Owen took her by the shoulders and turned her to face him. “First, thank you for texting me and asking me to come down here to help you out with this.”
“Turns out, I didn’t really need your help. I did like the way you stood there intimidating him.”
Owen tilted up one side of his mouth. “He’s a douche bag.”
“You’re sweet. Thank you for letting me handle that on my own.”
“You needed to stand up to him. You showed him who you are and what he’s missing out on for being such a douche-bag asshole. Isn’t that the best revenge on an ex? Showing them that you’re not pining away for them and that you’ve moved on and are happier without them. He hoped to find you here, waiting for him to help you out by giving you the money he was willing to offer as a settlement. Now, he knows you don’t need it that bad and you’ve moved on. With me. Your better-looking, stronger, smarter attorney-soon-to-be-fiancé.”
“You forgot arrogant and cocky.”
“Ah, that hurts.” He put a hand over his heart like she’d wounded him.
“No it doesn’t. Besides, you do arrogant and cocky well.”
“Thank you, honey. I aim to please. You.”
“He hasn’t changed. It makes me wonder what I ever saw in him.”
“You saw what he wanted you to see, until you saw through him to the truth and left him. Don’t fault yourself for wanting to be in love and have a family. Those are good things, and he turned them against you.”
“Yes, well, as you said, now I have you.”
“Yes, you do. Always. Arrogant. Cocky . . .”
She wrapped her arms around his neck and went up on tiptoe to look him in the eye. “Handsome. Sexy. Sweet. Funny. Loving.”
“Stop, you’ll ruin my carefully crafted reputation as a tough attorney.”
“You are tough and strong and fierce when you need to be. The one thing you are not is mean or hurtful. I really appreciate everything you are.”
“Thank you, sweetheart. That means a lot. I feel the same about you. Maybe that’s why we are so good together.”
“We’re good together because I’m hot for your body.”
“Well, who isn’t,” he teased.
“But you’re all mine.”
“For months now. Last night. This morning. Right now if you want.”
She laughed and laid her forehead to his chest. “You always know just what to say and do to keep me from dwelling on the bad things that happen.”
He rubbed his hands down her back and settled them on her hips and gave her a squeeze. “That’s why I offered the possibility of a settlement. If you stand your ground, he’ll continue to be a part of your life, even if it is on the periphery. If you take a settlement, that’s the end. He’ll have no reason to ever contact you again.”
“I didn’t refuse when you made the offer for the same reason. But it better be a damn good offer. I’m not taking any more half-ass attempts to make me bend to his will.”
“I think he’s realized that under all that beauty and grace lies a steel disposition. He’ll make a fair offer. If he doesn’t, we’ll counter, and he’ll accept because there is no way in hell he comes clean to his fiancé before the wedding is done and over and all parties have signed on the dotted line and he has access to her money.”
“You think that’s what he’s doing?”
“I know it is, and so do you. You saw it the minute you suggested the baby isn’t his. He knows she hasn’t been faithful, but for whatever ulterior motives they have, they’re going to get married. He’ll get the promotion at work from his father-in-law and access to the money. She’ll get whatever it is she wants from him. Maybe he’s found someone who wants what he wants, to be able to see other people and still have the illusion of what everyone else has for appearances’ sake.”
“That’s just sad. Their child will be stuck in the middle of all that muck.”
“It never ceases to amaze me what people are capable of doing to others. I see it all the time in my practice. We’ve seen it in dealing with Dale and Shannon.”
“Ugh! I don’t want to talk about them. This morning has been ruined enough.”
“You’re right.” He traced his fingers down the side of her face. “I have to go to work.”
“Thanks for coming when I called.”
“You knew I would.”
“That’s why I sent the text.”
That made him smile. “How about you repay me with one of those awesome coffees you always make me.”
She laughed. “I told you you’d like it. Coming right up.”
“Got anything sweet back there, besides you?”
“Why Owen McBride, are you flirting with me?”
“Just starting tonight’s seduction a bit early is all.”
“You have never had to seduce me into your bed.”
“No, you come willingly—and often.”
She let out a full belly laugh and turned to him, her cheeks heating with embarrassment.
“You’re beautiful when you blush.”
She closed the short distance between them and wrapped her arms around his neck. “I like this. You and me. The way you make me feel right now.”
“Will you marry me?”
“What? No ring? No getting down on one knee, you just ask?”
“Yes. You and me and the way you make me feel right now.”
“Yes, I’ll marry you.”
He crushed her to his chest, kissed her, and swung her around, making them both dizzy.
Owen never meant to ask her here. Now. He’d meant to plan something special. Dinner on the back patio like their first date. Candles. Moonlight. Soft music so he could hold her close and dance with her. None of that seemed to matter when they were right here. Right now. Together and sharing a moment of complete closeness and connection.
He’d put the ring in his pocket this morning for no reason, except he didn’t want her to find it in the house. He could have put it in the office safe. Fate.
He let her loose and fell to one knee in front of her in the middle of her empty store.
