I hold her gaze, my expression unreadable. “No.”
She blinks, gaping at me. “What the hell do you mean,no?”
“You can’t accept a proposal thatyouturned down…twice.”
She starts pacing, running a hand through her hair. “What happened to not letting it go until I said yes?” she demands, letting out an exasperated huff. “Don’t you want to gloat that you were right?”
I shake my head. “Not nearly as much as I want something else.”
She comes to a halt in front of me, growing suspicious. “What’s that?”
“Tell me what changed your mind.”
“You were right,” she admits reluctantly. “We’re having a baby, and I think it’s best if we raise it together like you said.”
“You didn’t think that the other two times we’ve talked about it,” I counter.
She nibbles on her bottom lip, averting her gaze. “If you must know, I need better health insurance. I’m self-employed, and my diabetes already makes my premiums insanely expensive. Adding a pregnancy on top of that is going to skyrocket the costs and complicate everything more than I can handle alone.”
I saw other overdue bills that weren’t medical, but we have plenty of time to deal with them later. At least she felt comfortable enough to share some of what she was goingthrough and ask for my help. It’s more progress than I could have hoped for a week ago.
I lift her chin so she’s looking at me. “We’ll add you to my health insurance the day after we get married. I have a good plan with low deductibles, so you won’t have to worry about that anymore.”
“This mean you accept my answer?” Charlie asks tentatively.
The corners of my mouth curve up. “Not quite. You haven’t asked me properly yet.”
“What do you mean by—” Her eyes fly wide open, and she shakes her head vigorously. “No, Heath, absolutely not.”
“I told you if you turned me down again, you’d be the one down on one knee if you ever changed your mind. Seems only fair, all things considered, don’t you think?”
Charlie throws her hands in the air. “How else should I have responded when you sprang a marriage proposal on me with zero warning!”
I shrug but don’t offer a verbal response.
She can pretend to be indifferent, but the flush in her cheeks and her eyes drifting to my bare chest every few seconds tell a different story. She definitely enjoys challenging me, and it’s obvious it’s as much of a turn-on for her as it is for me.
Charlie growls low in her throat, no doubt imagining all the creative ways to end me, and I’m half expecting her to storm off. Instead, she glances around to make sure we’re alone before slowly sinking to her knees. I swallow hard, struggling to stay focused with her in such a tempting position.
“Marry me, Heath… please,” Charlie grits out, her tone painfully monotone.
I shoot her a leveled look, lips twitching. “You can do better than that. I’ve heard more enthusiasm when you’re yelling at me.”
She beams up at me with mock sincerity as she takes my hand between her two smaller ones. “Heath, the absolute light of my life,” she declares with exaggerated gusto. “Will you do me the greatest honor of my entire existence and marry me? There’s nothing I want more than to becomeMrs.Halstead.”
I stare down at her, letting the question linger in the heavy silence. I’m barely containing how much I like hearing her refer to herself as Mrs. Halstead and would drag her down to the courthouse right now to make it official if I wouldn’t look like a lovesick idiot. I’m playing the long game, and I have to be patient, no matter how badly I want to claim her right this second.
“Well…” Charlie snaps. “Do you accept my proposal or not?”
I hum thoughtfully. “I’m considering it.”
“Oh my god,” she practically shrieks as she shoots to her feet. “You have got to be the most infuriating man alive.” I can’t help the chuckle that escapes me, earning a fierce scowl. “What the hell is so funny?”
“You are,” I drawl. “You’re hot as hell when you’re all riled up.”
“This is exactly what I meant about us not being compatible.” She glares at me like she can’t decide if she wants to throttle me or kiss me. “You’re an arrogant bastard who thinks you know best, and I get off on pushing your buttons way too much. We’re like gasoline and matches, and we’d go up in flames if we did this thing.”
I offer her a wry grin, winding an arm around her waist. “You mean get married and raise our kid together?”
