“Well, he succeeded.”
They stared at each other for a few long moments. Lana wanted to hurl herself into his arms, but she forced her feet to stay rooted to the tiled floor. She knew he’d only come here to thank her. Maybe even to say goodbye.
Just because she’d helped set him free didn’t mean he would bow down in front of her and profess his undying love.
Deacon gestured to her belly. “Did the doctor check you out?”
She nodded. “The baby and I are both fine.”
Relief flashed across his face. “Good.”
Another silence descended. “Deacon—”
“Lana—”
She stopped, a fleeting smile crossing her mouth. “You first.”
“I…” He trailed off, his chest rising as he took a deep breath.
And then he swiftly moved toward her and she found herself enveloped by his strong arms. His heartbeat hammered against her chest, his warmth surrounded her, his lips grazed the top of her head. “God, Lana, I’m so glad this is all over. I don’t know what I would’ve done if you’d been hurt.”
She pressed her face in the crook of his neck, breathing in his familiar scent, spicy and masculine and unbearably heady. The goodbye would come soon. She knew it. But she couldn’t bring herself to break free of the embrace. She felt so small and fragile in his arms. Safe. Happy. She didn’t want the feeling to go away just yet.
“There’s something I need to say to you.”
Disappointment flattened down on her chest. Slowly, she stepped out of his arms, forcing an indifferent look on to her face. Here it came.
“I know what you’re going to say,” she murmured, averting her eyes. “So don’t bother. I get it, everything you said in the motel room holds true. You don’t want me or this ba—”
“I love you,” he interrupted.
Her head jerked up. “What?”
“I love you,” he repeated, his voice thick with emotion she’d never dreamed she’d hear from him. “So much, sweetheart. And everything I said at the motel—” He laughed harshly. “It was a damned lie.”
Was she hearing things?
“When I first took the job Le Clair offered, I was in it for the money,” he admitted. “And then I met you, and suddenly the money didn’t seem so important anymore. These last two months, the only thing I’ve wanted, the only thing I cared about, was keeping you safe.”
Raw emotion sliced his rough features as he continued. “I figured it was duty, a way to redeem myself, but when I was in that jail cell, I realized I did all that because of you. Because I’m madly in love with you.”
He looked so surprised by his own words she couldn’t help but laugh. Then a thought occurred to her. “Are you sure you’re not just saying all of this because you feel you owe me for getting you out of jail?”
“Oh, I owe you,” he agreed, giving her a rare grin. “But not only because of that. You did the impossible, sweetheart. You made me want to live again. You made me see there’s a light at the end of that dark tunnel, a future within my grasp, if I just quit being afraid to grab on to it.”
Her heart skipped a beat.
“I want to be a different man, Lana. A better one.” His voice cracked endearingly. “And I want to be with you, if you’ll still have me.” The word yes nearly flew out of her mouth, until a dark thought crept into her brain. “You won’t get only me,” she whispered, her hands sliding down to her tummy.
To her astonishment, Deacon covered her hands with his own, wonder seeping into his gaze as he felt the bump at her waist. “I want you both,” he whispered back. “You do?”
He stroked her stomach in the most gentle of caresses. “This child is a miracle. I never wanted to be a father before I met you, but now… I want to take care of you. Both of you.” A smile lit up his face. “Our son or daughter is never going to want for anything. I’ll make sure of that.”
“Love,” she said softly. “That’s all he or she needs. That’s all I need, Deacon.”
He slid his hands up her body, grazing her breasts, touching her neck, then cupped her chin between his warm palms. “Then that’s what you’ll get.”
She leaned into his touch, basking in his tenderness, the softness of his normally hard features. “I love you, Deacon.” She stood on her tiptoes and brushed her lips over his. “We both love you.”
Uncertainty flickered in his gorgeous hazel eyes. “What about your family?”
“They’re going to love you, too.” She grinned. “My mom is already trying to think of ways to repay you for saving my life. And my brothers, well, they’ll come around eventually.”
Deacon looked doubtful. “Come around? To the fact that their little sister is marrying the mercenary who kidnapped her? Make that, unemployed mercenary.”
His brief sentences contained so much startling information she didn’t even know which tidbit to focus on first. She finally chose the one that made her heart soar like a hot air balloon.