Brazen (B-Squad 1)

Bianca

Two Weeks Later

Ft. Worth…

Bianca couldn’t hide her smirk. Taz was about to lose, and lose big, because he thought he could bullshit his way into a win.

The gameboard lay between them on the bed and victory in this round of strip Scrabble was within reach. Taz was already down to just his jeans while she still had on her skirt, T-shirt, bra and panties. She loved having him naked, but smoking him in Scrabble in the final game of the strip Scrabble tournament took precedence. That’s what happened when two competitive people spent fourteen days following doctors’ orders and laying off any gym work. They’d finally been cleared to put on the gloves tomorrow, which meant this game was all about permanent bragging rights—and they were going to be hers.

“There is no way that qat is a word. Take that Q off the triple-word square and get ready to go down because I have the perfect word to go there.”

“Get ready to eat some crow.” He held out an extra-thick paperback dictionary. “Look for yourself.”

She rolled her eyes and whipped out her phone. “It’s okay, I have the Miriam-Webster app on my phone.”

He snatched the phone away and replaced it with the dictionary. “Look it up.”

“You are so bossy.” She cracked the book only enough to see the letters on the top right corner. “Ah ha! Q.” She opened the dictionary fully. “If by some chance it is in here, I’m still going to want Miriam-Webster confirma—”

The rest of the word died on her tongue.

A square had been cut several inches deep into the middle of the pages and a small blue box with a white bow had been placed inside.

Her pulse went into overdrive and she forgot how to breathe. She glanced up at Taz and her heart hiccupped. With the exception of his new buzz cut, he looked exactly like the man who’d strutted into Bisu Manor and chan

ged her world, but his totally confident fighter vibe was a skinny tread of nervousness.

She pulled the ribbon and took off the lid, inside was a black-velvet ring box. “Taz—”

He shoved the Scrabble board and pieces off to the floor and closed the distance between them. “Open it.”

She did, revealing a diamond ring almost as big as the box itself. Her entire body felt as if it was fluttering. “Oh my God.”

He took out the ring and slid it onto her left ring finger. “I only want to hear one thing from you.”

Looking up from the ginormous ring, she managed to fight back the tears of joy welling up. “Yes.”

“Damn.” He gave her that cocky grin she loved. “I was hoping you’d say you conceded the Scrabble tournament.”

She gave him a playful shove, pushing him onto his back on the bed and positioned herself over him. “Never.”

“Then I’ll take yes.”

And so would she. God knew she’d fought against it for so long because she’d been afraid, but not anymore. Life with Taz may not always be easy, it certainly wouldn’t always be perfect, but it would be forever and it started now.

Well, almost now. She needed something first.

“You have to ask it. I want the words.”

The teasing glimmer vanished from his mossy-green eyes and he looked at her with such love that she caught her breath.

“Bianca Sutherland, will you marry me?”

There was only one answer in her heart. “Yes.”

Taz

Taz cupped the back of her head as she leaned over him on the bed and pulled her down for a kiss. Not just any brush of the lips, but one that would show Bianca just how much he loved her. As stupid as it sounded, this was the happily ever after neither of them ever expected.