“Hey, you.”

Caitlin opens her eyes and grins as I step fully into her private hospital room.

“Hey yourself.”

My stomach lurches at the sight of the large white bandage wrapped around her head. I settle on the side of the bed and focus on drawing one deep breath after another, desperately trying to slow my heartbeat, which goes berserk every time I think about what she went through in the minutes before I got to Sheila’s. What might have happened if Sheila hadn’t grabbed that pan.

My hand shakes as it finds hers. The feel of her cool skin against mine doesn’t completely ease the panic, but it does calm it a little.

“What’s happening to Sheila?” Concern edges Caitlin’s voice. “She hasn’t been arrested, has she?”

I shake my head. “The police are still investigating, but the officer I spoke to felt that between Evan’s reputation and your injuries, as well as Sheila’s bruises, that it was going to be determined that she acted in self-defense and that no charges would be pressed.”

“Thank God.” Caitlin closes her eyes and relaxes back against the pillows.

I thread my fingers through hers.

“I’m very sorry about your brother,” Caitlin says, her voice whisper soft.

“I’m not.”

“But he was your brother, your twin. There must have been some kind of connection.”

“If there ever was, it disappeared a long time ago. I’ve always known he was a bastard. And I would have killed him myself for what he did to you if Sheila hadn’t beaten me to the punch.”

My heart starts racing again and words I’ve never spoken before swell in my throat.

“Caitlin, there’s something I want to say to you.”

“Mm hmm,” she murmurs, sounding as if she’s about to fall asleep.

I gently squeeze her fingers. “Can you stay awake long enough to hear me out, or should I table this conversation until later?”

“Now is good,” she says but doesn’t open her eyes.

Good, because who knows if I’ll have the courage later on?

I shift around so I can look directly at her beautiful face.

“Caitlin, I’m in love with you.”

“What?” Her lashes spring apart and her huge green eyes stare at me.

My heart falters as I search for the words that will convince her of my authenticity. If I can’t make her believe in me, if I can’t convince her that she’s my whole world … I don’t know what I’ll do. Now that I know she exists, the perfect woman for me, my missing half, the idea of facing the rest of my life without her is too damning to even imagine. I need her even more than I need to draw my next breath.

“I know I promised that this whole marriage and baby thing was a business arrangement, but I don’t want that any more. I want you to be mine, forever and always.”

“You do?”

I nod. A smile plays at the corners of her mouth.

“I love you too.”

I shake my head. “Caitlin, it’s okay. You don’t have to say it back to me. I don’t expect you to. I just … I’ve just been carrying this around with me for so long and after what happened today, I couldn’t let it go unsaid any longer.”

“Jeremy.” Grimacing, Caitlin sits up. She cups her free hand around my cheek and stares directly into my eyes. “I’ve been in love with you for so long, I don’t even remember a time when I wasn’t. I’ve ached to tell you, but was afraid of how you’d react. I didn’t want to lose you, just because I tried to push for something you weren’t ready to give.”

Sincerity glows in her eyes and a bright warmth spreads throughout my chest. Mindful of her injuries, I lean forward and brush a light kiss across her lips.

“Mmm,” she purrs. She slides her hand from my cheek to my neck, holding me in place as she deepens the kiss.

We’re so engrossed in the taste and feel of one another that we don’t hear the soft knock on the door.

“While it’s nice to see that at least one of my patients is doing her best to get back to her normal activities, I do advise cooling things down, just for a few days, to give your body a chance to heal.”

The unexpected discovery that we have a guest causes us to spring apart.

A tall, lean older doctor grins at us. He returns a chart to the foot of Caitlin’s bed.

“Mrs. Caldwell. While it doesn’t look like you’ve suffered any severe damage, I would like you to stay here overnight for observation.”

Caitlin jerks the hand I’m still holding free and covers her belly. Sensing her sudden panic, I place my hand over hers, offering as much comfort as she’ll accept. “Is it my baby? What’s wrong with it?”

The doctor smiles warmly. “Your babies are just fine, but you do have a mild concussion and I want to make sure it doesn’t get any worse.”

Relief surges through me. Concussions are bad, but with proper medical care, they’re something that Caitlin will recover from and fairly quickly at that. I’m so pleased that it takes a moment for everything the doctor said to sink in.

“Wait a minute,” I call out as he starts to leave the room. “Did you just say babies?”

He nods. “Yes. The tests we ran when your wife came in indicate that the two of you will be welcoming twins in a few months. Congratulations – and good luck. You’ll need it…”