Page 153 of Proof of Guilt

Until she’d said it, Theo hadn’t realized just how much he’d wanted to hear them. Not just now. But for years.

Because that’s how long he’d been in love with Ivy.

“I want to stay at the ranch,” she continued, her breath as ragged as his was. A good kiss could do that. “Maybe build a house.” She paused. “With Nathan and you.”

That felt like a punch. A good one. Because it caused a warmth to go through him from head to toe.

“You’d sure as hell better ask her to marry you,” Gabriel grumbled. “After all, you did get her pregnant ten years ago. She’s crazy in love with you, and Nathan needs a dad. Heck, Ivy needs you.”

Theo hadn’t been certain that Gabriel was listening, but obviously he was. And he was right. That wasn’t just Ivy’s big brother talking. This was right between Ivy and him, and the past was the past.

“Well?” Theo said, turning to her. “Will you marry me?”

Just in case she had any notion of saying no, Theo kissed her. He made sure it was long and deep. Made sure he poured his heart into it, too. Which wasn’t hard to do. Because Ivy already had his heart.

“Yes,” she managed to get out before the kissing continued.

Later, they could celebrate. And he could get her an engagement ring. Later, there’d be time for a lot of things—like living the rest of their lives together. But for now, it had to wait, because Gabriel took the turn to the safe house.

The moment they pulled into the driveway, the door opened, and Theo saw something that made this complete.

Nathan.

His boy was there, right between Jameson and Jodi. And Nathan was grinning from ear to ear.

“Mom,” he called out to Ivy.

Ivy scrambled out of the car, and before she made it to Nathan, Theo saw more tears in her eyes. This time he knew for certain they were happy ones. She pulled Nathan into her arms, kissed him and kept on kissing him until the boy was laughing.

“Dad,” Nathan said when Ivy finally let go of him. He went to Theo and hugged him.

Theo had to blink back some happy tears himself. Not very manly to cry, but he suddenly realized he had everything he’d ever wanted right here. He gathered both Ivy and Nathan in his arms and held on tight.

* * * * *

A past tragedy destroyed their love…but a vulnerable newborn brings them back together.

Keep reading for a preview of Settling an Old Score, the next book in USA TODAY bestselling author Delores Fossen’s Longview Ridge Ranch series—coming soon from Harlequin Intrigue!

CHAPTER ONE

The sound woke Texas Ranger Eli Slater. Something, or someone, was on his front porch.

He’d heard footsteps, maybe. Or maybe it was just some animal on a nighttime prowl. Since he lived in the country, something like that was always a possibility.

When he heard another sound, he checked the clock on the nightstand. It was just after midnight. And he cursed because there was no way he would get back to sleep unless he made sure this wasn’t a would-be burglar. If that was the case, it’d be a stupid one since the fool was at the house of a Texas Ranger. A heavily armed and grouchy Ranger, since Eli had just finished a long shift only a couple of hours earlier.

He threw back the covers and first glanced at his phone to make sure that he hadn’t missed a text from his family. He had three brothers, and since all of them were lawmen, there was a chance that there could be some kind of emergency. But there were no texts or missed calls.

That put a knot in his stomach.

He was glad there was no family crisis, but that could have been a reasonable explanation for why someone was visiting him at this god-awful hour. So, if it wasn’t family, then who was it?

He cursed again when he heard the sound for the third time. Definitely footsteps, and not those of an animal. Eli dragged on his jeans, slipped his phone into his pocket and grabbed the SIG Sauer he kept next to his bed. He hoped this would be a quick check that would turn out to be nothing. Maybe a neighbor with car trouble. Then he could deal with it, get right back in bed and hope that he didn’t dream about…anything.

Especially her.

But hoping hadn’t ever helped him much in that department. She made regular appearances in his nightmares. That was his punishment, he supposed. A woman was dead because of him, and Eli figured even a couple of lifetimes wouldn’t be enough to help him come to terms with that.

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