Legal Briefs (Lawyers in Love) (33 page)

I sat there, still in shock, when Adam pulled me into his arms, gently pushed a strand of hair behind my ear and looked deeply into my eyes.

“Let’s go work for Braden and Gabrielle,” he said. That jolted me out of my reverie.

“But Jacob said you would probably be offered a job with the U.S. Attorney’s Office. That’s so prestigious. You would rather work for a legal aid clinic?”

“If it meant I could work with my friends, and with you. I think that would be a hell of a lot more fun than working with dickhead there, and I would rather enjoy my job than my prestige.”

“Okay,” I said, with a huge grin. “Let’s do it. I think I like being a lawyer and we make a good team.” At least I would get to see him every day at work. He grinned back, looking very happy with my answer.

“So, ready to endure Thanksgiving dinner at the Roth residence?”

“I’m thrilled about it. This will sound weird, but when we were kids I always kind of wanted to be part of your family, even with you in it.”

“You wanted to be a Roth?”

“I did, yeah,” I admitted sheepishly. He paused and I saw him swallow and take a deep breath. He looked like little Josh, trying to work up the courage to ask me about the bath.

“Do you still want to be a Roth? Because there’s a way you could be,” he said, looking at me intently. My breath caught again. He couldn’t mean … Oh my God. My heart started pounding so hard I was sure I would break a rib. I started to tremble, afraid to believe what I thought I was hearing.

“What do you mean?” I asked, my voice quavering. My mouth had gone dry.

“I mean, why don’t we give my parents something to be really thankful for? Hang on,” he said, getting up and heading toward the bedroom.

“Hang on?” I said, breathlessly. “Wait! Where are you going?” Where was he going?!

He came back a second later, holding something in his hand. He walked over to where I sat paralyzed on the sofa and then he kneeled down in front of me. Then it was like everything moved in slow motion as he took my hand and looked at me like nobody had ever looked at me before. I was shaking so hard and trying to remember everything about that moment because I knew I would be replaying it in my memory for the rest of my life.

“Lily, will you marry me?” he asked, sounding, well scared, frankly. As I looked at him, so tense and worried looking, I realized he wasn’t sure I would accept. But then, I would have the rest of our lives to reassure him.

“Yes,” I said, swallowing hard, “I will, but no more licking my Fruit Roll-Ups.” He let out a huge breath and then smiled a wonderful smile and slid a diamond ring on my shaking hand. It fit, just like us.

“Okay, but no more glitter in my hair,” he answered, sounding very relieved, and happy.

“When did you buy this?” I asked, still reeling.

“The night after you said you would go on a date with me.”

“Oh really? Sure of yourself, aren’t you, Roth?” I teased.

“I just knew that if I finally got to go out with you, Adler, I would never want to let you go. I figured I would have to come up with something and I might as well be prepared.”

“I’m glad we’re both ready now, Adam. It was worth waiting for,” I said, my eyes filling up again. I had apparently become both a cuddler and crier.

He moved to sit beside me, pulled me into his arms, where I belonged, and kissed me deeply. And we kissed for a very long time. In fact, we’re still kissing even now.

Thank you to my wonderful family, my hard-working husband, my beautiful children and my patient mom. I love you all very much. Thank you to all of my beta readers for your helpful input and to the lovely ladies who run my book page, Vanessa Foxford, Stacey Bridges Schleisman, Mayas Sanders, and Tarny Rutheford. Thank you to Elena Viaggio for all of your help and attempts to make sure that everyone in the world knows about my books and to the fabulous Smut Muffins for your support. Thanks Julie Roberts for jumping in at the eleventh hour. Finally, thank you each and every amazing person who has taken the time to sit down and read my books, especially those who have been kind enough to write and tell me you enjoyed them. I couldn’t do it without you!

Once upon a time … N.M. Silber was a criminal defense attorney who got up each morning, donned her power suit and sensible pumps, downed a gallon of coffee and set out to ‘fight the good fight’ while trying to not go insane. Having a dark sense of humor and a sarcastic wit helped — a lot.

Using her experiences in the criminal court system as a starting place, N.M. Silber developed the engaging cast of characters and the humorous story lines of her sexy Romantic Comedies. Her previous two books have been bestsellers on Amazon and Barnes & Noble’s websites, and Ms. Silber was voted one of the Amazon Reader’s Choice Best New Novelists for 2013. She continues to enjoy writing about the red hot lovin’ and crazy antics of the gang from Philly in the Lawyers in Love series.