Love of a Lifetime: A Sweet Contemporary Romance (Finding Love Book 3)

by Delaney Cameron

  As Landris watched the door close behind her, a tiny glimmer of hope lit inside him. For the first time, Faith hadn’t merely let him kiss her; she’d kissed him back. He knew how much she loved Ian and had no intention of trying to replace him. All Landris wanted was to earn a place in her heart.

  Chapter Ten

  Faith balanced the tray of food on one hand and knocked on the bedroom door with the other.

  “Come back later,” a sleepy voice answered.

  “That’s the wrong answer,” she called out before opening the door and walking over to the bed. “Your breakfast awaits and so does the boat.”

  She placed the tray of food on the nightstand. Landris rolled over and opened one eye, his hair adorably tousled and the tops of his broad shoulders just visible under the sheet.

  “I don’t want to get up. You go without me.”

  “I’m not leaving this room without you.”

  A furtive smile appeared and the other eye opened. “Really? This could get interesting.” He sat up, his eyes straying to the tray. “French toast! That might be worth waking up for. There’s only one plate here. Where’s yours?”

  The smile on her lips froze into place at the sight of his ripped torso and sculpted arms. He certainly hadn’t let himself go since retiring. A low laugh reached her ears, bringing with it the realization that Landris knew exactly what had distracted her.

  “I, um, already ate. I’ve been up for a while.”

  He drew her down to sit on the bed. “I knew I should have slept on the loveseat.”

  Her inability to sleep had nothing to do with the bed and everything to do with the man in front of her. “It wasn’t that. I’m an early riser.”

  “Anyone would be an early riser after sleeping on that thing out there. There’s a bar sticking up in the middle.” He began to rub her back. Through the thinness of her robe, it felt as if he was touching her skin.

  “It’s only for two more nights. I’ll take a shower while you eat.”

  Before she could move away, he leaned forward and kissed her cheek. “Thanks for breakfast.”

  His gesture brought to mind the sweetly, passionate kisses they’d exchanged last night. For someone who wasn’t interested in love, Landris knew how to inspire it in others. There was an inherent gentleness and thoughtfulness in his manner that manifested itself in a hundred different ways. It could be seen in his eyes, heard in his voice and felt in everything he did. Nothing was too much trouble for those he cared about.

  “You’re welcome,” she said as she stood up and walked over to her luggage. “What should I wear to go out on a boat?”

  “Shorts and a t-shirt. You’ll need tennis shoes for walking around on a wet deck and your windbreaker. Don’t forget sunscreen.”

  An hour later, Faith was walking beside Landris along a wood planked boardwalk, her hand held tightly in his. This unwanted honeymoon that she’d been dreading was doing what she’d barely allowed herself to dream about: it was bringing her and Landris closer together. What she didn’t know was if this new and exciting intimacy between them would last once they returned to St. Marys.

  “This is the one.”

  His voice, close to her ear, ended these thoughts. They were standing in front of a cabin cruiser whose size and sleek lines were a testament to her expensive price tag.

  “It’s so big!” she remarked as he helped her navigate the space between the pier and the boat. “I was picturing something smaller.”

  He laughed as made his way to the helm. “It needs to be big to handle the ocean. Have a seat while I get things ready.”

  Once he guided the boat through the narrow waterway leading from the marina to the ocean, Landris gradually increased speed. Faith’s eyes darted from the vast stretch of blue ahead to the white spray of water behind. She had to admit there was something exhilarating about the rush of air blowing against her face and pulling at her hair.

  “I see you over there holding onto the rail with a death grip. Relax, Faith. You couldn’t be safer.”

  She let her hand fall away. “My experiences with water have been limited to swimming.”

  “That’s gonna end today.”

  The next time she looked over her shoulder, the marina was merely a dot on the horizon. In no time at all, they might have been the only people for miles. Her glance left the horizon and settled on Landris. “There’s really nothing to compare with this.”

  “I agree. Does that mean I should invest in a boat?”

  “They’re terribly expensive, aren’t they?”

  His smile was amused. “It depends on what you consider expensive. We wouldn’t necessarily have to get one this big.”

  “It’s something to think about.”

  “Would you like to try your hand at the wheel?”

  “I don’t think Corbin would appreciate me wrecking his beautiful boat.”

  “In case you haven’t noticed, there’s nothing around us. Come try it.”

  Faith moved over to where he stood. “This isn’t exactly like driving a car, is it?”

  “No, but it’s easy once you get used to it.” He shifted slightly so she could slide between him and the steering wheel. “When I lift my hands away from the wheel, put yours underneath them, and we’ll steer together until you get the feel of it.”

  “Which may be never,” she replied as she curled her fingers around the polished wood.

  “That’s okay, too.”

  With Landris’s capable hands over hers and his body a solid wall of protection behind her, she gradually overcame her fear of making a mistake and started to enjoy herself. “This is fun,” she told him.

  “Ready to go solo?”

  “As long as you stay right where you are.”

  “I wouldn’t think of leaving.” He moved his hands from the wheel to her waist. “See what I mean. There’s nothing to it.”

