“I’m going to tell you the whole story and if you want to be angry afterward, then fine. But you deserve to know the truth.”
“I appreciate that,” he said, and he did not hold the sarcasm from his voice.
“The money I was talking about wasn’t yours. It was left to me by my uncle.”
He frowned. “Come again?”
She sighed. “I think I’d better start at the beginning.” She glanced over at the armchair in the corner. “Do you mind?”
He shrugged. “Be my guest. I’m looking forward to hearing your story.” He placed deliberate emphasis on the last word.
She walked over to the chair and sank into it with a sigh. Then she spoke. “On September twenty-three, exactly a month before my birthday, I was told by my late uncle’s attorney that he’d left me fourteen million dollars. That’s the money I was talking about.”
“Fourteen mil-” Stone glared at her. “What do you take me for? A fool?”
“No, it’s true. I can give you Mr. Marshall’s number and you can call him yourself.” She sat stiffly in the chair as she stared up at him.
“So what does that have to do with me marrying you?” Stone demanded, still not believing a word of what she was saying. “You said something about me proposing to you in a month.”
Indie sighed. “That’s the part…I’m not so proud of.” She looked down at her hands then she looked back at him, her face resolute. “There was a condition to my getting the fourteen million dollars. I had to get married by my thirtieth birthday in order to get the money.”
Stone almost laughed. “That’s crazy.”
“I know, but that’s what the will says. My uncle wanted to make sure I didn’t carry through on my threat never to get married or have kids. He wanted to maintain the bloodline and I’m the only hope.”
“So you seduced me into marriage.”
“No,” she said quickly then, “well, yes. Sort of. It started out that way, where I was trying to get you to like me because…I already liked you.”
Stone frowned. “You didn’t even know me.”
“I know,” she said, confusion reflected on her face, “but that’s the weirdest thing. From the first day we met I felt this…pull…and I knew if I were to ever get married you were the one I’d want to be with.” She must have seen the disbelief on his face because she continued, “I could have married anyone, Stone. I could have picked a man from the street and married him. But…I wanted to fall in love. And I wanted the man I married…to love me, too.”
“Love?” he scoffed. “You did this all for love? What about the money?”
“I wanted the money, too-”
“I thought so.”
“I admit it. I did. But I wasn’t planning on spending any of it on me.”
“Yeah, right.”
“No, really. Ask Mr. Marshall. In my file are the plans I submitted to him on how the money should be disbursed. All of it will go toward helping children in the countries where I’ve worked. I’d love…” she hesitated then gave him a shy look, “I’d love to be able to set up a children’s home like the one you have here.”
For a long while Stone stared down at her then he shook his head. “Your story, it’s so crazy. Is any of it true?”
“All of it,” she said, her voice firm. “The lawyer can verify everything.”
He shook his head again. “Then, Indiana Lane, you are one heck of a woman.” He walked over to where she sat in the chair. “Only you could have pulled it all off.”
She stared up at him then she shook her head. “I haven’t pulled off anything. I’m not married yet.”
“No, but you will be. Tomorrow evening, if you’ll still have me.” He leaned down and pulled her up off the chair and into his arms. “I’m sorry I ever doubted you, Indie. Will you still marry me?”
She slid her arms around his waist and rested her head on his chest. “I don’t know,” she said. “I’m sure I could find an available man somewhere around here.”
He chuckled and pulled her close. “I don’t mind,” he whispered then kissed the top of her head. “As long as it’s me.”
******
Next evening, as the setting sun threw red, orange and yellow streamers across the sky, in the company of family, friends, co-workers and children, Stone Hudson and Indiana Lane exchanged wedding vows.
And as they danced together on the carpet of green grass to the sound of African drums, Indie went on tiptoe and tilted her mouth to whisper in her husband’s ear, “I still want my birthday presents tomorrow.”
And Stone’s laughter, rich and deep and strong, echoed across the open plain.
EPILOGUE
“Congratulations, little Mommy. You have a beautiful baby girl.”
Indie’s eyes filled with tears as the nurse laid the baby on her breast. A baby of her very own. Who would have thought? And a loving husband by her side. Could anything be better than this? She smiled down at the little pink-cheeked baby on her breast then she looked across at Stone who was busy videotaping everything.
“Now take it easy,” the nurse was saying. “Remember, you just had a C-section. Slow movements for today, okay?”
“Okay,” she said obediently then turned to look up at the camera. “Put that camera down and come meet your daughter.”
He did. Stone kissed Indie on the forehead then took the swaddled baby into his arms and this time he was more confident as he held the infant, more sure. Maybe it was because he was now a daddy. A real one.
“Now, in addition to your boys, you have a little girl of your own,” she whispered to him. “When we leave Canada to go back to visit they're going to spoil her. You know that, right?”
“I know,” he said, not taking his eyes from his daughter’s face, “and I don’t mind at all. My little Zuri Sky Hudson. She’ll be able to handle them. She’ll be tough just like her mommy. My little warrior princess.”