I laughed. “What part of ‘surprise’ don’t you understand.”
“Careful there, mister,” she warned.
I grabbed her by the waist and yanked her against me to get a good kiss. “Let’s go.”
I drove toward the marina. She had a skeptical look on her face. “Cade?”
I parked the car and took her hand, leading her down the dock to the end where a beautiful yacht was anchored. I looked at her and grinned. “What do you think?”
She looked at me, then the boat, then back at me. “You are turning into that guy. The guy that has so much money he has nothing better to do than buy boats.”
I shrugged. “I do have a lot of money in the bank.”
She shook her head. “You keep buying boats, and you won’t.”
I laughed. “I could buy a hundred boats, and it would still be okay.”
“Oh, Mr. Rich Man,” she teased.
I couldn’t keep up the ruse. “I didn’t buy the boat, but I did rent it for the day. I’m a chicken shit. I couldn’t buy a boat. I wanted to, but in my head, I’m still the poor struggling business owner.”
She burst into laughter. “Oh Cade, that’s why I love you. You’re so humble.”
“Thanks.”
“So, you rented the boat for the day?” she asked.
I nodded. “And the captain,” I said, pointing at the man that had just come above deck carrying a clipboard.
“Where do you plan on going?”
“I plan on taking us out to see the whales,” I told her.
She looked at me, her eyes wide. “No!”
“Yes.”
“Oh my god! Really?”
I laughed again. I loved to make her smile. “Yes, really. Are you ready? I think he’s waiting for us.”
She squealed, jumped up and down, and clapped her hands. “I’m so ready!”
We boarded the yacht, taking a seat on the deck and letting the captain do the rest. It was a cool, clear day, perfect for watching whales. I hoped she would get to see some. I wanted to make her happy and fulfill every one of her dreams. It was the one good thing about having money. I could give her whatever she wanted.
After cruising for most of the day and spotting some whales, we settled onto the deck to enjoy the lunch I had packed. “Stay, I’ll be right back,” I told her before heading into the galley to get the food.
I wanted everything to be perfect. I grabbed the bottle of champagne and carried it along with the cold sandwiches and sliced fruit to the table.
“Champagne?” she asked, looking at the bottle.
I nodded. “I’m hoping we will need it to celebrate.”
“Oh, what are we celebrating? Don’t tell me we’re celebrating your newfound wealth—again. We’ve done that quite a bit.” She laughed.
I shook my head and pulled a black velvet box from my front pocket. “Not that, this,” I said and opened the box.
She gasped, her hand covering her mouth as she looked up at me. “Cade!”
I dropped to one knee beside the table and looked into her eyes. “Eliana, I know this seems fast, but sometimes, you just know what you want. I know I want you. I know I’ve wanted you since I saw you in the gazebo that first night. I’m sure you can’t say the same thing, considering the suit I was wearing, but I hope you feel the way I do. I feel connected to you in every way. We fit. We’re right. You’re the woman I need in my life, and I want to be the man that can give you the world on a silver platter while making you the happiest woman on the planet. Will you please, please, marry me? I will beg and grovel if that’s what you want.”
She was giggling while tears streamed down her cheeks. “You are such a silly man.”
I shrugged. “I can’t help it. You make me giddy and silly.”
“I know you can’t, and your silly sense of humor is one of the many reasons I love you. You don’t have to give me anything. I love you for you.”
I raised my eyebrow. “Does that mean you’ll marry me?”
She rolled her eyes. “Of course, I will! I was going to drag your ass to the altar if you didn’t ask me!”
Relief washed over me. Sometimes, I just never knew what she was thinking. “My god, woman, you could have led with that!”
She grabbed my face and kissed me before pulling back. I reached up and brushed the tears from her cheeks.
“Do you want to put this on?” I asked, holding up the ring.
“Yes!”
She stared at the ring that I had agonized over for a week. I struggled with finding the perfect one. I wanted to show her how special she was to me, but I knew she would hate a ring with a diamond the size of a potato on her hand. I had found one that was dainty and elegant and absolutely perfect.
I slid it onto her finger and looked up at her face to see if she liked it. More tears slid down her cheeks. “It’s beautiful,” she whispered. “I never imagined I would have something like this or a man like you. Thank you for loving me, despite my many flaws.”
“Your flaws are the best part about you,” I told her and kissed her again.
I rose from my knees and pulled her to stand. I hugged her close, never wanting to let go. The captain blew the airhorn three times, celebrating our engagement. We both laughed as we stood together, staring out at the beautiful backdrop of the sunset over the water.
“I can’t wait to tell Lola,” she said. “She’s going to be so jealous.”
“My mom is going to be thrilled. I hope you don’t mind, but she wants to come for a visit. I was thinking, unless you have other plans, can we get married right away? I don’t want to wait another minute. I want you to be my wife. I want to seal this deal before you can change your mind,” I added, only half-joking.
“It isn’t like I have a long list of people to invite that will need ample time to fit me into their schedule,” she said. “We can get married tomorrow if that’s what you want.”
“Really? Do you want a big wedding?”
