And this woman just said yes. I don’t deserve her. I know that. But I’ll spend whatever time I’ve got earning the right to stand beside her. Because Lola Jackson, soon to be Lola Sterling, just became the most protected woman in the state.
And God help anyone who tests that.
“You weren’t serious about today, were you?” she asks nervously.
I nod, pulling back her lip with my thumb. “Hear me out,” I ask, plucking my hat from the table and resting it on her head.
“Please continue,” she says with a smirk.
“We go and get married… today. At the courthouse. A couple of witnesses I’ll bribe off the street.”
She arches an eyebrow, clearly unamused. So I lean in. “I ain’t finished, firefly.”
“Once all this shit is sorted and I’m a free man. We will arrange the biggest, most fancy fuckin’ wedding of the century. No expense spared. Whoever you want to invite. Whatever you dreamt of as a kid. That will be our wedding. Surrounded by people we love when we’re safe to celebrate. But now? I need your name to change. I need you to become mine just as I am yours,” I tell her and watch a tear slip down her cheek.
“What about Wyatt? What happens to him in the worst-case scenario if something happens to you, Hunter?” she asks, a pain coming from her voice.
I blink at her. That is my darkest fear. Leaving my son. I look out the window, trying to regain my composure. Her hand finds my cheek, and she turns me to face her.
“This marriage will work two ways, Hunter. You protect me. And I’ll protect you… and your boy.”
I frown, trying to wrap my head around what she’s saying.
“If anything happens to you, I’ll stay, Hunter. I’ll stay, and I’ll look out for him. I’ll love him and make sure he’s happy. Make sure he’s safe and looked after. Make sure he goes to school in clean clothes. That he has everything.”
I fight the emotions threatening to spill from me as I suck in a breath.
“You know what you’re saying, Lola? You understand the weight of this?” I ask, my voice quiet.
She nods. “I understand. And I’d like to be your wife, and also a guardian for Wyatt if anything happens to you.”
I drag a hand over my stubble. I can’t help it, I lean in and kiss her so hard I can’t even breathe. “You’re amazing. You know that, baby?” I whisper against her lips.
“Marrying you means being there for Wyatt, too. That’s what I want.”
I nod, stroking her cheek with my thumb. I don’t care if we’re in a packed diner. This woman just completely and utterly stole my heart.
“I’ll get them to do the paperwork with our wedding papers,” I tell her.
She looks at me suspiciously.
“I have contacts everywhere, Lola. I can sort it.”
She nods, picking back up her milkshake and sucking it through the straw.
“I think Wyatt deserves to see us get married, too, Hunter. But, I don’t think the courthouse version. We can have him help us with the big fancy version.”
Wait. She will marry me today.
“So, today? You’ll marry me today?” I ask, almost hesitating.
She nods, and then a smile erupts on her face.
“Yes, I’ll agree to this wedding today. I’ll marry your crazy, cowboy ass right now. But I have one more important condition. One just for me…”
My heart races. Whatever it is, I’ll do it… for her.
“Tell it to me, and I’ll do it.”