  It had been easier to concentrate on steering when his hands had been on the wheel. “At least out here I can’t hit anything. I’m not sure how easy it would be to maneuver around other boats or rocks.”

  “It takes practice. You didn’t know how to parallel park until you tried it a few times.”

  “I still can’t parallel park.”

  “I can teach you in fifteen minutes. We can do it this afternoon if you want.”

  Faith wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry at the notion of a husband offering to teach his wife to parallel park on their honeymoon. “Let’s wait until we get home. I’d rather learn in my Jeep. Your SUV is huge. I can barely see over the hood.”

  “That would make it challenging.”

  “It would make it a disaster. Where did you get all this boating experience?”

  “My dad taught me. We had a catamaran for a while. Later on we got one similar to this that we used for water skiing.”

  “I’d be scared to water ski. I’m comfortable swimming in a pool, but not anywhere else.”

  * * * * *

  Landris wasn’t so caught up in his conversation with Faith that he hadn’t noticed the dark clouds piling up in the distance. He’d experienced bad weather while out in a boat. It wasn’t something he wanted to repeat with a novice on board.

  “I hate to end our time on the water early, but there’s a storm brewing to the east of us.” He put his hands back over hers. “Are you ready to do something other than go straight?”

  “Sure. Which way are we going to turn?”

  “Toward the shoreline. We’re going to reduce our speed and start a slow, wide turn. We’ll be going against the wind for the trip back so it’ll take us a little longer.”

  By the time they reached the marina, the blue sky had disappeared.

  “I’m glad we turned back when we did,” Landris said as they pulled out of the marina parking lot. “I just saw lightning.”

  “Isn’t it amazing how quickly the weather can change? One minute it’s sunny and the next it’s doing that.”

  “In another hour or so, it
’ll be sunny again. We can visit Fort Pulaski unless you’re too tired from the boating excursion.”

  “I’m not tired at all.”

  “I better warn you now; once I get inside, I won’t want to leave. I have a thing about forts.”

  “And this one saw action in the Civil War, right?”

  He grinned. “That’s right. I’ll be like a kid in a candy shop. Are you sure you want to go? It won’t hurt my feelings if you say no.”

  “Why would I say no? You went shopping with me yesterday and never complained one time. Who knows? Maybe you’ll get me hooked on forts, too.”

  “That might be too much to hope for.”

  The drive from the marina to Fort Pulaski took less than ten minutes. They arrived in time for a rifle demonstration. Faith impressed him by knowing something about Civil War weaponry. Given her father’s interest, he shouldn’t have been surprised. While they waited for the cannon demonstration, they took the guided tour. Landris kept looking for signs of restlessness in his companion, but couldn’t find any. If she found it tedious to inspect old masonry and hear a discussion of military strategy, she was good at hiding it.

  If he hadn’t already fallen in love with her, these few hours at the fort would probably have done it. There’s nothing more appealing to a man than a woman who takes an interest in what he likes.

  They ate dinner at a family-owned Italian restaurant. The red-and-white checked tablecloths covering the round tables added to an atmosphere that was friendly rather than romantic. On the way back to the cottage, Landris remembered something he’d conveniently forgotten in the rush of getting married.

  “I haven’t seen you on your laptop since we got here. I thought you had some papers to grade.”

  Faith laughed. “I do. I read some last night after you went to bed and a few more when I got up this morning. I’ve got about five left. I’ll get started on them when we get back.”

  “You should have said something. We didn’t have to go to the fort today.”

  “I wanted to go. Besides, it won’t take me long to finish. I’ll have plenty of time to get the grades into the system by midnight.”

  Landris felt bad that she’d been staying up late and getting up early just so she wouldn’t interfere with their plans. This was another instance of her putting him before herself.

  “I’ll make some coffee and then get out of your way.”

  “You don’t have to disappear. You won’t bother me.”

  “I’m that forgettable, huh?”

  “I didn’t mean that, Landris. I meant I like having you with me.”

  “So I’m beginning to grow on you a little.” He could see her smile in the darkness.

  “More than a little.”

  “I’ll take that.” He reached across the console and touched her arm. “If I do start to bother you, just tell me, and I’ll go take a walk or something.”

  A few hours later, her annoyed mutterings woke him from the nap in which he’d been indulging.

  “Was I snoring?” he asked, sitting up and rubbing his eyes.

  “No, it’s this paper. The things these kids will do to get out of doing their work blows my mind. This student submitted a paper written by someone else. He was in such a hurry he didn’t even bother to change the name or the date in the heading. Can you believe that?”

  “That’s a dumb move in more ways than one. What will you do?”

  “Plagiarism is an automatic ‘F’. You can’t claim someone else’s work as your own.”

  “Is that it? Or can you let him redo the paper?”

  “I usually offer to let students resubmit the paper because I don’t want them to fail the class, but there is a penalty involved. I automatically deduct a letter grade on the new paper because it’s late and whatever grade they earn gets averaged in with the failing grade.”

  “So they get a chance to potentially pass the class and hopefully learn a lesson in the meantime.”

  “That’s the goal. Statistics show that a high percentage of kids who fail more than one class will drop out of college. I don’t want them to do that. I want them to stay in school and get their degree.”

