Fallen

by Natasha Grace

  “I always have—what does that mean?” Sam asked, her voice suddenly wary as she pulled away to look at him.

  “I’ve always loved you,” Luke said plainly. “I don’t know what happened. I went from thinking that I should find a woman like you to wanting you. It was probably why I told you about Jason’s affair all those years ago.” He sighed as he ran a hand through his hair. “Okay. It was exactly the reason why I told you about Jason. It wasn’t exactly my shining moment, but I hated that he took you for granted. It killed me each time I saw him leave the office and know that he really wasn’t going to a meeting. You deserved so much more.” His throat tightened. He ached to reach for her, but he knew that he didn’t have that right. “It’s not like I deserve you, either, but I need you in my life. Please don’t go.”

  * * *

  “I know I’ve made a mess of this, but I’m going mad inside.” Luke dropped to one knee, with her hand still in his. “Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”

  Her heart flipped at the love in his eyes. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. He loved her? “Are you serious?”

  “I am. I can’t imagine a life without you. I don’t want a life without you. These past weeks have been absolute torture.”

  She shook her head, confused. “But you were the one who broke up with me!”

  He grimaced. “You’re too much of a distraction. It’s just too easy to let things at the office go, because all I want to do is to be with you. But I found out that it’s worse without you. I need you in my life, Samantha. Please say yes.”

  Could this be true?

  Sam looked in his eyes and saw the earnestness there. She blinked back tears of gratefulness as she dropped to her knees to join him. “I didn’t think that I could fall in love again, especially not after what happened with Jason,” she said as she cupped his face. “But somehow, I’m more in love with you than I ever was with him. I’ve never been as devastated as I was these past—”

  He interrupted her with a kiss and she thought that was just fine. She’d never get enough of his kisses.

  “I love you,” he said as he broke the kiss and met her gaze.

  Joy filled her heart at the words. “I love you, too.”

  He laughed and they both rose and kissed each other again.

  “Say it again,” he said as he broke the kiss.

  “I love you.” He smiled before he kissed her once more. Shivers coursed through her as his hands roamed her waist before he lifted her and headed towards the bedroom.

  He laid her gently on the bed. “I love you, too,” he said as he cupped her face and then he proceeded to show her just how much.

  Epilogue

  A year and a half later

  Luke’s chest tightened as Sam walked into his office pushing the stroller. After all this time, she still had that effect on him simply by walking into a room. He didn’t know how he’d gotten so lucky to have her as his wife and this beautiful, healthy baby as his daughter, but he was forever grateful. They were his everything.

  It still scared him to think about how close he’d been to losing Sam.

  He couldn’t believe that he’d almost chosen the company over her, that he’d thought he’d had to choose. Sure, it had taken some time to get used to delegating his work to others, but it hadn’t been as hard as he’d thought—especially when it meant he’d get to free up his time to spend with Sam.

  He stood to kiss his wife. Sam’s cheeks were flushed when he pulled away and he couldn’t help but smile at the realization that he still affected her, too.

  “Is she sleeping?” he asked as he nodded at Suzie, their baby girl.

  Sam smiled. “No. She woke up somewhere around the trading floor. Everyone just had to see her.” Though the press had been critical of his and Sam’s relationship—even saying that they’d been seeing each other while Jason had been alive, the employees had been surprisingly accepting.

  Adam had said it was because Luke was an easier boss to work with now that he’d married Sam, but Luke thought that the employees were just happy to have Sam back at the office. Either way, he was grateful. He didn’t want anyone to treat his daughter differently, because of who her parents had fallen in love with.

  He bent down and saw beautiful dark eyes just like her mother’s look at him from under the cover.

  “Hi there, baby girl,” he said as he brought his hand in front of her. His chest tightened as Suzie’s eyes widened as she smiled and grabbed his hand.

  “I have a meeting in ten minutes,” Sam said. In addition to her managing money for her friends and family, she also managed a portion of the company’s portfolio. “Did you want to watch her, or should I get Brenda? She’s downstairs flirting with Ruben again.”

  Luke laughed at the thought about their babysitter flirting with the security guard. “Leave them be. I think we can find something to do.” As if agreeing with him, Suzie clapped and kicked her feet.

  “Thanks.” Sam came over to give him a quick peck on the lips, but he had other ideas. He turned the stroller so that they were facing its back and wrapped an arm around Sam, deepening the kiss. She had ten minutes, after all.

  Author’s Note

  Thanks so much for reading Fallen!

  I hope you enjoyed it.

  To find out about my new releases, go to natashagrace.com