Chapter 13

Caroline yelled and threw a vase at the window. Luckily the window didn't shatter but the glass vase sure did. The caterer was being stupid and she wanted to shoot him. He couldn't cater the showing because he was too booked and she had called at the worst possible time. The florist had suddenly backed out and didn't give a reason why. She had a feeling she knew but wasn't going to confront that at the moment.

She saw Izzy' s bright red hair out of the corner of her eye and decided she had better stop throwing things. The other woman stood in the doorway and looked around the wrecked office.

"Do I want to know?" she asked.

"We have no caterer and no flowers. The caterer is a butthead and the florist is a friend of my mother's. I know what happened there," she replied angrily.

"I can cater the showing. It's not a big deal and my friend is a florist. I can call her on a favor."

"Are you sure?"

Izzy nodded. "Yeah. I can do it."

"Thanks."

"No problem. I'll get on that now."

Caroline watched her sudden ally walk away with her cell phone pressed to ear. She was amazed at how quick Izzy had warmed up to her since she had been working with Tophyr. She imagined it had something to do with the younger, fiery tempered woman who ran the gallery.

She was walking around the gallery floor when her cell phone rang. It took her a few moments to get it out of her pocket. When it rang again, she threw down the tree limb she had been holding and fished it from her pocket.

"Hello?" she said hurriedly.

"Caroline, it's Derek. Tophyr's in labor for real this time. Is Damian with you?"

"No, he's not. Is everything okay?"

He shuddered on the other end. "No, it's not. She's having trouble. If it doesn't happen in the next hour, they're going to do a C-Section. She doesn't want that and she's causing a ruckus."

Caroline was already heading out the door as she continued to talk to him. "Have you called the rest of the family?"

"Yeah. They're on their way but I can't get a hold of Damian. Can you try for me?"

"Yeah. I'll get him."

Derek sighed on the other end. "Thanks. I'll see you when you get here." He was gone before she could answer.

Caroline gritted her teeth and dialed Damian's number. How dare the bastard not answer his phone when his family needed him?

She tried twice and on the third time he finally picked up.

"What?" he demanded in an irritated voice.

"Don't what me. You family's been trying to get in touch with you," she spat into the phone.

"Oh, hey, Caroline. What's up?"

Caroline rolled her eyes. "Tophyr's in actual labor now. Derek told us to get to the hospital. She's having complications."

"Where are you now?" He sounded as if he were moving around quickly now.

"I'm almost at the hospital. I was at the gallery."

"I'll meet you there."

She stared at the phone in shock. He had hung upon her! She wasn't too mad about it because he was worried about his family but he didn't have to hang up on her.

A few minutes later she walked into the hospital and straight into the maternity ward. Every member of the family she had seen a few nights ago was there once again. This time there were three others. Elizabeth, Daniel and Dani were there now and that sent a shiver down Caroline's back.

The murmuring grew louder when Damian came through the door. She turned around to see him jogging towards them. He had left his leather jacket unzipped and it showed his white t-shirt straining against the muscles of his upper body.

He stopped beside her and lowered his mouth to hers. Caroline noticed everyone had stopped talking as they watched the two of them. She felt self-conscious but then the emotions swept her away. She loved this man and it was going to eat her alive because she hadn't told him.

Damian pushed her away gently then flashed a crooked smile at her. She shook her head and pushed him towards his family. When she connected eyes with Dayton, he shook his head at her but he wasn't mad. It seemed as if he were amused. She had no idea what for but she wasn't going to ask him about it.

They were there for about three hours. Derek ventured out every now and then to give them updates. The last one had come forty-five minutes before. Now it was silent. The nurses wouldn't tell them anything and the children were getting restless. Britani and Mia worked together to keep the kids calm but the twins weren't having any of it. They whined and cried until they finally went to sleep on their father's lap.

Finally Derek came out. When he rounded the corner, there was a huge smile on his face. That one look told everyone everything was all right. Both mother and child had made it through safely.

Lucille grabbed her son-in-law and hugged him. He was then passed around from family member to family member. The whole time he smiled.

When he got to Jim, his father-in-law looked at him but didn't hug him.

"What is it?" he asked gruffly.

Derek's smile widened. "A little girl. She was six pounds and four ounces. She's four weeks premature but they say she's nearly fully developed. They want to keep her here for a few days for observations but that's it."

"What did you name her?" Lucille asked.

Derek's smile widened so much Caroline thought it would rip his face in two. "Her name is Bronwyn Catherine Lucille Stark, after her grandmothers."

It was then the floodgates opened. Catherine and Lucille collapsed in each other's arms as they cried helplessly.

Damian caught Caroline's arm and led her away from his family. She looked at him as if he were out of his mind. He smiled to make sure she knew it wasn't anything bad. They went outside and stood in the cold.

"What is it?" Caroline asked. "You do know it's cold?"

"Yeah, I know it's cold but this is the only place I could think of to do this," he replied.

"What are you talking about? If you're playing games again, I'm going to shove you in the snow."

"I love you, Caroline."

He said it so fast she had to blink to make sure she heard it correctly.

"Excuse me? Could you repeat that?"

Damian smiled and stepped forward, taking her hands and bringing his warmth closer to her. "I said I love you, Caroline. My family knows it. Sheesh, they knew it

before I did. So I thought why not make it official."

Caroline frowned as he stepped back and dug around in his pocket. "What are you doing?"

He looked her square in the eye and spoke slowly so she didn't misunderstand. "I know you love me, Caroline. You wouldn't have stuck around my family as long as you have if you didn't love them as well. And I know you wouldn't have stuck around a guy with the title of playboy if you didn't feel something. So I ask you this. Caroline Rochester, would you do me the honor of being my wife?"

Caroline stared at him for a moment. The moment turned into a couple minutes and he started shifting his feet in the snow.

"Please say something," he whispered as he placed his forehead against hers.

"Are you certain?" she asked in the same whisper he had used.

"I'm definitely sure. If I wasn't I wouldn't have stuck around as long I have. I would have had another girl weeks ago and you wouldn't have been a second thought. Dayton said it best. I wear my heart on my sleeve and it shows that you are the only one for me."

She laughed, watching her breath mingle with his. "Can I trust it?"

"It's never lied to me before. Emily always told me that I would know when I found the one who complete me. You're the one. So tell me you love me and that you'll marry me."

"And if I don't?"

He laughed. "I will stalk you until you do."

She sniffled in the cold then lifted her head to look him in the eye. "Yeah, I will."

His face brightened. "You'll do what?"

"I'll marry you."

Damian smiled as he slipped the canary diamond on her left ring finger. "I know it's expensive but I thought it fit you perfectly."

Caroline looked at him. "I love you, Damian."

He pulled her to him. "Thank God."

"But there's one thing we need to do."

"And that is?"

She frowned at him. "We have to talk to my mother."

Damian shivered and it wasn't from the cold.