Finding Love in Payton (19 page)

"Well, I started thinking that I love this house, too,"
she said, her dimple appearing. "I have actually
walked by here often, thinking about how cozy and
interesting it felt."

"So you bought it?" He tried to feel excited, but he
couldn't shake the fact that she accomplished something so easily which had been almost impossible for
him to obtain.

She shook her head. "No."

Now he was thoroughly confused. "No? Then how
... why are you here?"

"I paid half of it. Marianne said that my half, combined with your half of the earnest money, would be
more than enough. She called the owner's agent right
then and there."

"And he said okay, that quickly?"

She nodded. "Yep. He really doesn't want this
place. And it's not ours officially yet, it will probably
take a few weeks to do everything up right. But Marianne said it would be all right if I sat in here and
waited for you to come by."

"And put up a sign."

"Yes. And put up a sign," she said softly.

"How did you know I'd be passing this way?"

"I called your family and asked them to please help
me out." She gestured to her cell phone. "You've practically been tailed the whole way here."

He laughed. "This ... this is the most amazing thing
anyone's ever done for me. Thank you."

He pulled her into his arms and kissed her over and
over, until each felt as if their limbs were made of
noodles. Bryan soon got into the action, and crawled
up into Jeremy's lap, demanding his own set of kisses.

Finally, when they pulled apart, Jeremy scooted
down two steps, so he was well and truly kneeling in
front of her. "Dinah, will you and Bryan marry me?
Will you make me the happiest man in Payton?"

She smiled brightly, gifting him with a bright display of twin dimples. "Jeremy Reece, I'd be honored."

With a yell of pleasure, he grasped her hands, kissed
her knuckles, then opened his arms for Bryan's embrace.

"This is how it's supposed to be, isn't it?" Dinah
asked after they kissed again.

"What?"

"Being so happy ... finding love with you. Isn't it
something, the two of us ... finding love, right here
in Payton?"

It was something. And pretty wonderful.

Her words couldn't have been more true.