Love, Diamonds, and Spades (19 page)

till I’m soggy,

A lizard, a snake,

or even another doggie…

I know just what mommy would say

More dancing and then some pretty smooth rock star moves with a fake mic that had both she and Rylan laughing.

TV all weekend,

Practical jokes on my cousins,

Filling water balloons

with grape jelly

Belching my name,

using colorful language,

Or waving with one finger like Aunt Penny…

I know just what mommy would say

Quinn rolled her eyes and laughed. Sadly, her sister Penny was responsible for teaching Cooper every single one of those items in that verse.

Cooper then came up to her and stretched his arms up for a hug.

Instantly she picked him up and felt her heart wobble when he sang the next verse.

Huggles when I’m scared,

Kisses on my ouchies,

And no matter what, when I ask

if I’m gonna be okay…

I know just what mommy would say.

Tears—actual tears—rushed to her eyes. But who could blame her? It was too soon. The doctors had only just told them a few days ago that Cooper was done with surgeries.

And that he was officially ‘going to be okay.’

She’d been irrationally crying with relief at random times ever since—months, years of scared emotions being granted the chance to overtake her life after the fact.

So yes, she was still a tiny bit emotional when he began wriggling to be let out of the abominable snow rabbit hug she was smothering him with while just
barely
managing to keep her tears at bay.

A feat she was managing rather admirably…that is, until she heard him start singing the final verse.

An ace of spades,

A cool green diamond,

And finally a dad for me…

I
HOPE
I know what mommy will say.

Her eyes widened to the size of saucers as she replayed the lyrics in her head.

But then she just laughed when Rylan pulled a card out of his pocket, not a ring.

An ace of spades card.

A Disney Princess ace of spades card.

“What’d you do? Steal that from the deck?”

“I did. It’s been sitting in my wallet for quite some time.”

The man never ceased to be adorable. “When exactly did you take it? And you better not tell me it was before that one time we played Bullshit because that’ll mean you already knew I didn’t actually have four aces that day.” She’d lost that hand and inevitably ended up losing the entire game, if memory served.

Rylan’s lips twitched to the side.

“You little cheat!” But before she could demand reimbursement—preferably in the bedroom—for the one month of laundry she’d had to do for him as a result of the loss, she did the math. “Wait a minute, that was months ago. You’ve had the card since way back then?”

“Nope.” He tilted his head and gazed into her eyes. “I stole it that first night we played High Card.”

She blinked, feeling the air in her lungs getting mighty thin, and her pulse galloping at an alarming rate. “You kept that card in your wallet all this time?”

Then he dropped down to one knee and she stopped breathing altogether.

She couldn’t tear her eyes away from the emotions shining in his golden gaze. “I took that card with me at first because I was going to use it as leverage if you ever turned me down for a date. But I’ve
kept
it with me ever since just in case you turned down my proposal.”

He opened the ring box.

When she saw the stunning green diamond ring, she gasped.

“It’s called a chameleon diamond. I knew I could never replace or erase the pain of remembering the heirloom you had to give up to cover Brody’s debts. And I didn’t want anything tarnishing our engagement. So, I got you a diamond ring that, hopefully, would only give you good thoughts. So Quinn Christiansen, will you be my wife?”

Then he reached over and plopped Cooper on his lap. “If it helps, Cooper already said yes to my proposal for him.”

“Look, mommy. Rylan gave me a cool green ring too! A Green Lantern super hero ring!” Cooper swung his legs back and forth happily. “But I would’ve said yes even without the ring,” he shrugged with all the matter-of-fact candor of a kindergartener. “He’s already the best dad I’ve ever had.”

Oh that sealed it. Her tears had no chance of staying in now.

“Mommy, did you say yes yet? I’m getting kinda hungry.”

She laughed and cupped one hand on Rylan’s cheek and the other on Cooper’s. “Yes, honey. Of course I’m saying yes.”

EPILOGUE

March 14
th
the Following Year

Rooftop of Desert Confections

“
SO LET ME GET
this straight,” said Quinn, trying to wrap her brain about what Dani was telling her. “The entire town has a bet going on not
when
Xoey and Isaac are getting back together, but rather, how quickly Isaac will be able to get Xoey to agree to marry him after they get back together?”

“Yep.” Dani nodded, sitting on the edge of the head table, as if she weren’t decked out in a gorgeous bridal gown that was currently very close to a plate of wedding reception cake.

Quinn slid the cake away from Dani’s butt. Just to be safe.

“Do Isaac and Xoey know about it?”

“Nooo, and you can’t tell them. Or the whole thing is off.”

“How big is the pot?”

Rylan came over to join them and fielded that one, “Well, there’s no money involved. It’s all services and products, subject to approval, of course. So I’m in with some free landscaping, Sienna’s offering a year’s worth of mechanical labor. Mrs. Wyndham wagered up one of her famous pies and cakes every night for a month, Jilly’s making a big ole sex toy basket. Lia was going to do some of her martial arts classes but everyone begged her to go in with twenty free babysitting gigs. If there’s a prize that the winner can’t use, then they’re free to auction it to someone else in town.”

“Hold up, you mean one winner is going to win ALL of that? That’s insane.”

“Why do you think the entire town is taking bets?”

