“When are you going to marry me?” The words were out of his mouth before his brain had time to catch up. But when his brain joined the party, he discovered he had absolutely no regrets about blurting out a somewhat major question without having given it his usual deliberation. Who was he kidding? He’d been deliberating on how to make her a permanent part of his life for as long as he’d known her. “Your mouth is hanging open. Not that I mind that, because it gives me all kinds of ideas, but I was sort of hoping you might say something at this juncture.”

“What am I supposed to say when you throw that out there like a live grenade?”

“How about yes?”

“You didn’t ask me a yes-or-no question.”

“Pardon the error.” He fell gracelessly to his knees before her, grimacing at the flash of pain that radiated through ribs that refused to fucking heal. “Kara Ballard, center of my universe, love of my life, future mother of my children, will you do me the humongous and probably undeserved honor of being my wife?”

Once again she stared at him with the flabbergasted look on her face that only made him love her more, if that was possible. “That was a yes-or-no question, in case you didn’t notice.”

“I noticed.”

“And? Are you planning to make me suffer?”

Apparently she wasn’t, because she dropped to her knees in front of him, wrapped her arms around him and held him. “Yes. But—”

He had no interest in any buts, so he kissed the words right off her sweet lips.

Kara, being Kara, turned away from the kiss, determined to be heard despite his intense desire to avoid anything that sounded like a qualification of her acceptance. “Tell me you’re not asking me because of Kelly and Matt showing up here.”

“That’s not why I’m asking you.”

“The timing is a bit curious.”

“Perhaps, but that’s not why.”

“Then why?”

“Um, other than the fact that I love you to the point of madness, and the thought of you leaving me gives me nightmares?”

“Other than that.”

Damn, she was a worthy adversary for a man who prided himself on out-arguing just about anyone. “My mom laid into me about when I planned to marry you.”

“I knew it!”

“There’s only one other woman who scares me more than my mom does.”

“Who is she?”

“You, stupid,” he said, kissing her nose and then her lips. “It scares the hell out of me when I consider all the many ways I’m capable of messing up the best thing to ever happen to me. It’s in my best interests to get a ring on your finger before you wise up and figure me out.”

“I’ve got you figured out, Torrington, and you’re not getting rid of me that easily.”