She hesitated, biting her lip. Then she stared at me intently. “Will you marry me, Joshua?”
I blinked at her, shocked. Then I felt the thrill of her words as they settled into my brain. I grinned at her playfully, pretending to be stunned. “Rather forward of you, Rabbit. I’ll have to think about that.” I pursed my lips teasingly, as my hand caressed her stomach. “Is this a package deal?”
She nodded; a small smile on her face.
I leaned forward and kissed her soundly. “Then name the date, Rabbit. I’m so ready to marry you.”
I heard the intercom buzz in the kitchen. Rabbit stiffened. “Who is that?”
“Um, Daniel.”
“Oh, Joshua, you didn’t.”
“I wanted to make sure you were all okay, Rabbit. You were so upset,” I pleaded with her to understand. “I can’t risk anything happening to you.” I paused. “Or our babies.”
She sighed. “Well, it’s too late now anyway. Go let Daniel in, Joshua.”
“I love you, Rabbit. We’re now officially engaged. You can’t back out.”
She smiled. “Good to know, Joshua.”
Daniel stood up and spoke to Rabbit gently. “Okay, your pulse is rather fast and your blood pressure is slightly elevated.” He held up his hand to stop me from interrupting. “But given what just occurred, it’s not surprising.”
“The babies?” I asked quietly.
“They are fine. Lizzy is fine, Joshua.” He clapped his hand on my shoulder. “Your family is fine. Relax.”
I let out a deep breath.
Daniel turned back to Rabbit. “Just rest for the day, Lizzy. Let Joshua look after you. If you need me, just call.”
She nodded and I went over and tucked the blanket around her, my hand lingering on her stomach. I kissed her forehead softly. “You heard him. Rest. I’ll be back soon.”
“You’re not leaving?” Her voice was anxious and I hastened to reassure her.
“No, Rabbit. I’ll just be in the kitchen with Daniel for a bit and then I’ll be back, okay?”
She nodded and I patted the end of the bed and Bear jumped up. I scratched his head. “Good boy, Bear. Looking after our girl. Good job.”
He chuffed and laid his head down on her feet, watching her closely. My phone rang and I heard Adam growling and barking orders on the other end as I answered.
“Joshua. I can have the police waiting for James on this end. He’ll be arrested for breaking the restraining order. His jackass assistant as well. They were already in the air when the cops got there on your end.”
“He said he was leaving the country. Is that true?” I asked quietly, my hand stroking Rabbit’s head as I stood there.
“Yeah. His lawyer is fucking freaking out about this stunt. He is due to leave in a couple days. His plans will be put on hold thanks to his stupidity.”
“He’s running, isn’t he?”
“Of course he is. He’s a coward. The story is that he is going on an extended tour of Europe, but he is trying to stay ahead of the investigation of Dr. Hammond We can stop him, Joshua.”
I knelt down beside Rabbit. “What do you want me to do?” I asked her quietly.
She shook her head, her exhaustion evident. “I want him gone. I don’t want to deal with this, Joshua. It doesn’t matter. It just doesn’t matter. Get him as far away as possible.”
I grimaced but nodded. “Let him leave, Adam.”
I held the phone away from my ear as he exploded in anger. He ranted on for a few minutes and then suddenly became silent. “Sorry, Joshua. This fucker just keeps catching all the breaks.”
“I know. We need him to be gone, Adam.”
He sighed heavily.
“Rabbit needs this, Adam.”
“Then it’s done.”
Suddenly, he chuckled darkly. “No charges, eh? Well, nothing saying I can’t go meet his plane and let him know what I think of his visit. In fact, his own lawyer is so riled up maybe the two of us will form a little welcoming committee for James and the Jackass. There is a lot I want to say to him. And, I will personally make sure he’s on that plane out of the country. Maybe I can’t press charges, but I can certainly stir up enough questions so I make sure his name comes up in the investigation with Dr. Hammond. Enough to ensure he will never return to this area for fear of actual charges filed. Once he is out of the country he won’t try coming back.”
I laughed bitterly. “I like the sound of that. Say it for all of us, Adam. Do whatever you have to do.”
“Oh, I intend to, Joshua. Tell Lizzy he will never even consider coming near her again after I am done. I guarantee that. If he tries, I will happily forget I’m an officer of the court.”
The image of Adam staring down at James, his dark eyes threatening and angry, made me chuckle. When livid, he was fucking terrifying. Coward that he was, James most likely would shit his pants when he stepped onto the tarmac and saw what was waiting for him.
“Have a good time, Adam,” I said mildly. “I expect a full report.”
I hung up and looked down at Rabbit. “Is Adam going to take care of it?” she asked sleepily.