there and insisted on it.”
She pressed her lips together as she searched his eyes. “Why do you think I am your responsibility?” she asked softly.
He sucked in a breath and then let it out. He wasn’t going to lie to her about this being damned weird and out of character for him. But it was a very real feeling, and he wasn’t going to be able to shake it. She needed to know that too.
“I’m not really sure,” he admitted. “You clearly have a ton of friends who love you. I know your family is here and I’m guessing would do whatever they could to take care of you. I’m not the type to get deeply involved so quickly with women—or probably anyone outside my family and circle of friends. I’m not spontaneous. I’m not a gambler. But… there’s something about you. And the last time I felt this way—caring about someone so quickly—it was when I met Dax and Ollie and Cam and Aiden.” He shrugged. “And that’s turned out pretty well.”
She smiled, the worry lines on her forehead easing.
“And so I’m also not the type to argue against a good idea once I realize it’s good,” he said. He braced a hand on the counter beside them and leaned in. “And as long as we’re going to be seeing each other exclusively anyway and sleeping together, I don’t see why we shouldn’t have a piece of paper that says you can use my health insurance while we’re doing that.”
She swallowed. “When you put it that way, it almost sounds practical.”
He had her. He grinned. “And,” he said, because he felt compelled to lay it all out, “we can get an annulment or a divorce or whatever when you are fully recovered and the bills are all paid.”
That made her brows draw together. “Oh. Right.” She nodded. “True.”
He knew that took some of the air out of her romantic bubble. But they had to acknowledge there was a way out too. They barely knew one another. His life was in Chicago and hers was, clearly, very rooted here. There were lots—lots and lots and lots—of reasons that this wouldn’t work out long term. But as a short-term solution to this problem it was nearly perfect.
“How much is the deductible?” she asked.
This was definitely not the way he’d imagined a proposal ever going. Not that he’d ever imagined proposing.
“Two thousand dollars. Maybe three,” he said. “I’ll check.”
“I’ll pay you back for that much at least. And any percent of the bills that aren’t covered.”
He bit back the “No, you fucking won’t” that threatened to come out of his mouth. He nodded. “Or you could earn it.”
She lifted both brows nearly to her hairline. “Oh?”
He chuckled. “Not like that.”
Her brows pulled down. “Then what?”
“You can go with me to my seminars as my assistant. You can help with paperwork and AV and things like that.” This was perfect. He could let everyone there know she was his wife, and he could avoid any awkward moments like unexpectedly finding naked women in his bed.
Well, except for Jocelyn, of course.
She was clearly confused. “Seminars? AV? What are you talking about?”
“I’ll fill you in,” I said. “But I need an assistant on weekends once or twice a month. I have a seminar this weekend, in fact. You can come along and work off the cost of the deductible.”
Of course, he didn’t give a shit about the deductible, but he knew she did, so if this would make her happy, then fine. She needed time to get used to this, and she was clearly not going to be scheduled for surgery before Monday anyway. So he’d take her to Chicago with him. Maybe they’d pop into the courthouse and get married while they were there. Then everything would be ready to go by the time they got back to Appleby and got her surgery scheduled.
“I don’t know anything about AV,” she finally said. “But I like the idea of doing something for the help you’re giving me.”
“I’ll teach you.”
He reached out, slid a hand around her waist to her lower back, and drew her forward.
“Say yes,” he said softly and firmly.
She wet her lips and swallowed. “Yes.”
He was shocked by the emotions that rocked through him. Relief was there, for sure. He was going to be able to fix this after all. But there was also a healthy surge of happiness. He was happy about this. Was it unconventional? Absolutely. Was it spontaneous? Definitely. Was