Elizabeth Morgan was worth far more than he'd ever make. Rafe stared into the blue pools of her eyes and his heart sped up. If she loved him, then he was the richest man in the world. His life was complete, if she kissed him now and every day of their lives.
Elizabeth placed her hands in his and tilted her head as she gazed at him. "Rafe, have you read the trust papers that your mother gave you?"
Off topic. Her lips were pink and he ached to touch her, but she blinked and stared at him with clear blue eyes. He took a deep breath and shook his head. "No, but that doesn't have anything to do with what I need to say."
"I thought you’d said everything." Her breathy voice sounded like she found hope after losing everything. What a day. He’d never forget how scared he’d been chasing after her in the armored truck.
He could see Jose with a gun pointed toward Liz’s head. A cold spike like an icicle formed around his spine. "No. I’m not done."
Her eyes widened. "Then what?"
His feelings needed to be voiced. He listened to his heart beat. Despite how he felt, and how much he wanted to unbutton that sleeveless pink button up shirt of hers, he held still. "You deserve more than me."
Her face fell and her shoulders slumped. "You said that."
No. He was doing this all wrong. He pressed her palms to get her attention. "I can't offer you anything you don't already have."
She slipped her hands out of his. "Rafe..."
"Wait." At least she hadn't moved. "I'm saying everything wrong."
"What are you trying to say?"
The question was simple, but no woman had ever changed his life so intensely. She was like a battering ram with her honest expression. "The thing is, I almost lost you. I can't imagine living my life without you and I don't want to."
"Rafe..."
Her lips lifted, parted slightly for a kiss. He leaned closer, but then held still. He shook his head and she quieted. He had to tell her. "Elizabeth Morgan, I love you. You have my heart already. Don't break it."
She gasped. "Rafe..."
He placed his finger on her soft lips. "Wait. I'm not done."
Once he saw how her eyes gleamed, his heartbeat seemed to envelope his body. "You're the mother of my son and the most perfect woman I ever met."
"I'm not perfect," she whispered.
Elizabeth had no idea how amazing she was. He kissed her cheek. She turned toward him to deepen the kiss, but he pulled away. He held her hand to his heart and wished she could see what she did to him. "To me you are, and I want you to marry me."
Her lips parted. At first she didn't say anything. Finally she said, "What?"
His body shook. Would she reject him? This was probably too fast. His mind reeled and told him to slow down. He ignored the fear and leaned closer. "Will you marry me, Liz?"
A huge smile grew on her face that he hoped meant yes.
He took out a ring box from his pocket.
"You already have a ring?"
Did this mean yes? He opened the box and presented her the family ring that had been passed down for generations since his ancestors left their Spanish castle, or so the story went. “My mother gave it to me at Peter’s party after you ran off. It might not be new but that diamond was my grandmother's. She said her grandmother brought it from Spain where we were royalty. Either way she left it to me to give to my bride."
She kissed his nose as he slipped it on her finger. "I love it. I love you."
The kiss was too little. He wanted all of her. She hadn't told him. Perhaps her answer was obvious but his heart wouldn't calm down until she made it official. "Is that a yes?"
"Yes, absolutely." She wrapped her arms around his waist. "I love you."
"I love you too." His lips then met hers and her softness stole his breath away. All that mattered was her. Vegas Liz, the mother of his son, had changed his entire world with one brush of her lips. Now he was home, for good.
All that mattered was that she was his, now and forever.
“A castle in Spain must be nice. Maybe you were a king or a prince.” The return to earth took a minute. He blinked as she played with his belt.
“Doubtful.”
His body grew hard as she ran her hand over his abdomen. Then she said, "Rafe, this ring, your house, I’m happy with nothing, but have you ever talked to your mother about that trust fund you mentioned?"
He stepped out of her embrace and felt his body grow cold. “What are you talking about?”
"I feel you should read what your mother left you so you have a clear picture for your future and Brandon’s. I’ll get Ashley to set the table for dinner while you straighten this last thing out."
“I’ll only read it if you’re with me.”
She made a tisk sound and crossed her arms. "I still think you should open it."
He shrugged and waved for her to follow him. They went to his room where he'd been staying and he went through his backpack. A minute later he had the manila envelope and sat on the bed. He patted the bed beside him and she joined him. He then focused on the trust. The numbers at the end blared in his mind. He counted again. 1,693,936,287. Ten spaces. Now the amount explained their mother's contribution combined with interest then split evenly between Caro and himself left him with this amount for the month. His eyes were wide as he just stared at the number. He'd never guessed he'd have so much. Every cell in his body was electrified. "What the?"
She pressed into his shoulder. "What is it?"
"This is a lot of money." He closed his eyes. No maid ever made that much money. There was a mistake, but then Liz was right. His neighbors were millionaires or more. His mother and the realtor had told him that they'd get him an amazing mortgage on his place as something happened to the previous rich buyer who wanted to sell now. He had thought he lucked out. "I don't understand."
She placed her hand in front of his. "Can I see?"
Liz had even more money than this, but to him this felt like winning the lottery. He gave her the files. An audible intake of her breath told him she read the number. "Rafe, you could buy this house on your own."
