Dropping to her knees, she kissed her fiancé.
“I love you,” she whispered in his ear. “Always.”
“And I you.” Drawing back, he took her left hand in his and slid a beautiful, shiny diamond onto her finger. “I’ll love you till there’s nothing left of me.”
“Then we’ll have a wonderful son to remember us.”
“And maybe more?” he asked, running his lips along her jaw.
“You’d want more?”
“Not right away. But yes, I want a daughter with your wild hair. And another son with your brown eyes.”
She smiled. “I think we can come to some arrangement.”
“Good,” he murmured. “Because I want to experience everything the world has to offer with you.”
“I know one thing we can experience right now all by ourselves.”
“Oh?” he asked. “Cooking a meal? Organizing that horrific closet of yours?”
“I was thinking more along the lines of activities one usually does in the bedroom.”
“Changing the sheets?” he teased. “Folding the clothes?”
“Well, now that you mention it, there are some towels in there we could—”
He tackled her to the ground, rolling over her as she laughed up at him. “Is that a no to chores, then?”
“I’ll fold whatever you want later. Right now, I’m more interested in seeing my fiancée naked and writhing under me.”
“Mmm, your fiancée has no problem with that proposal either.”
“Didn’t think so.” Smiling, he leaned down to catch her lips with his.
Clara wrapped her arms around him, uncaring that they lay on the hardwood floor. All she needed was the man in her arms. Whenever, wherever she could have him.
As his lips touched hers she couldn’t help but smile. After all her years of standing outside the window, she’d finally found her home.
And wrapped in his arms was the one place she never wanted to leave.
Epilogue
“Did you find Sophie’s teddy bear? I swear that thing walks on its own. It’s never where I put it.”
Walker’s head poked around the doorway. “I’ve got Mr. Huggles and she’s all strapped in to the stroller ready to go. Where’s Hunter?”
Right on cue, the sounds of feet pounding on the stairs rang out. Grabbing her bag, Clara strode into the hall just in time to see a flash of blonde hair followed by an exhausted looking Emily.
“Hunter, come back here,” Clara called.
Her son screeched to a halt, obediently retracing his steps until he stood in front of her.
“Did you get dressed like a big boy for Emily?” she asked.
“Yes, Mama.”
“That’s my angel. Go give Sophie a kiss. We’re almost ready to leave.”
The five-year-old raced to his little sister, looking down at her with mixed emotions before he dutifully dropped a kiss gently on the baby’s head.
Walker ruffled the light curls before Emily appeared behind him with Hunter’s shoes in hand.
“Come here, little man,” she said. “Let’s get you ready.”
“Still think it was a good idea to take the kids on a picnic?” Walker asked when she moved to his side.
“Veronica was insistent. She just got back from a photoshoot in Paris and missed the kids.”
“Maybe she’ll take them both for a few days.”
She whacked him with her hand.
“Just a couple,” he whispered in her ear. “Think of what we could do with a few child-free days.”
A shiver ran down her spine. Oh, the things we could do…
“Mama, let’s go!” Hunter exclaimed impatiently, standing by the stroller with his shoes on.
“Yes, darling. We’re coming.”
She started for the door before realizing she’d forgotten the emergency snacks. “Just a second, I need to grab the food.”
“Emily, could you take the kids down to the lobby, and we’ll meet you in five minutes?” Walker asked.
“No problem. Come on, guys. Out we go,” she said, pushing the stroller after an excited Hunter.
Grateful for the silence, Clara raced into the kitchen and tossed the bag of waiting snacks into her purse. “Okay, I’m all set. Let’s go.”
“Wait.” Walker caught her hand and pulled her back into the kitchen.
“What?”
“I just won us five uninterrupted minutes of silence.”
With a happy sigh, she stopped resisting. “That’s not very fair to Emily.”
“We’ll make it up in her Christmas bonus.”
“You say that every week.”
“Just think how large it’s getting then.”