by Ali Parker
“It’s real, Colton,” I whispered.
As if my confirmation had spurred him into action, he pushed away from the door and strode over to the bed, shedding his clothes as he went. By the time he reached me, he was as naked as the day he was born.
He crawled onto the bed, pushing me back by my shoulders and kissing me like he still couldn’t quite believe this was really happening. I wrapped my arms and legs around him again, whimpering into his mouth when his solid length slid between my folds.
“Fuck, we need a condom,” he murmured. “I don’t have one here. I wasn’t really prepared for the day to turn out this way, even if I was hoping it would.”
Catching his face in my hands, I waited until he opened his eyes before shaking my head. “I have an IUD. We don’t need one.”
“You didn’t think to tell me that before?” he groaned.
I smirked even as I tilted my hips to position his tip at my entrance. “It didn’t come up before. Plus, I didn’t know if I could trust you before.”
“You trust me now?”
I nodded and placed a soft kiss on his nose. “I trust you. I love you, and I never want to be with anyone but you ever again.”
“Good. I feel the same way.” He took my hands before sinking into me slowly, like he was savoring every second.
Despite how close we’d both been outside, we managed to last much longer than I’d have expected. When we came, it was together and while still looking into each other’s eyes.
Hours later and after more rounds than I’d bothered to count, I lay with my head on Colton’s chest and traced the outlines of his tattoos with my fingertips. “I want to know the story behind these one day.”
“I’ll tell you now,” he said, drawing lazy circles on my back with one hand and lying with the other hooked behind his head. His eyes were on the sunset outside, but he brought them to mine and held them there while he talked.
“One side, the side with all the dark coloring and the shaded edges everywhere?” I nodded. “It represents the struggles I’ve had with the darkness inside myself. Times when I’ve struggled with depression and wondered why anyone would’ve given their life for mine.”
My heart clenched, but I didn’t interrupt him. We had a lifetime to explore the feelings he was trusting me with now. “The other side represents the light. Everything good in my life. My mother. My job. Ross. Now, most of all, it will represent you.”
Epilogue
HAVEN
One Year Later
Madelyn roared with laughter while her nurse simply shook her head. “I know you’re cheating. I just don’t know how.”
“I’ve been watching her like a hawk,” I said, tossing my cards facedown on the middle of the table. “She’s not cheating. She’s just that good.”
“It’s been an hour,” Agatha protested but I didn’t miss the smile she was trying to hide. “No one is so good at memory games that they don’t get anything wrong in an hour.”
Colton’s mom pretended to buff her fingernails against her shirt. “Clearly, my memory is that good.”
It wasn’t like this every day, but I’d come to live for the days when it was. The good days. The ones filled with games and laughter instead of fear and confusion. On those days, we were always here, but it never felt like that was enough.
Colton and I still hadn’t officially moved in together, but we pretty much split our time between the two houses and were together every night anyway.
A few months ago, I’d suggested that we do up the guest room on the bottom story of the farmhouse for Madelyn and another for her nurses, but she’d insisted that young love needed space. Our love was a year old now though, and we would still have space in our bedroom upstairs even if Madelyn did move in on the farm.
Colton and I had been talking about it, and we both thought it was time. We’d keep his place in the city, but we were tired of commuting back and forth all the time and we were ready to get more settled.
We knew Madelyn was going to try to argue that she could stay at the condo with her nurses, but she loved the farm. Whenever she was there, she raved about it and went for long walks every day. She could look at the horses for hours and had taken up painting while she was there.
The extra living area near the guest room meant she would have almost a self-contained apartment in the house. We hoped laying it out to her that way would change her mind, but so far, it hadn’t.
We both wanted her with us, though. She’d confessed to me a few times that she’d love to live there but didn’t want to intrude, so it wasn’t that we were forcing her to move in somewhere she didn’t want to be.
And so, for the last couple of weeks, we’d secretly been planning the move. We’d done up her room in lavender and dove gray, her favorite colors, and movers were coming next week to help us with all their stuff.
As soon as Colton came back from his meeting this afternoon, we were driving out to the farm to show her. I was practically bouncing in my seat at the dining table with excitement. I couldn’t wait to see what she thought about what we’d done with the room, but I also couldn’t actually wait to have them there permanently.
Kayla had finished her degree and started at the clinic the very next day, apparently too eager to even sleep in after her late flight the night before. She covered for me when I needed to be here with Madelyn and was taking care of the clinic for the last few hours this afternoon.
The sound of the front door opening yanked me out of my thoughts, and I jumped up to meet Colton halfway. I couldn’t sit still any longer.
Strangely, Madelyn also looked excited that he was home, but she was probably only eager to find out how his meeting had gone. “Is that my son, the famous author?”
