Stronger

by Janet Nissenson

  Angela, in fact, had just returned to work on a part-time basis a couple of weeks ago, reluctantly leaving six-month old Dylan in the hands of a very competent nanny. The new mother had confided to Cara that Nick had been rather ruthless when it had come time to hiring a nanny, grilling each applicant as though they were applying for a job with the CIA instead of looking after a baby. He’d rejected the first ten applicants, before they had finally agreed on one, though Angela had also mentioned that Nick was watching the newly hired nanny like a hawk.

  Leah had left the team to work with another top broker in the office, eliminating the tension and bickering that had always occurred between her and Tyler. Cara worked alongside of him these days, and he’d confessed that his marriage was much stronger now that he and Leah weren’t constantly together. The PA whom Cara had trained to take over her duties - a recent Stanford graduate who was the younger sister of one of Angela’s former collegiate volleyball teammates - completed their team.

  Because work had been so demanding these last few months for both of them, Cara and Dante hadn’t been able to take a real vacation since last spring, save for a few long weekends when he’d taken her to places like Palm Springs, Las Vegas, and Vancouver. But now that Angela was back to work for a few hours each day, Cara had finally stopped feeling guilty about taking a whole week off.

  She and Dante had arrived on the Caribbean island of St. Lucia just yesterday, and her jaw had dropped at her first sight of the luxury resort they would be staying at for the next week. She’d thought that the Jade Mountain Resort had to be the most beautiful place on the face of the earth, with not one but two beaches and a coral reef just offshore of the property. Their open-air suite had its own private infinity pool, and was equipped with every amenity one could desire, with the exception of a TV. The on-site restaurant provided three delicious meals a day, and there were a variety of activities offered - hiking and biking trails, a fitness center, yoga classes, tennis, scuba diving, and a host of others. But what Cara was most looking forward to was simply relaxing on the beach, or alongside their private pool as they were right now.

  “Mmm, a girl could get used to this sort of thing,” she purred, stretching luxuriously on her own padded lounger. “Private pool, luxury suite, even a butler to bring us drinks at the push of a button. And the weather is perfect, not too hot or humid, and with just the right amount of breeze.”

  Dante grinned, lowering his sunglasses to ogle her cleavage. “Not to mention a perfect woman. You look fantastic in that bikini, honey. Did I tell you that red’s definitely your color?”

  Cara glanced down at the bright scarlet bathing suit that barely covered her body. “At least once a week, I think. And this bikini had better look good, considering how much you paid for it. Geez, two hundred dollars is highway robbery for these little bits of fabric. Do you realize how far I used to be able to stretch that much money?”

  His grin faded to a scowl. “Don’t remind me, okay? Every time I think about how hard you had to work, how many little things you went without, it pisses me off. That father of yours - he never deserved a daughter like you, Cara, and I hope one of these days he wakes up and realizes how badly he treated you.”

  “Shh.” She placed a finger over his lips. “And you shouldn’t remind me about my father. Look, all of that’s in the past now, so we should let it stay there. Especially this week, when we’re here in paradise.”

  “Agreed.” Dante took her hand in his, pressing a kiss to the palm. “You’re already getting a tan,” he observed, running a finger along the low-cut neckline of the bikini top. “Too bad you won’t sunbathe naked like I suggested. That way you wouldn’t have tan lines.”

  “I don’t think so,” replied Cara primly. “There’s no way you’re going to convince me that those kayakers out there can’t see us up here. Besides, what’s the point of paying two hundred bucks for a bikini if I don’t wear it? And this is just one of the five you bought me for this trip, along with all of the other clothes and stuff. Did I tell you that you really went overboard with the gift giving at Christmas?”

  “Ah, that reminds me.” He set his nearly empty drink down on the glass-topped table that separated their loungers, before swinging his legs over the side. “Be right back.”

  Cara felt far too lazy to look back and see where he was going, content to merely lay against the plush cushion of the lounger and let the warm Caribbean sun wash over her face and body. She hadn’t realized until now how much she’d needed this break, how hard she’d been pushing herself at the office these past few months. It was going to be hell to go back in a week’s time, especially since it was the dead of winter in San Francisco, with a near-record amount of rainfall already.

  ‘Why are you even thinking about leaving when you’ve just arrived,’ she scolded herself. ‘And especially with all of these incredible views. Like this one, for example.’

  Dante returned to his lounger, a mysterious grin on his handsome face. He was so gorgeous, she thought with a sigh, more so than ever clad in just a pair of light blue cotton swim trunks that showed off his tanned, buff body to perfection. He hadn’t shaved today, and he looked more dark and dangerous than normal with the stubble that covered his cheeks and chin. Cara licked her lips as her gaze traveled down his taut abs to where she knew he’d already be semi-aroused.

  “Tsk, tsk,” he scolded, wagging a finger at her. “None of those looks right now, okay? You know, we did just get out of bed less than three hours ago. And since I’m so much older than you are, I need some time to rest up and recover in between.”

