AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Jesus.” She rolled her eyes. “Your cheesiness knows no bounds. Maybe you should switch careers, become a Hallmark greeting card writer.”
“You haven’t answered my question yet, baby.”
“You’re serious?” she wheezed.
“Deadly.”
Cocking her head to the side, tears began to gather on her lower lids.Shit. Was she upset?I hadn’t planned on popping the question while standing on a sidewalk after she was nearly run over.Fuck! I had an elaborate evening organized including a nice dinner, a huge ring I hadn’t picked up yet, and a round or two of lovemaking. But my intentions had always been the same. To make her mine.
“Yes,” she cried out suddenly.
My mouth was on hers an instant later; pouring every ounce of love I felt for her into the kiss. Cheers sounded somewhere behind us, undoubtedly my brothers having figured out what just went down, but they were muted by the pounding of my heart. Holding her tight against my body, I shut out everyone except Quin and me.
I had been living in the shadows, lost in the past without hope for a future. Then Quinlan James opened her smart mouth, flooding my world with her brilliant light and I knew I’d met my match.
“Oh my God!” River’s shrill scream broke through the trance of our embrace. Well, that and the fact she slapped the shit outta my shoulder. “What the hell happened to our plan, you big idiot?”
Throwing my head back, I roared with laughter. Rico’s tiny terror was pissed and I couldn’t exactly say I blamed her. She and Emory had both been secretly aiding me with my marriage proposal ideas, which as of two minutes ago, I’d ruined with my impatience.
“You don’t even have a ring,” Emory interjected.
“I don’t care about a ring.” My girl stepped out of my hold, attempting to placate the dynamic duo.
“Oh, you’re gonna care.” River flipped her eyes to me and the grin on her face didn’t bode well for me. “I see many carats in your future and not the kind you pluck from a garden.”
“Pixie,” Rico chuckled. “I’d rather Alec didn’t punch me again, so how about you let them worry about a ring?”
“Thanks for the reminder.”
Before I had a chance to figure out what River was talking about, her fingers shot out, connecting with my nipple through my shirt and twisting so hard she almost took my big ass down.
“Fuck!” I bit out. “What the hell was that for?”
“Payback for sucker-punching my man.”
“Yourman’s lucky he only got a fat lip.” I rubbed my chest, alleviating the sting of her assault.
“As much as I’d love to watch River take you down,” Luc interjected. “Pop just texted. We need to move this little showdown to the farm. Ma and Millie are going to lose their shit if they don’t lay eyes on Quin soon.”
“Dammit.” My eyes lifted to the sky, knowing those two were going to be a handful, which is why I gave very explicit instructions for them to be kept in the dark for now. “Who the fuck told them?”
“I’ll give you two guesses, but you’re only going to need one.”
“Gabe,” I muttered.
Fucking mama’s boy.
_______________
CHAOS ENSUED ONCEmy tires hit the gravel driveway. I had to rapidly release Quin from her seat belt, considering her door was ripped open and she was unceremoniously hauled out of my SUV by both our mothers––without thought to the restraining device–– before I’d come to a complete stop. There were enough hugs and tears from the three women to last me a lifetime. The commotion grew in volume when my brothers arrived right after, with River and Emory joining in the melee.
Pop stepped onto the porch, fully alert and ready for battle, with his hands fisted at his sides while he watched the women fuss over Quin. His brow was drawn tight from obvious worry and a healthy dose of pissed-the-fuck-off, but his expression softened when his eyes landed on a certain redhead.
“He did what?” Ma shrieked, ending any hope I had of escaping further conflict. “Allesandro Manuel del Toro. Please tell me youdid notpropose in the middle of the street.”
“And with no ring,” River added helpfully.
My father busted out in hysterics followed by my asshole brothers, but unfortunately for Pop, Ma wasn’t finished casting stones.
