Destined for Love (Love in Bloom: The Bradens, Book 2) Contemporary Romance

by Melissa Foster

  Rex couldn’t breathe. This wasn’t happening. The room began to spin, and his chest tightened. He released Jade’s hand and latched on to a wooden bookcase that was off to his right.

  “Oh goodness, are you okay?” the woman asked. She guided him to a velvet chair in the corner.

  “Rex? What’s wrong?” Jade asked.

  Rex put his elbows on his knees and covered his face, trying to gain control of his breathing. Why the hell were tears welling in his eyes? Fuck! He wished he were anywhere but with Jade. She couldn’t see him fall apart, and why the hell was he, anyway? What was wrong with him?

  “I’ll get him some water,” the woman said as she rushed off.

  Jade knelt before him. He felt her hands on his knees, heard the worry in her voice. “What is it? Do you need a doctor? What can I do?”

  One of her hands moved to his back, and she rubbed gently up and down, soothing the raging panic that had engulfed him. He breathed in deeply and out slowly until he was sure he could handle whatever it was that was going on.

  “Rex? Is it a panic attack?” she asked.

  He shook his head, desperately wanting to speak but not trusting his voice. He clenched his fists and jaw repeatedly, until finally, his chest loosened and his breathing returned to near normal. He lowered his hands as the woman handed him a glass of water.

  She locked her eyes with his. “This is how it happens,” she said. Then she shook her head. “I’m just really out of practice. Had I known, I would have been more tactful.”

  “What are you talking about? What happens?” Jade asked.

  Rex reached for her hand. He had a feeling that this time, he needed her strength.

  The woman touched Rex’s shoulder. “Dear, are you related to her?”

  He nodded. “Her third son. I have four brothers and a sister.” A lump lodged itself firmly in his throat, and the more he tried to swallow past it, the damper his eyes became.

  She looked at Jade. “Sometimes I just get a sense of something, and I’ve learned to just sort of go with it. But this type of connection hasn’t happened in so long that I didn’t expect it, and I surely didn’t completely connect it as a coherent thought until I saw him falter.”

  Jade rose to her feet. “I still don’t understand.”

  The woman took her hand. “What I’m about to give you is from his mother, dear. It was meant for the two of you.”

  “But how?” Jade looked at Rex.

  He pressed his thumb and forefinger against his eyes, wiping the tears from them. He blinked away the dampness. “I felt it. When we were walking outside, I knew. Something came over me, and there was no doubt in my mind what it was. Jade.” He rose to his feet. “Remember when I told you that you were the woman I never knew I was looking for?” Before she could answer, he said, “It was true. When we were walking toward the store, I knew without a doubt that you were the one woman for me. I can’t imagine going through each day without you.” He took her hand in his, trying to bite back the rush of emotion. It was too soon to say the three words that he felt so strongly, but he looked into her eyes and he knew no amount of time would ever be enough. “I’m falling in love with you, Jade.”

  The woman smiled, and he watched Jade swallow…hard.

  “It doesn’t make sense. It’s been only a few days, and it’s crazy, especially given what’s going on with our families. But I know it to be true, and I have no idea how to explain how I know, because it’s as crazy as what just happened here.”

  Jade hadn’t said a word, and he knew he’d blindsided her, but he wasn’t going to lie to her, and not telling her how he truly felt was a lie. He had to trust his instincts.

  Rex lifted his damp eyes to hers. “This is fast and really impetuous.”

  Jade laid her hand on his wrist, narrowing her eyes, looking at him so seriously that for a second he thought he might have acted too soon. In the next breath, she said, “And so right.”

  All the best moments of Rex’s life crashed together in that moment, and they fell away, as if they’d never needed to exist, because that very second, when Jade became his, was the only best moment he would ever need.

  He scooped her into his arms and kissed her with every bit of love he’d never felt before. Jade came away flushed and clung to him like she never wanted to let go.

  He turned to the woman and held out his hand. “May I?”