“Marry me and I’ll love you every day for the rest of your life and mine. We’ll build a life together and raise a family. I will spend my whole life making sure you never regret saying yes. I love you, Claire. Be my wife and love me the rest of my days, and I’ll die the happiest man on earth.”
He held the ring up to her. Tears streamed down her cheeks. Her gaze never left him. “I will love you the rest of your life and mine. Yes, Owen, nothing in this world would make me happier than being your wife.”
He rose and took her in his arms for another long kiss.
“Don’t you want your ring?”
“I just want you.”
“Well, I come with a ring, two horses, a bunch of cats, including your Pumpkin, a brother and some other family, a best friend, two nieces, and a bunch of other stuff. None of it matters as much as you do to me.”
“I’ll take it all and be happy with it, because I have you.”
He slid the ring on her finger, and this time she looked at it. Her eyes went wide, and she gasped. “Owen.”
“Do you like it?”
“I love it. Thank you. It’s beautiful.”
“Just like you asked. A brilliant round diamond that sparkles half as much as your eyes when we make love.”
“You make everything in my life shine.”
He held her close and pressed her head to his chest. He leaned his cheek to her golden hair and sighed, more happy and content than he could ever remember feeling in his life.
“That goes both ways, sweetheart.”
Chapter Thirty-Six
* * *
OWEN WALKED INTO his office, coffee in hand, unable to stop smiling, and a determination to make his future wife happy every day for the rest of their lives. In order to do that, he needed to put a stop to Dale’s vindictive harassment.
“I know you like those coffees Claire makes you, but that�
�s not what put that smile on your face,” Janine said, standing beside her desk, a stack of files in her arm.
“I asked Claire to marry me. She said yes.”
Janine squealed, dropped the folders on her desk, and held up her hands in the air. “Of course she said yes.” She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down to peck his cheek. “Oh. Oh. I’m so happy for you. I can’t wait to see her and congratulate her. Did you tell your brother and cousin?”
“Not yet. I just asked her twenty minutes ago.” He’d wanted to stay and make love to her, but making love to her in the shop’s kitchen wasn’t quite the way he wanted to celebrate their engagement. No, he’d leave work early, buy her flowers, make her dinner at his place, and they’d share a quiet evening at home. No. Maybe he should take her out to dinner at Madeira’s.
First, he wanted to deliver an engagement gift. Dale behind bars.
“I’m heading over to see Dylan now. I just wanted to check on things here before I left.”
“Go. Talk to Dylan, put a stop to this mess, so you and Claire can enjoy this time and plan your wedding without worry.”
Owen hugged Jeanine in a rare show of affection for his employee, who’d become a really good friend.
In his truck on the drive over to the sheriff’s office, Owen called Rain’s house, trying to catch Brody before he took the girls to school.
“Brody,” his brother answered.
“I’m getting married.”
“About fucking time,” Brody said, completely serious.
Owen laughed. “Well, I have known her for less than three months. I don’t know what’s taken me so long.”
Brody laughed and called to Rain, “Owen’s getting married.”
She squealed so loud Owen had to hold the phone away from his ear. She came on the line. “I am so happy for you. Did you get her a ring?”
“Gave it to her this morning right after I got her to promise to marry me. Soon.”
“So, you asked her and gave her a ring and she said yes.”
“Yes,” he answered, knowing exactly where this was going.
“See, Brody, your brother knows how to do it. Why don’t you?”
Brody came back on the line. “Congrats, man.”
“You better hurry up and ask Rain to marry you before she decides to say no for spite.”
“She won’t say no. She loves me,” he called loudly, obviously yelling at Rain. “She’s taking the girls to school. What are you doing?”
“On my way to see Dylan. Didn’t want to tell him the good news before I told you.”
“I appreciate it. Any word on Dale?”
“That’s what I want to talk to him about. I need to end this. Now. I don’t want to marry her with this hanging over our heads.”
“Let me know if you need me for anything.”
“Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.”
“If it does, I’ve got your back.”
“You always do. I’ll catch you later.”
“Owen?”
“Yeah?”
“I hope you and Claire are as happy as Rain and I are.”
“We are. As the best man, start planning the bachelor party, because I’m not waiting to marry her.”
“Who says I’m the best man? You never asked me.”
“You’re my fucking brother. Of course you’re the best man. Get it done.”
“I started planning it a week ago,” Brody confessed with a definite hint of a laugh in his voice.
“Good. At this rate, I’ll be married before you and Rain.”
“You’ve got your way. I’ve got mine.”
“Doesn’t matter how it happens, so long as they’re with us.”
“Exactly.” Brody acknowledged the simple truth.
They both felt the same way and had finally found what they’d wanted their whole lives. Love. Family.
Owen ended the call and parked outside the sheriff’s office. He walked in and caught the little boy midair. He held Dylan’s son, Will, aloft and swung him around before he drew him close and hugged him. He’d seen the boy several times since Dylan came home. It hadn’t taken the little guy long to warm to him and the rest of the family.
“Hey, buddy. How are you?”
“No school. Stay with Daddy and play cops and robbers.”
