Jordan’s gazed narrowed on Olivia. “You told Max to leave you alone?”
“Yes,” Olivia said with a soft sigh of regret.
“Well, he obviously doesn’t listen very well.”
“What do you mean?” Olivia’s words died on her tongue as she followed Jordan’s gaze. Her stomach flipped.
Max.
He was wearing jeans and a shearling coat. His laptop bag hung from his shoulder, and his hair was wet, as if he’d just stepped out of the shower. Her pulse beat faster as he moved toward their table.
“How did you know I was here?” Olivia asked when he stopped beside her.
“After I checked your house and with the Millers, Paige suggested I look here.” Something wild and urgent reflected in the depths of his eyes. “Olivia, can we talk?”
Instantly a wave of longing shot through her.
“This is Max?” Jordan interrupted, studying him with interest. “He’s even better-looking in person than in pictures. And he does smell like oranges.”
Olivia hid a smile at Max’s questioning glance. He greeted Ellie and Jordan with a smile, but then his gaze turned to her. Held her captive. “Maybe we should talk alone?”
“Yes,” Ellie agreed, quickly scooting out of her seat to stand, then casting a meaningful glance at Jordan. “I’m sure you have lots to talk about.”
Jordan took the hint and stood. “We’ll catch you later.”
Silence hovered between Olivia and Max for a moment until she asked, “How was your trip?”
“Productive. I sold Matchmaker 2.0.” Max reached for her hand.
A tingle ran up her arm. “That’s wonderful,” she said, hoping he heard the pride in her voice. “Congratulations. You’ve worked so hard for this moment.”
“That’s not all I’ve been working on.” He released her hand and opened his bag, setting his laptop on the table. He played with the keys for several long moments before turning the screen to face her. Staring back at her was the Tomorrow Foundation’s logo and, underneath, the words Foster Match.
“Do you remember when you took the Matchmaker test for the second time and how you wished you had an app that would help you match foster parents with foster children?”
Her jaw went slack as she nodded. “You created that app? For me?”
“For you and all the deserving families and children you serve. Mr. and Mrs. Miller have been helping me formulate questions, and I’ve added their information to the database. We still have a long way to go, but—” He stopped suddenly at the look on her face.
“The Tomorrow Foundation can’t afford fancy software,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper.
He gave her a gentle smile. “It’s a gift from me to you.”
Olivia bit her lip to hold back tears. “That’s the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me.” She tried to convince herself that his gift was because of what Paige had told him she’d experienced at other foster homes before coming to the Millers. But when she was done lying to herself she knew the reason could only be because he loved her. Every kiss, every touch, every soft word he’d spoken had been real, no matter his situation with Annalise.
Her eyes ached with unshed tears at the tenderness in his expression. “Thank you, Max. This will help so many people have better lives.”
At her words, an amused, knowing smile came to his lips. “You believe in my invention now?”
He reached for her hand, folded his fingers around her cold, numb ones. Suddenly the throbbing emptiness that had filled her heart since she’d told him good-bye vanished. Her heart began to hammer with a mixture of hope and nervousness. “I’ve always believed in you and your app.”
His smile hit her like a blow to her heart. He was so unbearably handsome when he looked at her like that. “I’ve missed you, Olivia,” he said with a raw ache in his voice.
“I’ve missed you a hundred percent more,” she replied with a watery smile.
He pulled her into his arms. She wrapped her arms around him, tears of joy and relief on her cheeks. He held her close, rubbing his smooth-shaven jaw against her temple. “I’m so sorry for all the pain I caused you. I’m so damn sorry.” Slowly he bent his head and covered her mouth with his.
She kissed him back, holding him tightly, until she remembered where they were. Regretfully, she pulled back and stared into his eyes. “I’m sorry for losing faith in what we had. Annalise couldn’t have destroyed what we had together, no matter what she threatened, unless I allowed her to.”
With a smile, Max kissed her nose and said, “I have two more things to show you.” Releasing her, he reached into his bag and pulled out what looked like a cashier’s check. “If this check doesn’t work, I’d be happy to issue a new one that will.”
Olivia’s hand shook slightly as she saw the check was first made out to Annalise then changed to the Tomorrow Foundation in the amount of $1 million. She gasped. “Annalise did this?”
