Authors: Kate Aster
“Lacey, I—”
She drew herself away from him, battling
futilely to keep her composure. Her lip trembled. “I did crash funerals to try
to get business. And I did volunteer to help Edith because I hoped she might
need my services one day. I guess it wouldn’t be too much of a stretch for you
to assume I slept with you for the same reason. But I didn’t. I hope you
already figured that out on your own.”
“God, yes. I said that out of anger. I
wasn’t thinking.”
Lacey nodded, feeling a grim sense of
closure. “Good.” She pressed her lips together thoughtfully, sadly. “I’m
relieved that you’re all right. And grateful. That’s enough.”
“Lacey, please let me finish. I
overreacted. I was hurt and shocked. And—” his shoulders slumped,
“—scared. I’ve been deployed nearly my entire career. I’ve never really
experienced this kind of life. I’ve never gotten so used to watching someone
sleep at night or spent time picturing a future together. I’ve never fantasized
about having someone waiting home for me. So then when I learned that you had
been holding something back from me,” he shook his head, “God, I was so hurt by
the thought that our entire relationship may have been nothing more than a way
to build your career. It scared the crap out of me—the power you had over
me. The power you still have over me. No amount of body armor can protect me
from you.”
“Why didn’t you call me?”
“Captain Shey showed up the morning after
our argument and recalled me. From that moment on, I could have no contact with
you until the mission was complete. Till now.” He took her hand. “It was
killing me to not be able to tell you the truth.”
“The truth?”
Mick stood silent a moment. Inhaling
sharply, he pulled a tiny box from his pocket. “That even though you make me
weak and vulnerable and it scares the hell out of me, I love you and I want to
spend the rest of my days loving you.”
Tears streamed from Lacey’s eyes unchecked.
He opened the box, and the diamond
shimmered in the evening sun. “I bought this two weeks before our argument. I carried
it around in my pocket waiting to get the nerve to ask you. But instead, I
found an excuse to push you away. I should have trusted you more. I should have
seen the position you were in and offered to help you rather than turn away from
you.”
He pulled the ring from the box. “I don’t
expect you to answer now. I don’t even want you to. I have to prove to you how
much I love and respect you again. I need to earn your trust. You deserve that.
Take all the time you want. Ten years could go by and I’ll still be waiting for
your answer.”
“Mick, I don’t need ten years to know I
love you. I never stopped, and I never will.”
He kissed her gently, almost reverently,
as though he had been imagining this kiss for a lifetime. “Just wear this and
think about it. It’s yours Lacey, no matter what your answer is. There’s no
other woman who could wear it.”
He slipped the ring on her finger.
It was a perfect fit.
A baby cried inside the house, and Lacey
smiled, picturing Maeve, Bess, and Abigail crouched beneath the open window
listening to every word. “It’s time you came inside, Mick. There’s someone you
should meet.”
Hand in hand, they walked through the
door, greeted by their friends and the gentle coo of Abigail.
And the house sighed with contentment.
Palm Beach, Florida
Later that year
Lacey and Maeve eased themselves into the
chaise lounges and took lingering sips of their raspberry margaritas. The
resort’s private beach was nearly empty. No hordes of tourists crowded these
delicate sands, Lacey thought. Who could afford the prices?
Except for her wildly successful sister
and her mogul fiancé. She grinned at the thought.
The mournful cry of seagulls and hypnotic crashing
of the waves carried themselves over a breeze to Lacey as she dipped her toes
again into the warm white sand.
“Perfect,” Maeve purred, nearly emptying
her first salt-dipped glass.
Pure bliss raced through her veins as
Lacey finished her drink. “This has got to be the best margarita I’ve had in my
life,” she said, her eyes slightly crossing.
“It’s not the margarita—it’s the
view. Will you look at that? I can see why Vi picked this place for a wedding. If
I were ever stupid enough to go down that road again, this is where I’d go.”
Bess came up behind them with her baby in
her arms. Donning pink sunglasses and an over-sized polka dot hat trimmed in
lace, little Abigail was covered from head to toe in thick sunscreen. Bess eyed
the margaritas. “Tonight, when you guys are pulling baby shift, I’m having one
of those.”
“Or two or three. But you’ll have to wait
till we’ve recovered first.”
“Works for me. Did Mick’s plane arrive
yet?”
“He called from the airport a few minutes
ago. He’s taking a cab over now,” Lacey answered, giving up her chair under the
umbrella for Bess and the baby, and pulling up another next to Maeve. She gazed
at the water again. “I’m glad he could be here for the wedding tomorrow. But I have
to admit, I’m kind of happy he couldn’t take the whole week off from work. It’s
been nice just having some girl time, you know?”
“Palm Beach shopping is something no man
could possibly appreciate the way we can,” Bess sighed.
Maeve’s grin was speckled with sea salt
from her drink. She licked her lips. “You know, this is just what I needed. I
hope I’ve told Vi that enough.”
“Me, too,” Bess added. “Tell her anytime
she needs a short order bridesmaid in exchange for a ticket down here, sign me
up.”
Lacey shook her head, remembering the
conversation with her sister. “I can’t believe she went for it.” When Vi had called
her, upset because her fiancé was insisting on having two more people stand up
for him than she had, the idea just came to Lacey.
“And I’ll never be able to repay you
guys for bailing me out.” Vi, wearing movie-star sunglasses and a beach hat,
had crept up behind them. “Imagine him insisting on two groomsmen as well as a
best man. Groomsmen,” she snickered. “What does that even mean, really? Are
they supposed to groom him or something?”
Lacey swung her legs around so that she
could share her chaise with her sister. “Why aren’t you with your doting fiancé
right now? Trouble in paradise?”
“No trouble. It’s his last day as a
bachelor, you know. He’s with his friends.”
“And you’re with yours,” Maeve offered. “Have
a drink. We bought in bulk.”
“Smart idea.”
Lacey took another sip from her freshly-refilled
glass, and her ring flashed in the sun, noticeably catching Bess’s eye.
Turning to Vi, Bess peered out from behind
her sunglasses. “You’ve set a pretty high standard for weddings. How is Lacey
going to top this place?”
“If she ever sets a date.” Maeve winked.
Lacey’s eyes shone bright behind her
sunglasses. “Hey, I haven’t even said my official ‘yes’ yet. He said he wanted
me to think about it.”
“Yeah, but how much time do you need? You
really shouldn’t make him suffer.”
Lacey smiled lazily, remembering the feel
of Mick’s hard body against her own the night before she flew to Palm Beach, and
a blush crept over her. “Oh, he’s not suffering,” she said coyly.
Vi gave her a smug look. “I’ll bet.”
Lacey gave a little nod to herself. “I was
actually thinking I’d give him my answer after Vi’s reception. You know, end
our vacation with a bang.”
Maeve grinned and held up her glass. “To tomorrow,
then. May the only surprise on Vi’s big day be the one Lacey has in store for
Mick.”
Vi laughed.
Bess held up the baby bottle in toast. “And
to Vi, for giving us the time of our lives.”
“I’ll drink to that.” Lacey raised her
glass. “And to friendship.”
Vi’s glass met theirs, and her face
relaxed into a contented grin Lacey had never seen before on her sister. “To
friendship.”