Decidedly With Love
Page 22
I opened the door. “Hi, I’m home,” I called out even though he didn’t need me to announce it. He could easily hear the door unlock from anywhere in the apartment.
In case you were wondering, Travis moved in with me two months ago. It made sense for us to live together—otherwise, we would never have seen each other because of his hockey schedule.
And let me tell you now that had sucked—especially since I had permanently retired Alejandro the Second. All right, he wasn’t completely in retirement mode. Travis found him one day and got excited at seeing my orgasm buddy. But the only time I was allowed to use Alejandro was for special occasions while I was with Travis.
My hot boyfriend had been very specific about that.
Usually when I called out “I’m home,” Travis would walk out of the kitchen, give me the most passionate kiss known to womankind…which always led to the most amazing sex.
But this time only silence greeted me.
Disappointment kicked me in the shins. He hadn’t said anything about going out. Was it poker night and I’d forgotten about it? I walked to my bedroom to grab some fresh clothes before showering.
And came to an abrupt halt.
Spread out on my side of the bed was my sleeveless black dress, and my black lacy panties and bra. My strappy black stilettos were on the floor. A note was propped up on the bedding. “Put these on and wait for further instruction.” It wasn’t signed, but I recognized Travis’s handwriting.
Well, this was one for Dr. Lovejoy.
Yes, I was still writing the weekly column—only now I no longer felt like a fraud.
And when I didn’t have a question from a reader, Travis helped me dream up one to answer—even when he was on the road.
Let’s just say there ended up being some highly amusing questions.
I pulled my hair up in a high, loose ponytail. My goddess hairstyle—as Travis liked to call it. I quickly showered, allowing the steam to perk up the curls. Fifteen minutes later I was ready to go, while breaking a few records in the process.
As I waited for the next instructions, I paced around the apartment. Before Travis became my boyfriend, everything about the place reminded me of how alone I was. Sure, I’d had a few friends and I had Hannah, but that was nothing compared to now. Thanks to the fundraiser, I got to know more people in the building, and now we hung out together once a month at The Unicorn.
Plus, Holly, Kelsey, and I had also become good friends. The three of us, along with Hannah and Kate, got together once a month for girls’ night.
Now, my apartment no longer reminded me of how alone I was. Now, it reminded me that I was loved—partly in thanks to the framed photo of Travis, Fanny, and me on the wall.
But that was nothing compared to what adorned Fanny’s living room wall.
I giggled at the memory of the large signed photo of the nine shirtless hockey players from the night of the fundraiser. She called it her little taste of heaven.
Just as I was beginning to wonder if my next instructions would ever arrive, someone knocked on my apartment door.
I grabbed my clutch purse and walked to the door. Well, more like ran as fast as I could in my stilettos.
I opened it to find Wes. In a suit?
“Hi?” I said. “Travis isn’t home right now.”
Wes had a nice smile—a really nice smile. But this was the first time I’d seen it so bright. “I’ve come to escort you to dinner.”
“You’re taking me to dinner?” And more importantly, where the heck was Travis? Why wasn’t he taking me to dinner?
“That’s right.”
“Where’s Travis?” I glanced down the hallway—both ways—to see if he was there. Nope.
Wes flashed me another big grin. “You’ll see.”
I’d known Wes for several months now, so I was used to him being cryptic. Didn’t mean I liked it, but for now I let it go.
I stepped out of the apartment and locked the door. Wes offered his arm and I took it.
He escorted me to the elevator. While we waited for it, he quickly typed something into his phone. A minute later, the door pinged open.
Outside the building, instead of walking me to his car, Wes led me to my store. Huh?
A soft glow came from inside. Not the usual glow after the store was locked up for the night. This time it came from candles flickering in the dark.
“How come the sprinkler hasn’t gone off?” I asked Wes.
“I checked with the fire department. A few candles are fine. The rest aren’t the flammable kind.”
Meaning they were fake candles—the kind that required battery power instead of real flames.
Wes opened the door and waved me in.
“What’s going on?” I asked him. And where the heck is Travis?
We were the only ones there.
The candles weren’t the only things new to the store since I’d locked it up for the night. In front of the fountain—its lights still glowing—was a table for two covered with a white cloth and two chairs. A small bouquet of white roses and several sprigs of lavender sat in a vase in the middle.
“I’ll take it from here,” Travis said, walking around the fountain to where we were standing.
I hadn’t even noticed him up till then. I’d been too busy absorbing what he had done to the store in the short time I was upstairs. Soft classical music filled the space. It wasn’t one of my playlists, but it was romantic all the same.
Wes gave Travis a small nod and winked at me. “Have fun, kids. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.” He chuckled and turned to leave.
Travis and I ignored him. I was too busy staring at my boyfriend, who was standing there in his black suit and purple striped tie. He was also doing his fair share of staring, his gaze full of wonder and love.
