by Loree Lough
He grinned modestly and shook his head.
“There’s something in my shirt pocket for you. But I’m not a romantic, remember, I didn’t wrap it.”
“Another present?” She giggled. “Noah, you’re going to spoil me.” She slipped her hand into the pocket, came out with a small, maroon velvet pouch.
“Go on,” he coaxed. “Open it.”
She tugged at the gold drawstring and peered inside, and when she shook it, a tiny cube of tissue paper landed on her upturned palm. She peeled the paper away…
And exposed a sparkling diamond engagement ring.
“Noah!” she gasped. “What have you done!”
“I’ve fallen in love with you, that’s what.” He stood her on her feet, then gently pushed her onto the seat of the chair he’d just vacated. Down on one knee, he took her hand. “Dara Mackenzie,” he whispered, boring deep into her eyes, “will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”
Her eyes filled with tears and, smiling, she nodded.
Noah slipped the ring onto her finger. “Good,” he said. “I was worried it wouldn’t fit.”
She shook her head.
“What?”
“Say it again.”
Grinning mischievously, he said, “I was worried it wouldn’t fit.”
“Not that, silly!”
“Oh. That.” He swallowed. “Will you do me the honor of—”
She gave his shoulder a playful shove. “Not that, either!”
He got onto both knees, drew her close. “I love you,” he said, lips grazing hers.
Nestled in the crook of his neck, she said, “I love you, too.”
“Is that what you wanted to tell me?”
“That was part of it.”
“What is the other part?” he said, holding her at arm’s length.
“I went to the doctor’s today, and—”
Alarm widened his eyes and he gripped her shoulders. “Dara, sweetie. Are you all right? What’s wrong?”
“Nothing is wrong, Noah. I went to see Dr. Peterson to find out why I’ve been feeling tired lately, that’s all.”
“Tired? Does he know why? Did he do tests? What did he say?”
Bracketing his face with both hands, she smiled as tears filled her eyes. “He said I’m going to have a baby.”
“A wha—A baby?”
She nodded.
“When?”
“September 21, give or take a few days.”
There were tears in his eyes, too, when he said, “Aw, sweetie.” Noah pressed a palm to her tummy. “A baby? Really?”
“Really.”
“If it’s a boy,” he said, kissing the tip of her nose, “I want to name him Ben.”
“Okay. But why?”
“That was Brother Constantine’s first name.” He kissed her chin.
She nodded. “It’s a good, strong name. I like it.” Tilting her head, she asked, “But what if it’s a girl?”
“I dunno.” He kissed her forehead. “Any suggestions?”
“As a matter of fact, I have a few ideas.”
He kissed her cheeks. “And they are…”
“Emma, in honor of Emmaline.”
“Emma. Nice and old-fashioned and feminine. It’s settled, then.”
And without warning, he scooped her into his arms and headed for the front door. He flung it open, then deposited her on the porch.
“Noah Lucas,” she said, laughing, “what are you doing?”
“I told you once…I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my past. I don’t want to make any where you’re concerned.” He picked her up again and looked deep into her eyes. “If I wasn’t such an insensitive lout, I would have done this on our wedding night.”
He stepped over the threshold, then kissed her, full on the lips. “There.” He kicked the door shut, then carried her upstairs and laid her on their bed. “Now the only thing left to do is take you on a honeymoon.”
“Sweetie, that’s very romantic, but I’m afraid that’s going to have to wait,” she said, patting her stomach.
“Nope. It’s all arranged. We leave this weekend.”
“What? But what about the kids?”
“Emmaline and Joseph are coming to stay with them for the week.” He stretched out beside her, pulled her close.
“Where are we going?”
“It’s a surprise.”
“But how will I know what to pack?”
“Hmm,” he said, scratching his chin. “You’ve got a point.” He nuzzled her throat “How about that pretty white nightgown you wore on our wedding night?”
“Okay. What else?”
He looked longingly into her eyes. “I can’t think of anything else I’d rather see you wearing,” he replied, nibbling her lips. “It’ll be so grand.…”
She laughed. “Two hundred grand?”
“No. Just one.”
“One what?”
“Canyon.”
“The one in Arizona?”
“The very one.”
“Noah, I’ve always dreamed of seeing it.”
“That’s what I’m here for,” he promised, “to make all of your dreams come true.”
“Suddenly,” Dara said, smiling, “I feel very married.”
Dear Reader,
Americans love to root for the underdog. Why? Maybe because right from the beginning we’ve been a nation determined to beat the odds.
Some of the most courageous underdogs in our history were the brave young couples who sacrificed dreams of romantic love to submit to arranged marriages.
That practice may seem heartless to us now, but only until we realize how different life was for our grandparents and great-grandparents, whose happy endings came from doing what was best for their families…and boundless belief in the Creator.…
My maternal grandparents were the products of such a union. Young, naive, unable to speak English, my grandpa, Francesco Citerony, came to the New World to make a life for himself and the shy girl who waited for him in the Old Country. When the time was right, he sent for his Theresa. Romantic love wasn’t foremost in their minds during those early years of struggle and toil, but a deep and abiding love grew from the roots of their self-sacrifice. Their love endured and intensified… even outliving Grandpa, who died shortly after their thirtieth anniversary.
Their love story inspired Suddenly Married.
eISBN 978-14592-5774-0
SUDDENLY MARRIED
Copyright © 1999 by Loree Lough
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All characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of the author and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names. They are not even distantly inspired by any individual known or unknown to the author, and all incidents are pure invention.
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