Page 58 of Strictly Business

‘I was considering it.’

She couldn’t believe it. If she’d hadn’t been so screwed up, so obsessed about her divorce... if she’d given Liam just a chance to get his feelings out...

‘If I’d been sensible,’ said Liam. ‘I probably would have proposed to you on the first night we met.’

‘In the Hippo Bar?’

His smile had the uneasy self-consciousness of an endearing little boy. ‘I reckon that’s when I began falling in love with you. Actually, I think it probably happened the moment I set eyes on you, even before we started sampling Screaming Orgasms.’

Alice stared at him, stunned.

‘You don’t believe me?’

‘I don’t know. Well, yes, I’m only too happy to believe you, but I – I can’t get my head around the idea that you’ve had an engagement ring all this time.’

‘So,’ he said, taking a sudden, deep breath. ‘Is it too soon to ask you if you’d accept the ring?’

Linking her hands behind his neck again, she leaned in to kiss him. ‘Liam Conway, I don’t deserve you.’

He placed a finger over her lips. ‘Stop thinking that way. You deserve a man who worships you.’

‘Well, you deserve happiness and my baby and I want to make you happy, Liam.’

He brushed warm lips across her brow. ‘Say that you’ll accept my ring and I’ll be a happy man.’

‘Of course I’ll accept it.’

‘Without seeing it first?’

‘Of course.’ But then curiosity got the better of her. ‘What’s it like?’

He grinned. ‘Not telling. I’ll keep it as a surprise.’

She wrinkled her nose at him. ‘Spoilsport.’ Then not wanting to mar this beautiful moment, she hastened to reassure him. ‘Actually, I’d be blissfully happy if your ring was a piece of scratched glass set in plastic.’

‘It’s a little better than that,’ he said. ‘I think it’s beautiful. As soon as I saw it I thought of you. The colour, the setting – it seemed perfect.’

She waggled her ring finger. ‘But do you know if it will fit me?’

He grabbed her hand and made an exaggerated study, frowning as he examined her ring finger from several angles. ‘Hmmm. We could have a problem.’

‘It doesn’t really matter if the ring’s the wrong size.’

Liam’s eyes were dancing. ‘It might be a bit big, but they can do wonderful things these days.’

‘Yes, it’s easy enough to reduce the ring.’

‘No, Alice. Haven’t you heard? They’ve worked out a way to enlarge your finger.’

She landed a playful punch on his shoulder.

‘Okay,’ he said, laughing. ‘Why don’t we settle this now by going over to my place to check the ring out?’

Alice grinned. ‘Why not?’ She glanced out the window to the grey rain sheeting down. ‘There’s no chance of a picnic.’

‘Once you’ve seen the ring we can spend a long afternoon thinking up interesting rainy day activities.’

‘Mmm.’ She felt deliciously lusty just thinking about it. ‘Sounds wonderful. We’ll take my car?’

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