She shook her head. “No, I don’t. I think something quiet and private on the beach would be perfect.”
I smiled, nodding. “I think that sounds amazing. I need to tell Rand. He might actually make the trip home for it.”
“Are we really going to do this?” she whispered.
“Yes, we are. How about a month? Does that work for you?”
She giggled. “I’ll check my calendar, but I think I can squeeze you in.”
I pinched her butt. “You can squeeze me. We’ve proven that time and again.”
“You’re so bad. Too bad we have a captain watching us like a hawk.”
“We could go below,” I offered.
“Then he’ll know what we’re doing,” she protested.
“I don’t care.”
She shook her head and smiled. “We’ll wait until we get home. Then I’m going to strip you naked and make you beg for mercy.”
“Home,” I said, using it as a way to broach my next question. “That’s something else I wanted to talk to you about. Let’s sit.” I took her by the hand and led her to the bench with the comfortable cushions.
“What?” she asked.
“I think we should buy a house,” I said.
“Cade,” she started.
I knew she would protest, and I was ready to counter whatever she argued with. “We’re going to be married. Aren’t we going to live together?”
“Yes, but we both have places,” she pointed out.
I nodded. “We do, but our places are small. You said you wanted a family, and so do I. Don’t you want our children to have some room to play and grow?”
“Oh, you sneaky man. You’re hitting low. Using our unborn children already.” She laughed.
I grinned. “Damn straight. Can we start house shopping?”
She grimaced. “Houses are expensive.”
“Baby, we have money. Why not use it to give our family a safe, fun place to grow up?” I fell back on the tried and true persuasion tactic.
She thought abo
ut it for a few seconds. “You’re right, but it doesn’t need to be a monstrous house. I don’t want to have to put GPS trackers on my children to find them.”
I laughed. “I agree, but I think we should revisit the GPS idea.”
“A house and a marriage,” she said softly. “My mother is going to be so jealous.”
“If you want to invite her to our wedding, I’ll be okay with it.”
She shook her head. “No. Our last conversation was worse than the one that had me cutting her out of my life. I can’t have her in my life. She’s toxic. She’s angry, and all she can do is spew hate. I don’t want to hear her or see her ever again, and I certainly do not want her around my children. They are only going to know love.”
“Works for me,” I said with relief. I didn’t like the woman. She was nasty and vile and had hurt Eliana for the last time.
She leaned against me. “You make me so happy.”
“Um, there’s one more thing,” I said with a grimace, knowing I was treading on thin ice with all the changes I was proposing.
She groaned. “You bought this boat, didn’t you?”
I laughed. “No, I really didn’t. But I wanted to ask or offer—I’m not sure what word to use here—but you’re going to be my wife, and I’m not trying to take your independence, but I am offering you the freedom to quit your job. I know you don’t love that job, and I want to support you in every way. You can stay home, go to school, get a different job, do whatever you want, but you don’t have to keep serving champagne to people who don’t appreciate you.”
She scowled at me. “Cade, I can’t live off you.”
“I’m not suggesting you do, but I want you to be happy, and I want to go to bed with you every night. If and when we do get started on that family, I want you to have the freedom to stay with our babies or do whatever. We have more money than we could possibly ever spend. Why not take advantage of the freedoms that gives us?” I knew I was risking being tossed overboard.
She didn’t look mad, which I was taking as a good sign. “I’ll think about it. Maybe after we’re married, but for now, I want to keep working.”
I nodded, brushing a strand of hair back from her face. “Okay.”
“What about you? Will you keep working?”
“I’m still going to be around, but I am going to hire a couple more staff and promote Kacia. I want to spend my time with you. Life is too short to spend it making more money than I need.”
She smiled. “You’re right. After we’re married, I’ll quit. We can enjoy an extended honeymoon, enjoying our lives together.
Epilogue
Eliana
One year later
I turned my head on the soft pillow, watching Cade as he leaned over the tiny bed and gently lifted our newborn son into his arms. He cradled him closely, rubbing one of his giant hands over our son’s tiny head, covered in black hair.
I smiled, my heart filled with more joy than I knew was possible as I watched him kiss the infant on his forehead, whispering “my son” in Greek over and over.
“He’s perfect,” Cade said, looking over at me.
I nodded. “He truly is. Do you think he will have his father’s blue eyes or his mother’s green eyes?”
“Mine. Look at him. He looks just like me. He’s even pudgy like I was.” Cade smiled.
I laughed softly. “Yes, maybe next time you can make a smaller child.”
He grinned. “My boys are going to be strong men.”
“And our daughters?”
“They are going to be perfect, just like their mother,” he answered easily, his eyes going back to the baby in his arms.
“Have you given any more thought to a name?” I asked him.
He moved to the bed, sitting on the edge before ever so carefully stretching out his legs to lay beside me. “I have. Would you mind if we called him Lorenzo, after my father?”
I smiled, happy he had finally come to accept the name. We had talked about it, and he had initially rejected the idea, but I could see the change in him ever since our son had been born early in the morning. “I would love to call him Lorenzo.”
“Thank you.”
