Gansett Island Boxed Set, Books 1-16

by Force, Marie

  “That’s the McCarthys’ Marina over there,” Jared said, pointing to the right side of the pond. “They’re one of the more well-known families on the island. David was once engaged to their daughter.” Jared went on to tell her the story of how David had recently saved the lives of his ex-fiancée and her newborn son.

  “Wow. He must’ve been freaking out the whole time.”

  “He said he’s never been so scared in his entire life—or more determined to do what he’d been trained to do.”

  “She must be very thankful. I can’t imagine owing my life or my child’s life to my ex.”

  Jared raised a brow. “Do you have an ex who’s a doctor?”

  “Wouldn’t you like to know.”

  “Yes, I think I would.”

  She tossed her napkin at him, and while she’d dodged the question, watching the playfulness return between them only added to the hopeful feeling he’d been carrying around all day.

  After lunch, he took her into town, where they checked out every one of the shops that lined the waterfront. The only thing she bought was a black bikini off one of the sale racks so she could swim in his pool. When she admired a bracelet made of silver scallop shells, he’d doubled back to get it for her while she continued on to a store full of crazy hats.

  Back in the car, he reached for her hand and slid the bracelet onto her arm. When it was in place, he brought her hand to his lips and lingered there, breathing in the flowery scent of her lotion.

  “Thank you,” she whispered, looking at him with liquid brown eyes full of all the same love and longing he felt for her.

  He could no longer resist the need to lean into her, to kiss her with weeks’ worth of pent-up desire.

  She returned the kiss with an equal amount of ardor, oblivious to their location parked along a well-traveled street.

  “God, Lizzie…” He rested his forehead against hers and focused on drawing air to his oxygen-starved lungs. “I want you so badly. You can’t possibly know how badly.”

  “I want you just as much, but we haven’t resolved anything. And what you said last night—”

  “I don’t care. I just want you.”

  She studied him for a long moment, seeming to memorize every detail. “Let’s go home.”

  In the year they’d spent together, Elisabeth had made love with Jared hundreds of times. Maybe even a thousand or more. She’d done things with him that she’d never done with anyone else. However, as she stood before the mirror in her bathroom, wearing the silk gown she’d brought with this possibility in mind, it felt like the very first time all over again.

  At this point, she was stalling, letting the nerves take over when she knew she had nothing to be nervous about. This was Jared, and he loved her. No matter what differences they might’ve had or might continue to have, she’d never once doubted his love for her.

  She emerged from the bathroom to find him sitting on her bed, wearing only the olive-green cargo shorts he’d had on earlier.

  As she took in the view of his muscular chest, she licked her lips, aching for a taste of him.

  He stood and held out his hand to her, a twitching muscle in his cheek the only indication she could see that he might be nervous or undone by what they were about to do. “Come with me,” he said gruffly.

  Elisabeth took his hand and followed him through the living room to a huge master suite surrounded by full-length glass walls that overlooked the water. Sheer white curtains billowed in the late afternoon breeze. A king-size bed covered by a beige duvet took up one side of the room and a comfortable-looking sitting area occupied the other half. The lamps were made of shells, and Elisabeth leaned in for a closer look at one of them. “This is lovely,” she said sincerely. “Your friend Sydney has wonderful taste.”

  “I’m glad you like it. I told her to keep it simple because I know that’s what you prefer.”

  “I thought you’d had it for three years.”

  “I have, but I didn’t worry about decorating it until I had someone I wanted to bring here. Sydney spent all last winter on this project. I was planning to bring you here this summer.”

  “You thought of me when you were decorating it,” she said softly.

  “I think of you all the time.”

  She slid her hands up and over his chest until they landed on his shoulders.

  His arms encircled her waist, drawing her into his embrace. “You look beautiful.”

  “So do you.”

  “I’ve got nothing on you.”

  “How many times have we had this fight?” she asked with a smile.

  “Not nearly often enough for my liking. I think we need to have it at least a million more times before we declare a winner.”

  “At least.” Before him, Elisabeth had never made love during the day. Her limited encounters had occurred in the dark, most of them with men who were out to please themselves first and foremost. Since she’d been with Jared, her horizons had been broadened in every possible way, but again, as he walked her backward toward the bed, everything between them was new again.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked, perceptive as always.

  “For the first time in weeks, not a thing is wrong.”

  “Then why are you doing that thing you do with your lips when something is on your mind?”

  “I’m nervous.”

  “No, Lizzie,” he whispered, running his hands up and down her arms. “Don’t be.”

  “I feel like my whole life is on the line, and I’m going to do something to mess it up again.”

  “The only thing you could do to mess it up is shake your head.”

  The comment was so unexpected that Elisabeth couldn’t contain the bubbling laughter that escaped from her lips. “So we’re laughing about that now?”

  “I didn’t mean that to be funny,” he said, his lips quivering with amusement. “But I guess it is. As long as you don’t do it.”

  “I’ll never do that again. Ever.”

  “Don’t be nervous. It’s just me, and I love you. I’ll always love you.”

