“Glad to see you got off, Miss Roarke.”
“Hope you’ll consider staying here in town, Miss Roarke.”
All around her, citizens of Peaceable turned and spoke, offering their best wishes.
“That goes for me, too, Miss Tessa.”
Tessa glanced up as Sheriff Bradley tipped his hat.
“Let me help you with your bag.” He reached for the handle of her suitcase before she could protest. He picked it up and stepped forward.
The circle of people opened as if by magic.
“David! You’d better make your move before he does!” Mary shouted.
“I don’t need your help,” David yelled to her. “Or any more of yours.” He glared at Lee.
“How about mine?” the sheriff asked as he carried Tessa’s suitcase to the center of the street and dropped it at David’s feet.
David turned around and saw Tessa standing next to the sheriff. He eyed the suitcase at his feet. “Yours, I assume.”
“David!” Tessa ran forward and threw herself into his arms. “What happened to your face?”
Lee stepped up. “I happened to his face.” His face was as battered as David’s.
Tessa pulled away from David and rounded on Liam. “What did you think you were doing?”
“I thought I was marrying you,” Lee said, smiling in spite of his split lip.
“I don’t want to marry you,” Tessa told him. “I don’t want a rogue of an Irishman for a husband. I’ve spent my life with them. And you didn’t mean that silly proposal. You only did it out of duty to my brother.”
“Nope,” Lee told her. “I did it for David.”
“David?” Tessa didn’t understand. “David doesn’t need you to propose for him.”
“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell everyone.” David turned to the crowd. “I can ask her to marry me without anybody’s help. I plan to ask her to marry me, and I’m going to ask her to marry me.” He moved closer to Tessa and took her hand. “Tessa, will you marry me and let me take care of you?”
‘Take care of me?” Tessa threw the words back at him. “You want to take care of me?”
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“Yes.”
“Well, forget it!” Tessa shouted. Yanking her hand out of his grasp, she whirled around to reach for her suitcase.
David caught her arm and turned her back to face him. “Forget it?” he shouted back. “What do you mean forget it?”
“I mean forget it! I’m not interested in letting you take care of me! I can take care of myself!”
“But I thought you cared about me!”
“I don’t care about you,” Tessa yelled. “I love you!”
Frustrated beyond belief, David glared down at the woman. “It means the same thing!”
“Not to me, it doesn’t,” she informed him. “If you can’t say you love me, then I don’t want you taking care of me!” She stamped her foot in the street for emphasis.
“Fine. Take care of yourself. Take care of Coalie. Take care of me.” David knelt at her feet and took her hand once again. “Take care of all the children we’ll have together, but marry me. Please.”