"I'm supposed to believe that she jeopardized the entire team just to force me into making some kind of grand romantic gesture?" He was starting to shout. "I'm supposed to believe this?"
Kevin loved her! She could see it in his eyes, hear it in his frustration. He'd been willing to give up the team for her, and her heart sang. But the sound was almost drowned out by another noise-one as unexpected as it was inevitable.
The clang of a fire alarm.
She tried to ignore it. Even though she knew Kevin's career with the Stars was as secure as ever, he hadn't known it, and the fact was, he'd been willing to make the sacrifice.
Yes, her heart was definitely singing. Yes, this was a moment she could spend her entire life reliving. A moment that was perfect.
Except for the fire alarm.
She refused to listen to it. "You seem a little angry."
"Angry? Now, why would I be angry?"
"Because you thought Phoebe kicked you off the Stars."
"You forget that I don't care about the Stars anymore. You forget that I want to play for a team with an owner who understands that the point of the game is winning, not jeopardizing millions of dollars in revenue so her star quarterback can play Sir Galahad!"
The fire alarm clanged louder. "Then you didn't make much of a sacrifice."
He was a champion, so he could spot the blitz coming from a mile away, and his expression grew wary. "This is important to you? This whole romantic-gesture thing?"
Clang… Clang… Clang… "I have to get ready for tea."
"I haven't done enough? You want something more?"
"Not at all."
A muffled curse, and then he swept her into his arms and began carrying her toward the woods. "How's this for a romantic gesture?"
She crossed her arms over her chest, crossed her ankles, a perfect portrait of petulance, but she felt sick. "If this involves naked bodies, it's sex, not romance."
Unfortunately, he set her down instead of kissing her until he'd drowned out the sound of a thousand fire alarms. "You think I don't know the difference between sex and romance? You think because I'm male, I'm obtuse."
Her Great Love Story was on a downhill spiral because of a fire alarm that had grown so loud she wanted to cover her ears. "I guess only you can answer that question."
"All right, here's what I'm going to do." He took a deep breath and met her gaze straight on. "I'll win the Super Bowl for you."
She realized he meant it, and little starbursts of happiness exploded inside her-each one punctuated by the noise of the alarm. Right then she understood that she was facing the fundamental question of her life, a question that had its roots in the heart of a little girl who'd been emotionally abandoned when she was much too young. Kevin Tucker was strong enough to slay dragons for her and strong enough to win the Super Bowl for her, but was he strong enough to love her even when she wasn't lovable? She needed an answer that would quiet the fire alarm forever.
"It's only July, loser," she sneered. "By Super Bowl Sunday I'll have forgotten your name."
"I seriously doubt that."
"Whatever." She scratched a mosquito bite, looked bored, and spoke the ugliest words she'd ever said. "My mistake. I really don't think I love you after all."
Horrified, she began to snatch it back, then stopped because he didn't look upset, only calculating.
"Liar. Have you ever heard of the Saxeten River Gorge?"
"Can't say as I have." Had the fire alarm lost a few decibels? "It sounds boring. Did you hear me say I didn't love you?"
"Yeah. Anyway, it's in Switzerland, and it's as treacherous as they come. But I'm prepared to rappel to the bottom, and once I get there, I'll carve your initials in the rock."
Yes, definitely not as loud. She tapped her foot in the grass. "Touching, but Switzerland's almost as far away as the Super Bowl. Besides, when it comes right down to it, all you're talking about is a little graffiti, right?"
"There's a sport called parapenting. You parachute off a mountain peak-"
"Unless you're going to write my name in the sky on your way down, don't bother."
His eyes lit up.
"On second thought," she said hastily, "you'd probably misspell it. And the closest mountains are on the other side of the state, so what about the here and now? Okay, maybe I do love you, but truth is, champ, all this Iron Man stuff might impress the guys in the locker room, but it won't get you babies and home-cooked meals."
Babies and home-cooked meals! A family that was all hers. And a man who satisfied her to the very depths of her soul.
Just like that, the fire alarm went still forever.
"So we're going to play hardball," he said.
Kevin understood her better than anyone on earth. He understood her so well that he still hadn't thrown up his hands and stomped away. She listened to the glorious silence inside her and wanted to weep with the joy of knowing that this man's love didn't have to be earned with perpetual good behavior.
"I was willing to give up the Stars for you," he reminded her, his expression shrewd. "But I guess that's not good enough…"
"Oh, yes… " Kevin without the Stars was unthinkable.
He didn't take his eyes off her. "So I'll have to give you something more."
"Not necessary." She smiled her love at him. "You passed the test."
"Too late." He grabbed her hand and began pulling her back toward the campground. "Come on, sweetheart."
"No, really, Kevin. It's all right. I was just-It's the fire-alarm thing. I know it's neurotic, but I wanted to be sure you really loved me. I-"
"Could you walk a little faster? I'd like to get this over with so we could start working on one of those babies you mentioned."
A baby… And this time it would be all right. She realized he was pulling her toward the beach. "You don't have to-"
"We'd better take one of the rowboats. Not that I don't trust you in a canoe, but let's face it, you've got a spotty record."
"You want to go out on the lake? Now?"
"We have unfinished business." He led her onto the dock. "You're still looking for that great romantic gesture."
"No I'm not. Really! I've already had the most romantic gesture you could possibly make. You were willing to give up the Stars for me."
"Which didn't impress you."
"More than you can imagine. I've never been so impressed."
"Could have fooled me." He stepped down into the row-boat tied to the end of the dock, then pulled her in with him. "Apparently I still haven't met the Dan Calebow Standard."
"Oh, but you have." She sat on the seat. "I was just being… careful."
"You were being neurotic." He untied the line and picked up the oars.
"That, too. So do we really need to take to the high seas?"
"Oh, yeah." He began to row.
"I didn't mean it. When I said I didn't love you."
"You think I don't know that? And you can tell me how romantic I am when we get to the middle of the lake."
"I'm not being critical, but I don't imagine you'll be able to do anything too romantic out there."
"That's what you think."
She loved him so much that it wasn't hard to humor him. "You're right. Rowing us to the middle of the lake is a very romantic gesture."
"I do know my romance."
He didn't have a clue about romance, but this sweet-talking son of a preacher man knew everything there was about love. Daphne rippled on his chest with the movement of his muscles as he rowed. "I like your T-shirt."
"If you're right about your sister-which I hope you are, even though I swear I'm going to report her to the commissioner-I'll have them made up for all the guys on the team."