He nodded. “She’s changed, and for the better, in the last few days. Not only did she sign over this check to you without a moment’s hesitation—she’s going to marry the father of her child on Friday.”
“She’s getting married to someone else?” Olivia squeaked, then lowered her voice. “When did this happen?”
“Yesterday.”
“I can’t believe the press wasn’t all over this news.”
“Speaking of news . . .” He withdrew another piece of paper from his bag and handed it to her. It was a press release dated for tomorrow. “This announcement of the sale of Matchmaker 2.0 will hit all the news agencies tomorrow by the time we wake up.”
Everything he’d said to her, showed her, sank deep. He was free to love her. There was nothing else standing in their way except the two of them. It was time to be brave and reach for what she wanted.
Olivia leaned toward him. Against his ear she whispered, her voice shaking with love and desire, “You asked me for a second chance.”
“I did,” he replied, his voice filled with anticipation.
“I’d like nothing better than to wake up in your arms.”
Twenty minutes later, Max pulled up in the driveway of his house in Magnolia. He shut the door behind the two of them, then took her coat, hanging it on a hook by the door. When he turned back around after placing his coat beside hers, he offered her a sudden smile. “I’ve waited long enough. I can’t wait a moment longer.”
Max held out his hand and opened a little black box to reveal a diamond ring inside. “Will you marry me, Olivia?”
Dazed by his words, she stared at the ring. Catching the lights overhead, the diamonds sparkled brilliantly. A circle of smaller diamonds surrounded a larger one in the center. It was just the ring she would have picked for herself.
Max raised his right hand to her cheek, cupping her face. “You know I love you quite desperately. Please tell me you’ll be mine.”
Olivia’s heart pounded in her chest. Her hearing dulled. He’d finally said the words. I love you.
His smile softened, and she saw the depth of his love for her in his eyes. He had such confidence, such faith. She loved that about him. “Oh, Max. Yes. Yes, I’ll marry you.”
His eyes filled with such profound love and joy that her heart tightened. What had she ever done in her life to deserve a look such as that? She reached up to gently frame his face with her hands and brushed her lips against his. “I love you.”
He eased the ring from the box and slipped it on her finger. She took his hand in hers, felt the gentle strength that was Max, savored it. But then her smile faltered as another thought occurred to her. “You sold Matchmaker 2.0. Does that mean you’ll stop teaching? What about Paige? She’s doing so well. She’d feel so abandoned if you . . .” Olivia couldn’t finish the sentence.
“I would never abandon you or Paige. I already declared I would renew my contract with Denny High School. As for Paige, I’d be thrilled to be her teacher, her tutor, her Guys and Pals mentor, and whatever else life
throws our way.”
It was all there in his eyes, his love for her, for Paige, for the life they’d all share. “What about our own children?” Olivia asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
Max’s smile turned intimate. “I want children—lots of children. I want to fill our home with the patter of all kinds of feet—those of the children we create, the children we might adopt, and those who live with us until they unify with their own parents.”
Pulling her close, he said, “I want to hold you in my arms and watch our children play and fight and challenge us as kids are supposed to. We’ll let them know they are loved, truly loved, for who they are.”
He brought his lips to hers, kissing her until she was breathless. “Is that all right with you?”
“Nothing would make me happier.” Her eyes stung with tears.
He smoothed the tears from her cheeks, then swung her up in his arms. “Will you come upstairs with me?”
She nodded and looked at the ring on her hand. She still couldn’t quite believe she and Max belonged to each other. “This is the first night we’ll share together where nothing stands between us.”
“There is still something between us,” he said as he carried her up the stairs and gently set her on her feet before him. At her startled expression, he immediately moved his hand to skim her waist, delving beneath the fabric of her sweater. “You’re overdressed for what I have in mind.”
With a laugh, she reached for his shirt, pulling it up over his head. They were fueled by desire, and their clothes melted away. Joy and happiness swelled in her chest. “Max, what’s the statistical probability you and I will be together forever?” she teased.
“I’d say that’s one hundred percent.” His gray eyes smoldered as he bent to kiss her, stirring the flames between them to a fever pitch.
EPILOGUE
One year later, Olivia and Max returned home shortly before ten o’clock. Upon their entrance, Paige uncurled her legs from the couch and turned to greet them with baby Juliet asleep in her arms. “Did you have a good time?”