“Please tell me that Mr. Callahan went in with a lifetime supply of his pumpkin bread and that insane maple butter he made last year.” Made with top grade Canadian maple syrup—all the difference in the world—Quinn would put that maple butter on everything if she could.

Rylan laughed. “Not a lifetime supply, but one a month for a year.”

“Then I’m in. Dani, are you already in?”

“They won’t let me play,” replied Dani crossly. “And it’s completely unfair.”

“Oh. Is it because you’re her best friend?”

“No.” She flat-out pouted then.

Luke filled in, with obvious enjoyment. “I believe the exact words were because Dani meddles too much.”

“I don’t
meddle
that much.”

Everyone within earshot burst out in laughter over that one.

“Oh yes you do,” Quinn said with a smile. “But we’re thankful for it. You got Rylan and me together.”

“See.” Dani stuck her tongue out at Luke. “I do good deeds.”

He sighed. “Please don’t encourage her.”

“Wait, so back to the town bet.” Quinn peered over at the couple in question, who were currently thumb wrestling and bickering like they always did. “So everyone in town is just assuming those two are getting back together?”

“It’s pretty much a given.”

“But no one knows why they even broke up.”

Dani shook her head sadly. “Not a clue.”

A thought occurred to her then. “Was the whole betting pool my husband’s idea?” she asked dryly. It did sound right up Rylan’s alley.

Dani shook her head. “Nope. He is running the entire thing, though. But he won’t tell anyone who’s the mastermind behind the curtain.”

Rylan wrapped his arms around Quinn. “That’s right. And I don’t care how much you try to torture the information out of me with all your sexual deviant ways, I won’t tell you.”

The man knew better than to lay down a dare like that. Brow raised in challenge, she declared, “Ten to one, I’ll be able to get the information out of you.”

He grinned. “You’re on.”

Luke rolled his eyes. “Quinn, do you even know how exactly the whole ten to one odds thing works?”

“Not even a little bit.” Quinn smiled broadly. “All I know is that it’s the magic phrase that goads Rylan into doing whatever I want. And I’ve never had to pay up once.”

Rylan slid his arms around Quinn’s waist and pulled her back to him. She cuddled up against him and tried not to smile when she felt his hand unconsciously slide over her belly.

He’d been doing that a lot lately.

Ever since they found out they were pregnant.

Nuzzling her neck gently, Rylan rumbled, “Baby, you keep rubbing that sweet butt of yours against me, and you’re going to get us into a world of trouble.”

“Promises, promises.” She settled back against him more.

He groaned. “These pregnancy hormones of yours are driving me crazy.”

Lately, Rylan had been chalking up all her sexed up teases and dares to pregnancy hormones. Which essentially meant she was getting away with endless amounts of mischief and mayhem left and right.

It was awesome.

And since her mom didn’t raise any stupid ones, she was making the most of the situation until he eventually got to the chapter in the prenatal book that would explain those particular sex drive hormones don’t kick in until the second trimester.

“Mommy!” called out Cooper from the edge of the dance floor. “You have to see this giant cake! Holy schmoly! Janey Duncan asked me to marry her last week. If I do, can I have a cake this big, too?”

Quinn chuckled. “Don’t marry a girl for cake, honey.”

Cooper paused and took in that advice in all seriousness. “So just for laundry then? That’s why Daddy says he married you. Because you do the best laundry.”

Quinn turned to raise a brow at Rylan.

Who was wisely already halfway across the dance floor.

-- THE END --

Turn the page to read what happened

thirty minutes prior.

A bonus Dani & Luke wedding reception scene...

BONUS SCENE

(With Dani & Luke from
Love, Chocolate, and Beer
)

Thirty Minutes Earlier…

“
VETO,” CALLED OUT LUKE
. Geez, their wedding reception was still hours from ending and they were already having their first marital spat.

Must be some sort of record. Dani grinned.

“Dani, a huge bash for beered-up and wine-sloshed folks partying on both our rooftop decks is a massive riot waiting to happen.” He shook his head stubbornly. “Scale it down.”

“But it’s supposed to be big—it’s a grand opening. Besides, Derek and Quinn already signed off on it and you gave them all decision-making rights for promotions, remember?”

This past January, an outrageously emotional Dani had watched Derek finally achieve his dream of having his own winery when Desert Confections Chocolate and Wines, the partnered business venture of her brother and her husband, officially opened its doors to the public. “C’mon, I promised the town an official celebration and everyone’s been waiting two months for it.” She blinked prettily.

“Wow, sneaking a guilt reference to our wedding in there. Impressive, but still no.”

She sighed. “Okay, what if I promise to order ridiculously unnecessary security?”

He refused to be baited. “How many?”

Huffing out an exasperated curse, she started actually thinking about it then. “Well, my good friend is my regular bouncer for the rowdy nights like concerts and playoff games, and her brother is a cop so I’ll just hire him and a few of his friends from the force to come in off-duty.”

Luke frowned. “Wait, you have a bouncer? How come I never knew that?”

“Only on event nights. And what do you mean? I talk about her sometimes.”

“Her?”

Indignant female offense clouded Dani’s face. “Yes, her. It’s Lia. You know Lia. She’s a damn good bouncer and one of the scariest fighters you’ll ever see in action. Best of all, since most guys don’t want their ass kicked by a girl, most times, she can diffuse a situation with no violence at all.”