept of compromise.”
“Oh, really?” Her heart thudded crazily. “And how do you feel about it these days?”
He shrugged. “It’s not as bad as I thought.”
They gazed at each other. She laid her fingertips against the bruises under his eyes, petting them. He seized her hand, kissed it.
“I called my father,” he offered.
She blinked, taken aback. “Wow. And? So? How did it go?”
“It was weird,” he admitted. “Awkward. But we got through it.”
“So? What did you say to him? What did he say? Tell me!”
He kissed her hand again, and again, making her wait. “I, uh, asked him if I should send him an invitation to my wedding.”
Her jaw dropped. Too much, all at once. Her throat shook.
“Ah, shit,” Liam muttered. “I’m sorry. That came out all wrong. I know I have to propose, and beg and grovel first. And I didn’t mean to sound like it’s a done deal. It was a…a hypothetical question.”
“Hy-hypothetical,” she whispered.
“Yeah. You know. In case I get lucky.”
She hid her face. He waited patiently for several minutes.
“So?” he coaxed. “You are my queen. Everything that’s beautiful and fine. I’ll spend my life trying to be worthy. Trying not to fuck this up. Please. Say yes. Be my wife.”
“I…I love you, too,” she burst out.
His grin began to spread. “That’s a yes? That means I got lucky?”
“That means I love you,” she said. “I already have two wedding dresses in storage. I don’t know if I could handle being engaged again.”
“Okay,” he said promptly. “Let’s skip the engaged part, and go straight to the married part. I got on the Internet before I came here. There’s a red-eye flight for Vegas. Tonight.”
She started to laugh, helplessly, tears in her eyes. “Oh, God.”
“We can get married by an Elvis impersonator. Spend three days on a vibrating bed. Rent a convertible, drive through the desert.”
It sounded surreal. Wonderful. “What about the invitation? For your dad?”
He shrugged. “Oh, that. We can do another wedding when we’re back. For your sisters, and your friends. This one will be just for us.”
He waited for a moment, and went on, his voice more hesitant. “Your schedule permitting, of course. I didn’t buy the tickets yet. Didn’t want to seem cocky. It can wait. If you’ve got work commitments.”
“Wow, Liam,” she said demurely. “That speech sounds rehearsed.”
“It’s so obvious?” he asked, rueful. “Give me credit for trying.”
Nancy slid her hands around his waist. “Have you been eating?”
“Hey! You stole my line.”
“I have to fatten you up,” she said. “There’s this great little Vietnamese place down the block that has killer noodles.”
“Don’t you have any noodles here? Spaghetti, linguini?”
“Are you kidding?” she scoffed. “With a name like D’Onofrio?”
“If we make our noodles here, we have the advantage of being able to get naked and sweaty while the water boils,” he pointed out.
She laughed at him, tears slipping down her face. “Um, all right.”
“That’s awesome. But you haven’t answered my proposal.”
She bit her lip. “Liam. I love you. You love me. Isn’t that miracle enough for now? Can’t we just be grateful? Let’s not push our luck.”
He looked mutinous. “I want it all. Every night. In my bed.”
“Hmm,” she murmured. “I thought you were working on the concept of compromise.”
“Yeah, but let’s not overdo it.” He touched her face, as carefully as if she were one of Lucia’s orchids. “I almost lost you forever,” he said. “It would have ripped my heart out. I love you, Nancy. I’ll never stop loving you. Push your luck with me all you want, and keep on pushing. There’s no limit to it. It’s bigger than any limits. It’s deeper than the ocean.”
Something moved inside her chest, swelling until her heart was about to burst. Until there was no more room for fear.
“Yes,” she said, and reached for him.
Ask for More
Chapter
1
It was him again. Right on time.
Nell ducked behind the dessert display case, eying him hungrily over the pecan fudge brownies, tingling from that guilty rush she got whenever she saw him. The only thing effervescent enough to ease the chronic, heavy ache in her middle that she was carrying around these days. She craved the feeling.
He checked to see if his usual table by the window was free. It was. The lunch rush was nearly over by the time he arrived; three-fifteen, regular as clockwork.
He took off his jacket, tossed it on the chair, and seated himself. He pulled out a laptop, opened it, and set to work, face grimly intent. As he had every day Nell had worked the lunch shift at the Sunset Grill.