The Rebel's Return (15 page)

“Dylan? What are you—Where did you go? I thought you'd—Did you say you're going to live here?”

He planted a kiss on her nose, then set her back on her feet. “Yeah, I guess so. Unless you want to move
into my dad's house. It's a little cramped and old-fashioned for your style, but—”

Maddie reached up and grabbed his face between her hands. “What are you talking about? You're not making any sense.”

“I'm not?” He laughed. “I guess I am sort of putting the cart before the horse. I haven't even asked you, have I? You might say no.” He grinned. “Nah, you won't say no, will you? You do love me, don't you, Maddie? I mean really, honest-to-goodness love me?”

She released her hold on him and stepped back, putting several feet between them. “Dylan, you're confusing me.”

“Yeah, I know the feeling. I've been confused about us, too. But last night everything became crystal clear. Nothing matters, not your money, not my past history, nothing. All that matters is you and me and our being together. Right?”

Maddie stared at him in total shock.

“Look, Red, I think the first thing we need to do is get your lawyers to draw up an ironclad prenuptial agreement. That way there'll be no question of me marrying you for your money or taking charge of Delarue, Inc.”

“Prenuptial agreement?”

“Yeah, honey, aren't you listening to me?”

“Dylan, are you asking me to marry you?”

He burst into laughter, then pulled her into his arms.
“God, I knew I'd screw this up. Do you want me to get down on one knee?”

“No, I want you to explain where you've been, what's happened to you and—”

He kissed her. Quick and hard. “I've been to the bank. If they weren't open till noon on Saturday, I'd have had to wait until Monday to get this.” He stuck his hand in his pants pocket and pulled out a small velvet pouch, opened it and dumped the contents into his hand. Leda Bridges' one-carat solitaire engagement ring and gold wedding band lay in the center of Dylan's palm. He stuck the solitaire on the tip of his pinkie, then put the band back in the pouch. “We'll save that until later.”

Maddie stared at the shimmering diamond ring as Dylan removed it from his pinkie and held it out to her. “Maddie, I love you. You have no idea how much I love you. Hell, I had no idea how much I loved you until last night.”

While she gazed at the ring, her eyes misting with tears as she absorbed his declaration of love, Dylan grabbed her hand, lifted it and slipped the ring on the third finger of her left hand. A perfect fit. This ring was meant to be hers. “Will you marry me?”

“Yes.”

“Yes?”

She nodded. “Yes.”

He followed her line of vision straight to the ring. “I know it's only a one-carat diamond. I could afford
something bigger, more expensive, but this was my mother's and—”

“I love this ring,” she told him. “Almost as much as I love you.”

“It's about time you got around to telling me you love me.”

She gazed up at him, but could barely see him through the shower of tears. “I think I've loved you forever. Well, at least since I was sixteen.”

“Yeah, I guess I've loved you ever since way back then, too. I don't know why it's taken me so damn long to figure it out. I knew I wanted you. I knew you were the best thing that ever happened to me. And I knew sex between us was great.” He kissed her again. “You know, Red, you're marrying a real dope.”

“We're getting married. You and me. A wedding. A honeymoon. A life together.”

“Yeah, and we're going to make it a happily-ever-after life. I'm making you that promise and it's one I intend to keep.”

Happiness burst inside Maddie, filling her completely. She closed her eyes and sighed. “I want babies. Your babies.”

“Hey, you could be pregnant now, you know. We did kind of get a head start on the honeymoon.”

“Would you mind if I am pregnant?”

“I'd kind of like to have you all to myself for a while, but if you are, I won't mind too much.”

Maddie giggled as she snuggled closer, stood on
tiptoe and spoke with her lips lightly brushing his, “Tell me again.”

“Tell you what?”

“That you love me.”

“Oh, sweet Maddie, I'm going to be telling you I love you every day for at least the next fifty years.”

“Only once a day?”

“Twice a day. Ten times a day. As many times as you want to hear it.”

“Say it.”

“I love you, Maddie Delarue. I love you, I love you, I love you.”

Dylan swept her off her feet and up into his arms. Just as he headed for the bedroom, the doorbell chimed. “Damn. Let's ignore it.”

The doorbell rang again and again.

“Whoever it is seems persistent. They probably won't go away.”

A familiar voice called, “Maddie, I know you're home, so you might as well open the door and let me in. I am not leaving until I speak to you.”

Maddie groaned. “It's my mother.”

With Maddie still in his arms, Dylan waltzed back into the foyer, reached out and opened the front door.

“Come right in, Nadine,” Dylan said. “Or would you rather I call you Mother Delarue?”

“Just what's going on here?” Nadine asked. “Have the two of you been drinking? You act as if you're drunk.”

“We're drunk on love,” Dylan told her.

Nadine gasped. “You were carrying my daughter off to the bedroom, weren't you? And it's not even noon yet.”

“Mother, Dylan and I have something to tell you.”

“There's nothing I want to hear about you and Mr. Bridges,” Nadine said.

Dylan readjusted Maddie in his arms; she tightened her hold around his neck. “You really should start calling me Dylan. After all, it's going to look odd to your friends if you refer to your son-in-law as Mr. Bridges.”

“My son-in—My God, Maddie, are you planning to marry this man?”

“Yes, Mother, I am. And as soon as possible. I might already be pregnant, so you'd better start planning the wedding today. Feel free to make it as extravagant as you'd like and spend a million dollars if you want to. I don't care. All I want is to become Dylan's wife.”

“Pregnant?” Nadine's mouth fell open and her eyes rounded in surprise. “You're…you're pregnant?”

“If she isn't, she will be soon,” Dylan said. “Now, Mother Delarue, if you don't mind, Maddie and I have some pre-wedding plans of our own to make.”

“You're asking me to leave?” Nadine glared at Dylan.

“Only for now. You'll always be welcome in our
home,” he told her. “After all, we're counting on you to be our number-one baby-sitter.”

“I—I don't know what to say.” Nadine looked directly at Maddie.

“Say that you're happy for me,” Maddie suggested.

Nadine glanced back at Dylan. “I'll expect to play a major role in my grandchildren's lives.”

“Of course,” Dylan said. “All children need a special grandmother to spoil them rotten.”

Nadine smiled. “Congratulations, young man. She's much too good for you, you know.”

“Yes, ma'am, I know.”

“Maddie, if you love him, then I'm happy for you. He's not quite what I wanted, but I suppose he'll do. He does seem to genuinely care about you and…he certainly knows how to win over his mother-in-law.” Nadine pointed her finger at Dylan. “If you ever hurt her or disappoint her or cause her one moment of unhappiness, you'll have to answer to me.”

“Oh, Mother, how sweet of you to—”

“I'm leaving now.” Nadine crossed the threshold, then glanced back over her shoulder. “I expect y'all at my house for dinner tonight. Seven sharp. We have a wedding to plan.”

“We'll be there,” Maddie said.

Nadine waved a dismissal gesture. “Go on with what you were doing before I interrupted you.”

The minute his future mother-in-law left, Dylan
laughed. “That's the first time a girl's mother ever gave me permission to make love to her.”

“That's the first time a girl's mother wanted you to get her pregnant.”

“Well, let's not disappoint Grandma.”

Dylan carried Maddie to bed and with every touch, every kiss, every whispered endearment, he pledged his love and devotion. And two lonely souls united, having finally found not only true love, but complete trust.