  She handed him the box, and touched his hand. “Adriana was a very special person.”

  “Thank you.” He opened the box with shaking hands. Inside, there was a charm and two silver chains. He picked up the little charm and held it in his palm. The silver sparkled beneath the fluorescent lights.

  “Do you know what that is?” the woman asked.

  “It looks like two bodies intertwined,” Jade said.

  “It’s the dance of two lovers,” the woman and Rex said in unison.

  She continued. “Everything in their lives was meant to keep them apart, and against all odds, they found their way to each other. When they did, they danced. The myth says that after dancing”—she took the charm from Rex’s hand—“their souls became one, and from that moment on, they lived within each other, no matter if they were together or apart.” She drew the charm apart and looped one silver chain through the charm of the naked woman and one through the charm of the man.

  “That’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever heard,” Jade said, just above a whisper.

  Rex wrapped the chain with the man around Jade’s neck and hooked it beneath her hair. Then Jade did the same for him. They stood that way for a long time, their eyes saying all the things that their voices were just not up to producing: I love you. I’ve always loved you. I am yours.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  THEY WERE SILENT on the drive back toward Jade’s car. A quiet contentment filled the space between them. Rex held her hand in his, and her other hand had held the charm against her chest since they’d left the store. Even if Jade hadn’t believed that there was more to this world than met the eye, what just happened would have made her a believer. She waited for Rex to say something, not wanting to rush him. When they reached her car, he parked and turned toward her.

  “I’m not ready to leave you yet,” he said. “I swore I was going to behave on our first date, but, Jade, I need to be close to you. I want to be close to you. We don’t have to do anything at all, but I want to hold you beside me.”

  Without any thought, she said, “I want that, too.” Everything between them moved so quickly, but at the same time, it didn’t scare her. It felt right; it felt real.

  “You sure?” he asked.

  “I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life.”

  He backed out and sped back to Allure, then pulled into the parking lot of the Allure Marriott. Every step toward the entrance made her heart beat faster. She had a fleeting thought about how she could manage to stay out all night without her father worrying. God, I really have to move out of their house. Soon.

  “Your best suite, please?” Rex pulled out his wallet at the front desk.

  “Sir? That would be our presidential suite, at the rate of twelve hundred and forty dollars a night,” the slim young man with the pasty skin said in a disbelieving tone, one that clearly indicated that he expected Rex to change his mind.

  “Perfect,” Rex said.

  “Twelve hundred and forty dollars a night? Rex, we don’t need that.” Jesus, what is he doing?

  He touched her cheek, and she knew this was something he wanted to do, not to prove anything to her, but because he wanted to do it as a gift to them.

  They came off the elevators on the top floor. At the end of the hall, a set of white double doors awaited them, complete with fresh roses in vases on either side.

  “This is too much,” Jade said.

  “Nothing is too much.” He ran the card through the electronic reader and the door clicked open.

  Jade took a step toward the room, and in one swift move
Rex swept her off her feet with one arm behind her knees and the other behind her neck. When she began to protest, he kissed her lips.

  “Let me,” he said with a teasing smile.

  He carried her over the threshold, and she gasped at the sheer size of the room. The back wall was a sheet of glass, with views of Allure set against the backdrop of the mountains. Jade felt like she was floating above the beautiful little town.

  Rex kissed her more deeply, then set her on her feet.

  “Have you been here before?” she asked, then instantly wished she hadn’t. “No, please, don’t tell me. I want to believe this is just ours.”

  “It is just ours.” He brushed her hair from her shoulders. “I’ve never taken another woman to a hotel. I’ve never ridden a roller coaster. I’ve never taken a bath with anyone else, and I’ve never woken up beside a woman without wanting to run. I look forward to so many firsts with you. Just you.”

  She swallowed the emotions that welled inside of her. “What about our families?” she asked.

  “I’m not thinking past right here and now. I’ll have you home before morning, and we’ll still have to figure things out, but I want this. I want you. Even if it’s only for a few hours. I want to remain in our private little world.”

