“And pastries.”
“Maybe.” Deacon released her hand and ran his fingers over hers. “Now you guys get out so I can convince her to keep me for real.”
Hammer sighed. “What is the deal with all these women having such poor taste? First Addy, then you, Solene. I’m both saddened and shocked…and I had better be a groomsman at both weddings,” he warned his friends before leaving.
Noel chuckled. “I’m too afraid to say no. Good luck with that, Deacon.” He smiled at Solene. “But Hammer’s wrong about one thing. You made a pretty good choice by standing by this one, Solene. And you know, he can cook. Better keep him near. Our next dinner invite is going to be a potluck, so bring something tasty. Now I’d better go rescue Little Dee from the yelling that’s about to come. Addy putting him in the cute little Chicago Bears onesie Vi gave him, and Hammer’s going to go ballistic about it.” Noel winked and left.
Solene watched the door close then scooted her chair closer to Deacon.
“I want to sit up.” He fiddled with the bed remote.
She helped him sit up with the inclined bed and leaned in for a kiss. After, to cover her overwhelming feelings, she teased, “Nice hospital breath.”
He flushed. “Hey, totally not my fault.” He cupped his hand and blew into it. “Oh, hell. Itisbad.”
Solene laughed so hard she almost fell off her chair. “S-sorry.” She wiped tears of mirth from her eyes. “Truth hurts.”
“I’ll give you some truth,” he muttered, sounding so much like her Deacon.
“Well, something has to be wrong with you. Even shot up and recovering from a botched hit, you look amazing.”
“Botched hit? You’ve been hanging with Hammer too long.”
“More like Noel. He was spending a lot of time watching over you the past two days,” she admitted. “I’m worried about Hammer. He’s taking Vi’s actions pretty hard.”
“I’m confused. How did you go from being in the closet to stabbing Burleigh in the heart? And baby, I am so fucking proud of you for that. You were so badass.”
She sighed. “I want to feel bad about killing a man. It’s wrong. It’s terrible… Then I remember him threatening to kill you, about all the women he’s hurt, and I want to stab him all over again.”
Deacon’s eyes shone with pride. “That’s my girl.”
“Am I?” she asked quietly. “Did you mean what you said, or was that the danger talking?”
“You are so—”
“If you say stupid, I will yank the painkiller from your IV and force you to watchFlip These Houseswith me, followed byAntique Junkers. You’ve been warned.”
He cringed. “Ah, I was going to say you are so much better than I am. I know I’m not worthy, but I plan on keeping you.” He swallowed hard, and she realized that for all Deacon was trying to joke with her, he was vulnerable, fearful even. That she’d say no?
“Keeping me?”
He nodded. “Solene, I’ve loved you for a while now. It scares the hell out of me. I’ve never loved anyone. I have the same scars you do, except I really am a bad pick. I shouldn’t say that, but it’s true. I love you. I want to be with you all the time. And I had planned on quitting my job if you ever said yes.”
“Yes?”
“To marrying me. To being my wife.” His eyes looked glassy, and she couldn’t believe he seemed near tears, which madehereyes blurry. “I can’t give you children, baby. And that’s a problem if you want a family.” He swallowed audibly. “But we can adopt. I want to give you everything. You’re so worth it.”
She sniffed. “Oh my God. Stop it. Even shot up you’re acting like you can do no wrong. And we both know you can.”
He nodded.
“Stop agreeing with me!”
He didn’t let go of her hand, stroking her fingers, a small smile on his face.
“I love you. God knows I didn’t want to fall in love. I don’t like men. I don’t trust men, and you have women falling all over themselves for you left and right. But I’m me when I’m with you. And you don’t care. You like me.”
“Blondie, Iloveyou.”
