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It should’ve been funny, a flashback to their first meeting. Maybe she’d find the humor and kindness behind the gesture later. But he’d said you, not we. Why was he crushing her heart this way?
“This one is for you.” He set the box of tiny baseball gear aside and rested a longer box across her knees.
“A bat? You’re definitely ahead of yourself.” Would she even share these things with her son? Silas was too young to remember this month, so full of upheaval, and she wasn’t sure she’d ever be strong enough to share even the happier stories with him.
“Just open it.”
She didn’t know what to make of the quirk of his lips. Avoiding his gaze, she slid the ribbon off and raised the lid. She frowned at the contents. It wasn’t the baseball bat she’d expected. It was a length of hickory, polished to a gleam and cushioned in a bed of midnight blue velvet. There was a sheer ribbon tied around one end of the stick. A sparkle in the center of the bow caught her eye. It couldn’t be...but it sure looked like a diamond engagement ring.
“What’s that?” Her father leaned over Silas for a peek.
“Nothing. It’s a long story,” she answered, scrambling to put the lid back on the box. She couldn’t make sense of what was happening.
“Let’s put the right ending on that story.” Jarvis dropped to one knee in front of her. “I love you, Mia. You and Silas. You’ve changed me, shown me what lasting love looks like. Will you marry me and be my family? Will you let me love you both for the rest of our days?”
“Say yes!” her father encouraged.
“What happened to trusting my judgment and intuition?” she asked, shooting her dad a look. To Jarvis she said, “I’m more of a package deal now than I was before. You said—”
“I’ve said a lot of stupid things. It was all fear talking.”
“Fear?”
He nodded. “All my life I’ve lost the people I love most. Love felt more like a curse or a burden, until you.”
She remembered how he’d resisted her attempts to give him some perspective.
“I was out there searching for my past and when I stumbled onto you and Silas I found my future. Marry me, Mia. Let’s build the family we both deserve.”
“Oh, Jarvis, yes.” Her heart swelled with joy. “I love you, too. I was afraid to admit it and run you off.”
The smile that creased his face melted away every cold spot inside her. Hope and love gleamed in his brown eyes. He glided his thumb over her cheek, wiping away a tear. It seemed she was crying in front of everyone after all.
At least this time, for the first time since Silas was born, she was weeping tears of joy.
* * *
Jarvis could hardly believe his proposal had worked out. Soon he would have a wife, and with a little paperwork, Silas would legally be his, too. It had all come together and he was the happiest man on the planet. Every time Silas fussed or cried, he jumped in, eager to provide whatever his little guy needed. He’d have to curb that tendency in time, but at this stage there was no such thing as too much love. He’d never thought he had so much love inside him, ready to pour out over the people who mattered.
This evening, after another long day of work, he’d hustled back home—his new home—to pick up his fiancée. Norton had moved with them to the property Mia had found and was babysitting so Jarvis and Mia could go over to the Triple R for dinner with his siblings and Colton cousins.
As he pulled through the main gate and followed the drive toward Ainsley’s wing of the Colton mansion, it felt remarkably normal to be here as family rather than just as an employee. Not family like Mia and Silas, but family with shared history. Roots he would be sure to nurture for the next generation.
“Are you okay with this?” she asked.
“Perfect,” he replied honestly. “Since finding Herman’s box, I’m more at peace with all of it than ever before. You gave me that, Mia. Thank you.” He held her hand as they walked up to a sprawling deck where Ainsley was setting out a charcuterie board on a long table.
“Welcome, welcome.” She invited them up to join her on the expansive deck. “You’re the first to arrive. It’s a gorgeous evening,” she said, grinning. “The two of you look so happy.”
The two of them. It was a heady sensation going from solo to a family. He had a fiancée and a son to raise and, hopefully, more children in the years ahead. He and Mia were creating something that would stand the test of time, no matter what life threw at them.
He turned as another car pulled up, and grinned as Spencer got out. Mia gave his hand a squeeze. It was a wonderful reminder that he had love beyond his brother and sister now. Now. Forever.
“Katrina’s on her way,” Spencer said as he joined them. “I couldn’t wait to tell you the good news. Regina pleaded guilty to everything.”
Mia relaxed against Jarvis and he slipped an arm around her waist. “Everything?”
His brother nodded. “Threats, extortion, drugging Norton, all of it. She even gave us the name of the man she’d been with in the video. Same guy knifed Mia’s tire at the courthouse and came poking around the ranch, too.”