  “Me too,” was all she could manage. She wanted all those things just as badly, but she kept waiting for the other shoe to drop.

  REX OPENED A bottle of wine that the front desk had sent up and turned down the lights. Seeing Jade on the oversized sofa, with her bare feet tucked beneath her, he’d never felt so much like he was in the exact right place at exactly the right time. There was a large-screen television mounted on the wall, and he laughed to himself. Talking with Jade was all he wanted. Beside the television was another set of double doors, which he assumed led to the bedroom.

  He handed Jade a glass of wine and sat beside her. “I meant what I said. I don’t need to fool around. I just want to spend time with you, and not in a car or a restaurant or a store. I wanted to relax with you beside me.”

  “This is wonderful,” she said, but her voice was strained.

  “What is it? Too much too fast?”

  She smiled. “No. I need to let my parents know I’ll be even later or they’ll worry.”

  Her loyalty to her family struck a chord with him and made him love her even more. “Sure. Call them.”

  She smirked. “And tell them what? Um, hi, Dad. I’m at a hotel with Rex Braden, and I’ll be back in the morning?”

  He touched her leg, and his body instantly heated up. “Not exactly that. Where does he think you are tonight?”

  “Out with Riley, in Preston visiting girlfriends.” Her eyes lit up. “I’m so stupid.” She called her father. “Hi, Dad. I’m going to stay over at Joanne’s tonight. We’re having too good of a time to break it up just yet. Okay. Yes, sure. Love you, too.”

  She came back around the couch and sat down. “That was way too easy. I feel so much better.” She snuggled in beneath his arm. “It’s crazy to think I’m a grown woman and I need to check in with my father.”

  “He loves you, Jade, and that’s a good thing.” He ran his hand through her hair, thinking about what his father had said to him. “You know, if you were Savannah, you’d have more trouble dealing with me, Treat, or Dane than our own father. He’s protective, but we’re the ones who always kept our eyes on her.” He had an overwhelming urge to share with Jade—his life, his thoughts, his touch, his beliefs.

  “I remember. You beat up Steve one time because of something he said about her.”

  “Yeah, and I’d do it again now if someone bothered her. Family knows no boundaries.” I’m breaking everything I believe in with Jade, but she feels like family to me—or like she should be family.

  “I love that about you. My father says that same thing—family knows no boundaries.”

  “I thought my father made that up,” Rex admitted.

  “They were so close when they were younger. It probably came from one of their fathers. I know my father loves me, but he can have a heavy hand when it comes to his kids, and I guess I’ve been staying there because it’s easy and safe.”

  “Safe from what?” he asked.

  When she didn’t answer, he moved a little closer to her.

  “Safe from what?” he asked again.

  She dropped her eyes. “Don’t you know why I came back home?”

  “I heard rumors, something about a breakup, but that was the extent of it.” Now he wondered what would possibly have scared his strong, capable girlfriend. Girlfriend. God, that feels good.

  “That’s true. I did break up with my…the guy I was dating.”

  “And?” The muscles in his neck tensed.

  “He turned out to be a bit of a stalker. He went nutty after we broke up, and he wouldn’t stop calling and coming by my house. It just got to be too much. She shrugged. “So, I packed up and came home, where it was safe. He’d never follow me out of Oklahoma. He’s not that brave.”

  Rex pulled her close again. “You must have been frightened.”

  “I wasn’t at first, because I just thought he wasn’t over me, you know. But then he’d show up at all hours, and when I went out, he’d be there, in a dark corner of the restaurant, waiting in the parking lot. It was pretty creepy.”

  His mind was running down all sorts of protective paths.

  “I know that look. Listen, Superman.” She splayed her hand on his chest. “You’ve already saved me once from the guy in the parking lot. There won’t be a reason to save me again. Let’s talk about something else. Tell me about your mom.”

  He touched the charm beneath his shirt. “My father says he still talks to her. Actually, he even argues with her. I’m not so sure he isn’t really talking to her.”

