“You’re all heart.”

Phoebe’s smile faded. “I want children, too. I always have. I just needed to know you loved me.”

“I hope you know it by now. I never loved anybody in my life the way I love you. I want children, but not nearly as much as I want you.”

“I’m glad.” She caught her bottom lip between her teeth and then released it. “I don’t want to send Molly away. I want her to stay with us.”

He glanced over at her. “Of course she’s going to stay with us. Where else would she go?”

“I thought you might want more privacy.”

“Once that bedroom door is shut, we’ll have plenty of privacy. Actually, when I mentioned problems we need to talk about, I was referring to the Stars.”

“I know you’re not marrying me for the Stars. I should never have said what I did. I was hurt.”

“I’m glad you realize that. But you see, we still have a problem. Historically it’s been women who’ve married the boss. As soon as they had a wedding ring on their finger, they quit their jobs and stayed home. Neither of us wants you to do that, but I have to tell you that I’m not all that comfortable with the idea of spending the rest of my life sleeping next to somebody who’s got the power to fire me if my underwear doesn’t make it all the way to the laundry hamper.”

She repressed a smile. “I’m sympathetic to your problem, but I’m not selling the team just so you can be a slob.”

“Somehow I didn’t expect you would.”

“It’s a new world order. You men are going to have to figure out how to handle it.”

“You’re enjoyin’ this, aren’t you?”

“I’m mildly amused.”

Despite her teasing, she had already been doing some thinking about how she might balance the enormous demands of owning the Stars with marriage and the children she hoped to have. “As a matter of fact, I have a few ideas on this subject. It’s not completely worked out in my mind, but when it is, you’ll be the first person I talk to about it.”

“Then I’d better tell you that I’m not planning to coach the Stars the rest of my life.”

“Dan, you can’t go to work for another team! It would be an impossible situation.”

“I’m not going anywhere for a while. But you’ve seen what this life is like during the season. I want to be around for you and for our kids, and I’ve been toying with this idea for a long time. I decided a while back that the day I wake up and realize I can’t remember what my wife and kids look like is the day I get out of pro coaching. I’m going to find a Division III college nearby, and that’s where I’m going to settle in for the rest of my coaching career.”

“Division III? I don’t know what that means.”