Harsh breathing slowed. Her racing heart regained a normal rhythm. He covered Manon’s face with kisses. He rolled to his side and drew her with him. He stroked her back and ran fingers along her spine.
All he’d ever wanted was here in his arms. From the moment of their first meeting she had disarmed his deeply buried bombs of anger and rebellion. She’d given him a sense of being in the right place at the right time. Love had blossomed in an instant.
All that had been lost in the fog of amnesia and trampled beneath the lies she’d been told had vanished.
The moment she had entered the examining room, the dormant seeds of love had sprouted. The years of separation had ended. The time had come to stake his claim. He brushed his lips over hers. “I love you.”
Manon stroked his face. “I love you.”
Their mouths joined in a kiss, not of passion but of promise.
Rafe smiled. “I want to sleep at night and wake in the morning with you at my side.”
Her answering smile raised hope to full knowledge. “That can be arranged.”
“Marry me.” He rose on one elbow and gazed into her eyes.
“Do you mean that?”
“Yes.” He kissed her and left the bed. From the top dresser drawer he removed a small box. “I’ve wanted nothing more for twelve years.” He returned to the bed. “I would have given you this the night of our prom. Was in my pocket when I left to keep your father from turning our love into a crime.”
Manon scooted to sit against the pillows. “Show me.”
He kissed her palm. “My father gave this ring to my mother before he left and died. She never wore it.” He opened the box and removed a ruby and diamond ring. “Will you?”
“Yes.” She touched his face. “The past is truly gone.”
He slid the ring on her finger and pulled her into an embrace. “When?”
“Soon.”
“Can we wait until after Gran is discharged?”
“I can handle that.” She slipped from the bed and started down the hall. “Come with me.”
He laughed. “If we’re going to the hospital we’d better get dressed.”
Her laughter joined his. “I’m going to the kitchen for ice cream. We’ll need the energy. Making love takes more energy than plain sex.”
He pulled her back and nuzzled her nape. “I’ll indulge you but you’re the only stimulus I need.”
She turned and wrapped her arms around him. “Welcome to Fern Lake. I love you.”
“Now that’s a welcome I like. I love you, too.”
The End
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Choices
A Double Opposition
Lines of Fire
Shattered Dreams
The Doctor's Dilemma
Heart Throb
Code Blue
Gemstones
Young Adult books by J L Walters
Escape
Haven
Searches
Confrontation
About the Author
Janet Lane Walters is a multi-published award winning author. To date she has published 35 novels, 10 novellas, 4 non-fiction books, and a number of short stories and poems. She lives in the scenic Hudson River valley, a setting in many of her novels. She bills herself as the eclectic writer and writes romances, from sweet to spicy, cozy mysteries, alternate world fantasies, historicals, paranormals and fantasy from YA to adult. She is the mother of 4 and the grandmother of 7. She lives with her psychiatrist husband who has no desire to cure her obsession with writing. Among her hobbies are Astrology and composing music. She also admits to housework as a hobby for isn’t that what one does in their spare time.
Also published by Books We Love
Code Blue
Gemstones
The Doctor’s Dilemma
A Double Opposition
Heart Throbs
Lines of Fire
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