He laughed when he heard her question, then laughed even harder when he saw me barreling toward him. Without skipping a beat though, he opened his arms and caught me when I launched myself at him.
Hazel eyes lighting up as he looked at me, he pressed a lingering kiss to my lips before resting his forehead against mine. “What’s with the warm welcome?”
I clung to him like a koala, unable to contain my excitement. “Can we go yet?”
“In a minute.” He smiled before letting me down but took my hand as he led me back into the dining room. “I’m not a famous author, Mom.”
“I have three novels sitting on my nightstand that beg to differ,” Agatha said indignantly. She was Madelyn’s most regular nurse and, like the other two as well, had become part of the family right along with me.
Colton let out a soft groan. “Please tell me they’re not from the romance line.”
Madelyn’s eyes sparkled with laughter. “You said I wasn’t allowed to read that line. You never said Agatha couldn’t. I’m reading the true-crime novels and she’s reading the romance.”
He shook his head at them. “I knew saying yes to that publisher was a bad idea. I should never have made the switch to novels. If I was still doing articles, neither of you would’ve been this interested.”
“Nonsense. It was the best thing you’ve ever done for yourself. It definitely wasn’t a bad idea.” Madelyn sniffed before standing up to brush a kiss to his cheek. “You’re far more successful as an author than you used to be. Besides, why do you care if we read the steamy scenes you wrote? Just because we’re old doesn’t mean we’ve forgotten what sex is.”
I wrapped my arms around him from behind, stifling my laughter in the back of his shirt. “Yeah, baby. Why do you care if they read the steamy scenes you wrote? Surely, it can’t be more embarrassing than the soul-baring article that brought the publisher to your door in the first place.”
He twisted around to give me a mocking glare even as he wound his hands around my arms to keep them in place. “Oh, you mean the soul-baring article I wrote to get you to talk to me again that was apparently such a nauseatingly romantic gesture that I just had to start writing books?”
I shrugged. “That’s the one.”
Madelyn a
nd Agatha exchanged a glance, both standing up at the same time. His mother picked up her purse and nodded at Colton. “Speaking of nauseatingly romantic gestures, we’re ready to go when you are.”
He widened his eyes at her, but she just smiled sweetly and shook her head. “It’s the dementia. I forgot I wasn’t supposed to say anything.”
Agatha chuckled. “You really need to stop using it as a convenient excuse.”
“It’s my disease. Therefore, it’s my right to use it however I can.” She grinned at her nurse and friend while I frowned and flicked my gaze from one of them to the other.
Colton rolled his eyes before squeezing my hand. “I’m taking you out for a special dinner later for our official one-year anniversary, even though it’s been months since it really was a year. I didn’t want you to know about it, but I suppose I should be glad they kept it quiet this long.”
“We’re making a stop first though, right?” I asked.
He nodded. “That’s why these two are packing their false teeth and getting ready to come. I told Mom there was something we wanted to show her before dinner.”
“I still don’t understand what was so important that it has to happen right this minute. Is it a flower that only blooms for an hour a year?”
“Yes,” he teased. “That’s exactly what it is. Are you coming?”
“Hold on to your horses, dear. We’re coming. We’re coming.”
It took us a few minutes longer than usual to get everyone into Colton’s car, but maybe it just felt like that because I was so excited. The banter continued all the way out to the farm.
Madelyn didn’t ask any questions when she saw where we were, making me suspect that she either knew something or had a strong hunch about what was going to happen. When we walked into the house though, she turned to frown at Colton.
“Why are we inside? Shouldn’t we be at the stables?”
“Because we have something to show you,” he said, repeating his earlier words, but he also winked at her for some reason. “Be a sport, would you?”
“I’m always a sport,” she said, suspicion in her tone. “What am I looking at?”
Walking up behind her, he put his hands on her shoulders to steer her toward the guest room. “We want to show you a project we’ve been working on.”
“Is it a nursery?” The suspicion was replaced with excitement but quickly made a comeback when her son snorted in response. “I suppose not then.”
“One step at a time, Mother,” he said.
I darted around them, pausing for dramatic effect before letting the door swing open. Madelyn stood in the doorway, simply blinking until she must’ve realized what it meant. She clapped her hands over her mouth, then turned to look at Colton.
“Are we moving in?” she asked.
“We’re moving in.” He grinned at her, laughing when she enveloped him in a monstrous hug. “I thought you didn’t want to intrude.”
“Screw intruding,” she said. “You’ve made me such a beautiful room that I’m never going to want to leave it anyway.”
Happy tears filled my eyes when she turned her attention on me. Her eyes were watery too as she opened her arms and pulled me into her embrace. Agatha hugged us both as well, crying right along with us.
“You’re going to be so happy here, Madelyn,” she said. “Or should I say we’re going to be so happy here?”
