Untangle My Heart (Tangled Hearts) (33 page)

“No!” Edward said in a loud voice. “He died because he was a sick bastard who was obsessed with revenge. It wasn’t your fault, do you hear?”

Kate knew he was right and her heart went out to Sal’s mother. Kate had known Barbara almost her entire life, just as she’d known the entire DiSilva family. Barbara had been thrilled when Kate had married Mario, and even more so after Tony was born. She hadn’t spoken or seen her since Tony and Mario’s deaths, but she’d heard through her mother that her former mother-in-law was heavy into the bottle. Who knew what losing Sal, in the same way, would do to the woman?

She nodded. “You’re right. How’s Vicky?”

“She has a bunch of bruises, including some sore ribs. She gave them hell from the way Lucas explains it.”

“Good.”

“You did pretty well yourself. It makes me grateful you only flipped me in the alley.”

Kate shuddered and her voice trembled. “Him touching me…it brought back memories of the way Mario would beat on me. I used to take it, but not anymore.”

“I hated watching him grope you. I wanted to kill him on the spot. Almost did, too, if there hadn’t been two of them.”

Kate looked at him for a moment, for the first time noticing his black eye and other bruises on his face plus the tears in his suit.

“You fought him?”

“Right before you ran out of the café, Sal grabbed for the gun again. I fought him and was able to get the gun away from him. Unfortunately, his mate knocked Vicky around pretty hard, hence the bruised ribs, and came at me as well. Both he and Sal escaped right before Nick arrived with reinforcements.”

“You saved us. If it wasn’t for you, Sal would have raped me right there. He wanted to knock me up.”

“Is that why you lied and told him you were pregnant with my child?”

“Yes. I thought…” She paused. “I hoped he wouldn’t touch me if he thought I was already pregnant. But it didn’t matter. He was hell-bent on raping me regardless. I’m sorry for making you think that.”

“I didn’t mind. Actually, I liked the thought of you carrying our child.”

Huh?
Did she just hear him right?

“You did?”

“Yes. I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to have any children after the cancer treatments. I was disappointed when the ER doctors said you weren’t.”

“You told the doctors I was pregnant?”

“I alerted the EMT that you may have been. He was going to pass it along to the hospital staff.”

It occurred to her they had never discussed family. “Do you want children?”

“I admit it was never something I considered—until recently.” He took a deep breath before continuing. “Before I started chemo and radiation treatments, my doctor suggested I consider a sperm bank…in case the side effects made me infertile and I wanted children at some point.”

“And did you take your doctor’s advice?”

He nodded. “I almost didn’t, but in the end, Charles convinced me to keep my options open.”

“You have a smart brother.”

“I most certainly do.”

She had to know, had to ask if what she heard—or thought she heard—when she woke up in the car was correct.

“Edward…,” she began but paused, trying to frame her thoughts. “Right before I woke up in the car you said something—at least I thought you did.”

“I did.”

She released the breath she’d been holding, afraid she’d been wrong and had imagined the entire thing.

“Can you say it again?”

He sat on the edge of the bed. “I asked you to wake up.”

Kate could tell by the smirk that threatened to twitch one side of his lips up that he was teasing her.

“And what about the other thing you said?”

“Do you mean about me never allowing you to drive my car again?”

Kate cringed. “Crap. Your car. Did I total it?”

“Most likely.”

She crossed her arms over her chest. “See, I told you I’m not meant to drive.”

“Wrong. As soon as you’re better and I get a replacement vehicle, you’re getting back behind the wheel.”

She knew he wouldn’t let it go, and he was probably right. What kind of mom would she be to Lucas if she couldn’t even drive? There were bound to be events, travel sports, vacations, where driving would be more convenient.

“What about the other thing you said?” she asked again.

“Oh, that,” he said and rose from the bed.

Figures. Here comes the part where he tells her he just said he loved her so she’d wake up, and he can’t handle anything more than sex right now. After all she’d been through that day, she couldn’t handle hearing his rejection.

“Look, I’m tired. We don’t have to discuss this now,” she said.

“No, we do—”

“Really, I don’t think we should,” she interrupted before he could continue.

