Page 50 of Double Take

They would be married.

Provisionally.

Forever,whispered inner wisdom.He’s the one.

“A dream come true,” he said.

Dreams could ferry you places you didn’t know you wanted to go until you got there. This wasn’t how she envisioned herlife, but she looked forward to the year ahead. Life should be adventurous, not settled.

“Meow?” A groggy Rusty lifted his head.

“It’s okay, Rusty.” She stroked him.

“Good kitty.” John petted him.

“If the cat is rousing, Amity must be, too,” Marshall said.

“I should be there when she wakes up,” she said. “She won’t have any idea where she is, what’s going on.”

“Give me a minute. Let me talk to her first,” Marshall said.

She shook her head and handed Rusty to John. “Amity should see a familiar face.” She stood up, but before she could move, Marshall slipped out the door.

“Does that seem odd to you?” She looked at John.

“Odder than anything else that’s happened?” His mouth quirked.

“You have a point.”

“I don’t know what’s going on, but giving them a minute will give us one, too.” He settled the cat on the chair and turned toward her.

She went into his arms, sighing with contentment. “We were meant for each other.”

“Let’s do this right,” he said.

“What do you mean?”

He dropped down onto one knee. “Faith Hammond, will you do me the honor of becoming my provisional wife?” His eyes, those sexy eyes, twinkled.

“I love you.” It was important to say it. “Yes, I will marry you.”

He let out a joyful, surprised whoop, like there could have been any doubt. “I love you so much. I always have.” He kissed her then, his hungry mouth stirring satisfaction, resolution, and desire.

Marshall ended up with quite a few minutes to talk to Amity.

Epilogue

One week later

They’d jostled and rolled for an hour across deserted tundra to a “village” of dusty buildings arranged in a half-moon around a courtyard of sorts. An outer ring of tiny cabins completed the town.

“It’s smaller than Willow Wood,” Faith murmured. “More primitive, too.”

“Regrets?” Bragg asked.

“None where I’m sitting,husband,” she said with a smile.

“I’m glad,wife.” They rode in a powered wagon with only a thin, transparent plasticene covering to protect them from the wind whistling across the plain. It had been a drafty, cold ride from the intake center.

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