“So are they.” I nodded to Mae and Tiger who were racing around outside. They’d been here already when we arrived, but looking at them now, I’d have sworn they’d been cooped up for weeks.
“Let’s go outside to the stables,” Madelyn said suddenly. “We should go have a celebratory drink and I can’t think of a better place.”
“Uh, the porch?” I suggested. “I brought in those lawn chairs that we had at the stables for you last time before it started raining the other day.”
She waved a hand at me. “Standing for one celebratory drink is perfectly possible.”
I glanced at Agatha, but the older woman merely lifted one shoulder with an unfamiliar twinkle in her eyes. I knew Agatha pretty well by now, but I’d never seen that look on her before. It was almost like she was bursting to do or say something, but we’d been in charge of today’s surprise, so it had to be my imagination.
“You know what, baby?” Colton slung his arm around my shoulders. “I think the stables are a great idea. They’ll be fine out there for a few minutes.”
“I’ll grab the drinks.” If no one else was worried, I wasn’t going to be either. He stopped me when I tried to move away from him to go to the kitchen. “I’ll come back for them in a minute. Let’s go.”
I frowned up at him. “It’s much easier to get it now and take it all out with us.”
“Would you just come to the stables with me please?” Amusement and fake exasperation shone in his eyes, but there was something darker in them as well. It looked a lot like worry, but that couldn’t be right.
Right?
My heartrate sped up, but as soon as I caught sight of the stables, it started racing for a whole different reason. Fairy lights hung from every beam and a table with a silver bucket on it had been set up outside.
“What is this?” I asked. “When did you have time to set up for celebratory drinks?”
“I didn’t have a meeting this afternoon,” he said, letting go of my hand when we got to the table. “I dropped you off and then came back here to do all this. Although that’s a lie. I didn’t do it all by myself.”
Kayla and Layla stepped out from behind the wall on either side of the barn doors, drawing my gaze farther inside. While the beams were covered with fairy lights twinkling as it became dusk, the floors were covered in flower petals.
There were also easels set up in front of each stall, a different photograph of Colton and me printed on a canvas set on each one. A framed copy of the article he had written was on the easel at the end, positioned so that it faced us in the middle of the walkway.
Colton took my hand and led me into the barn. Kayla and Layla both grinned, let out excited little squeals, and ran back to join Madelyn and Agatha, who had taken seats at the table.
“What is this?” I asked again. “Why did you come back to do all this?”
“I couldn’t exactly write another article asking you to marry me. That’s so overdone, don’t you think? Grand romantic gestures being published in the newspaper?”
My hands started shaking. “You’re asking me to marry you?”
He walked around so he was standing in front of me, then pulled a small, velvet box out of his pocket before lowering himself down on one knee. His eyes came to mine as he opened the box to reveal a gorgeous, vintage-looking ring with a mother of pearl inlaid on either side of a brilliant-cut diamond.
“Yep, I’m pretty sure I’m asking you to marry me,” he said. “Haven, baby, I love you. You gave me back hope when I thought all was lost. You forgave me for being an asshole when I wasn’t even sure I could forgive myself. You’ve managed to turn my house into a home and my home into a place filled with life and laughter.”
He took both of my hands in one of his. “I want to have my family again with you. Because of you. You once told me to do better, to be better. I didn’t know it was you saying those things to me at the time, but you still made me want to do just that. I will strive to do better every day for the rest of my life, to be better for you. Will you marry me?”
“Yes.” The word came out in a choked whisper, and my vision was blurred with tears, but I got down onto my knees with him and tried again. “Yes. A million times yes. I love you, too. I want all those things too, and I want them all with you.”
The End
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My brother is an idiot—he’s getting married.
And I’m
in charge of getting things together since our folks are gone.
Lucky me. The guy who thinks love is for the birds and worn-out 80s songs.
I honestly don’t have time for this drama. I run a billion-dollar company, have women to entertain, and am working on my plans to rule the world.
No, seriously.
And yet, when you least expect it, life kicks you in the balls.
The beautiful, snarky woman that runs the flower shop is perfect to help me pull off this wedding.
Just seeing her sends my head spinning with possibilities.
She’s perfect. To play my fake wife for an event I have coming up as a side deal.
My ex-wife will be at the event, and I sure could use someone to show her how well I’ve done since she ripped out my soul.
So my curvy new friend gets my ring and a chunk of my wallet before agreeing to the deal.
Funny thing is, I’m not so interested in taking it back by the end of the adventure.
I’m willing to go all in on what might be the best decision of my life.
And I’m demanding the same of her. No maybes. No I-don’t-knows.
No fear of what might be or might not be.
Open your pretty pink lips and utter the words.
Say you do.
I gotta have this!
Enjoy that? I hope so!
If you need some sexy fun with a good side of laughter, pick up book 1 in my stand-alone series, The Business of Love!