Isn't It Rich? (16 page)

“Yes,” she said very firmly.

“Do I get the ring back?”

She held out her hand and considered the huge rock that she’d hated from the beginning. It sparkled brilliantly in the lights from the ballroom’s fancy chandeliers. The stupid thing must be six carats, with perfect clarity and color. It was worth a fortune. “I don’t think so. I think I’ll pawn it to help me expand my company.”

Behind her, she heard his brothers chuckle.

Richard shrugged, not nearly as outraged by that as she’d expected.

“Okay, then,” he said mildly, “but I think you’re going to want to take it off now.”

Melanie faced him stubbornly. “Why would I do that?”

He pulled a velvet jeweler’s box from his pocket. “I’ve got another one I think maybe you’ll like better.”

Melanie felt her mouth gape. “You’re proposing to me? Here? Now? For real?”

She heard a delighted gasp behind her and whirled on Destiny. “Oh, put a sock in it. This is exactly what you were counting on from the beginning. You said you knew him better than anyone.”

Destiny’s eyes were filled with laughter. “Trust me, darling, I didn’t know about this.”

Richard grinned. “You should have guessed. You did put it all into motion, didn’t you?”

“I can’t take all the credit,” she said with surprising modesty.

Richard didn’t seem impressed by her sudden sense of humility. “You should know by now that Destiny always gets what she wants,” he confided to Melanie.

Destiny beamed at Richard and Melanie, then
turned to his brothers, a sparkle of pure mischief in her eyes. “Something you two need to remember, too.”

Mack and Ben, their expressions instantly horrified, suddenly melted into the crowd. Watching them disappear, Melanie turned to Richard. “When their turns come, whose side are you going to be on?”

“Destiny’s, of course,” he said without hesitation. “She’s made me a believer in the power of love.” He looked deep into Melanie’s eyes. “You still haven’t given me an answer, by the way.”

Melanie smiled. “I should make you wait, maybe torment you a little.”

She heard Destiny mutter something about the balance of power again and made up her mind. She knew what it had cost Richard to put his heart on the line in this room filled with people. He’d taken the risk. The least she could do was reciprocate here and now.

“I accept,” she told him, her gaze locked with his.

Their obviously baffled guests, who’d come to celebrate an engagement, seen it broken, then back on again, cheered wildly, taking their cue from Destiny, who swept Melanie into a hug and congratulated her.

“I couldn’t have asked for a better woman for Richard,” she said.

Melanie chuckled. “You act surprised. We both know you handpicked me, though I’ve yet to figure out why.”

“Oh, darling, that one’s easy,” Destiny said, turning her to face Richard, who was more at ease than Melanie had ever seen him. His eyes filled with emotion when he caught her looking his way.

“Can you see what I see?” Destiny asked.

“He’s happy,” Melanie realized, recognizing the signs because she was filled with jubilation herself.

“He’s happy,” Destiny confirmed. “Because of you.”

Melanie gave her a fierce hug. “Maybe we should share the credit.”

Destiny nodded, her expression smug. “Yes, perhaps we should for tonight, but I think over time the lion’s share will go to you. I’ll thank you in advance for that.”

Melanie’s gaze lingered on Richard. “He’s able to love me at all because of you,” she told Destiny honestly. “Your work here is done.”

“Yes, I believe it is.” She looked around the room. “Now where the dickens do you suppose Mack is?”

Melanie chuckled at Destiny’s eagerness as she began moving through the crowd in search of Mack. “You probably ought to find your brother and warn him,” she told Richard when he joined her.

“Hell no,” Richard said. “Mack can take care of himself. In fact, it’ll be a pleasure to watch him squirm for a change. Besides, I have more important things to do.”

“Oh? Such as?”

“This,” he said, lowering his head to capture her mouth.

“Definitely more important,” Melanie murmured against his lips.

“Have I mentioned that I love you?” Richard asked when the kiss ended.

“Come to think of it, no,” Melanie said. “But I thought it was implicit in your proposal.”

He smiled. “I knew you could read my mind.”

She sighed. “There was a while there when I was
sure I’d gotten it all wrong. From now on, though, I think I’ll trust my instincts.”

“What are your instincts telling you now?” he asked.

She studied him thoughtfully, then grinned. “Shame on you,” she scolded.

“Then you’re not interested in blowing off this party and getting a room upstairs?”

“I didn’t say I wasn’t interested,” she replied. “I can see you’re going to have to work on reading my mind.”

His expression sobered. “I’ll make it my life’s mission. That and loving you.”

Melanie felt her heart swell. If he said it, she could bank on it. Richard Carlton always kept his promises. That was the backbone of his campaign strategy and, best of all, it was the truth.