Badge of Honor Read online

  He nodded and reached for the small box he'd set to one side on her desk. He flipped it open and held it out to her. Her stare became a gape as she stared at the ring.

  "It's beautiful," she said, still sounding shell-shocked.

  "I love you, Kit. I never thought I'd say that to a woman again. But it seems very, very right to say it to you. I highly recommend falling in love with your best friend."

  "So do I," she whispered, looking at him at last. Then, as if belatedly realizing she'd not said the actual words, she added, "I love you, too."

  He smiled at her. "I think I figured that out when you rounded up the cavalry for me."

  She colored slightly and lowered her eyes.

  "I thought for a long time about the stone," he said, a little nervous at her lack of an answer. "Then I saw this peridot, set with all those tiny gold bits around it, like the gold flecks in your eyes. And your eyes are that color sometimes. But if you'd rather have a diamond, of course—"

  "No."

  He held his breath. Then he made himself ask, "Was that to the diamond or the proposal?"

  Her gaze shot to his face. "Miguel, you know there are so many problems, things we need to—"

  She stopped when he slowly shook his head. "It's all right, Kit. It will all be all right."

  "But—"

  "That meeting last night? It was with a citizen's committee that's approached me to run for mayor. They were pushing for an answer. I gave them one."

  Kit's eyes widened. "You're going to run? Now? I mean, this election?"

  He nodded. "In June. That's why they wanted an answer now."

  "Oh." She looked stunned all over again.

  "I think the ring's distinctive enough for a mayor's wife, don't you?"

  For a moment her expression was troubled. "Miguel, this isn't because—"

  He stopped her with a sharp shake of his head. "Don't even think that. You know I've been thinking about this for a long time."

  "But leaving Trinity West…"

  "It wasn't an easy decision," he admitted. "But I'm at the point now where I think I can do more from the outside. Where I can pound some sense into people who buy palm trees instead of fixing potholes or making neighborhoods safer."

  "Trinity West's loss will be Marina Heights's gain," she said softly.

  "So sure I'll win?"

  "Positive. They'd be crazy not to grab you."

  "What about you, Kit?"

  She smiled at him, a bright, sunny smile that could have banished a hurricane.

  "I'm not crazy," she said. Relief flooded him. But before he could say anything, she added warningly, "I'm incapable of being a typical politician's wife."

  He grinned at her. "Fine with me. I'm incapable of being a typical politician."

  "Thank God," she said.

  "So, was there a yes in there somewhere?"

  "Yes. Oh, yes," she said, throwing her arms around him. This time they ended up in her big, overstuffed chair, an awkward but joyous lovemaking that left them both spent and laughing. And both of them knew what a miracle it was, that two battered, wary souls had found such happiness, that two old friends had found love together.

  And both of them knew Trinity West was going to see its biggest wedding yet.

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