by Judy Duarte
“Having a wife brings out the best in me.” He kissed her softly on the lips, then nodded up ahead. “There it is.”
“What if we miss?” she asked. “There are a lot of kids riding this thing.”
“I’ve got a wad of cash in my pocket. I’ll keep buying us tickets until we win.”
The man who ran the carousel extended the wooden arm that held the rings, some of them iron, only one of them brass.
A child riding a tiger grabbed for the displayed ring—one made of dull gray—leaving a shiny, golden circle for Nick and Hailey.
Together they reached for the brass ring, the prize they’d both been hoping for.
Love that would bind them forever.
And when they held it in their hands, Nick turned to her and smiled, his eyes glimmering with love.
“Happy now?” he asked.
“Happier than any bride has a right to be.” Then she wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing him with all the love in her heart.
“I know what you mean,” he said. “I’m going to like having you as my wife.”
“And as your lover?”
“I never made any secrets about that.” He winked, then flashed her that crooked smile she’d grown to adore. “Let’s get the reception underway so we can cut out early. I’m looking forward to starting the happily-ever-after stuff.”
“Me, too,” Hailey told him.
But it had already started, the happiness, the dream come true, the promise of forever.
It had begun the day she met Nick—her friend, her lover, her hero.
ISBN: 978-1-4592-2472-8
HAILEY’S HERO
Copyright © 2005 by Judy Duarte
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