We laid together, huddled in the narrow bed, both of us focused on our child. I ran my hand over his soft head and marveled at the idea I was a mom. I was going to be the best mom in the world, or at least try.
“Did you ever think it was possible to love someone so much?” I asked softly.
Cade looked at me and smiled. “I love my wife pretty intensely, but I have to agree. I feel like I could walk through fire for this little man. My heart feels like it grew too big for my chest.”
I smiled. “That’s exactly how I feel. I want to have more.”
He chuckled. “Say the word, and I will happily plant another one in that belly.”
“Maybe I could have a week or two to recover,” I joked.
“Knock, knock,” a woman’s voice preceded Mrs. Kouris.
“Hi, Mom,” Cade said, grinning with such pride it made my heart swell even bigger.
Mrs. Kouris dropped her purse to the floor and put her hands over her heart, tears streaming down her cheeks. “Oh, son. Oh, son. Oh my. You make me so happy. I wish your father could see you like this. You have a family.”
“Would you like to hold your grandson, Lorenzo?” he asked, carefully climbing off the bed.
Her eyes widened, and she looked at me. “What? No, you didn’t?”
I smiled and nodded. “We did. Meet Lorenzo Kouris.”
“Oh, my heavens. Your father would be so proud. I wish I could share this moment with him.”
Cade carefully handed her the baby. She cooed and smiled and showered him with kisses on top of his head.
“Thanks for coming, Mom,” Cade said.
She scowled at him. “You don’t have to thank me. I wanted to be here. I’ve had my suitcase packed and ready for two weeks.” She turned to talk to the baby. “You sweet boy, you must learn how to be on time.”
I laughed. “I completely agree. He does not get his tendency to be tardy from me.”
She stayed for another fifteen minutes, loving on her first and only grandson. “I will let you get some rest.”
“The housekeeper is expecting you,” Cade told her. “We’ve had your room made up for you. I’ll be home later to change clothes.”
She nodded. “Thank you. I’ll come by this evening to say goodnight, and then hopefully, I will see you all at the house tomorrow.”
“Yes, definitely,” I said, adamant to get home and get settled.
After she left, Cade put Lorenzo back in the little bed and moved to sit on the bed beside me again. “Do you think she’ll like the room?” I asked him.
“Yes. Thank you for thinking of her. She will feel very welcome and will hopefully come for lots of visits. I want Lorenzo to know his grandmother.”
I scoffed. “She’s the only grandparent the kid has. He’s lucky she’s energetic enough to make up for the lack of grandparents in his life.”
“She’ll spoil him plenty, as well.”
“Did you tell the housekeeper to make sure to clean the nursery thoroughly?” I asked, worried there could be lingering germs.
“Yes, dear,” he answered sarcastically.
Our house had only just been finished. We’d found a diamond in the rough, as Cade called it. It was definitely on the rough side, but he had a vision. I trusted him and went along for the ride, but there were many days I was worried the old house would collapse around us.
He’d discovered he liked working with his hands and had been working alongside the contractor to transform the dump into a sprawling home with immaculate grounds that backed up to a beach. It was much bigger than I had thought I wanted, but he was confident we would fill all six rooms in the house with our children.
“I cannot believe I have a child,” I said aloud.
“We have a child,” he corrected.
“Yes, baby, we have a child
,” I said with complete awe. “In all my life, I never saw me as married with a family. I never thought I would meet a man like you and have so much love and happiness.”
“I knew I wanted a family, but I never thought it would happen like this. You’re perfect. We’re going to have perfect babies and live in our almost-perfect home. I want to travel the world and take our family on exciting adventures.” He rested his hand on my thigh.
“Our children will not be spoiled,” I insisted. “We will teach them they have to work hard.”
“Absolutely.”
We lay in bed talking about our future, just like we had done nearly every night since we had been married ten months ago. Before, I never really thought about a future. I kept my thoughts limited to weeks instead of years. I focused on getting through one day to the next and never allowed myself to think of the future because it was too depressing.
That was all changed now. I had so many hopes and dreams, and I was so fortunate to be able to share them all with a man I loved with every fiber of my being. Everything felt right. I often woke up in the middle of the night and would immediately reach over to see if Cade was truly there. So many times, I had convinced myself it was a dream. A girl like me could never have a life like mine.
There was a soft knock on the door. I nudged Cade, who’d dozed off beside me.
“Baby?” he muttered.
“No, door.”
“Oh,” he said and climbed out of the bed to see who our visitor was.
He opened it, and his face lit up. “No way,” he breathed out before throwing his arms around the man I could barely see.
A tall, dark, and very handsome man stepped into the room. “Hi,” he said with a very charming smile.
A beautiful woman stepped in behind him and waved. “Hi. So sorry to meet you like this. I’ve been in that bed before, and I know company isn’t always welcome.”
She was American. “You must be Nicole, and you’re Rand,” I said, recognizing him from some of the pictures I had seen in Cade’s phone.
He nodded. “I am. It’s nice to finally meet you, Eliana.”
“It really is, and I don’t mind having company, especially company from across the world,” I assured Nicole, who was already moving toward the baby bed.
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