Lucas facing the demons of his past, exposing them to Allie, had been cathartic for them both. She’d wept for him as he related the horror of the fire, his failed attempt to save his mother.
Even though Lucas had finally told her everything, it was taking time to cleanse the last of that old guilt from his soul. Allie’s love for him and his for her had gone a long way toward healing him. But they both knew that before his imagined sins could be completely forgiven, he had to learn to love one more person—himself.
The nightmares, at least, had vanished. And although he still put on his lordly, autocratic airs from time to time, it took only a sweet smile from his daughter or the weight of his son in his arms to turn him into mush.
His unrelenting passion for Allie hadn’t changed. Although their lovemaking had become a bit awkward near the end of her pregnancy, it had lost none of its fire. Now she counted down the days until they could be intimate again.
As if reading her mind, Lucas met her gaze, heat in his gray eyes palpable even from across the yard. He said something to Tiffany, then headed for the deck, his focus on Allie never wavering. When he reached her side, he brushed a kiss across her lips, his fingers lingering on her cheek.
“Two more weeks, huh?” he asked, glancing down at Nathan still busy at her breast.
“Afraid so,” she sighed. “But you’ll be the first to know when systems are go.”
Pulling up a chair, he sat beside her, his shoulder touching hers. “I love you, Allie.”
She reached for his hand, lifting it to her lips. “And I love you, Lucas Taylor.”
As the August sun sank toward a fiery sunset, they watched their daughter play and their son drift off to sleep. Silently Allie gave thanks—for Lucas, for their children, but most of all for the miraculous love that enveloped them all.
ISBN: 978-1-4592-4888-5
THE BOSS’S BABY BARGAIN
Copyright © 2002 by Karen Sandler
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