“Oddly enough, no,” Rhonda said. “I’m not sure of the specifics, but so far the captain’s only said that she was giving up information on warrants, and police movements that had been issued pertaining to a certain criteria of Moreau’s. No specifics on what the criteria covered, and no idea why Moreau was interested in that stuff specifically. We may never know either. She’s facing some serious charges by the time this is over so she’s really not talking a whole lot. Probably a good plan since it would only dig her a damn deep grave. Well, some pretty hefty jail time depending on what Internal Affairs uncovers about her actions at the very least.”
“Nothing less than she deserves,” was Tamara’s verdict on the matter.
Pressing a kiss to Rhonda’s temple, Vincent urged her up. “Thank you for dinner you guys, but we have plans,” he said.
“We do?” Rhonda asked, blinking at him.
“Yup, we do.” Urging her toward the door, he paused long enough for the hugfest that ensued. Rolling his eyes, he fought the need to look at his watch. Once all the goodbyes were done he hustled her into his truck and got moving.
“So, where are we going?”
“You’ll see,” he said.
“Huh, so, what was the reason for the bum rush out the door? They are our friends you know. It was a bit rude.”
“They will get over it, trust me.”
He could hear her flicking a nail against a tooth, and could feel her eyes on him. She was trying to figure it all out. Not that she would. Not right away.
For the twenty minutes it took him to get where he wanted to go, Rhonda stewed. He knew she hated being in the dark. It drove her nuts, which was fine at the moment. It would make the surprise all the better.
Pulling up outside the house, he put the truck in park before hopping out. Humming under his breath, he went around to let her out. She was looking around at everything like the excellent cop she was.
They weren’t all that far from Shawn’s place. He’d just taken a roundabout way to get here so she wouldn’t realize it right off. Though, in time, she’d likely clue in.
“Come on,” he said. Wrapping his arm around her shoulder, he led her to the front door and hit the doorbell. She looked confused, which he knew wouldn’t take long at all to shake off.
The door opened and the realtor grinned. “Mr. Bradley, good to see you again. Come on in.”
“Thanks,” he said.
“I’ll give you two a few minutes; just let me know when you’re ready.” The man nodded to Ro before stepping out onto the front porch they’d vacated.
“Will do,” he assured him. Closing the door, he let Ro loose and headed deeper into the house. It was empty, beautifully redone, open concept and roomie. “So, what do you think?”
“I think it’s a big empty house.” She eyed him suspiciously. “Either you’ve brought me out here to knock me off, which means taking out the realtor, or you’ve got something planned. So, what the hell, Vincent?”
“Really? You think I’d knock you off? Ro, sweetheart, hardly. Come on, let me show you around.” He took her through the rooms on the main floor, showing her the huge windows off the family spaces and the kitchen that looked out over a small lake. Most of which was on the property, he told her. Upstairs, he led her through the master bedroom and bath, which was top notch like the rest of the house, and then the four other bedrooms and home office.
Downstairs once more, he leaned against the kitchen island as she looked around, even more confused than before. “So, what do you think?”
“It’s my dream house,” she said softly.
Which he knew. They’d talked about it one night as he tried to figure out how to get her to move in with him. It had taken a lot of work to find something even remotely close to what she wanted to one day have as her own. There were a few things they’d need to change to get it perfect, but overall it was pretty damn close.
“So you like it then?”
Nodding, she turned slowly. “Vincent,” she whispered. “What’s going on?”
She looked scared, not an expression he was used to. Pushing off the granite top he went to her and cupped her cheeks. “If you agree, this would be our place. Where you and I would live, be a family. Maybe have kids one day, and where we would grow old and senile together.” Going to a knee, he grinned when her eyes went huge. “Will you be my wife, Rhonda Delacour?” he asked. Presenting her with the ring, he waited.
He’d kept it simple. She wasn’t one to go with big and flashy. It had a series of little stones around a slightly larger one, all very low profile to avoid getting caught on anything, and if Tamara was right, it was sized perfectly for her finger.
Rhonda burst into tears, causing his gut to clench. She was also nodded as she blubbered out a shaky “yes.”
Slipping the ring onto her finger, he scooped her up as he stood. “I love you,” he whispered as he caught her lips in a kiss.
Her fingers in his hair held him to her as he kissed her slowly. When he let her up for air, she shook her head. “I love you too, Vincent. But you are so going to pay for this.”
Bursting out with a laugh, he hugged her tight and grabbed another kiss. “I look forward to it, love. For the rest of our lives.”
The End
www.moiracallahanauthor.wordpress.com
Other Books by Moira Callahan:
www.evernightpublishing.com/moira-callahan
If you enjoyed this book, you may also like:
Southern Drawl by Paige Warren
Metamorphosis by Lace Daltyn
Nyght’s Eve by Laurie Roma
Evernight Publishing
www.evernightpublishing.com
Dangerous Lines Page 11
