She reached up for him. “Not this time.” She held him close before she set him on his feet. “But let’s keep this a secret, a little while longer, while I do.”

She gave it almost twenty-four hours. After all she was a woman who knew her own mind. Maybe the timing wasn’t quite perfect, but it couldn’t be helped.

Certainly the way things were tumbling weren’t in the nice, neat logical row she’d have preferred. But she could be flexible. When she wanted something badly enough, she could be very flexible.

She considered asking Brody out for a romantic dinner for two. Rejected it. A proposal in a public restaurant would make it too difficult to pin him down, should it become necessary.

She toyed with the idea of waiting for the weekend, planning that romantic dinner for two at Brody’s house. Candlelight, wine, seductive music.

That was her next rejection. If Jack hadn’t spilled the beans by then, she very likely would herself.

It wouldn’t be exactly the way she’d pictured it. There wouldn’t be moonlight and music, with Brody looking deep into her eyes as he told her he loved her, asked her to spend her life loving him.

Maybe it wouldn’t be perfect, but it would be right. Atmosphere didn’t matter at this point, she told herself. Results did. So why wait?

She started upstairs. It was good timing after all, she realized. He was just finishing the job that had brought them together. Why not propose marriage in the space they had, in a very real way, made together? It was perfect.

Convinced of it, Kate was very displeased to find the rooms over the school empty.

“Well, where the hell did you go?” She fisted her hands on her hips and paced.

School bus, she remembered, spinning for the door. It was one of his days to pick up Jack. She glanced at her watch as she sprinted down the stairs. He couldn’t have been gone more than a few minutes.

“Hey! Where’s the fire.” Spence caught her as she leaped down the last steps.

“Dad. Sorry. Gotta run. I need to catch Brody.”

“Something wrong?”

“No, no.” She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and wiggled free. “I need to ask him to marry me.”

“Oh, well…whoa.” She was younger, faster, but parental shock shot him to the door in time to snag her. “What did you say?”

“I’m going to ask Brody to marry me. I’ve got it all worked out.”

“Katie.”

“I love him. I love Jack. Dad, I don’t have time to explain it all, but I’ve thought it through. Trust me.”

“Just catch your breath and let me…” But he looked at her face, into her eyes. Stars, he thought. His little girl had stars in her eyes. “He hasn’t got a prayer.”

“Thanks.” She threw her arms around her father’s neck. “Wish me luck anyway.”

“Good luck.” He let her go, then watched her run. “Bye, baby,” he murmured.