He held his hands to his temples, envisioning his mother scrubbing toilets to get this bank account. "How? This doesn't make sense."
She placed her hand on his, handed him back his folder, and said, "Your mother is next door. Let's go ask her."
"Brandon is asleep." His body stilled though his heart beat so fast that he could power a bullet train.
Liz stood and tugged his arm for him to follow. He did as she said, "Elle can watch him."
"Are you sure?"
She led him out of his bedroom and toward the hall. "I want to go with you. Brandon is safe now because of you. Elle can call us if anything goes wrong."
Once they were in the living room, he tried to imagine why his mother worked for Peter again if she had this much money. No one cleaned if they didn't need to. Liz opened the front door and led him along the waterfront path to her brother's house.
Without knocking, Liz opened the door. Rafe then guided her to the kitchen where his mother chopped onions and spoke to the chef. Rafe called out, "Mom."
"One second mi’ja." Pilar nodded at the chef as she put the knife down and gestured them out of the kitchen. She wiped her hands and once he saw she followed, he held the door for her.
The second the door closed, his mother picked up Liz's hand with a huge grin. "Rafe. Elizabeth. Is that Grandmother's ring?"
Rafe understood his mother wouldn't stop until he told her everything. He held Liz's hand as he announced, "I asked Elizabeth to marry me. She said yes."
"I'm happy for you!" Pilar hugged both of them at the same time. Footsteps sounded behind him as his mother told Elizabeth, “Welcome to the family.”
Rafe turned around and saw Peter Morgan in a gray business suit. Peter said, "Congratulations."
“Thank you.” Rafe nodded thanks and showed his mother the file. "That's not why we're here."
"Is there something you need from me?" Pilar blinked innocently as she transitioned around to stand closer to Peter Morgan.
Rafe lowered his gaze to not offend his mother, but he again tried to give the papers to her as he said, "Mom, I read the trust."
"Good." His mother's simple response made him stare at her.
He took a step closer. "How did that happen, Mom?"
Her face fell and she said a prayer under her breath. Then she said, "Your father died."
"I remember." Those three words were not an explanation. He needed more.
Pilar glanced at Peter and then she explained, "He had insurance. I was going to quit my job but Peter asked me to help him protect John and Victoria."
Peter placed his hand on his mother's back and then said, "In exchange, I offered to be your mother’s personal banker. With the money from the insurance, I created a trust fund that I've managed for years. She helped me with John and Alice and I wanted to ensure she had what she wanted. She helped me keep my siblings safe from my father."
His mind whirled faster than a tornado. He glanced at the other man. No wonder Peter had always said he didn't need to be on the police force. He had created a fortune. "So you did this? Peter, it's too much."
Peter shrugged without looking at the papers. "I made those investments years ago, when we were in school together, and much more with my own funds I managed. This was my way to ensure someone was here to protect my family. And your mother retired with more in the trust fund for herself, you and Caro to have whatever you might desire. Pilar was the closest thing I had to a mother for years."
All this time, Rafe had never wondered why no one ever struggled. His mother wore a maid's uniform and went to work and he accepted her explanation that she was good at saving. He never questioned her or Peter or ever suspected any of them. "You were doing this in high school, Peter?"
"Yes."
All those years and he mostly remembered how John complained about his brother as they played on the football team. He hadn't ever tried to be nice to Peter. Rafe's face felt hot. "We weren't friends."
Peter released Pilar and pulled out his car keys. "No, and we didn’t need to be. I needed Pilar.”
Rafe held the files in front of them. "I can't accept this."
“It’s not a gift you can give back.”
“I don’t know what else to say.”
His mother withdrew and pointed Rafe toward the side room where they kept the china for guests. "Mi’ja, I wish to talk to you alone."
"Yes, Mother." He let Liz's hand go and followed his mother into the small room.
She closed the door. "You are marrying a Morgan, si?"
"I love her." Rafe nodded. "And our family is why I can't..."
She made a tisk with her tongue. "Si, you have the best intentions. Don't throw the money in her brother's face because of your pride."
"Mom, this is blood money." If the money was because Mitch killed his father, then he shouldn't accept. "We can't."
Pilar took both of his hands in hers. "Your father would want you and Caro to have the best life possible, and I worked for almost forty years for Mitch Morgan. I knew his every secret. I stayed because I wanted you and Caro to have what I never did. Don't throw this in anyone's face, Rafe."
They had over a billion dollars. No one he knew other than the Morgans might understand. He hadn't done anything to deserve this, but he couldn't offend his mother either. "Mama."
"Yes, mi’ja?"
"I love you."
A victorious smile crossed her face. "Good, now go and be with your lovely bride. I cannot wait to see both my children happy."
She shuffled him toward the door, but he stopped. "Why are you cleaning? Why did you force Caro into this job and does she know about the money?"
"Your sister is a dreamer and she needed to understand the value of hard work. I'm back because I like being useful, and I gave her the papers the same time you did. I don’t think she’s read them."
His sister always believed in the best for himself and everyone around her. He couldn't fault his mother. "Why tell me now?"
"It's time for you to stop chasing bad guys and be a father."
Once again his mother had an explanation for everything. Now he had to go and be with the family he loved. Liz waited for him, right outside.