The Marshal's Prize (Harlequin American Romance)

by Winters, Rebecca

Zack looked up at Mitch. “Where’s your car?”

  “I don’t have one. I came here straight from the airport in a taxi.”

  Heidi was still reeling from the fact that he’d come at all, that he was back in Salt Lake. “Where’s your luggage?”

  “I tipped the driver extra to take it to my apartment and leave it in the carport.”

  “We’ll drive you home, huh, Mom,” Zack said matter-of-factly.

  Mitch sent her a questioning glance. “Will that be all right with you?”

  “Of course,” she said, opening her car so she wouldn’t launch herself into his arms in front of her son. Everyone got in.

  “Do you have plans for the rest of the day?” Mitch asked.

  “No,” Zack spoke up from the backseat as she drove the car out of the parking lot. “Mom says we’ve got a lot of stuff to do because we have to go on a trip tomorrow.”

  Mitch’s dark eyes practically impaled her. “For how long?” Maybe she was mistaken, but she thought he sounded disappointed. He’d obviously come back to Salt Lake to see about his apartment and have his things shipped to Tallahassee.

  She swallowed hard. “We need a vacation, so we’re going to visit Evy in Kimball, Nebraska, for the next three weeks. I think I told you she had a baby recently.”

  “Are you going to fly?”

  “No, drive. I like driving.”

  “But it’s going to take a long time to get there,” Zack grumbled.

  Mitch looked back at him. “That’s half the fun.” When her son didn’t respond, he said, “I’m thinking of going on a vacation myself.”

  She gripped the steering wheel tighter. “Do you mean before you go back to Florida?”

  “Heidi, there’s something you need to know. I resigned my job as a federal marshal. Lew took it a lot better than I thought he would. I’m making Salt Lake my permanent home.”

  “You are?” Zack cried out in pure joy.

  The news was so completely unexpected, she almost ran into the back of his car and had to stomp on the brakes to prevent a collision. “I—I don’t understand.”

  “Come inside and I’ll explain.”

  Zack scrambled out of the car ahead of them, whooping it up. Heidi entered the apartment on legs weak as jelly. Mitch brought up the rear, picking up his suitcase on the way inside. She grabbed onto the kitchen counter while he got a can of lemonade out of the fridge for Zack.

  “Can I go in your mini-gym? I promise not to spill this.”

  “Go ahead. The dumbbells are all yours.”

  “Yay.” He dashed out of the kitchen.

  With that taken care of, Mitch turned to her. Their gazes clung. “What about the hope that your mother or father will come looking for you one day?”

  He shook his head. “That’s no longer my priority. As a very wise man said to me, they did their job by giving me life. Now it’s my job to live it fully.”

  “Oh, Mitch…” She couldn’t see him clearly because of the tears.

  “I love Salt Lake. I love the friends I’ve made here. I love my job. Most of all, I love you. I fell totally in love with you the first day we met. I loved everything about you. I remember thinking that if I could ever win the love of a woman like you, I wouldn’t ask another thing of life. You’re the prize every man dreams of.”

  “I felt the same about you!” she cried.

  “The next day I met Zack. That special feeling happened again. He crawled right into my heart and has been in there ever since. I want to marry you, Heidi. I want you to be my wife. I want Zack to be my son. I want to put roots down with you, the kind Saska Bauer put down when she came here. Would you be willing to risk spending the rest of your life with me?”

  She was having trouble believing this was really happening. “Before you came to the program,” she said. “I was terrified I would have to try and make it through the rest of my life without you. I couldn’t imagine it.”

  The lines in his handsome face relaxed. “That’s all I needed to hear. How would you feel about a wedding while you’re on vacation? For convention’s sake I’m willing to wait another week, maybe. The truth is, I’ve been waiting for you to come along for years and I don’t want to wait any longer. That is, if you’ll have me.”

  “If I’ll have you…”

  Mad with joy, she ran into his arms. He let out an exultant cry and carried her into the living room, following her down on the couch while their mouths sought to appease their deep hunger for each other. “I couldn’t live without you now, Mitch,” she confessed when he let her up for breath.

  “You don’t have to. I’m all yours.”

