Lucas: An Army Wives Novel
Page 14
“Isla, look at me,” Lucas said, waiting for me to turn my head towards him, before continuing. As I looked into those blue eyes I adored so much, he leaned across the table to place his hands on the sides of my face, just as he had before our first kiss. “This was never about the custody case. At least, not for me. I have to marry you because I can no longer imagine my life without you in it.”
Tears glistened in my eyes, and when I smiled, one slipped past my lashes and splashed down my cheek. “You mean it?”
“I do,” he said, his tone solemn.
“What about the fireworks?” I asked, grinning up at him.
Lucas stood from the table and tugged me up and into his arms. He pressed his mouth against my ear. “Baby, you want fireworks, and I’ll give you fireworks.”
I shivered at his suggestive growl and my body ached for him all over again.
My hands wandered up the front of his loose t-shirt, but before I could get too carried away, an explosion rocked me. I jerked to look towards the source of the sound and saw a blue and red circle bursting across the night sky. “Lucas?”
I turned to look back and he got down on one knee right beside the table. My hands flew to cover my mouth. “Oh my God,” I squealed, the sound muffled by my hands and the sound of three more fireworks bursting in the sky behind me.
And there, under the flashing light of the fireworks, Lucas opened a small, black box, to reveal a vintage diamond ring. His eyes met mine, and in a voice thick with emotion, he asked, “Isla Jenkins, you are the love of my life. Will you marry me?”
“Yes!” I knelt down and wrapped my arms around his neck. “Lucas, yes!”
He chuckled as he struggled to get me to hold still long enough to slip the ring on my finger. It was the perfect moment, shared with the perfect man.
“You really are a prince,” I said, smiling as I quoted Lily.
A new wave of tears slipped past my lashes and I knew Lucas was all I needed for a happily ever after ending.
Epilogue
Lucas
“Where’s the birthday girl?” Isla asked, sidling up to me at the park bench.
I followed her eyes as she scanned the playground and we both spotted Lily, decked out in her new bright pink fairy dress, as she held court at the top of the slide with a handful of other kids from her preschool. “Looks like she’s having fun,” I said, wrapping an arm around Isla’s waist. She nodded, but sucked in her bottom lip. I squeezed her hip a little tighter against me. “It’s okay, baby.”
“I know,” she said, nodding again, her voice thick. She looked up at me and laid her head on my chest and my suspicion was confirmed at the glisten in her dark eyes. “It’s just…I can’t believe she’s five. She’ll be in kindergarten in a few months, and I know she’s ready. But I don’t know if I am.”
“Probably doesn’t help that she’s all of a sudden in a hurry to grow up. Mostly thanks to her aunts and uncles.” At my comment, my eyes found each of my siblings. Ben was tossing the football with Miles fifty paces from the edge of the playground. The two of them had struck up something of a friendship over the holiday visits and I knew they stayed in touch over social media. Miles was a wild horse, but I trusted him with my life, and to make sure my brother stayed out of trouble.
Well, at least, too much trouble.
Spencer was running the sound for the party, and was playing some of his mixes from the table at the opposite end of the sheltered picnic area from his laptop and the sound equipment he’d loaned out from a buddy. Colton and Karena were under the covering as well, keeping baby Rose out of the high afternoon sun, and talking together—probably about baby Rose, the center of their universe. As I was watching, Colton leaned in and sneaked a kiss from his bride and my heart warmed.
Damn if I wasn’t turning into a softy.
Emmie and Lottie were playing basketball with a couple of their friends that they’d invited to the party. It was fun to watch the girls take on some of the boys they usually cheered on from the sidelines. And, hell, they were kicking some ass.
Carrie and her new boyfriend, Dale, were down by the pond. The birthday party was my first introduction to Dale, but from what Carrie had told me, he was going to be a positive addition to our growing posse.
He even had his own car and a full time job.
“Whatcha thinkin’ about up there?”
I dragged my attention from the scene before me and down to the most beautiful part of it all.
Isla.
She could still make my heart stop with a smile.
“I was wishing that my mom could be here. It would have made her really happy to see us all like this,” I replied, my own throat getting tight with a rush of emotions. It was closing in on a year since she’d been gone. I knew it wouldn’t be an easy day to commemorate, but I was filled with peace knowing that everything had turned out all right.
“I’m sure she’s watching,” Isla replied, casting a glance up at the cloudless sky stretched above us, before popping up on the balls of her feet to press a kiss to my lips. “And she can see that she raised the most amazing man who serves his country and his family with passion, dedication, and unrelenting love.”
Her sweet words stunned me to silence and it was all I could do to keep from losing the grip on my own emotions.
“She’d be so proud,” Isla said, laying her head back against my chest. “I know I am.”
“Thanks baby.” I kissed the top of her head and held her as tightly as I could. “We make one hell of a team.”
~ THE END ~
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Acknowledgements
Thank you! We so appreciate our readers! Without you, our books wouldn’t need to exist. We truly appreciate each and every one of you. The words of kindness and support blow us away and we are truly grateful!
Thanks to all of our beta readers, street team, ARC readers and Facebook fans. You girls are the best!
And a very special thanks to our editor, Tina. Thank you for making our words and ideas make sense.
***Audra would also like to thank her handsome hubby who makes writing about happily ever after possible! (Yay Audra!!)
Copyright © 2016 BookBoyfriends Publishing LLC
About The Authors
Audra Cole lives in Portland, Oregon with her husband and three fur-babies, and she adores her eclectic city. When not glued to her keyboard, she enjoys reading, kickboxing, and unwinding with a nice glass of Moscato.
You can connect with Audra on Facebook and AudraCole.com!
KB Winters has an addiction to caffeine, tattoos and hard-bodied alpha males. The men in her books are very sexy, protective and sometimes bossy, her ladies are…well…bossier!
Living in sunny Southern California, the embarrassingly hopeless romantic writes every chance she gets!
When Audra asked KB to co-author her next books, KB was ecstatic! Together, they’ve penned their first collaboration, Colton, and have other exciting Army Wives titles on the way!
Audra and KB hope their stories take you away to Alpha-land where you can relax and enjoy!
You can connect with KB on Facebook and Twitter! And stop by at KBWinters.com!