After he climbed into the driver’s seat, he said, “I have something to show you, so just be patient. Okay?”
She sighed and looked out the window. Even though night had fallen, she realized quickly they were headed toward the Barnes estate. “Does Daniel want to see me?”
“He calls for you often.”
“That wasn’t exactly an answer.”
After they drove between the entrance pillars, Logan didn’t veer toward the parking circle, but rather to the unpaved side road that led to the lake.
“Where are we going?”
“Trust me, Gina.” He glanced over at her.
Could she trust him now? The better question was, did he trust her?
She said nothing as they bumped along the potholes and over the ruts. Logan parked and helped her out of the SUV, a large flashlight in his hand. He shone it ahead of them as they walked through a crop of trees to the small dock.
Once they’d cleared the foliage, everything changed. There were candles everywhere…surrounding the dock, along the rim of the lake, even in the rowboat.
“What is this?” she asked, her breath hitching, her voice small with wonder.
He led her to the dock and stood with her surrounded by candles. “It’s light in the darkness, Gina. It’s you lighting up my life. Will you row out into the middle of the lake with me?”
Hope began to take root in Gina’s heart, so much hope her throat closed. She finally murmured, “Yes,” and let him lead her to the boat.
He climbed in first and then held up his hands for her. She didn’t hesitate to take them after she tossed her purse and shawl to one of the seats.
Once they were positioned in the middle of the lake, sitting next to each other directly under the almost-full moon, they settled their oars in the boat. Logan shifted slightly to face her, and held her hand, his thumb rubbing along her knuckles.
When a tremor went through her, he asked, “Are you cold?”
She shook her head. She was as warm as warm could be, not knowing what to expect, a wash of sensual current running through her.
“Nothing has been easy for us, and that’s mostly been my fault,” he admitted.
She began shaking her head, but he kept going. “You know it’s true. If I’d come after you when you went to college, you would have told me the truth and we could have confronted it together. We could have confronted my father together.”
“That’s what you would have done? You would have given up your inheritance?”
“I would have given up anything for you. The problem was, I didn’t give up what I needed to give up most—my pride. If I hadn’t been so damned stubborn and self-absorbed, I would have recognized the change in your voice when I called you. I would have realized something was wrong.”
“You were worried about your dad. There was so much on your mind. And I was still in shock.”
“You should have told me why you left sooner.” There was gentle rebuke in his voice.
“I didn’t want to hurt you. Not just as far as the inheritance went, but I knew what your father said would put a wall between you. You were finally beginning to believe he wanted you in his business…that he wanted to be the father he’d never been.”
“You shouldn’t have to protect me. I’m supposed to protect you.”
“It goes both ways.”
“About Houston—”
“We don’t have to talk about that,” she said, concerned it would tip the happiness she was beginning to believe they’d find together.
“Yes, we do. No more half truths, no more misunderstandings. I want you to succeed, Gina. I want you to go after whatever you feel is going to fulfill you. But that day when Silverstein called me, all I could see was your interest in travel growing, your interest in setting up the centers growing. All I could see was you leaving me and Daniel someday when we weren’t enough to hold you in Sagebrush.”
She didn’t know where this was leading, but she did know she loved Logan. She squeezed his hand. “I would never do that. Not if you want me to stay.”
At that, he draped his arm around her, pulled her close and lifted her chin. His mouth was tenderly passionate claiming her, making promises he wanted to keep. “I’m sorry, Gina, that I had so many doubts. I’m sorry that I didn’t know how to let go of Amy to concentrate on us.”
She wrapped her arms around his chest and held him tight. “She’s part of your life, part of your past, and she’ll always be Daniel’s mother.”
“She’ll be his mother, but not the one he remembers. You’re going to be the mother he remembers.”
She gazed into Logan’s eyes, searching for sadness. But she didn’t see any. Suddenly, what he’d said dawned on her. “You want me to be Daniel’s mother?”
Instead of answering her, he slipped something from his shirt pocket and held it in the palm of his hand. The gold locket glowed under the moonlight.
“It’s your mother’s locket—the one I returned to you!”
“Yes, it is. I’ve kept it in the back of my dresser drawer all these years.” He opened it, showing her the picture of the two of them when they were much younger. “I couldn’t give it to Amy because it belonged to you.”
As she lifted her hair, her heart so full she couldn’t speak, he clasped it around her neck. Taking Gina’s hand, he asked, “Will you marry me, Gina Rigoletti?”
Somehow she found words, happiness a tangible essence flowing through every fiber of her being. She wrapped her arms around his neck. “Yes, I’ll marry you, Logan Barnes. And I’ll love you always.” Her love for Logan had begun so long ago, and she knew it would live forever.
“For always,” he repeated and kissed her under the light of the Texas moon.
ISBN: 978-1-4268-5003-5
THE TEXAS BILLIONAIRE’S BABY
Copyright © 2010 by Karen Rose Smith
All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without the written permission of the editorial office, Silhouette Books, 233 Broadway, New York, NY 10279 U.S.A.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
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~Logan’s Legacy
†Montana Mavericks: Gold Rush Grooms
*Baby Bonds
*Baby Bonds
*Baby Bonds
††Talk of the Neighborhood
‡‡Logan’s Legacy Revisited
**Dads in Progress
°The Wilder Family
**Dads in Progress
**Dads in Progress
§The Baby Experts
§The Baby Experts
¤The Foleys and the McCords
§The Baby Experts
§The Baby Experts
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The Texas Billionaire's Baby Page 18