  Heidi was so besotted, she forgot everything until later when she heard Zack’s voice. He’d come in the living room and was standing next to the couch. The knowledge that he’d caught them like this brought the blood rushing to her face.

  “I’ve been spying on you. Hey, Mitch? Are you really getting married?”

  She felt her husband-to-be’s kiss on her neck before he sat up.

  “What do you think?” Zack let out a yelp of joy as Mitch pulled him down with them.

  Chapter Eleven

  Seven weeks later

  Mitch was just getting ready to leave the office and drive home when his cell phone rang. He checked the caller ID. It was Morton, Heidi’s attorney. She and Mitch had met with him right before their wedding a month ago. He clicked on. “This is Mitch Garrett.”

  “Hello, Mr. Garrett,” a brisk female voice said. “Mr. Morton knows it’s late in the day, but he wanted to know if you have time to speak to him for a moment.”

  “Of course.”

  “Just a minute, please.”

  Mitch clutched his phone tighter, wondering if this call had anything to do with Heidi’s ex-husband. Gary’s jury trial was coming up next week.

  “Hello, Mitch. Thanks for taking my call. How’s marriage treating you so far?”

  Mitch closed his eyes tightly. “If there were words, I would tell you.”

  “That’s wonderful. I’m calling because I have some news that might add to your speechless state. The adoption went through when your marriage documents were filed. Judge Rampton is a close friend of Heidi’s father—that helped speed up the process. Congratulations. You now have a son with the legal name Zackery Bauer Garrett.”

  “Thank you,” he murmured, barely able to contain his joy.

  “My secretary tried to reach your wife, but there was no answer and no way to leave a message.”

  “I’m glad she couldn’t. Now I can surprise Heidi myself.”

  When he disconnected, he was already out the door headed for his car. After he and Heidi had made slow, leisurely love this morning, she’d said she was planning to fix him Wiener schnitzel for dinner. It was a favorite Austrian family recipe she’d promised he was going to love.

  Heidi didn’t need to promise him anything. He was so in love with her he didn’t know a man could be this happy. Lew had flown out for their small church wedding and had taken him aside. “Do you remember the times you told me you weren’t cut out for marriage?”

  Mitch remembered. In truth he’d been glad he’d almost given up on love ever happening to him. For the prize that awaited him, he had to get shot first. And then he had to get sent to Salt Lake for rehabilitation. And then Roman had to give him one last case to work on. And then Heidi Norris Bauer had to walk through the door of his office.

  An adorable, voluptuous, grown-up, intelligent woman with cherublike golden hair and jewel-blue eyes. A tough little blue-eyed Marine as part of the package. His family now, legally and forever.

  His pulse hammered in his ears as he pulled into the driveway. “Darling?” he called out, hurrying through the house. A wonder
ful aroma greeted him from the kitchen, but she wasn’t in there. No sounds of Zack, either. He dashed down the hall to their bedroom.

  Heidi was just coming out of their bathroom with a towel fastened around her. He’d long since discovered that lemony fragrance came from her shampoo. Finding her fresh from the shower was like finding the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. She let out a cry of delighted surprise when she saw him.

  “What perfect timing.” He lifted her and carried her to the bed, then lay her there and followed her down. It was pure heaven to bury his face in her curls; it was like lying in a high sunny meadow of flowers. “Where’s our son?”

  “He’s at Jacob’s. They’re having hot dogs and his parents will bring him home later.”

  He gave her a long, hard kiss. “I’m going to take a quick shower. Wait for me.”

  * * *

  HE NEVER NEEDED TO ASK. She was his wife, and no wife had ever been more loved or felt more cherished. Marriage to this man had made her feel reborn. Tonight she had a secret she was going to share with him over dinner, but maybe she’d do it now. At least that’s what she’d thought until she saw him emerge from the shower. Then every thought was put on hold as she reached out to embrace him.

  Phyllis had called him a gorgeous hunk. He was that and so much more. Every time he touched her as a prelude to making love, it was like the first time, filling her with rapture. Her need for him would have been embarrassing if he didn’t reveal the same great need for her.

  They lost track of time giving each other pleasure. When she came back down to earth, she said, “I’m so deeply in love with you it scares me it might be too much for you.”