  She didn’t want to cry. She’d cried enough over the last few weeks that it was a wonder she had any tears left. But hearing him say he’d always love her broke what remained of her composure.

  Jared kissed the tears off her cheeks. “Don’t cry, honey. You know I can’t handle it.” He continued to kiss her face, her jaw and then down her neck, making her shiver. “There’re so many better things we can do besides cry.” His lips came down on hers and stayed there as he lowered them to the bed.

  Elisabeth loved the heavy weight of him on top of her. He used to worry about crushing her because he was so much bigger than she was, but she’d always loved the feel of his muscular body pressing tight against hers. Now she ran her hands up and down his back as her tongue tangled with his and his hand cupped her breast, rubbing his thumb over her nipple.

  The sensations crashed through her, one after the other, each happening before she could process the one before. Filled with need for him, she worked her fingers into the back of his shorts, drawing a gasp from him.

  “I don’t want to wait, Jared.”

  With his forehead propped against hers, he seemed to be gathering himself and fighting his own emotions. And then he was gone, but only to help her remove the nightgown that covered her. He’d taught her to be comfortable with him, to be free with her body and to never be self-conscious in front of him.

  But that was then, and this was now. She felt exposed and on display as his gaze took a slow, perusing journey from the top of her head to the soles of her feet while he unbuttoned and unzipped his shorts. As it always had, the sight of his naked body made her feel greedy with desire. If his rigid erection was any indication, he felt the same way. He came onto the bed, one knee bent, his hands on her knees as he eased her legs apart.

  Elisabeth recognized the heat in his eyes as he zeroed in on the heart of her, bending to press soft kisses to her inner thigh.

  She squ
irmed under him, wanting to move him along, but she knew from experience that he wouldn’t be rushed. As usual, he took his time until she was halfway out of her mind waiting for him to focus on the place that burned for him. Right when she thought she’d have to beg him, he finally gave her his tongue. God, he is good at this.

  She’d spent an inordinate amount of time while they were apart reliving moments just like this one, when he used everything in his arsenal to shatter her defenses.

  “God, baby,” he whispered. “I’ve missed this. I’ve missed you.”

  Elisabeth fisted his hair, which she’d never been able to do before when his hair was so short, and arched into the strokes of his tongue. “Jared… Please. I need you.”

  “I’m here, honey. I’m right here.” He pushed two fingers into her as he focused on her clit, sucking until she came with a scream, the pleasure electrifying her entire body.

  He stayed with her through the orgasm that seemed to go on forever, withdrawing only when she flopped onto the mattress, boneless and depleted from the powerful release.

  She’d barely begun to recover when he was above her, arranging her legs around his hips.

  “Are we still good to go ungloved?” he asked hesitantly.

  They’d waited a long time before deciding to be tested so they could abandon the condoms. “Yes.” She was on long-term birth control and had been for a while.

  “There’s been no one else.”

  “I know,” she said but was nonetheless happy to hear him confirm it.

  Moving slowly, he entered her, his gaze pinned to hers, which kept her from looking away even when the emotions approached overload level. “Lizzie… Feels so good.”

  “Mmm.” She raised her hips, looking for more.

  “All the time we were apart, the only thing I could think about was how I’d bear to live the whole rest of my life without ever touching you again.” His hand curled around her breast as his lips surrounded her nipple.

  The combination of his words, the tight press of his cock pushing into her and the heat of his mouth on her nipple brought her right back to the precipice of release.

  “Not yet, baby,” he whispered gruffly. He’d taught her how to delay her release to ramp up the pleasure for both of them. Curling an arm around her left leg, he picked up the pace, making delayed pleasure an even greater challenge.

  Elisabeth clenched her teeth against the need to give in to the release he was building with every thrust of his hips. She could tell he was close by the way his eyes drifted closed, his lips parted and his breathing deepened, all signs she’d come to recognize during their time together.

  “Lizzie,” he said, gasping, “I love you so much. I need you.”

  She wrapped her arms around him, holding on tight as he took them both to the edge and then pushed her over as he came with a growl against her ear that gave her goose bumps. “I love you, too.”

  Chapter 7

  Still inside her, still throbbing with aftershocks, Jared raised his head and caught her gaze. She couldn’t believe the myriad emotions she saw in his expressive eyes. Mostly she saw the love.

  “Lizzie… Marry me. Live here with me. Run The Chesterfield or do something else. Whatever you want. I’d give you anything, if only—”

  Blinking back tears, she kissed him, lingering over the unmistakable taste of him. “Yes. Yes. Yes.” She kissed him again. “Any other questions?”

  He shook his head, and made her laugh through her tears.

  “In this case, head shaking is allowed,” she said.

  “You’re really going to marry me?”

  “I’m really going to marry you.”

  “What about the money?”

  “What about it?”

  “I still have it. You still don’t want it.”

  “If it means I get to have you, I’ll learn to live with it.”

  “Will you let me pay off your student loans?”

  “Absolutely not!”

  “How about when you’re my wife? I won’t want your lousy debt weighing me down.”

