“I heard you the first time. I just can’t believe that she is so incredibly shallow that she doesn’t want anything to do with her kids now they don’t serve her purpose.”
“I can. This is why I didn’t want to tell the kids about the trip. Deep down, I knew Cheyenne would either back out altogether or do something vindictive just for the sake of it. I should have known she’d never change.”
Debbie shook her head. “How did you put up with her for twelve years?”
He shook his head. “It wasn’t easy, nor was it pleasant most of the time.”
She put a hand on his arm. “I’m so sorry. So, do we take the kids to Florida anyway just to spite her?”
He took her hand in his before shaking his head. “I don’t know. A vacation would be fun, but I’d rather they not miss a day of school. And I certainly don’t want to take the chance of running into Cheyenne and Tucker there. Besides, now you have the little ones to worry about.”
“You’re right. I hadn’t even thought about what we’d do with them.” She frowned. “I’m not sure if I’m even allowed to take them out of the state.” Shaking her head, she continued, “I probably couldn’t book two extra seats at this point, and the trip might be too much for them right now anyway.” She let out a sigh that she hoped didn’t sound too disappointed. She’d been looking forward to having two days with Austin on the beach. “I’ll cancel all the reservations tonight after I get the girls into bed.”
He caressed her hand like he did last Saturday, sending tingles all the way up her arm. “Maybe we can plan some sort of outing for next Saturday. Heck, we could just spend the day here, swimming and watching a movie, and the boys would think they were in heaven.”
Debbie grinned. She loved that he wanted to spend his day off with her. And she loved how his fingers were slowly driving her crazy. Fearing the answer, she asked the question that had been on her mind ever since their fake engagement started?
“So what now?”
His brow furrowed. “What do you mean?”
“What do we do about our engagement?” She lowered her gaze, fearing that despite the attraction between them, Austin didn’t really want a long-term relationship with her.
He shifted a little, rotating his body toward her. His warm, calloused fingers lifted her chin. “Seeing as how our engagement was made public by Amy, I think I’d like to let it stand.”
“Really?” The word came out in a quick huff of air as Debbie released the breath she’d been holding.
“Really. I’ve been falling for you for a while now, and your two beautiful daughters have kind of gotten a hold of my heart strings too.”
Tears clogged Debbie’s throat and flooded her eyes at those two words. “My daughters?”
Austin wiped away the tears that spilled onto her cheeks. “They’ll be all yours someday. I’m sure of it. You’ve waited long enough for a family.”
A mild pain filled Debbie’s chest as her heart expanded, and more tears spilled over. She’d been trying not to get too emotionally attached to the twins, because she couldn’t bear it if, for some reason, she didn’t get to keep them. But the thought of them really being hers someday filled her with such joy she couldn’t contain it.
He wiped away her tears again. “Now quit crying, woman, because I have about three minutes before Savannah comes downstairs. I plan to spend the first minute kissing you and the other two rubbing your shoulders.”
Debbie laughed and brushed away the last of her tears. As he started to lean in, she leaned back. “What if I want to forgo the shoulder rub?”
Heat filled his gaze as he slowly continued to lean toward her. “Three minutes of kissing? That’s enough time for a serious make-out session. Keep it PG, the kids could walk in on us any minute.”
Debbie’s giggle was smothered by his lips.
CHAPTER28
Austin rolled over and stretched. Sunlight filtered through his curtains already. He looked at the clock. Nine o’clock. He hadn’t slept this late on a Saturday for years.
Of course, they’d come home late last night. He’d let the kids talk him into staying later than usual at Debbie’s to watch a movie. He’d agreed mostly because he wanted to spend more time with the woman who had burrowed her way inside his heart. And he may have used the children’s distraction with the movie as an opportunity to steal some kisses from Debbie.
An odd tremor pulsated through his abdomen every time he thought about how rich she was. He couldn’t deny her wealth still bothered him. If he married Debbie, his children might turn out like Cheyenne. But he was beginning to feel like he couldn’t live without her either. He could honestly say he’d never been happier in his life.
Austin climbed out of bed and wandered to the kitchen. He should probably get the kids up and moving soon. They planned to go to a petting zoo today with Debbie and the girls. Then they’d spend the afternoon swimming at Debbie’s house.
His lips turned up at the thought of Debbie in a swimsuit. That would be a glorious form of torture, because with the kids around, he wouldn’t get much time alone with her.
He picked up the stack of mail he’d dropped on the table last night. Mostly bills, like usual. His hands stilled as he spotted an envelope with Providence Medical Center on the return address. He’d just made a payment last week and shouldn’t get another bill for another three weeks.
What if they didn’t get my payment?