It was a look I’d often seen on him—a look I could never get enough of.
“You look beautiful,” he said.
“So do you,” I whispered, then grinned. “I mean you look handsome.” Handsome. Sexy. Mouthwatering. All of them described him perfectly.
He leaned in and kissed me. We had kissed this morning before I’d left for work, but it felt like I hadn’t kissed him in days.
Unfortunately, the kiss was brief—a promise of what was to come. A promise that I would hold him to.
He slipped his fingers between mine and led me to the table. He then pulled out a chair and indicated for me to take a seat. “I’ll be right back with our dinner.”
“You cooked? In my store?” Sure, I had a microwave in my office, but it was really only good for heating up food, not for cooking it from scratch.
Travis planted a quick kiss on my lips. “No, I ordered it from La Vita e Bella.”
One of my favorite restaurants.
He disappeared into the back and returned a moment later with a bottle of Chardonnay, which he poured into our wineglasses. He placed the bottle in the ice bucket on the fountain wall. When he returned the second time from my office, he was carrying two plates—each containing lobster ravioli, asparagus, and roasted mushrooms. He placed them on the table and sat down.
“I can’t believe you did all of this,” I said. It was official—I had the best boyfriend in the entire world.
Travis smiled—and like every time he did that, my insides went all warm and squishy.
He picked up his wineglass. “I’d like to make a toast to the woman who taught me how to fall in love. The woman who taught me that falling in love was worth it—and who made me glad I’d waited because…well, because she’s the only one for me.”
I could feel the heat in my cheeks intensify, but that didn’t stop me from returning his smile. “I’m just glad you waited. You’re the only man I want to be with.”
We clinked our glasses together and began eating the delicious food.
“I can’t believe you did all of this,” I said and popped the final piece of ravioli into my mouth. I made another “Mmmm” noise that I knew was driving Travis insane with lust. I cou
ld see it in his eyes.
Which was why I did it.
I was more than ready for dessert—and he was on the menu.
“It was worth it,” he said. “And who knew your store would be the perfect place for a romantic dinner?”
I laughed. “Just don’t tell anyone that, or else I’ll start getting requests to rent it out just for that purpose.” I turned to the fountain. “Especially because of my magical fountain.”
“Do you think it’s magical?” he asked as I watched the water spray up from the base of the wall toward Aphrodite. She glowed softly in the fountain’s lights.
“I do,” I said, turning back in my seat.
Travis unfolded from his chair. “So how do you make a wish?” He peered into the water, his right hand fisted.
“Turn so your back is facing the fountain, and toss the coins over your left shoulder. According to the legend of the Fontana di Trevi in Rome, one coin guarantees your return to Rome. The second coin will ensure a new romance. A third one guarantees marriage. You probably have to toss in a billion dollars’ worth of coins if your wish is to win the Stanley Cup. But I wouldn’t swear my life on that.” At least his team was headed to the playoffs, so he didn’t have to wish for that part.
He grinned at me—and the girlie part between my legs heated up like a volcano. If it could fan itself, it would. “I don’t think my pockets can handle a billion dollars in coins.”
Travis turned around, his back to the fountain, and tossed the contents of his fisted palm into the water.
Plop. Plop. Plop.
I gasped, but could only stare at the fountain. Three coins guarantees marriage, the four words that I had voiced a minute ago echoed in my brain.
Travis walked over to where I was sitting and got down on one knee. “Emma, I love you more than anything. I can’t imagine anyone who I would rather raise a family with and grow old with than you. Will you marry me and spend the rest of my life as my lover and my best friend?”
He slipped a ring from his pocket and held it out to me. I blinked away the tears as he waited for me to say something. Anything.
Between his thumb and index finger was a gorgeous platinum ring with a large square diamond. It was the most breathtaking ring I’d ever seen.
When I looked up at Travis’s eyes, vulnerability shone back at me as bright as the diamond. Answer him, the choked voice in my head said. Don’t leave the poor man hanging.
I felt my lips curve up into a wide smile and I nodded. “I would…more than anything,” I whispered, emotion clogging my throat. I cough to clear the lump. Those tears rolling down my cheeks? Totally justified. “I would love to be all of that with you, Travis.”
He’d barely slid the ring on my finger before I flung my arms around his neck and kissed him. It wasn’t long before what was supposed to be a sweet and tender kiss became full out hungry.
I pulled back slightly, my breath coming in ragged. “Maybe we should go back to our apartment and have dessert now.” I winked at him.
“I think that’s a great idea.” His voice was as rough and hungry as mine. “I’m more than happy to make love to my beautiful, future wife.”
I was fully on board with that.
Other Books in By The Bay Series
Decidedly Off Limits
Best Friend Rule #1: never want the guy’s sister.
* * *
Oops.
