Ridge cleared his throat. “Thanks, guys,” he told them. “You’ve done a great job. You may go now.”
Abruptly, they stopped playing then one of them had the audacity to make his disappointment obvious. “Aaw,” he said, dropping his violin from where he’d hooked it on his shoulder. “We were just getting to the good part.”
Ridge couldn’t tell if he meant the good part of the musical piece or of the scene unfolding before his eyes. Whichever it was, the show was over. He jerked his chin toward the door. “Please show yourselves out.”
They couldn’t leave fast enough as far as Ridge was concerned. As soon as the door closed behind them he looked down at the woman in his arms. “What were you saying now, honey?”
Lani was calmer now and she snuggled in his lap and leaned her cheek against his chest. “I was telling you how awful I was.”
Ridge chuckled. “We both know that’s not true. You’re the sweetest girl in the world.”
Instead of thanking him for the compliment Lani gave him an irritated look and swatted him on the shoulder. “That sounded so corny,” she said crossly.
He shrugged. “What can I say? It’s true.”
She dropped her head back to his chest and wrapped her arms around his waist. “Anyway, I was telling you I was a stupid jerk for not telling you what really happened when Aurelio and I went on our hike.”
Ridge frowned, his arms tightening around her. “Something happened?”
She nodded, her hair rubbing against his skin as she moved her head. “I was too embarrassed to tell you. I was scared you’d get mad at me.”
“What happened out there, Lani?” Ridge’s heart was picking up pace. No matter that she was safe in his arms, just the thought that she might have been in danger made the hair on his arms stand on end.
Lani gave a sigh that made her sound exhausted. “We got lost. That’s why we got back to camp so late. We’d been walking in circles for hours. I was so scared to tell you. That’s why I played cool, like you were making a big deal out of nothing. But it really was a big deal. We could have been stuck out there all night.” She shivered and snuggled closer, like the memory had taken her back to that place and time when she’d been at the mercy of the wild jungle.
His heart going out to her, imagining the degree of her fear, he dipped his head to give her a reassuring kiss on the forehead. “Oh, honey, you should have told me. I would have understood. You don’t know how I almost went crazy, not knowing where you were. I was so relieved when you walked back into camp. You have no idea.”
Lani nodded. “I know you were worried. I could see that. I just…I guess the shock of it all just made me act crazy.” Then she pulled back from him and peered up into his face. “When we got back you weren’t in the tent. What were you doing in the bushes?”
“I was just setting off. I was going to look for you.”
Lani’s brows lifted. “You were going to head out into the jungle in the dark and trek eight miles with only one leg?”
He smiled. “One leg and a half.”
She did not look amused. “Are you crazy?”
His smile deepened. “Crazy for you, my love. Only for you.”
It seemed he’d said the perfect words because the pout on her lips disappeared and she smiled and sank back against him. “Do you know what I’m happiest about?” she asked.
“No,” he whispered in her ear. “What?”
“That you blackmailed me into marrying you. It’s the best thing that could have happened to me.” She gave a soft, contented sigh.
“Are you sure, my sweet? You don’t want to get me for playing that dirty trick on you?” Ridge was smiling but this time he was one hundred percent serious. He had to know – had his wife fallen in love with him? Had she fallen under the spell that had bewitched him from the first day he laid eyes on her?
“Oh, I’m going to get you, all right. I can’t let an inveterate trickster go unpunished.” Then, as if to soften the scare she’d just put in him, she pulled his head down and kissed the tip of his nose. “But don’t worry,” she said softly. “When I get you back it won’t hurt at all. You made me love you too much.” And then she cupped his face in her hands and drew him down until their lips touched and Lani gave him a kiss full of such promise that he knew it was going to be a long night.
And he didn’t mind at all.
EPILOGUE
“Oh, my dear. I’m so proud of you.” Marie had tears in her eyes as she leaned over to give Lani a kiss on the cheek.
“And so am I. Great work.” Her father patted her on the hand.
Lani smiled. “Thanks Mom, Dad.” But then she looked across the banquet table at the man who had made it all possible. “And thank you, Ridge,” she said, her voice loud and clear and trembling with pride, “for making this dream come true.”
Never one to make a big deal about all the good he was doing, Ridge just smiled back and gave her a wink. And she knew exactly what that meant. Later, when they were home and alone, she would have to pay him back, not in cash, but in kind – the kind of ‘kind’ she really, really liked.
But Lani had to kill that naughty thought because now she was being called to the platform. As her family and her colleagues from the scientific community warmed her spirit with their applause, she made her way to the front of the room and went to receive her award.
“Leilani Kent, in recognition of your stellar work and your contribution to research in the area of neurodegenerative diseases, we present you with the Antioch Award of Excellence."
The applause rose and the crowd cheered and Lani felt the tears prick the corners of her eyes. She could not have been more proud. Like she was one of the winners at the Academy Awards she held her trophy high, her eyes glued on Ridge and then, as he nodded with pride, she blew him a kiss.
Later that night, as everyone gathered in the lobby to say their goodbyes, Lani drew her mother away from the crowd.
“I have something to tell you,” she whispered in Marie’s ear.
“What is it, dear? You’re not going away on another of your South America trips, are you?”
Lani shook her head. “No. Even better. I won’t be doing overseas trips for a while. And that’s what I want to tell you. You finally got your wish.”
“My wish? Whatever do you mean?”