Her mother had asked if she wanted to be present during this meeting, but Jenna had declined. Liam had contacted Kristen and asked to meet with the queen and prince, not with her. At first she’d been surprised, but she was also intrigued to find out what he wanted—she’d thought they’d said everything they had to say to each other before she left L.A.—so she’d accepted her father’s suggestion to listen in instead.
When Liam requested permission to ask her to marry him, she gasped, then covered her mouth with her hand. Luckily, no one seemed to have heard, so she eventually let herself breathe again.
Those words had been the last thing she’d expected him to say. Was he serious? What could have possibly changed since she left?
Liam cleared his throat. “May I ask why I’m refused permission?”
“When Jenna returned,” her father said, “she told us everything.”
That was true. She’d resolved that going forward there would be no more secrets. She’d had enough to last her a lifetime.
On her first day in the country, Kristen had smuggled her in to meet her parents in private. She hadn’t wanted anyone else to see her until her mother and father had decided what they wanted to do. She’d embarrassed them with a child out of wedlock, so it was their right to decide the next step.
The most likely outcome had been that they’d ask her to stay out of the spotlight—perhaps move to another country permanently—and come up with a cover story to explain her absence. Or perhaps they would let her raise Meg in the palace but tell the press she was someone else’s child and that Jenna had adopted her. Or perhaps they’d come up with a plan she hadn’t even considered.
But the parents she returned to were not the same parents she’d left. They’d been so frightened while she was gone, and blamed themselves for her disappearance, that many things had changed. They’d welcomed her with open arms and had been thrilled to find out about their first grandchild.
Then they’d called a family meeting with her siblings, the first one they’d ever had, and had an open discussion about what they all really wanted for their own lives. Not every wish could be accommodated, but the fact they’d been listened to meant her brothers and sister felt better about going ahead with devoting their lives to their country—something none of them questioned.
“And when she told us about you,” her father continued, “we asked her if she’d like to marry this man from America, and she said no.”
“She did?” Liam asked, his voice rough.
“She did,” her mother confirmed. “And now that we have our daughter back, we’ll be prioritizing her needs. So, no, you do not have our blessing.”
Liam was quiet for a moment, as if absorbing that information. “You have to understand,” he finally said, his voice like steel, “I won’t give up. Not unless Jenna herself tells me she won’t marry me.”
Jenna’s heart stopped beating. She couldn’t wait another moment. She stepped out from behind the curtain. Meg squealed and reached for Liam, but she soothed her.
“Jenna,” he said on a long breath. He didn’t move toward her, which was just as well—she wouldn’t have been able to think if he had.
She moistened her lips and found the courage to ask the question she needed to before they went any further. “Why do you suddenly want to marry me, Liam?”
“Jenna, you and Meg are half of my family,” he said simply but with a world of emotion in his eyes. “I love you both, more than I thought was possible.”
The air was suddenly too thick to draw into her lungs, but she persevered. Things were far from settled.
“My parents have offered me a full-time public role in Larsland.” With them getting older and wanting to step back from some of the duties, and three of her brothers away in military training, they’d said at the family meeting they’d welcome the help. “How does that information affect your offer? A life lived in the public eye. Day after day, night after night, by my side, engaging in small talk.”
She lifted her chin, challenging him, daring him. She needed to know if this was a misguided attempt to reclaim something that had been good while it lasted, or if he really could handle her life.
He swallowed, but he didn’t waver. “Wherever you are, I’ll be there. If you want to take on a job in Antarctica, Bonnie and I will join you. I realized after you left that family is family, regardless of whether the blood is red or blue. You and Meg are our family.”
She took a step forward. “You would?”
“Without hesitation.” He moved within touching distance and smoothly took Meg when the baby reached out and murmured a personal hello to her. With a baby in each arm, telling her she was his family, he’d never been more desirable. She’d never loved him more. “But I have a suggestion,” he said and cast a glance at her parents.
Jenna waved away his concern. “You can speak freely in front of them. No more secrets. If we’re to find a way forward, I want everything out in the open in my family from now on.”
Liam shrugged a shoulder, then nodded. “In some ways, Bonnie and I will be grafted onto your family. In other ways, you and Meg will be grafted onto the Hawke family. You’ve already made changes to mine. My parents are meeting with an architect while I’m away to draw up plans for their new house on the farm’s land. That’s thanks to you.”
“I’m so glad!” she said, thrilled that they’d be back where their hearts truly were.
“Sometimes,” he continued, “families can be complicated, with their rules and expectations, as well as what we imagine the rules and expectations are. Especially when there are, ah...family businesses involved.”
She couldn’t contain a laugh. “I think both our families fall into that definition.”
He tilted his head in acknowledgment. “So I have a proposition for you.”
“I’m listening,” she said and took Meg back when she kept thwacking Liam in the jaw. She needed to hear what he had to say before Meg did any damage.
“You and I can create a hybrid family.” A hint of a smile turned the corners of his mouth up for the first time. “We negotiate with both our families. See how much my family needs me for Hawke’s Blooms and how much they can do without me. I’ve already been handing over some of my role, also thanks to you. And we do the same with your family. We also do it with the Clancys, because Bonnie will still need access to her other grandparents. Then we look at what we want. You and me. And we create our family. One that suits us both.”
For a moment she was speechless at the beauty of the plan. It was so obvious now that he laid it out, yet at the same time it was so quintessentially Liam with its hybrids and grafting. She tapped a finger against her lips and watched him watch the move.
Then she grinned. “You know, that could work.”
She looked to her parents, who were listening to the conversation with indulgent smiles. They nodded their assent to his proposition.
Liam took her free hand with his and squeezed. “However we work it out,” he said, low enough that she was the only one who could hear, “if you marry me, I’ll spend the rest of my life making sure you don’t regret it.”
She felt the love she had for him rise up and fill her body, so much it overflowed and a tear, then two, slipped down her cheek. “You don’t have to do anything to make sure of that,” she whispered. “Just love me. Love us.”
He cleared his throat twice before he could reply. “I can promise that, Jenna. I’ll love you, Meg and Bonnie till my dying breath.”
She’d forgotten the world around them existed, but suddenly her parents were beside them, and her mother kissed her cheek. “I’m happy for you,” she murmured in their native language. “This is the right man for you and the right man to be Meg’s father.”
“Welcome to the family, son,” her father said, patting Liam on the back, then taking Meg from Jenna. “This is a family that might take some getting used to, but Jenna will help you through it. And we’ll be here if you need us.”
Her mother put her arms out to Bonnie and Liam handed her over. “It seems we’ve acquired another granddaughter,” she said to her husband.
The prince kissed his wife’s hand. “It’s been our lucky month.”
Then her parents, holding one baby each, faded into the background, giving them some privacy.
Jenna reached up and cupped his cheek in her palm. “I can’t believe you’re here. I’ve dreamed of this so many times since I’ve been back that it still doesn’t seem real.”
His smile was slow and sexy, and it melted her insides. “Not only am I here, but I’m not going away. Not unless you come too.”
Liam threaded his hands into her hair, then lowered his head and kissed her. The feel of his lips touching hers once more was sublime. She flexed her fingers into the front of his shirt and gave herself over to the kiss. Over to him. And when she felt the shudder that ran through him, she knew he was giving himself over to her too.
“From now on,” he said against her mouth, “we’re a team. You, me, Bonnie and Meg. A family.”