Trent Salway is one of San Francisco’s hot up-and-coming-under-thirty bachelors. A highly successful mutual fund portfolio manager, a workaholic, and a ladies’ man, he’s got everything he could possibly want…except one thing.
Physical therapist Kelsey Quaid dumped her ex-fiancé six months ago because she was tired of not even being a distant second to his career. Which is why despite secretly crushing on her big brother’s best friend for as long as she can remember, there’s no way Kelsey can go there. One workaholic in her life is more than enough, thank you very much.
Before Kelsey’s brother leaves on his Navy SEAL mission, he asks Trent one simple request: make sure Kelsey isn’t dating any assholes while he’s away. As Trent does his best to do just this, he and Kelsey spend more and more time together. Sparks fly, as do a few items of clothing, and the next thing they know things are getting physical between them. Now, Trent has to decide what to do about the woman he’s falling for—the one whose brother would take him down faster than he takes down the enemy. And Kelsey will have to decide if Trent is just another workaholic or if he’s decidedly off limits.
Now available
Decidedly With Baby
One-Night Stand Rule #1: always check the condom’s expiry date.
* * *
Oops.
Career-orientated Holly Whittaker has a plan, and being a mom is not part of it. Her not-quite-a-fairytale childhood involved being brought up by thirty nannies (yes, thirty!), so what the heck does she know about being a mom anyway?
Playboy Josh Hoffer has no room in his life for a family or steady girlfriend. His hockey career comes first. Life is tough when you’re on the road more times than you’re not. Besides, what does he know about diapers and baby yoga and fairytale princesses?
After Holly receives some unexpected bad news, she’s looking to blow off a little steam, and hot sex with Mr. No Commitment himself fits the bill just fine. But sex is never without consequences, and this time it’s more than her heart that is at stake. This time, Mr. No Commitment and Ms. Career need to figure out what’s really important to them and find room in their heart for another—plus one.
Now available
Decidedly With Mistletoe
Kissing-under-the-mistletoe rule #1: never kiss your ex-fiancée.
Oops.
The Christmas novella comes out September 2018
New Romantic Comedy Series Coming Soon
Meet the hot and hilarious cowboys of Copper Creek.
Cowboy Most Wanted
The rules just got more complicated.
Sexy cowboy TJ Daniel has three loves: Norse mythology, Marvel comics, and horses. Make that four—and dirty talk. His brother learns about the new reality show in which the female star is looking for love with a cowboy. Since the couples in these shows usually separate after the final episode, what does it matter that TJ isn’t looking for love? It will be great publicity for the ranch. Except no one mentioned the show’s marketing involves posing shirtless and looking like a you-know-you-want-to-ride-me underwear model. Not quite the reputation their ranch is seeking.
And if that isn’t enough, Violet Brooks, the sister of TJ’s best friend, is the show’s photographer. She’s the same woman who left the small town and never looked back. The same woman who he once lusted over when he shouldn’t have—and still does. And the same woman who hasn’t had sex in forever and is eager for some horizontal fun…or even bent over a bale of hay works too. Perfect.
But while the theme of the show is finding love, TJ has to decide if he’s ready for a happily-ever-after—and what he’s willing to risk to win it.
Because the show has rules…and the rules are about to be broken.
Available June 2018
Acknowledgments
Writers get inspirations for their stories from all kinds of sources. Emma’s love for Harry Potter came from my daughter’s love of the same. Yes, I’ve read each book from the series several times. I was the one who introduced Harry Potter to her. But my love for the series is nothing compared to hers. She’s currently reading it for the eighth time. If it hadn’t been for her discussing what her future Harry-Potter-themed bedroom will look like, I would never have thought to create a heroine who was equally in love with JK Rowling’s series. Thank you, Anja, for your source of inspiration and for being the best daughter a mom could ask for.
My thanks also go out to my super publicist Nina Bocci. You have done so much for this series that I can’t thank you enough. You’re always there for me whenever I have a question or concern. You’re the best!
I also want to thank my Facebook reader group, Stina’s Sweethearts. Your enthusiasm every time I post about my books always makes my day. And I love it when Lisa Marie posts her Wet Wednesday hotties. She finds the best pictures.
And finally, to my family. Ralph, Anton, Stefan, and Anja, you’ve put up with so much just so I can make my deadlines. I know it’s not always easy. Thank you for your love and support. Thank you for believing in me.
Also by Stina Lindenblatt
Romantic Comedy Series
By the Bay
Decidedly Off Limits
Decidedly With Baby
Decidedly With Love
Decidedly With Mistletoe
Copper Creek
Cowboy Most Wanted
* * *
Non Romantic Comedy series
Pushing Limits
This One Moment
My Song For You
I Need You Tonight
* * *
Lost In You
Tell Me When
Let Me Know
About the Author