you, Peyton.”
She looped her arms around his neck and smiled up at him, her blue eyes sparkling. “I love you, too, Liam.”
Joy burst inside him, and he closed his mouth over hers and kissed her tenderly.
When he pulled away, he dropped to his knee and lifted the velvet ring box. “It’s not a diamond. I thought you’d want to pick that out. But this ring belonged to my mother. She told me to give it to the woman I wanted to spend the rest of my life with.” Peyton gasped as he opened the box, tears filling her eyes.
“Will you marry me, Peyton?”
“Yes,” she whispered as she stared at the sparkling red stone. “And the ring is beautiful.” With a shaky hand, he removed the ring from the box and slipped it on her finger.
Passion ignited between them, and he swung her into his arms to carry her inside. He wanted to make love to her all through the night. They kissed frantically and by the time they reached her door she was tearing at his shirt.
But his phone buzzed on his hip. He froze, then cursed. Dammit, not work. Not now.
“You have to get it?” Peyton asked.
He didn’t want to. But he’d better see who it was, so he set her on her feet, then pulled his phone from his pocket and glanced at the number.
A text. Jacob. Cora’s in labor.
“What’s wrong? Work?” Peyton asked on a ragged breath.
He shook his head. “Jacob’s wife is in labor.”
Her eyes twinkled, and she rebuttoned his shirt for him. “I guess you need to go then.”
He kissed her again, a kiss filled with passion. “We’ll finish this later.” Then he offered his hand to her. “Come with me. Meet the rest of my family?” he asked gruffly.
She joined her hand with his, a deep sense of rightness spreading through him at her murmured yes. Then they hurried to his car and climbed inside.
As he sped toward the hospital, he clung to her hand, anxious to make love to her again.
But he wrangled his libido under control as he parked at the hospital. Together, they hurried inside and found Fletch, Jade, Griff and Reese in the waiting room. Cora’s daughter Nina was with them, rocking her doll in her arms as the adults paced.
An hour later, Jacob burst through the door in hospital garb, a grin splitting his face. “It’s a boy. We’re going to name him after Dad!”
“I have a brother!” Nina ran and jumped into Jacob’s arms and he spun her around, then congratulations began. Finally, when everyone had hugged and the women cried, Jacob looked at Liam and gestured toward Peyton. “Aren’t you going to introduce her to the family, Liam?”
Griff and Jacob had met Peyton, but no one else had. Liam pulled her up against him and kissed her, then lifted their joined hands in a celebratory gesture. “This is Peyton Weiss, the woman I intend to marry.”
She threw her arms around him, then the congratulations began again.
The hollow emptiness in Liam faded. He felt whole again. And there would definitely be more babies in the future as their family grew.
It was the start of a new era for the Mavericks.
* * *
Look for more books from USA TODAY bestselling author Rita Herron in 2021!
And don’t miss the previous books in
A Badge of Honor Mystery miniseries:
Mysterious Abduction
Left to Die
Protective Order
Available now wherever
Harlequin Intrigue books are sold!
Keep reading for an excerpt from Texas Kidnapping by Barb Han.
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Texas Kidnapping
by Barb Han
Chapter One
The sound of floorboards creaking in the next room shocked Renee Smith out of a deep sleep. She forced her eyes to open, sat upright in bed and searched the unfamiliar dark room. It took a few seconds to get her bearings and for her to realize she was in her new house. She must’ve dozed off while working on her laptop, which was now tipped on its side. She straightened it, wishing righting her life could be so easy.
The first night in a new home and her new life hadn’t exactly gone as planned. Unpacking while taking care of her six-month-old adopted daughter had proved almost comic. The day had been consumed by stumbling through feedings, diaper changings and figuring out parenting in general given this was her first