“That’s exactly why I came to see your dad,” Owen said, patting the little boy’s back. “Dylan.” He greeted his cousin with a handshake.
“I’m glad you’re here. I was going to drop this one off at school and come see you.”
“You’ve got news.”
“I’ve been working with your PI. I went north and east. He went south and west on the hunt to find Dale outside of Colorado. Talked to him ten minutes ago. He found him. Dale’s in custody.”
Owen held back the swear words for the boy’s benefit and let out a huge sigh of relief. “Tell me everything.”
“Not yet. I need to get this one squared away.”
Owen waited while Dylan said goodbye to Will. His assistant, Lynn, left with Will to drop him off at preschool, and Dylan called his mother to pick up Will later today.
“How are your mom and dad?”
“Same as they ever were. Dad is buried in work. Mom rules the house and us.”
“Still interfering in your life, huh?”
“It never ends. She loves Will, though.”
“He’s a great kid. Can’t wait to have one of my own.”
“Trust me on this, get married first. It’s not easy being a single parent.”
“About that. I asked Claire to marry me this morning.”
Dylan slapped him on the shoulder and grabbed hold. “I am so happy for you, man. That’s great. Really great.”
“Brody’s planning the bachelor party. I’m sure that means we’ll relive some of my youthful indiscretions. Seems to me, you left town just when you were getting old enough to do something interesting.”
“I wish I’d stayed,” Dylan said, a touch of sadness in his voice that Owen hated putting there, reminding Dylan of the girl he’d loved and lost so long ago.
“Have you found any proof to substantiate the rumors Jessie’s dead?”
“Nothing.”
“Did you talk to her old man, see if he cops to anything in one of his drunken outbursts?”
“Tried. Twice. Didn’t get more than five steps onto the property when he came out and shouted for me to leave or show him a warrant. I pushed, but he refused to speak to me. Claims Jessie left one night and never came back.”
“You don’t believe it.”
“Oh, he said it with enough conviction, but the haunted look in his eye says there’s a hell of a lot more to the story.”
“You don’t think she left that house alive.”
“I don’t know what to believe.”
Which really meant Dylan didn’t want to believe the rumors her father killed her.
“She had every reason to leave. I hope she did, and she’s out there somewhere,” Dylan said, a hopeful note to his voice if not in his eyes.
“What’s her brother, Brian, got to say about her disappearance?”
“Brian is like his old man, wasting away at the bottom of a bottle. Every time I see him, he beelines it in the opposite direction.”
“Do you think he knows what happened and is hiding something?”
“I have no idea, and I’ve been too busy getting up to speed as the new sheriff to find out. I gather up rumors every chance I get, but no one has any concrete evidence she either left, or that bastard killed her. Soon, I’ll corner her cagey brother and get the answers I need.”
“I hope you get the answer you want.”
“Me too.”
Dylan led him back to his office and took a seat behind his desk. Owen sat in front of it and tried to rein in his impatience.
Dylan met his steady gaze. “I’m sorry this took so long. It’s not that it wasn’t a priority for me . . .”
�
�I get it, man. You’ve got a job to do, and prioritizing cases isn’t always easy.”
“I appreciate the understanding. This is a family matter, and I wanted it resolved quickly, but it’s been damn hard to find this guy. Here’s the thing. Dale is in some dinky town outside of Farmington.”
“That’s in New Mexico and more than four hours away.”
“He’s got a second cousin out there. The reason he didn’t use his credit cards or bank account in the last few months is that the cousin’s place is off the grid in the middle of nowhere.”
“Okay, so how did you find him?”
“Your PI started with Dale’s relatives outside the state, since I’ve had no luck finding him in Colorado. Anyway, local law enforcement in Farmington picked him up for drunk driving and resisting arrest. From the way things sound, they’ve had him in custody for a while.”
“What’s a while? A few days? Weeks?”
“I don’t know exactly. The person your PI spoke with didn’t have the information. They requested someone from my department come and pick him up. They’re a small town, next to nothing in the way of resources.”
“When will he be here?”
“Not until this evening. It’s going to take all day to get him here. My officer just left about ten minutes before you arrived.”
“So, he’s been staying with the cousin and coming back here to harass Claire and Shannon? That doesn’t make any sense. Especially since you didn’t get any hits on his credit card. How’s he paying for gas?”
“That’s what I want to ask him. Why the hell would he go so far away, only to come back and cause trouble and go all the way back there? That’s one determined son of a bitch if you ask me.”
“I guess we’ll find out when he gets here. Keep me posted. I want to know the minute he arrives. I want to question him and find out what the fuck his problem is, and why he can’t leave Claire the hell alone.”
“Listen, man, we’ve got to do this by the book. Don’t make me arrest you.”
“You’d love that, wouldn’t you?”
“Hell yes, but I want this guy to pay for everything he’s done, and I want the information he gives us to be legit.”
“I got it. I just want to know why. It’s so obvious to everyone but him that Claire and I are together. He can’t possibly still think I’m sleeping with Shannon.”
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