She bit her lip, as afraid as he was to expose herself to more disappointment. “I don’t know—”
Less than an hour ago that would have been enough to make him back away. But he was a different man now than he was half an hour ago. He dug in, then took one hell of a dive off the cliff he’d been standing on. This was for all the marbles.
“All I have to know is if you love me.” He searched her face, hoping to see his answer.
She had to keep reminding herself to breathe. Air kept standing still in her lungs. “And that’s all?”
“That’s all.” And then, because fearing that she would say no, he swung the back of his wrist against the closest bedpost. The crystal cracked. A tiny bit of glass fell on what was almost the only piece of comforter that was still exposed. “I need you to fix my watch, Gloria.” And then he told her what was in his heart. “I need you to fix me.”
She could feel the tears gathering inside her. Happy tears this time. “Oh, God, you make it hard to say no.”
He ran his finger along her lips, already tasting them. “Then don’t. Don’t say no. Say yes, Gloria. Say yes. You smile when you say yes. Try it and see,” he urged.
“Yes,” Gloria murmured, then said it more loudly. “Yes.” She laughed. “You’re right.” She threaded her arms around his neck, then looked over her shoulder toward the door, remembering that they hadn’t been alone. Was her mother still standing out there? “Did you get all that, Mama?”
“Every word.” There was pure joy in her mother’s voice. “About time you were sensible.”
Sense, Gloria thought as she turned back to the man who had her heart, had nothing to do with it. “Aren’t you going to kiss me?” she whispered.
He secured his arms around her, pulling her closer. “For the rest of my life.”
Laughter filled her. “Might make eating difficult,” she teased.
“I’ll find a way,” he promised as he lowered his mouth to hers.
She knew that if anyone could do it, Jack could.
It was the last thought she had just before she sank into the kiss. And the four-poster. It proved to be a great deal more comfortable for lovemaking than the elevator floor had been.
Epilogue
“I don’t do windows.”
Christina grinned as she opened the door to her apartment wider, letting her sister in. It was the following weekend and a great deal had happened. More than some people packed into a year. In seven days, Gloria had opened her store, announced she was pregnant and then, with Jack at her side, announced she was getting married.
Which meant that she now had to pay up.
Closing the door, Christina surveyed the costume Gloria was wearing. It was the Hollywood version of what a French maid’s costume should be. Christina imagined that Jack had approved of the super-high hemline.
“Nice outfit. And, yes, you will do windows.” A frown appeared on Gloria’s face. Christina laughed. “Don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time. Lucky for you I don’t have a house. Now, I have a whole list of stuff for you to do.” She unfurled what looked like a scroll, purely for dramatic effect.
Gloria stared at it. Every line of the two-foot roll of paper was written on. She raised her eyes to Christina’s face. “You’re kidding, right?”
Christina handed her the scroll. “You think this is bad, you should see Sierra’s list.”
Gloria looked around the modern apartment. Their tastes were similar, she thought. Clean, homey lines, not too cluttered, not too austere. “But you just moved in here, how dirty can it be?”
Christina fixed her with a look. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but aren’t maids not supposed to talk back?”
“Obviously you never watched the Brady Bunch.” She looked at the list that Christina had handed her. “This thing is incredible.”
Christina shrugged nonchalantly. Half the things on there weren’t going to be attended to, especially not in Gloria’s condition, but she’d enjoyed coming up with the insurmountable list. “Hey, us executive types don’t have time to clean.”
Gloria stuffed the list into her shallow pocket. “You know, there are cleaning services you could avail yourself of.”
“I didn’t say rich executive types, now did I? Besides, I’d feel too guilty paying someone to clean my place. Mama does her own work.”
Gloria thought of the way her mother had plotted to get her together with Jack. If not for her, who knew how things would have wound up? “Mama is a piece of work.” She smiled broadly. “The very best.”
“Yeah.” There was no arguing with that.
Tugging at her short skirt, Gloria braced herself. “Okay, where do you want me to start.”
“With this.” Christina surprised her by throwing her arms around her and hugging hard. “God, I hope you’re happy, little sister.”
Gloria grinned, her eyes dancing. “If I were any happier, I’d have to be two people.”
“Well, you deserve it,” Christina told her, feeling a little wistful because she knew she’d never be there to join Gloria in that new place she’d found. “Now, I thought you could start in here…”
Gloria groaned as she followed her sister into the kitchen.
There, next to the counter, was a bucket and every cleaning product known to man. Unopened. Christina gestured toward them, then added, “And I’d like you to whistle while you work.”
Gloria gave her a look. “That wasn’t part of the deal.”
“Today I am the boss of you and I say it is.”
With a sigh, Gloria began to whistle. Actually, she thought as she picked up a sponge and counter cleanser, she had a great deal to whistle about.
Special thanks and acknowledgment are given to Marie Ferrarella for her contribution to THE FORTUNES OF TEXAS: REUNION series.
ISBN: 978-1-4268-7042-2
HER GOOD FORTUNE
Copyright © 2005 by Harlequin Books S.A.
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