We have important things left to finish here tonight. I’ll make sure I get back before you even miss me.”
“Not possible,” she told him softly. He wasn’t out the door and she missed him already.
The instant he was gone, panic began to set in. What if he never came back? What if something happened and she’d never told him just how desperately she loved him? What if she’d wasted precious time while trying to declare her independence? Would it be worth it?
Maybe, she told herself as she sat huddled in a blanket on the sofa waiting for him, maybe when something was so clearly right, only a fool would take a chance on throwing it away.
When the clock ticked on slowly and still Justin hadn’t returned, Patsy could no longer sit still. Despite his earlier claims that there was no food in the place, she went into the kitchen in search of something to eat.
When that proved fruitless, she went back to the bedroom and began straightening up. It didn’t take long. Justin was invariably neat. Only the clothes they’d worn earlier were scattered about. Her negligee and raincoat seemed ludicrous now, when she’d been reduced to wearing one of his shirts. Why hadn’t she at least tucked an overnight bag with a change of clothes into the back of the car? Had she planned on leaving here in broad daylight wearing virtually nothing? The truth was, she hadn’t thought about leaving at all, only about getting here and stunning him speechless.
She picked up his slacks and when she did, something dropped out of the pocket, then rolled under the bed. She scrambled after it. When her hand closed around it, she realized it was a small velvet box. Her heart stood still.
She rocked back on her heels and stared at the red velvet in wonder. This was what he’d had in mind for tonight, she realized. A romantic dinner and then this. With fingers that trembled, she flipped open the lid and gazed at a stunning solitaire diamond on a wide gold band. Even though the stone was large, there was nothing ostentatious about it. It was elegant and simple, a declaration not just of love, but of understanding.
“He knew,” she murmured as tears began to build. He had understood that all of Will’s gestures had been for show—the gaudiest diamond, fanciest car, biggest house. This ring just said that Justin Adams loved her and nothing more.
“Oh, Justin,” she whispered, her throat tight.
What if she never got to say yes? What if the divorce dragged on, for some reason? What if...? She couldn’t bear to say it, not even to think it. Instead, she slid the ring onto her finger. Somehow, she thought, somehow he would know her answer, no matter what. When the decree was final—when Justin was safe—they would start to plan their future.
It was nearly daybreak when she heard the front door open, then close quietly. In a heartbeat, she was on her feet and racing toward the living room. She skidded to a stop at the sight of him. He looked as if he’d been mauled by a particularly cantankerous bull. There were cuts and gashes and dirt. His uniform was in tatters, but he was alive, she told herself. He was blessedly alive.
He glanced up and saw her then and the exhaustion vanished. His eyes lit up.
Patsy moved toward him, then hesitated, all too aware of the state he was in. “How badly are you hurt?”
“Just a few bumps and bruises. The guy took exception to being arrested. I had to chase him down and wrestle around with him near a barbed wire fence. The fence won.”
“And you? Did you get your man?”
“Of course,” he said, his expression smug. “The good guys always win.” He reached for her gingerly, then searched her face. “Don’t they?”
“Depends on what they’re after, I suppose.”
“You know what I’m after,” he said. “Are you ready for me to spell it out?”
She held out her hand. “Does it have anything to do with this?”
He stared at the ring in surprise. “You found it?”
“I was straightening up. It fell out of your pocket.”
He grinned. “And you assumed it was meant for you?”
She scowled. “And who else would it have been meant for?”
“Maybe some woman who knows her own mind.”
“I know my own mind.”
“Do you?”
“Always have.” She circled his waist with her arms and held on, relishing the sense of security that swept over her. “It just took me a while to