As he gazed down at her, warmth and tenderness flooded his chest, and he silently swore to do everything in his power to make her happy. “You’re the beautiful one,” he said. Then he kissed her.
Because they were in public, he kept it shorter and lighter than he would’ve preferred. Regardless, she was flushed and breathless when he pulled away.
His passionate woman. The love in her eyes humbled him, and he was sure that life didn’t get much better than this.
A safe distance from the reach of the water’s spray, they found a flat, grassy place perfect for a picnic. They spread out the blanket, then Lana helped set out the food Mrs. R had prepared for his weekend alone. He planned to introduce her to his woman in the very near future. She’d like Lana. His crew, too.
Despite enjoying a snack in the middle of the night, the lovemaking had made them both ravenous. For a while they forgot about conversation and chowed down. Her hearty appetite was one more thing he loved about her.
“Do you think your parents will be upset about the baby?” he asked, smiling to himself as she filched a chunk of his blueberry muffin.
“I won’t lie—I want them to be happy about it. If they’re not, I’ll be sad. But I love you and you love me, and no matter what they think or say, that’s the bottom line.”
He couldn’t have dreamed up a better reply. He felt as if he’d waited all his life for the amazing woman sharing his blanket.
So, what are you waiting for?a voice whispered in his head. In that moment, he made up his mind. He pushed the plates aside and knelt on the blanket, pulling Lana up to face him. She gave him a questioning look.
“I don’t have a ring or anything, but I’d be...” Suddenly choked up, he stopped to clear his throat. “Lana, I want... Oh, hell.” He was going to lose it.
“If this is a proposal, the answer is yes!”
“No kidding?”
“I’ve never been more serious in my life.”
She wrapped her arms around his neck and he kissed her again with all the love in his heart. When they came up for air, she rested her forehead against his and sighed. “I now have exactly what I’ve always dreamed of.” She moved away from him and sat down again. “There’s only one problem.”
Unable to think what it could be, he gave a puzzled frown and tilted up her chin. “We solved all our problems. Tim and I dropped our lawsuits, we’re about to tell your parents about the baby, and we’re getting married.”
“I’m talking about the beautiful mural I painted in the nursery. What am I supposed to do with the town house?”
“Sell it or keep it as a rental—whatever you decide is okay by me. Heck, if you want, paint murals in all the bedrooms at my place.”
“Your house is definitely big enough for a family.”
“A whole houseful of kids, if I have my way.” Picturing several little Lanas running around, creating pandemonium, he grinned.
“What if this is our only pregnancy?” she asked, suddenly somber.
“Then we’ll adopt. Either way, I consider myself the luckiest man in the world.”
The love and trust shining from her eyes filled him with sweet certainty that no matter where life took him, she would be at his side.
“Come on.” He rose to his feet and pulled her up beside him. “Let’s go share our good news.
Two years later
“You’re awfully quiet this afternoon,” Sly said as he parked in front of Lana’s parents’ house for Sunday dinner. “Feeling okay?”
Being a rancher’s wife and the mother of a toddler, not to mention setting up the second daycare and finding a capable person to manage it, made for very busy times, but Lana wouldn’t have traded her life for anything. “I could use a nap, thanks to a certain little someone waking me up in the middle of the night.”
She turned around to smile at their beautiful daughter, Johanna, named after Sly’s mother.
The little girl beamed, her straight blonde hair flying as she bounced in her seat. “’Hanna see cousins and Gammy and Gampa.”
“That’s right, sweetie,” Lana said.
“She’s already talking in full sentences, and she’s barely eighteen months old,” he said proudly.