“Christ, Kate. Will you belt up and let me gather my thoughts for a moment?”

Her eyes widened at his uncharacteristic burst of temper. Maybe he’d been hanging around her family too much because he was starting to act like them.

She closed her mouth and studied him. He looked nervous, an emotion she’d never seen him display before.

“I meant what I said earlier about wanting to get married. You know my family life was…well, cold and unloving.”

She nodded.

He rubbed the back of his neck. “When I was younger, Charles and I had servants and governesses who would nurse us back to health when we were sick or praise us when we did something well. But I never knew what it was like to have a normal family. That is, not until I met yours.”

Kate snorted. “I’d hardly call my family normal.”

He turned and glowered at her. “You’re interrupting.”

She grimaced. “Sorry. Bad Italian habit.” Using her thumb and forefinger, she moved them across her lips like she was zipping them closed.

“Your family is so completely different from mine. I was never allowed to sample a sauce before dinner, asked to toss the salad, or to set the table. We wore ties to dinner and had servants who served our meals. Our conversation was stilted, and we never spoke loudly or interrupted each other.”

Spending time with her family must have been a complete culture shock for him. It was a wonder he didn’t go running back to New York.

“At first I was uncomfortable by the intimacy, but I realize it’s how I’ve always envisioned a family. Your family is wonderful, Kate. I don’t know if you realize how lucky you are.”

She nodded again, tears filling her eyes. Her parents and siblings often frustrated her, but she always knew that, no matter what, they loved her. That unconditional love was something she often took for granted. It was clear Edward never had that.

“In a way, I can relate to Lucas being an orphan. While my parents hadn’t died, they weren’t there for me. As I got older, I learned to distance myself from all personal relationships. I’d been successful at it—until now.”

He returned to her side and sat on the bed again.

“Let’s see if I can say it better this time.” He clasped her hand. “Will you marry me, Kate? Not because you need a man to take care of you or because it will provide a stable family for Lucas. Marry me because I love you and want to spend my life with you. I want to raise Lucas with you and maybe have a couple kids of our own. Because when I’m around you, I not only want all the things lacking in my childhood, I can actually see them in our future.”

He’d finished talking but she was speechless. She’d been completely unprepared for such a heart wrenching declaration of his love. Tears fell from her eyes and onto the sheet.

“Please say something before I do something embarrassing, like beg,” Edward said.

Kate cleared her throat. “You love me?”

“I love you.”

“What about other women? I won’t tolerate infidelity. If we get married, you’re stuck with just me. Can you handle that?”

“Luv, you are more woman than all I’ve dated combined. I believe in commitment and the sanctity of marriage. Up to this point, I’ve just chosen to ignore them.” He kissed her hand. “I promise to be faithful to you, always. Besides, do you think I want the wrath of your family after me?”

“Good point. My brother does have a license to carry a gun.” She paused, needing to take a moment before clearing up something between them. “Listen, about the cancer—”

He tightened his grip on her hands. “Right, what about it?”

She squeezed back. “I can deal with it. Whatever may or may not happen, we’ll handle it together.”

“Even if that means we can’t have kids of our own?”

“We’d have Lucas.”

Worry etched his face. “Christ, what about Lucas? He doesn’t know what I went through. It might be upsetting to him. He might be scared if he thinks he could lose another parent.”

“We’ll explain it to him. He’s a strong boy.”

He nodded. “So what do you say?”

He loved her. She could hardly believe it. Did she want to go down that road again? Could she risk her heart? Did she love him enough to give up her freedom? The answer was a no-brainer in her mind.

“After the whole fiasco with Mario, I vowed never to get married again. I worked hard to repay our debt and build a new life for myself. I completely reinvented myself, without help from even my family.”

“I admire you for what you’ve overcome.”

“When I first met Lucas, he reminded me of Tony. He’s the same age as Tony would have been, even has the same color hair. I had given up all thoughts of having another child. Having been raised in a large family, I’d always wanted three or four kids, but after losing Tony….well, I couldn’t go through that pain again.

