For most of her life she’d watched over her kid sister, but Olivia had accepted what the future held for the Williams girls long before Abi had even woken from surgery. From the moment Ryder had wheeled her out of Cedars-Sinai’s oncology ward, Olivia had made it perfectly clear that her days of putting up with her stubborn, bossy, pain-in-the-ass big sister were numbered.
Ryder’s shadow cloaked Abi in a protective cocoon as she picked her way between the rocks and exposed roots toward the cave. The giant marshmallow hovering beside her like an obsessive-compulsive bodyguard had done an admirable job of concealing his homesickness, but being stuck in a bustling, overcrowded mega-city eight thousand miles away from his family and his outback Eden had started to drive him insane. Even during the weekly Skype hookups that had sucked Olivia into the loving madness of his world, he’d hidden just how much he missed his mother and siblings, but she’d known.
Either she’d finally broken her bodyguard, or he was too concerned that she might trip over her own damned feet, because he was uncharacteristically compliant as she teetered and tottered toward the cave guarding the Wishing Tree’s offerings.
Closing her eyes, she drew in a deep breath and released the last of the anxiety and guilt lingering in her mind. Olivia had warned her that an ass kicking of nuclear proportions was headed her way if she caught her big sister worrying when she arrived in a week. And for the first time in her life Abi was obeying Doctor Olivia Williams’s orders. She collected her balance and held out her cane. “Hold this.”
Instead of taking her cane, he cursed and lunged for her. After a growling and wrestling match that only confirmed how pathetic she was, she found herself kneeling in front of him in the dust with his massive hands steadying her waist.
She blew out a breath and muttered one final curse before reaching for the one-eyed teddy bear guarding her life’s most important artifacts. Her fingers trembled as she slid the bear aside to reveal the bird’s nest of honey-blond hair that had meant to be her secret weapon in the war against her virginity. Christ, how much had changed. Instead of making her cringe, Jennifer Aniston’s hair only made her smile.
Rough fingers trailed up her neck and tangled in the few inches of hair she’d grown back as a stubbled cheek brushed her ear. “On second thought, I prefer blondes.”
She elbowed him in the chest before leaning into his caress. “Too bad, you’re stuck with me.”
Her smile faded as she studied the wig. Even though she knew what lay beneath the dusty blond locks, the gravity of what they represented squeezed the air from her lungs. Unclenching her fingers, she carefully peeled open the wig and studied the two bronze crosses glinting up from the ocher sand.
His arms snaked around her and pulled her to his chest as he kissed his way up her neck and nibbled her earlobe. “I’ll split them with you.”
If she hadn’t known what he’d endured to earn those medals, hadn’t felt the scars beneath her fingers, or been woken by his whispered murmurs during the night, she might have been able to smile. She sagged back against him and thanked whoever was in charge of the heavens for saving him and trusting her to give him the life he deserved.
“You scare the shit out of me when you’re quiet.” The annoying ability he had to always make her smile worked its magic yet again.
Making sure to indecently assault him, she slid her hand behind her back and retrieved the bedazzled notebook she’d stuffed into her jeans. Rhinestones were missing, and the cover was bent and dog-eared, but the battered book that had started this crazy adventure had somehow taken on almost religious significance.
A giant paw clamped around her hand. “You’re not done with that yet.”
She pecked his cheek while cupping her free hand over his. “I have everything I could ever wish for right here.”
The jaw beneath her lips clenched as he sighed and surrendered. She opened the cover and slowly thumbed through the pages of a life that no longer seemed her own and paused on the last wish she’d ever need. She traced the words gouged into the page by the same hand cradling her waist and eased into his embrace.
Marry the man I love.
It’d had taken her a few attempts to read the wish he’d written for her in the hospital all those months ago, but the more she’d read the words the crazier they’d seemed. They’d only grown more insane once the anesthetic had worn off and reality had crashed down on them.
And yet here she was, kneeling in the red dust beneath a freaking magical tree in the middle of nowhere eight thousand miles away from home. And about to start a new life with a man who hadn’t actually asked her to marry him or even given her a ring. But she didn’t need words or a shiny bit of metal to prove how much the big softy loved her.
She picked up the medals and carefully laid them in the notebook before closing the cover and tucking the package into the wig.
“You forgot something.” His words dragged her from the trance she’d fallen under and had her half turning to eye him.
He reached around her and lifted the wig clear of its hiding place. As if he’d planned the whole damned thing, a gust of wind shifted the Wishing Tree’s canopy and a beam of brilliant sunshine hit a single gem half buried in the dirt. Rainbows of iridescent light exploded in her eyes as he withdrew the ring from the dust and held it in front of her.
“Last chance, Ms. Williams. Once this goes on, I’m never letting you go.”
It wasn’t technically a proposal, but then again, he was a big dumb Aussie after all. The translucent opal mounted on the elegantly simple platinum band looked so tiny trapped between his thumb and forefinger, but it was everything she’d dreamed of and nothing like she’d imagined.
“You better freaking not.” She jammed her finger through the ring and spun into his arms. In her excitement to hold him and his desperation to protect her, he tumbled back into the dust and trapped her against his chest.
She scrambled on top of him and captured his face before dropping her forehead to his. “And that’s Mrs. Harper, cowboy.”
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Acknowledgments
My First Reader: We were just kids sitting in a beat-up Toyota at the beach the first time I told you I loved you. Over each of the twenty-five years we’ve shared since then, I’ve fallen just that little bit more in love with you. You’re so lucky.
Mum, Dad, Jan, and John: I love you...almost all the time.
My family and friends: I also love most of you...you know who you are.
My beta readers, Mum and Twisty Face: You’ve endured every word I’ve written...I’m so sorry.
Grand Master Funk: What the hell can I say? You changed my life and taught me the three most important concepts for life and writing: HTFU, JHTC, and ACDA. Now stop crying and start spoiling Twisty Face for putting up with you this long.
Sasha Knight: I wrote this more than two years ago, nothing’s changed: it’s a terrible thing for a writer to admit, but I haven’t got the words to express just how much your faith in this story and my writing means to me. You changed my life and proved dreams come true.
My editor, Tera Cuskaden, and the brilliant people at Entangled Publishing: Thank you for allowing the dream to continue. I hope you know just how much your belief and support mean to me.
My agent, Janna Bonikowski, and The Knight Agency: I’ll never forget that first email. I’ve got no idea where this path will lead us, but I hope to share every step of this crazy journey with you. Thank you for being in my corner and always having my back.
My AWESOME readers: First of all let me commend you on your incredible taste. I hope you love Abi’s and Ryder’s happily ever after as much as I loved writing it. If you’d like to reach out to me I’d love to thank you personally for sharing these hours with me. Take care and thank you so much for your support. Website, Twitter, Facebook
&n
bsp; About the Author
Jezz de Silva is a romance ninja, geriatric animal rescuer, carb junkie, domestic warrior, corporate fugitive, and personal protection instructor. I help tough heroes and even tougher heroines find their happily-ever-afters. Allow me the honour of taking you on journeys where love always finds a way. And may my stories leave you with a smile on your face.
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Against All Odds (Outback Hearts) Page 29