  Elisabeth smiled at the teasing glint in his eyes. “Too bad. You get me, you get my lousy debt, and I’ll pay it off myself. Eventually.”

  “Are you always going to be this stubborn?”

  “Yep.”

  He released a deep, dramatic sigh. “I guess I’ll learn to live with it.”

  His play on words made her smile.

  “What about the shelter, babe? I wouldn’t want you to think I don’t realize how important your work is to you and the many people you help.”

  “I love that job and the people and knowing what I do makes a real difference.”

  “You don’t have to leave the job if you don’t want to, Lizzie. We can live in the city. I’m sure I’d find plenty to do there.”

  Elisabeth caressed his face as she realized the sacrifices he was willing to make so she’d be happy. “There’s a young woman who started working there about six months ago.”

  “Aimee?” He also paid attention, which she’d appreciated long before she drove him away with the shake of her head.

  “Yes, that’s who I mean. She’s terrific. I think she’d do an amazing job as the director—maybe even a more amazing job than I can do after so many years. It takes a toll after a while, you know? No matter how many people you help, there’re always more. It’s a never-ending parade of people in desperate need.”

  “You opened my eyes to things I never paid any attention to before I knew you. That’s why I’d like to start a foundation, so you can continue to make a difference, no matter where we end up.”

  “I think,” she said tentatively, “I’d like to end up here, with you and your new friends and your new business and this beautiful house. And I’d like to be part of your new foundation.”

  He stared down at her, seeming to drink her in with his eyes. “You’re going to wake me up any second and tell me I’ve dreamed all this, right?”

  She started to shake her head but stopped herself, which made him laugh. “No. You’re not dreaming. I’m here, and I want what you want.”

  “Hold that thought.” He got out of bed and walked across the room.

  Elisabeth propped herself up on one hand to take full advantage of the view of his very fine ass flexing as he moved to the dresser. Then he turned around, and the view got even better. She licked her lips, filled with delight that she had the whole rest of her life to look at him any time she wanted to.

  “What’re you looking at?” he asked with a playful grin as he got back in bed.

  “My very sexy fiancé.”

  His face went totally blank, leading her to wonder what he was thinking. “Hearing you call me that… I just… It’s amazing and humbling. We never got to the ring portion of the program last time.” He reached for her left hand and slid a square-cut diamond ring onto her finger and then kissed the back of her hand. “Most people would say I have everything any man could ever want—more money than I can spend in a lifetime, three beautiful homes, cars that make me happy when I get to drive them. I can go anywhere I want, do anything I want, and I never again have to worry about money. But know this, Elisabeth with an S… None of that means a goddamned thing to me if I don’t have you. You are everything. The rest is just stuff.”

  Elisabeth’s heart pounded erratically as his words registered. “The ring is beautiful.” And it was… On either side of the stunning center stone were smaller diamonds in a platinum setting.

  “I’m glad you like it. I showed restraint.”

  “Which I appreciate,” she said with a smile. “The ring is gorgeous, but your words… They’re the most beautiful words I’ve ever heard, and they mean more to me than anything else you could give me.” She leaned over to kiss him, lingering when he responded with unexpected ardor. “And you’re everything to me, too. I realized that when I watched you walk away from me that night, knowing I’d hurt you when that’s the last thing I’d ever want to do. I hope you know t
hat.”

  “I do now.” He wrapped his arms around her and coaxed her into another kiss that made her head spin. “You know, it’s possible what happened on that rooftop will turn out to be the best thing that could’ve happened.”

  “How’s that?”

  “It gave us both the time and perspective to understand what we really want.”

  “You already knew what you really wanted. I was the one who messed things up.”

  “It wasn’t just you, Lizzie. I knew you were skittish about the money and the lifestyle, so dazzling you with the rooftop and the tuxedo and the Bentley and the out-of-the-blue proposal was the wrong approach. I can see that now. I should’ve seen it then. Less is always more with my girl.”

  “You didn’t do anything wrong. Any woman would’ve been thrilled with such a romantic proposal.”

  “Any woman except the one who matters most to me. She’s one of a kind, unlike any other.”

  Smiling at him, Elisabeth propped herself up on her hands and leaned over to pepper his chest with kisses and little nibbles that she knew drove him wild. Pleased by his deep breaths and quiet moans, she continued down, giving his abdomen the same attention, running her tongue over the cuts that outlined muscles that quivered in response.

  She loved the way he responded to her, how he made her feel that anything and everything she did to him was exactly what he wanted. Because he was a guy, there was one thing he loved above all others, and it was the one thing Elisabeth had never done for anyone until she fell madly in love with him.

  As she kissed her way down the front of him, she remembered the long-ago night when she’d asked him to show her how he liked it. The priceless expression on his face had been a memory she’d returned to over and over again during their weeks apart.

  She wrapped her hand around the thick base of his cock and squeezed, drawing a gasp from him that became a moan when she took him into her mouth. He’d taught her how to take him into her throat, how to suck on the sensitive head and how to use her tongue to bring maximum pleasure. After weeks of wondering if she’d ever get to see him again, let alone touch him so intimately, she wanted to show him how much she loved him.