“But spending time with Lucas and you has changed something in me.” She straightened her shoulders. “I don’t want to be alone anymore. I feel like I’ve been locked up in a cage all these years, and I’m ready to break free.”

She lifted a hand and stroked his face. “Yes, I’ll marry you. Not because I need to lean on a man or need help raising Lucas, but because I choose to be with you. I love you, Edward. After years of shutting off my feelings, I feel whole again, and I want nothing more than to raise Lucas together, give birth to your children, and spend the rest of our lives loving you.”

His eyes were wet when she finished, and she wiped away a tear at the corner of his eye. The relief on his face was priceless.

“Thank you, dear God,” he whispered.

He leaned forward and brushed his lips against hers, gentle at first before giving in to the need and pulling her tight against him.

“I thought I ruined everything,” he said, tracing kisses along her face.

“You almost did with your first proposal,” Kate said.

“Even Lucas thought it was pitiful. I had to listen to a fifteen minute lecture on groveling from your sister on the car ride over,” he said.

“You didn’t grovel, you spoke from the heart. That’s all that I wanted, although I’m sure the groveling lessons will come in handy in the future.”

“I’m sorry I left. You were right. I was a coward, afraid of what I was feeling.”

“I understand. You needed to be sure. You are, right?”

“I missed you all week. I couldn’t sleep or eat. I was pretty pathetic. When I wasn’t on the construction site working, I was holed up in my suite. Not even the tables could take my mind off you.”

“Not the pretty ladies either?” she teased, sliding her hands under his shirt to feel his heat.

“Especially not the ladies.”

“I missed you, too. I’ve been a horrible bitch to everyone.”

“I can vouch for that,” Vicky called from the doorway.

“Kate, you’re awake,” Lucas said before running to the bedside. “Did you ask her, Edward?”

“Come here, baby,” Kate called.

Edward picked Lucas up and put him on the bed between them. Kate hugged him tightly to her chest, grateful to see that he was all in one piece.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” Kate asked, looking him over for any bruises.

“I’m fine. Aunt Vicky told me the bad man is dead,” Lucas said.

“He is. He’s never going to hurt you again,” Kate said.

“Are you going to marry Edward?” Lucas asked her.

Kate took his hand. “How would you feel if I did?”

He looked uncertain for a moment. “Would you still want to adopt me?”

“Of course,” Kate said.

“Certainly,” Edward replied at the same time.

“Are you gonna kiss all the time?” Lucas asked, wrinkling his nose. “Cuz that’s gross.”

“Yes, we’re going to kiss a lot, and we’re going to kiss you just as much.” Kate tickled his tummy and gave him a loud smooch on the cheek.

“What about kids? Will you have other kids?”

“We’d like to. Would that be okay with you? You’d be the big older brother,” Edward said.

Lucas thought about it. “Yeah, I’d like that. Do you think you can have a little girl? I miss having a sister.”

Kate’s eyes filled with tears. “We’ll have to leave that up to God, but if you pray real hard, maybe he’ll listen to your prayers.”

Kate pulled both her guys closer, kissing each of them, blessed for a second chance at love. She’d once been so angry that Tony had been taken away from her. The pain of that would never go away, but God had replaced the one he’d taken with two wonderful males in her life, and for that she was eternally grateful.

Epilogue

Kate woke up and stretched. Daylight was just starting to peek through the curtains in her room. She glanced around at her childhood bedroom. It would be the last time she’d awaken alone in bed. Today was her wedding day.

She rose and walked over to the dresser that held an enormous bouquet of white roses and purple lilacs Edward had bought her yesterday. It was just one of the many sweet things he’d done over the past few months. Hanging on the outside of her closet door was her wedding dress.

Her. Wedding. Dress.

She almost couldn’t believe it. The strapless, A-line satin gown had a jeweled bodice that would showcase her breasts beautifully. The waist cinched to one side and was highlighted with a spray of beading. It fell into soft pleats with a chapel-length train. She decided to not wear a headpiece, opting for fresh flowers in her hair instead.

She slipped into capri-length sweats and a light sweatshirt. The stylist would be at the house in a couple hours. But before the mayhem started, there was something she needed to do.