  “He could be,” she said. "I believe that those that are really, truly loved never leave us completely.”

  He kissed her head, chalking her belief up as just another thing to love about her. “You’re just like my mom. My father told me today that she was worried about me. And then he said something to me that worried me a little.”

  “Dads always do that.”

  “He told me to be careful where I tread. I had the feeling he knew about us, but for the life of me, I can’t figure out how he could.” He took off his boots and set them beside the couch, then removed his belt and loosened his shirt.

  “Striptease?” Jade asked with a flirty smile.

  “Comfort,” he answered, also with a flirty smile. He sat beside her. “You’ve already stripped me bare and made me obey your commands.” Let me. Just thinking about it gave him chills.

  “You call that a command? Where have you been all my life?”

  “Hiding from you, so I wouldn’t have to live inside a cold shower.”

  “Oh, let me tell you something, Mr. Braden.” She scooted up on her knees, running her fingers beneath the open buttons of his shirt, and touched his chest. “There are so many things I’ve wanted to do, but I’ve never trusted any man enough to do them.”

  Jesus. He shifted, trying to alleviate the pressure beneath his zipper. She planted soft kisses on his chest.

  “Don’t you have anything you’ve been dying to do with a woman?”

  Hell yes. He could think of a million things. He told her what he felt was the most pressing. “Yes, wake up with you still in my arms.”

  “That’s a given,” she said.

  He’d tried all night to keep himself from fulfilling his carnal urges, and now, smelling her, feeling her tender lips on his skin, he knew he wasn’t going to last. He remembered the taste of her on his fingers in his truck, and he’d wanted to taste the rest of her ever since. He knew if they started, he wasn’t going to be able to stop until he’d tasted every bit of her, touched her, probed her, and God knew what else. His appetite for Jade was insatiable.

  “Anything?” she asked again, unbuttoning his jeans.

  “I’m really trying to restrain myself her
e, to make sure you know that I love you for more than sex, and you are making it immensely difficult.” He felt his biceps twitch as she unzipped his pants. “Jesus, Jade.”

  She unbuttoned the rest of his shirt and ran her tongue down his belly, then pulled down his boxers and licked the tender tip of his arousal. He groaned, and she teased him, putting just the tip in her mouth and then drawing it out again. She came back up his body and licked his lower lip.

  “Is this your version of getting to know each other?” he asked.

  “I can’t help it if you drive me crazy. I want to talk with you, but I can’t with all these raging hormones between us.” She kissed his collarbone. “Anything?” she repeated.

  In one swift move, he took her head in his hand and kissed her hard, until their teeth knocked and his tongue reached the back of her throat. When she moaned into his mouth, he slid from the couch and stripped off his jeans. She began taking off her dress, and he shook his head.

  “Don’t.” The idea of taking her while she was still dressed so prettily made his blood simmer.

  Fire shone in her eyes. She stood on the couch and reached for him. He couldn’t control his need for another second. She pushed him to the edge—talking could wait. He picked her up with one arm and ripped her thong from her body with the other. He kissed her again, then backed her up against the wall.

  “Take me,” she said. “Yes, take me,” she begged.

  He put his hand beneath her dress, and her wetness was too big a temptation to turn away. He lifted her easily, and she wrapped her legs around his neck and he feasted on her. God, she was sweet. He probed her with his tongue as she dug her nails into his scalp, pulling him deeper. He eased his touch, licking her in long, slow strokes. His arms began to tremble, and he lowered her down the wall until her legs wrapped around his waist, and he thrust into her, deep and hard as she clawed his shoulders. He lowered his mouth to hers, still wet with the taste of her, expecting her to push him away. A new surge of need pushed through him as she sucked his tongue and drew every ounce of her own sweetness from his mouth. Jesus, she was every man’s dream come true. He couldn’t get enough of her against the wall. He had to have more, to go deeper. Still entwined, he carried her to the bedroom and stood above the bed.