Part 26 (1/2)

Nate kissed her long and hard, pus.h.i.+ng her back down against the floor in the mess of papers. He'd meant only to quiet her, but the pa.s.sion took over and soon she was moaning and he was nudging her legs apart. As he settled against her body, he found her breast with his hand.

His voice was hoa.r.s.e as he whispered into her throat. ”And exactly how do you think I'm giving up anything? When we have this?”

Her hands came up and covered her eyes. ”I hope I don't wake up now. I hope this is actually happening.”

”I want to marry you.”

She dropped her hands to the floor and laughed. ”I really hope this isn't a dream.”

”I'm serious.”

Frankie looked up at him. Her eyes were full of tears again, but instead of pain, they were glowing with love. She reached out and touched his face.

”Truly?” she said, as if afraid to believe it.

”I want you to be my wife. Right now, as a matter of fact. You know a justice of the peace?”

She smiled. ”Actually I think the plumber's one in his spare time. And given the number of hours he's spent here lately...”

”So we're engaged?”

She wrapped her arms around him, pulling his head down. ”Yeah, we're engaged.”