Kurt chuckled. “Yes. Hawke had to help disguise me. I swear, that man has talents I’ve never seen before.”
“Hawke? He knew you were alive?”
“Yes. Only him and Martinez knew.”
“But why?”
“Martinez thinks there’s a leak in the precinct, especially after someone had tried to run you off the road.”
“But…why couldn’t you tell me you were alive?” She took a ragged breath. “Didn’t you think I was mourning for you? Didn’t you think I blamed myself for your death because I was wearing your bullet-proof vest?” Her voice cracked.
“Oh, my darling Riley. I didn’t tell you to keep you protected.”
She clutched her shaking hands against her middle. She wanted to scream, to hit him and blame him for her misery this past month. But what she really wanted to do was fling herself into his arms and hold him—and never let him go.
“Riley, please.” He held out his arms. “Aren’t you happy to see me alive?”
Her body couldn’t take anymore, and she broke down and sobbed. She would have collapsed to the sidewalk if he hadn’t wrapped his arms around her at that very moment.
“Shh,” he soothed. “Please don’t cry, my precious buttercup. I beg you to understand why I was in hiding. If Bill Phillips and his men think I’m dead, then it’ll be easier for the other detectives to find his cohorts.” He caressed her long hair and kissed her temple. “Riley, I’m so in love with you, and I honestly can’t live without you.”
Slowly, the frustration growing inside of her began to diminish. Having Kurt tell her he loved her thawed her heart, and knowing he was really alive, and that she was really in his arms, made her heart beat with renewed energy.
She lifted her head and gazed into his teary eyes. Her heart softened even more and she smiled. “You really do love me?”
“Completely.”
“But…there’s still so much we don’t know about each other.”
“There’s plenty of time for that, my love. If you want, we can start our lives today. But, we’ll have to stay in hiding until it’s safe. Can you handle that?”
“I can handle anything as long as you are by my side.”
“What about your schooling?”
“I only have a few more classes left. I can take them again, I promise.”
“There’s one more thing,” he paused, and his gaze became serious. “We will probably have to use fake names for a while so nobody can connect us with Phillips—or even the Reynolds brothers.”
She nodded. “I figured that, but what name shall we use?”
His grin returned. “I was thinking about using Mr. and Mrs. Deliriously Happy.”
She laughed. “I do like that name.”
“So what do you say…” He motioned toward Moss Mansion. “I have connections with the owners, and they have a marriage license waiting for us to sign so they can marry us today. Right now, in fact.”
As she was thinking of a romantic answer, Kurt reached into his pocket and withdrew a wedding ring.
“Riley Peterson,” he began as he lifted her left hand and slid the ring on her finger. “I love you beyond reason, and I would like you to start a new adventure in your life by becoming my wife.”
A cry of happiness sprang from her throat and she nodded. “Oh, Kurt. Yes! I would love nothing better than to be married to you—my superhero.”
He laughed. “Superhero? Boy, do I have you fooled.”
“No. You’ve proven time and again how wonderful you are.”
He lifted her hand and pressed a kiss to her ring finger. “I know our wedding today will be small, but I promise, once all of Bill Phillips’s organization has been arrested, we’ll be able to come out of hiding. We can have another wedding to renew our vows at that time.”
“Oh, yes. That’s perfect.”
“You’re perfect.” He cupped her face before lowering his mouth to hers.
When their lips met, fireworks exploded inside her head…just as it had always done when they kissed. Now, more than ever, she knew they were destined to be together. It didn’t matter that they hadn’t really known each other for so long, because their hearts had loved each other for a lifetime, already.
Although kissing him like this was wonderful, it was postponing their wedding. And this time, she didn’t want anything to stop her from getting married.
She slowly broke the kiss and gazed dreamily into his brilliant blue eyes. “You know, I was just thinking.”
“About what?”
“A funny thing happened on the way to the altar…” She smiled wide. “I fell madly in love with another man.”
“And that other man fell madly in love with you.” He kissed her one more time, but kept it short. “So, my darling Riley. Are you ready to become Mrs. Hamill?”
“The sooner the better.”
She twined her fingers with his as they headed toward the stairs. He used his cane for support, but she was happy to know he was on the road to a full recovery.
The new adventure she was about to embark on filled her with excitement. She and Kurt were better together than they were apart, and together, they would accomplish anything…and everything.
Just the way it should be.
THE END
Look for Book #1 that’s out – Prince Charming is a Liar.
Book #3 – “Love Me, Leave Me…Just Don’t Shoot Me” will be coming soon!
**READERS**
Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this book, please consider posting a review on Amazon, Goodreads, or Barnes & Noble. The fate of indie books depends entirely on the reviews it gets.
Author’s Bio
Marie Higgins is a best-selling, multi-published author of Christian and sweet romance novels; from refined bad-boy heroes who make your heart melt to the feisty heroines who somehow manage to love them regardless of their faults. She’s been with a Christian publisher since 2010. Between those and her others, she’s published over 30 heartwarming, on-the-edge-of-your-seat stories and broadened her readership by writing mystery/suspense, humor, time-travel, paranormal, along with her love for historical romances. Her readers have dubbed her "Queen of Tease", because of all her twists and turns and unexpected endings.
Visit her website / blog to discover more about her – http://mariehiggins84302.blogspot.com
Find her on Facebook – facebook.com/marie.higgins.7543
And Twitter - @MarieHigginsXOX
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Altar (Your Every Day Hero Book 2) Page 16
