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“Well, isn’t this a nice picture?”
Riggs looked up to see Naomie and his father walking hand-in-hand. That sight made him smile. It was good to see his father finally be happy. It’d taken a long time, but Riggs was pretty sure it was worth the wait. Naomie was one of a kind.
They walked up the steps, and Russ sat in one of the rockers. “Nice night.”
“Yep,” Riggs agreed. “What’s up?”
Russ looked at Naomie, who leaned over the edge of the playpen to give Robby a caress before answering the question. “Just wondering if you’re ready to dance at my wedding?”
“Hell yes,” he said and grinned. “We were starting to think you’d changed your mind about marrying Dad.”
“Not a chance.”
“Then bring on the wedding, and I promise you I’ll be ready and eager.”
“And what about dancing at your own?”
Georgie’s neck stretched up, and her eyes rounded. “What does that mean?”
“Well, shit,” Riggs complained.
“Oops!” Naomie put her fingers to her lips.
“Yeah, seriously,” Riggs tried to push back annoyance. He had no clue what she was up to but doubted she’d just slipped up. She’d been the one he asked to go shopping with him when he bought an engagement ring for Georgie.
Finding what he wanted was impossible, so she suggested an alternative and went with him to Mica Grayhorse’s smithy in Cotton Creek. Not only was she a blacksmith, like her brother, Mathias, who was also an ex-SEAL, but she was also an accomplished metal worker.
Riggs was skeptical, but Mica created the perfect ring for Georgie. The band was titanium, and Mica had engraved Celtic symbols into the metal, signifying endurance and strength. A channel was cut into the ring, and she’d somehow managed to embed a circle of rose quartz into the ring, sandwiched on either side by metal. The rose quartz signified unconditional love.
The wedding ring he’d also commissioned was actually two rings, much thinner than the engagement ring. Fashioned also from titanium, there was a circle of red jasper on the bottom, with the titanium on top. Red Jasper symbolized strength, honesty, and stability, which he promised her, and was already blessed by her gifts. When the engagement ring was sandwiched between the two wedding rings, it gave the appearance of one wide band.
It was perfect. He’d been carrying it in his pocket for a week, ever since it arrived. “Well, heck, I reckon now’s as good a time as any.” He stood, pulled the little box out of his jacket pocket, and sat back down.
“Damn, I didn’t plan on doing this for an audience.”
Robby let out a gurgle and a laugh, and Riggs smiled. There was no cause for upset. Proposing here, in front of his family, was perfect.
He looked at Georgie. “Georgie, I love you. We’ve been through a lot together, and against the odds, here we are, survivors. You’re not just the woman I love. You’re the person who saved me. You praise me and Gun all the time about being heroes, but the truth is, I’m nothing without you because you’re the one who made me want my life back, the one who inspired and challenged me. The one willing to jump off a bridge and take on a madman for me. You saved me.”
“Oh no,” she argued. “You saved me. You did, Riggs. You did what you always do. Be a hero. The real deal, a geniune American hero. My hero.”
“I think we can argue about who’s the real hero till the cows come home, so we’ll table that for later. For now, it’s important that you know there’s nothing I want more than to be your husband and, God willing, the father of your children. I want a life with you, Robby, and all the other kids we can be blessed with. Will you allow me to be your partner in life?”
“I’d like to see something try and stop me,” she replied.
Riggs grinned, opened the box, removed the engagement ring, and put it on her finger. “So when do you want to do it? Should we head for Vegas or do the big church thing or—”
“Or do it with me and your dad,” Naomie interrupted.
“Seriously?” Riggs looked at his father.
“Why not? We’re gonna invite the same folks for the most part. If you add to the list, it just makes the party bigger.”
Riggs looked at Georgie. “What do you think?”
“To marry you here? I can’t think of anything more perfect. I’m in.”
“Yes!” Riggs gave a little fist pump, then looked at Robby who was babbling happily. “You hear that son? We’re getting married.”