Three days later
It was a small, hurried wedding. With a special license and the blessings of the Barones, Alex and Daisy were married in Moira’s garden.
Tiny Angel wailed through most of the ceremony, but no one seemed to mind. The day was just too perfect.
And as Alex slipped the simple gold band onto Daisy’s finger, she smiled into his eyes. Yes, he would be leaving in two days. But once he’d been assigned quarters at whatever base he was being sent to, she and Angel would be following him.
Until then, she would have her new family around her and a golden ring of promise to keep her warm.
“You may kiss the bride,” the minister said, a broad smile on his face.
“Now that’s the best idea I’ve heard all day,” Alex told him, and pulled Daisy close.
She wrapped her arms around his neck and glanced at Rita, who was trying desperately to quiet the baby. Then, smiling, Daisy looked back at her new husband. “I think your daughter wants a kiss, too.”
He grinned, and Daisy wondered if her toes would always curl when he smiled at her like that.
“She’ll have to wait her turn,” he murmured, so only she could hear. “Right now it’s her mama I’m interested in.”
“Then kiss me, sailor.”
“Aye-aye, Mrs. Barone.”
As his lips closed over hers, Daisy felt her heart swell until it nearly choked her. She’d found everything she’d ever dreamed of, right here in Alex’s arms. No matter where they lived, or how many places the navy sent them, she knew without a doubt that home would always be where her hero was.