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“No.” It’s on the tip of my lips to tell him I love him, and that’s what I want to hear from him before I accept his proposal.

He pulls out and helps me up. I get cleaned up and finish dressing so we can go.

Acouple of hours later, we are sitting, enjoying our meal, when a shadow falls over the table. I look up in horror and stand to face off with her.

“Cherise, what are you doing here?”

She slaps me hard, splitting my lip. “You lying bitch. That’s my grandbaby you’re carrying. I’ll make you sorry for keeping me from it.” She slaps a sheath of papers onto the table and turns to walk away.

“Sorry, ma’am, that was assault.” Logan stops her and forces her to sit down in a chair.

While we wait for the police to arrive, she verbally attacks me, calling me names. I sit there with tears rolling down my face, wondering if I should have just left town so Ryker and his family didn’t have to deal with the crazy of the Benedict family.

“I shouldn’t have moved here,” I say, my voice barely audible.

“Don’t ever say that. I love you. I’ve loved you since the moment I first laid eyes on you. You are mine, Lynae. I told you I’d never stop asking. I mean it,” Ryker says as he storms over to me. Everyone is watching us, even Cherise.

I look up at him and stand, then I use the chair to help me kneel down before him. I don’t know why I’m doing this, but he just said everything I needed to hear.

“Ryker—”

“Get up off the floor, baby.” He interrupts me.

“No, let me finish.” I take a deep breath as I wipe the tears from my face. “I love you too. I’ve loved you since then also. I shouldn’t have loved you, but I did. I love you because you gave me a family and our baby.” I hold out my hand for him to helpme up. “Will you marry me?” I ask him, and he pulls me up with a chuckle.

“Yeah, baby, we’re getting married. But remember, I asked you first.” He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a ring, which he slips onto my finger. I look at it and then at him in shock.

I’m beyond surprised. “How long have you had this?”

“Since the day after you told me you were carrying my baby.”

“I love you,” I say before he kisses me.

“That’s ridiculous. That’s my son’s child.”

“No, it’s not. We have paternity proving it,” Ryker says with a little smile and puffs out his chest. He’s being so smug that I can’t help but laugh.

The police take Cherise to the station, where she is booked for assault.

Chapter Twelve

RYKER

We stand in my parents’ yard, all waiting. When the doors open, my breath catches in my chest.

“Breathe,” Rowdy says beside me.

I take a deep breath and watch as Lynae walks out on my dad’s arm. She’s wearing a dress that skims the floor with long, sheer sleeves. The skirt flows down her body, highlighting her thirty-two-week pregnant belly. Her hair, which has grown longer since we started seeing each other again, is in waves around her shoulders. She’s wearing only a tiara on her head, no veil.

When she reaches me, I take her hand and pull her close to my body. I hold her the entire time as we say our vows and exchange rings. I told her I wouldn’t always be able to wear a ring, but I would tattoo one for her so women would know I’m married. She slides the tungsten ring onto my finger. It’s mostly plain, except for the edges, which are accented with rose gold. It complements the rose gold set with a pear-shaped diamond I got her. The only other jewelry she has on is the butterfly necklace her grammy gave her and my engagement ring.

When I slip her ring onto her finger, I pull her hand up to kiss it, then look into her eyes as I vow to protect and love herforever. She gives me the vows she wrote, and I’m more in love with her than I ever thought possible. When the officiant finally says I can kiss her, I kiss her deeply, but I want more as I pull away.

The rest of the evening is spent celebrating with our family and friends. No one brings up the looming court date on Monday that we’ve been struggling with. I’m still worried that Sayler is alive. Too many weird things keep happening. Not only is she being followed, but someone tried to break into my house one night. They ran off before we could get them, but I swear it was a man.

I take her home to our house, finally feeling settled for the first time in a long time. I’m shocked to see her sitting on the bed after I secure the house. She’s got my shirt I wore earlier for the wedding on and nothing else. Her pregnant belly peeking out, along with the beautiful curve of her breasts. She’s sitting cross-legged with her hands wrapped around our baby. I can’t stop myself from taking a picture so I’ll never forget this moment. She smiles at me before she bites that sexy lip and reaches out for me. It’s one of the sexist things I’ve ever seen.

I make love to my wife, showing her how much I love her, and then I hold her close when she falls asleep. We decided to hold off on a honeymoon until after the baby is born and a bit older. We have tonight, and then when school goes on winter break, we’ll spend time together when I’m not working.

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