“Allison.” Sloan’s voice was soft and tender. “You’re not a cyborg queen. You’re human. As humans, we are all flawed. I won’t let you bear this burden alone. I want you to understand the choices I made.”
She nodded. “I do understand, Sloan. I forced you into those choices. Believe me, I don’t blame you for what you did or what you believed.”
****
Sloan pulled Allison closer; relieved of the burden he had carried. It freed him for the next step. “Allison, there’s something else you should know.”
She leaned back to look at him.
“I saw your first message…and your second.”
“I didn’t send a second message—”
He placed a finger across her lips. Her eyes widened as he reached inside his coat and pulled out her card. “You trusted me to decipher the code you sent to the FBI. I’m not saying it was easy convincing the others, but it worked. We found you.” He slid the get-well card out of the envelope, worn from constant handling and re-reading. “Thank goodness your second message was easier to understand.”
“I didn’t—” She stopped. “I heard a woman…” She looked at him with a question, hope and fear mingled with a painful memory.
“My cousin. She can be overly dramatic,” he explained with a grimace. “If you had come in, I would have introduced you. I’ve said before that I haven’t given you what you deserve, not the honor, or the trust. But that’s about to change. Right here. Right now.” He tilted her chin so she could see with her eyes and feel with her heart what he was saying. “You have my respect, my trust. I honor you, dear, sweet Allison. I give it all to you. Most of all, I love you. Unrestrained and without conditions.”
****
Allison’s entire being stilled. She couldn’t believe what she heard. Sloan, telling her he loved her! Please, don’t let this be a dream.
His deep voice filled her ears with murmured endearments. Then he kissed her. Not a soft, whispered brush of his lips. Not the gentle melting of snowflakes. This kiss was urgent and needy. Tasting and sharing as their tongues tangled and darted.
Years of restraint burst inside her. She molded herself against his hard chest, slid her fingers through the thick, silky hair to pull him closer.
“Whoa!” Mitchell’s voice sailed across the kitchen. “Are you guys kissing?”
Allison jumped, but Sloan refused to relinquish his hold.
“Mitch, you have the best timing.” Sloan looked over at the boy with a wide grin.
“Really?”
“You bet, champ. I need your permission to do something.”
“My permission?” Mitchell gave an excited grin.
Sloan nodded and crooked his finger for Mitchell to come closer. He bent down and whispered something in Mitchell’s ear. A huge, toothy grin split her nephew’s face and he nodded enthusiastically.
“Okay?” Sloan raised his eyebrows.
“Yeah!” They bumped knuckles.
Allison looked from one to the other. “What are you two scheming?”
Sloan reached into his pocket and produced a small box. He lifted the lid.
Allison gasped at the shiny pendant in the shape of the Tao resting on the dark velvet.
“Mitch gave me permission to date you.” He lifted the pendant and unhooked the ends. “Exclusively.” His voice dropped to an even deeper timbre.
Tears welled and her heart drummed against her ribs. The love shining from Sloan’s eyes was the most beautiful sight she’d ever seen. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Mitchell holding his breath. She nodded. “Yes.”
“Sweet!” Mitchell shouted and punched the air.
“Sweet,” Sloan repeated softly and clasped the pendant around Allison’s neck.
She threw her arms around Sloan and then cringed when he winced. “Oh! Oh, I’m so sorry.” She eased her hold and tenderly kissed his neck near the wound.
“About time you two figured it out.” Mitchell giggled as he walked up to the kitchen counter where the tablet rested. “Hey, I thought I lost this.” He grabbed the device and wandered off to play his game.
As Allison watched Mitchell disappear into the other room, she realized that although his world hadn’t changed too much, he’d bounced back stronger than before. For her, it seemed everything had changed—her job, her outlook on life. Standing here, safe in Sloan’s arms, she had a burning desire to make their relationship work.
Sloan shifted and pointed to the corner of his mouth. “It hurts here, too,” he whispered.
Allison’s lips found the spot and he turned his mouth to meet hers. Passion ignited as they sealed their future with a kiss.
Epilogue
A few weeks later.
“Have you finished the layout of the museum yet?”
Allison looked away from her computer screen to the man asking the question. Sloan Cartland entered the room like he owned it. Watching him through lowered lashes, she tried—and failed—to ignore his approach.
Brown eyes and sun-streaked, light-brown hair complemented his deep tan, contradicting the cold March weather that refused to release the nation’s capital to springtime. A charcoal-gray, expensive suit graced his six-foot, four-inch frame, not the casual jeans look he wore after work. However, in the office, Allison couldn’t imagine Sloan wearing anything other than a business suit.
Their exclusive status had morphed into Sloan spending more and more time at her apartment, making it feel a lot like home. But he still made a point of wandering through the lab at least once a day, and she looked forward to the interruption. It was going to be another couple of weeks before she was cleared for agent training. In the meantime, she spent her days behind the computer, or going over case details to prepare the agents with the best advantages she could give them.
Sloan strolled over to her desk, and hitched a well-muscled thigh on the corner.
His familiar scent wafted toward her, reminding her of cloves. Her heart beat a sequence faster whenever he was near. She savored the feeling for a moment, then looked pointedly at the files he’d displaced as he sat on her desk, before favoring him with a patient stare.
A raised brow over one of his coffee-brown eyes was the only indication he’d noticed her irritation. She opened her mouth to ask him what he wanted, then quickly shut it as a shaft of raw desire shot straight to her belly. She could actually taste him. Only ingrained discipline kept her from allowing the warmth to travel lower. Work was not the place to give in to the rush of need that overtook her whenever he looked at her like that.
She pulled herself together, and used her best professional tone. “The data file on the museum, along with the blueprints, is on your desk. But I’m sure that’s not the reason you’re here.”
“Oh? You can read minds now?” His voice rolled from his throat in that deep, cultured timbre. She could listen to him talk all day long.
“I can read yours.”
His brow rose even higher.
Allison shrugged. “Sometimes.”
“Well, I’m thinking about asking you to a party tonight. Would you like to go?”
She thought about the last party, a fund-raiser sponsored by Sloan’s father, and wrinkled her nose. “Did you really enjoy that last one?”
“This one will be different, I promise.”
“Why?”
“It’s Riley and Chip’s secret. I can’t tell you.”
Allison sat up in surprise and delight. “Is she…are they… ? Byron is going to be over the moon!”
Sloan touched his fingers to her lips. “Shh…it’s a surprise.”
The shock of contact was instantaneous. Waves of desire shot through her as she grinned back at Sloan. “I’d be delighted to go with you to a party tonight.”
“Thank you.” He leaned forward to replace his finger with his lips. When he lifted his head, his dark eyes glittered in the lab’s stark overhead lighting. “And afterward, we’ll have our own celebration.”
“Oh? What are
we celebrating?”
He gave her a smile and she couldn’t suppress the thrill of knowing it was meant only for her. “That’s an even bigger surprise.”
A word about the author…
Stanalei’s love of writing romance stems from reading favorites such as Grimm’s Fairy Tales, Barbara Cartland, and Alistair MacLean. She has over twenty years in the martial arts and holds the rank of Sandan, a third degree black belt, in Aikido. After a taste of life on both U.S. coasts, she now resides near the beautiful Wasatch Mountains with her hero, who just happens to be her best friend and husband. Together they enjoy backcountry dirt road on RZR, visiting our National Parks, and exploring ghost towns and museums. Visit Stanalei at http://www.stanaleifletcher.com/
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