  “It’s obvious that you care about your students. If any of my professors felt that way, they made sure to keep it hidden.”

  “Teaching is like any other profession. There are people who want to do it right and others who are just there to pick up a paycheck. I’m sure you saw it in baseball, too.”

  Landris laughed. “Very much so. It made for some interesting and heated exchanges in the clubhouse after a loss. Do you ever get discouraged and feel like you’re fighting a losing battle?”

  “Not really because in almost every class there are a few students who really want to learn; who aren’t just there to party and have a good time.”

  “You’ve done a great job with Olivia.”

  Faith set her laptop on the table, a tender smile forming on her lips. “Olivia is a joy to teach. She’s like a little sponge. She soaks up everything you tell her.”

  “You’re good for her. For both of us, actually. I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t come along.”

  “You would have hired a nanny.”

  “There’s no comparison between you and a nanny.” He reached over and clasped her hand. “I was like a boat adrift on a stormy sea until I met you, without direction and hopelessly lost. It’s not a coincidence that your name is Faith. You restored my faith in myself and made me willing to believe in someone again.”

  She wiped at her eyes with her free hand. “You’ve done as much for me. You made me part of your family.”

  Landris drew her fingers to his lips. “You did that yourself. I knew the moment I met you that I’d never be the same. I spent the three weeks between when you left the cabin and seeing you again at that charity game trying to downplay my reaction to you, but in my heart I knew what had happened. I kept thinking of a poem I’d read years before.

  ‘What was that sound that came in on the dark?

  What is this maze of light it leaves us in?

  What is this stance we take,

  To turn away and then turn back?

  What did we hear?

  It was the breath we took when we first met’.”

  “That’s beautiful. Who wrote it?”

  “I think it was Harold Pinter. I was a mess when you found me, and I’d still be stumbling around in the dark if it wasn’t for you. You were a maze of light I couldn’t ignore, the kind of woman a man could spend his entire life searching for and never find. I know I can’t replace Ian in your heart, but I want you to know that my heart is yours.”

  The fingers gripping his hand started to tremble. Faint color stole into her cheeks as her eyes looked intently into his.

  “I thought you weren’t interested in love,” she said in a hushed voice.

  “I said so many things that were wrong. I can’t take back those words. Even now, I’m not sure you want to hear what I have to say, but I’m tired of being afraid to tell you how I feel. I’m not asking for anything but a chance to love you and to make you as happy as you’ve made me.”

  Faith smiled, her eyes again filling with tears. “You already have, Landris. You weren’t the only one stumbling in the dark. It was you who compelled my heart to love again, bringing me out of the void I’d been living in since Ian died. Ian will always be a part of me, but you’ve become part of me, too. You’re as essential to my future happiness as he was to my past.”

  Landris drew her into his arms, skimming his lips across her collarbone to the hollow in her neck. Then his mouth closed over hers, his fingers moving along her shoulder to touch the silky softness of her hair. He felt her slide her hands around his neck to pull him closer as she returned his kisses with an eagerness that not only delighted him, but also wiped away any remaining doubts he might have had.

  * * * * *

  Faith didn’t think she could bear such happiness. Her mind was reeling, her sense
s exploding as Landris’s warm breath mingled with hers. His lips left her mouth and drifted over her face, leaving behind a trail of warm, tingling skin. The sigh that slipped from her lips brought his mouth to hers again in a last lingering kiss before he drew away.

  “I wonder how many couples fall in love after they decide to get married,” he mused as he ran his fingers through her hair.

  Faith laid her head on his chest. “It’s probably a small number, but it doesn’t apply in our case. I loved you before you asked me to marry you.”

  He put his fingers under her chin and tilted up her head so he could see her face. “I thought you married me because of Olivia.”

  “I love Olivia, but it was my love for her father that drove my decision to marry.”

  “You were willing to marry me knowing I might never love you?”

  “When you love someone, there isn’t anything you’re not willing to do.”

  “Not many people love like you, Faith.” His mouth dropped to hers once more. His fingertips lightly traced her jawline and then cupped her head, drawing her close as he deepened the kiss. Everything seemed to blur as she found herself responding to the increasing pressure of his kisses. With a low groan, Landris pulled back from her, his eyes dark with passion. “It’s time for me to tell you goodnight, otherwise neither one of us will be sleeping on this loveseat.”

  “I don’t want it to be goodnight,” she whispered, drawing his head down and kissing him softly. “I want you with me now and for always.”

  Without another word, he picked her up in his arms and carried her into the other room.

  Epilogue

  Landris woke to the sound of singing. He knew that voice. Olivia was up. He, Faith and Olivia had attended Taryn’s wedding in Augusta yesterday afternoon and then driven to Trent’s cabin following the reception. His brother had rolled in a few hours later with the latest woman to capture his somewhat capricious attention. By virtue of not being late to her wedding, Taryn had cost Landris two tickets to the ballgame of Trent’s choice.

  The door of the bathroom burst open, and Olivia ran into the room. He could see Faith standing in front of the mirror brushing her teeth wearing a pink bathrobe and a pair of furry flip flops. It was a sight he’d seen often in the last two months, but it never got old.