Page 69 of The Billionaire's Promise

Not likely. He was still wobbling to his feet when I pulled my hand free of Vance and stepped in front of him. Vance tried to pull me back, but I waved him off. Brayden couldn't even stand up straight. He wasn't a threat.

"Get out of my way, Maggie," he said. I took a step closer and set my hands on his shoulders. Behind me, I heard Charlie say, "Oh, shit."

"There's something I've been meaning to tell you, Brayden," I said.

He opened his mouth to speak, but he never got the words out. Before he had the chance to spew more bullshit, I lifted my knee and slammed it into his balls. Brayden let out a high-pitched squeak and collapsed to the ground, jaw hanging loose, limbs splayed, gasping for air.

Vance took my hand and swung me around, dropping me over his arm in a low dip as if we'd been dancing. He set his lips on my neck and said, "You're amazing. I fucking love you, Magnolia." In a whoosh of movement, he swung me back upright and held me tight to his body. "What do you say we get the hell out of here and celebrate our engagement?"

"Please," I said. Vance picked up the bottle of champagne by the neck, wrapped his arm around my waist, sent Aiden and Charlie a two-fingered salute, and led me through the murmuring crowd. He was parked in the tiny lot behind the gallery. After helping me up into the Range Rover, he got in, started the engine, and said, "Home?"

"Yes. Let's go home."

He took my hand in his as he drove, stroking the ring on my finger as we passed through the hushed streets. "Is Rosie with Mrs. Williamson?" I asked.

"Yep."

"All night?" I asked. Vance gave my hand a squeeze and turned his head to look at me. His eyes shone with love and sparked with lust.

"All night, Magnolia. All night."

"Mmm," I said, pressing my knees together at the wave of heat between my legs. I'd only been without him for one night, but it felt like a lifetime.

"You know what I want, Sugar?" Vance asked, his voice a low rumble in his chest.

"Tell me."

"I want you, in our bed, wearing nothing but my ring and those fucking shoes. That's what I want."

"I can do that," I said.

And I did. All night.

EPILOGUE: PART ONE

MAGNOLIA

ONE MONTH LATER

Bright spring sunshine bathed my skin as I lay on my side in the backyard. I'd spread a quilt on the freshly mown lawn, and Rosie and I were enjoying the beautiful weather after days of rain. The ground was a little damp beneath the quilt, but we didn't care.

Rosie was rolling over now, and keeping her on the quilt was more of a challenge than I'd expected. She couldn't crawl, but she'd figured out she could get almost anywhere by rolling. Our sweet little girl had a spark of trouble in her. Just like her daddy.

Vance was across the lawn, at the back of the property, supervising the renovations on the carriage house. Now that we were engaged, he and Rosie had officially moved in and we'd agreed to go ahead with the plan to turn the carriage house into his studio. It would be ideal once it was rebuilt on the inside, right down to the small gravel driveway to the door so he could receive delivery of materials.

Life was just about perfect.

Except for the wedding. I was partially regretting the decision not to elope. It would have been so much easier to fly to Vegas, grab a dress off the rack, and just get it done. We even had connections out there—Evers's brother, Axel, ran the western division of Sinclair Security out of Las Vegas and was best friends with Dylan Kane, the owner of the Delecta Casino and Resort. Dylan had called Vance personally to offer anything we wanted.

Like a fool, I'd turned him down. I wanted a small, romantic wedding in my backyard. And that's what I was getting, complete with exchanging our vows in the gazebo Vance had built for me.

Planning a wedding was much more involved than I'd guessed. I should have known. I'd helped Sloane plan enough shows at the gallery to understand that these things involved so many more details than they should have.

Abigail had taken charge. She was so sweet and refined, I hadn't realized she was also terrifyingly organized and very stubborn. I was efficient and organized when it came to business. But party planning? Not so much.

I wanted to marry Vance. And I wanted it to be romantic. I just couldn't bring myself to care about flowers, or table settings, or music, or seating arrangements. Or anything aside from my dress, the guest list, and the cake.

It wasn't that Abigail didn't listen to me. She did. She was wonderful—patient and thoughtful and filled with creative ideas that gave away the close attention she'd paid to who Vance and I really were. And she was doing the whole thing for free.