  He covered her face with kisses. “Don’t be silly. Would you feel any better if I told you the adoption came through? Zack is now my son officially.”

  “This soon?” she cried in disbelief.

  “Mr. Morton tried to get you on the phone. He reached me as I was leaving the office and told me.”

  “Oh, Mitch—” she sighed “—this is the best news. From now on Zack can call himself Zack Garrett. In case you haven’t guessed already, he adores you.”

  “The feeling’s mutual.”

  She traced the line of his compelling mouth with her finger. “I think only one more piece of news could top this red-letter day.”

  He blinked.

  “Because I know you so well, I can’t keep back what I was planning to tell you over dinner.”

  “What?” His voice shook.

  Staring into those dark beautiful eyes of his, she said, “Certain symptoms are showing up that make me pretty sure we’re going to have a baby. When we decided we didn’t want to wait a long time to have another child, the heavens must have heard us. But I haven’t made an appointment with the doctor yet.”

  She felt the sensation that passed through his body. “Heidi…” His elation electrified her. “Have you done a home pregnancy test?”

  “No. I thought we’d do it together.”

  He rubbed his hand over her flat stomach. She knew how he felt. To think a new life had been formed. A miracle. “I hope my lovemaking didn’t hurt you.”

  Tears of love glazed her eyes. “Of course not.”

  She could see him swallowing hard. “Have you bought a kit?”

  “It’s in the bathroom cupboard. Shall we find out now?” He acted like a man who’d gone into shock. She grabbed the towel and slid off the bed. “I’ll be right back. Wait for me,” she mimicked his earlier words.

  “This man’s not going anywhere.”

  A minute later she came out in her bathrobe, saw him sitting on the bed dressed in T-shirt and shorts and showed him the test results. “What does it say?”

  He took it from her, but his hand was shaking. “It’s positive.”

  “I knew it. I should have had my period last week.”

  Mitch looked up at her in wonder. “We’re going to have a baby.”

  “Yes, darling.” She sat on his lap and looped her arms around his neck. “Now you’ve really put down roots. If it’s a girl, what do you want to call her?”

  “That’s easy, but only if you like it, too.”

  She kissed his hard jaw. “Tell me.”

  “Saska.”

  “Really?” His choice thrilled her. “The family will be overjoyed, especially Bruno.”

  “Do you remember my telling you about the conversation with the priest in Florida?”

  “I haven’t forgotten anything.”

  He crushed her to him. “When he was talking about the thousands of people who crossed the Atlantic to come live in America, he was talking about her. I’ve wanted to claim her for my ancestor ever since.”

  By now Heidi was beyond happy. “And what if it’s a boy?”

  “Why don’t we discuss it with Zack while we eat that fabulous Wiener schnitzel. I think I just heard the front door open.”

  “Mom?”

  Her husband had the ears of a bloodhound. “In the bedroom, honey.”

  “Where’s Mitch?”

  “I don’t know any Mitch,” she called, teasing.

  Zack appeared in the doorway. “Yes, you do. He’s right there.”

  “Oh…you mean this guy?” She kissed Mitch’s cheek. “I guess you can keep calling him Mitch if you want to, but he has another name now.”

  “What?”

  “You know how you’ve kept wishing he were your real dad?”

  Zack nodded.

  “Well, today you got your wish. The judge granted the adoption. You’re now officially his, son.”

  The blue eyes grew huge. “Honest?”

  “Cross my heart, honey.”

  “As of today, your name is Zackery Bauer Garrett. How do you like it?” Mitch asked in a husky voice.

  “I can call you Daddy?” Zack’s voice came out like a squeak.

  “I’ve been waiting to hear it. Come here, son.”

  * * * * *

  ISBN: 9781459226418

  Copyright © 2012 by Rebecca Winters

  All rights reserved. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher, Harlequin Enterprises Limited, 225 Duncan Mill Road, Don Mills, Ontario, Canada M3B 3K9.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental. This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.

  ® and ™ are trademarks of the publisher. Trademarks indicated with ® are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the Canadian Trade Marks Office and in other countries.

  www.Harlequin.com