Page 70 of Unlikely Guardian

“This doesn’t sound like the start of good news,” Lilly interrupted.

“It is. Trust me. When I realized your life was in danger…” He had to take another moment. More breath gathering. Another prayer. “I also realized that I wanted you to marry me.”

She blinked.

Not exactly the reaction he was hoping for.

“Did you hear me?” he asked. “I want us to get married.”

Still no answer. She waited for what seemed to be an eternity before she finally spoke. “For convenience? Because of Megan?”

He made a deep sound of frustration. “No way. In fact, I can promise you that being married to me will be anything but convenient. I can also promise you that I’ll do anything to make you happy.”

Another blink. No smile. Just a blank stare. “Anything?”

“Anything. And I mean that. Groveling, foot massages, great sex—”

“How about love?”

Oh.

Jason tried to sort through what he’d already told her, but there was a big jumble in his head. He blamed it on the nerves and the total lack of sleep. “Didn’t I mention that I’m in love with you?”

She shook her head. “No.”

Oops. That was a biggie. “Well, I am.”

No blink this time. But her breath trembled and her eyes watered.

“Oh, man.” Jason pulled her into his arms. “You’re crying.”

“They’re happy tears, I promise.”

Happy tears, he mentally repeated, and it took several tries for it to sink in. The relief he felt was overwhelming, and he hoped he didn’t disgrace himself by crying, too. Since he didn’t want to risk that and since she still hadn’t said yes, he kissed her. Really kissed her. He took all his feelings, all his love, and poured it all into an intimate show of affection.

“Yes,” she whispered against his mouth.

“Yes?” And he hoped he hadn’t misunderstood her.

“Yes, because I’m in love with you, too.”

Okay. He mentally repeated that to himself, as well.

Jason’s first reaction was to whoop for joy, grab her and swing her around in circles. Since she might not be ready for that, he laughed. Hugged her. And kissed her. This was what he wanted, and until a few short hours ago, he hadn’t even known it.

“I do have some…news,” Lilly said, inching just slightly away from him.

Because of all they’d been through, his first thought was that this wasn’t going to be good. Lilly’s puzzling expression only added to his reaction. “You’re not changing your mind about marriage?”

“No. It’s not that. It’s this whole pregnancy thing.”

“Excuse me?” he asked, certain he’d missed something. “You’re pregnant?”

She shook her head. “No. I talked to the doctor about our unprotected sexual encounter, and he did a few tests. Turns out that I wasn’t in the whole ovulation zone.” She paused. Stared. Moistened her lips. “This is going to sound a little crazy, but I was actually a little disappointed.”

So was he. A real shocker of a reaction. “We can try again when the time is right. Hey, I’m always up for a round of unprotected sex.”

She smiled. “Against the door of your office.”

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