Paige had offered to babysit for them on their one-year anniversary. “Dinner was amazing. It was the first time in an entire month I can recall eating hot food.” Olivia sat on the couch beside her. She wanted to tuck the image of Paige holding Juliet away in her heart forever. They were both changing so fast. “How are my two favorite girls?”
Paige gave Olivia a sheepish look. “I know you’re supposed to put babies down to sleep, but I can’t stop looking at her. She’s so perfect and so tiny.”
Max came to join Olivia and Paige on the couch, shifting his gaze between the newborn and teenager. “We feel the same way about you. Watching you grow and change has been a true joy.”
“Jeez, Mr. R., you’re making me feel old.” Paige blushed as she came off the couch. “I’m going to go take Juliet to her crib. I’ll be back in a minute.”
There had been lots of changes in Paige’s life during the past year. Her grades continued to improve, and there was no doubt about her finishing her junior year. Next year she’d be a senior. Then there was graduation. Olivia got teary-eyed just thinking about Paige going away to college.
Max and Olivia’s lives had changed in some ways. In others, not at all. Max still taught at Denny High School, and Olivia continued to run the Tomorrow Foundation. They’d been married last April and welcomed Juliet into their hearts last month. They’d allowed Paige to help them choose her name. When the teenager suggested Juliet, Olivia knew it was perfect. Their daughter would never be a tragic heroine. Instead, her name was a symbol of triumph, of all the things Paige, Max, and Olivia had overcome to be where they were today.
Olivia turned to look at her husband. A slow, admiring grin spread across his face. “You know, Mrs. Right, there is one anniversary present you could give me that will make this day complete.”
“What is that?” she asked, taking his hand, holding tight. She wanted this feeling of utter contentment to go on forever.
He reached toward the end of the couch, for his computer. He turned it on and pulled up the Matchmaker 2.0 start screen. The logo of two hearts intertwined revolved before her. “You could take the Matchmaker test. You never took the test after I fixed the program.”
Olivia laughed. “What is the probability that we could be any happier than we are right now?”
Max contemplated her words for a moment before he shut the computer screen and set the laptop aside. “You’re right. I don’t need to know. I have everything I’ve ever wanted right here in this house.”
Olivia leaned in and kissed him softly. “I love you, Max.”
“I love you, Olivia.”
In that moment, Olivia knew with 100 percent certainty that there really was such a thing as happily ever after. She didn’t need the Matchmaker app to tell her that.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
There are no unwanted children. Just unfound families.
This book is dedicated to everyday heroes who open their hearts and homes to society’s most vulnerable children.
My thanks go out to all the people who made this book possible. To Mary Jo Chambers and Brooke Lamberson, thank you for sharing your knowledge and experiences about being a foster parent with me. What a blessing you are to the abused, neglected, and at-risk children who’ve been touched by your love. I am also very grateful to Jeff Judy, Pacific Northwest executive director of Olive Crest, and Sharon Mooers, Pacific Northwest regional development director of Olive Crest, for sharing the gift of your knowledge and your time.
To three of the strongest, most talented women I know: Teresa DesJardien, Pamela Bradburn, and Karen Harbaugh, thank you for setting aside your own writing to help me. I cannot express how much I value your love and support.
To my niece, Jessica, for helping with all the teenage details. It’s been a while since I was there, and I appreciate your help.
To Maria Gomez, your unfailing support and laughter when times were rough mean the world to me.
And to Pamela Ahearn, who believed not only in me but also this book . . . and kept believing.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Photo © 2015 Barbara Roser, Roser Photography
Gerri Russell is an award-winning author of historical and contemporary novels, including the Brotherhood of the Scottish Templars series and Flirting with Felicity. A two-time recipient of the Romance Writers of America’s Golden Heart Award and winner of the American Title II competition sponsored by RT Book Reviews magazine, she is best known for her adventurous and emotionally intense novels set in the thirteenth- and fourteenth-century Scottish Highlands. Her debut novel, The Warrior Trainer, was also nominated for an award from RT Book Reviews for Best First Historical Romance. Before Gerri followed her passion for writing romance novels, she worked as a broadcast journalist, a newspaper reporter, a magazine columnist, a technical writer and editor, and an instructional designer. In her spare time, she is a living history reenactor with the Shrewsbury Renaissance Faire. She lives in Bellevue, Washington, with her husband and children.
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