  Cara snorted in derision. “Oh, yeah, you’re so old. In fact, I didn’t want to mention it, but I’m pretty sure I saw a few gray hairs on your head last night. As far as resting up, give me a break. All I’d have to do is drop my top and you’d be good to go for at least an hour.”

  Dante grinned, swinging his legs around the side of the lounger so that he was sitting up facing her. “Tell you what. You drop that top and I’ll start my stopwatch.”

  But as she teasingly began to untie the strings around her neck, he stilled her hand, causing her to quirk a brow. “Changed your mind already?” she teased.

  “Just putting that idea - a really, really good idea, by the way - on hold for a few minutes. There’s something I want to ask you, Cara mia. Something I’ve been wanting to ask you for awhile now. And I’m well aware that my nosy ass family was very, very disappointed that I didn’t ask you this in time for Christmas last month. But that was very intentional on my part. I love my family to pieces, but there are certain times when they just need to butt out. I knew we’d be making this trip here, and I wanted it to be just the two of us when I asked you this very important question.”

  Cara’s heartrate had begun to accelerate the moment he’d told her he had something to ask her. ‘Oh, God, oh, God,’ she thought wildly. ‘Do not jump to conclusions, Cara, do not dare. Because for all you know what he has to ask you has absolutely nothing to do with what you think it does, and you’re going to feel like a fool for even imagining it. So don’t…’

  Dante withdrew a small black velvet box from the pocket of his swim trunks, then flipped open the lid to reveal a dainty but dazzling little ring inside. It looked, she thought with a gulp, as though it would be the perfect size and shape for someone with hands as small as hers.

  “Cara.” Dante’s voice was hoarse, maybe even a little unsteady as he took hold of her left hand. “Cara mia - my darling. Would you marry me? Please? Because if you don’t say yes, my grandmother will never let me hear the end of it. Not to mention the fact that it would break my heart. And I know you’re too sweet and kind and wonderful to even think of doing something that cruel. So, will you be my wife, Cara? Spend the rest of your life with me? Well, me and my nosy family, that is.”

  She placed her free hand over her heart, as though she could still its frantic beating that way. “Yes,” was all she whispered, but it was all the
answer he needed. Tears were falling from her lashes as she flung herself at him, the two of them tumbling onto his lounger as their lips met in a long, searching kiss that told him everything else she wasn’t able to put into words just yet.

  He slid the beautiful little ring onto her engagement finger, nodding in satisfaction when it proved a perfect fit. “I had to guess about the size since you never wear rings,” he explained. “We can bring it back to the jewelers if it needs any adjusting.”

  Cara shook her head, studying the stunning, square cut diamond solitaire on its slender platinum band. “It’s perfect just like it is. And I love it, Dante. I love you.”

  They cuddled together on the lounger for a time, content to simply bask in the tropical sunlight and marvel at what had just happened.

  Cara broke the peaceful silence first. “Shouldn’t we call your mother and tell her the good news? I’m guessing it would take just the one phone call, and your entire family would know within ten minutes.”

  “It wouldn’t even take that long,” he retorted. “But to answer your first question, the answer is no. The minute my family and our friends know we’re engaged they’ll start hounding us about wedding plans, bridal showers, registries, all that stuff.”

  She grinned. “Thanks to your grandmother’s Christmas gift to me, we already have a head start on the registry.”

  Dante gave a little eye roll. “Yeah, don’t remind me. Besides, I’d rather tell my mom and Nonna in person. So we can keep this news to ourselves for the rest of the week, and enjoy the last few days of sanity we’ll have for a very long time. We can also talk a little bit about the sort of wedding we want to have, since I guarantee you everyone else will be all too happy to share their opinions of how it should be.”

  Cara nodded. “I know exactly where I’d like to be married. I mean, if it’s okay with you, that is. The first time you brought me there I thought about what a wonderful place it would be for a wedding.”

  He smiled at her tenderly. “I’m guessing it wasn’t Pasquale’s. Or Tommy’s,” referring to the pizza joint and the sports bar he’d brought her to on some of their earlier dates.

  She wrinkled her nose. “Uh, your guess would be right. And you know exactly what place I’m referring to, Dante. You even told me once yourself what a perfect location it would make for a wedding.”

  “The winery next to the family restaurant,” he confirmed. “And I couldn’t agree with you more, honey. But are you sure that’s okay with you? It isn’t the fanciest location. If you’d rather get married at a big hotel like Angela and Nick did, that would be fine with me.”

  Cara shook her head. “No. I couldn’t think of a more perfect spot to be married - outdoors among all those gorgeous oak trees, with that old stone farmhouse in the background, all of your family and our friends around us. And Labor Day weekend, I think. If we can make all of the arrangements by then, of course.”

  Dante snorted. “This is my family’s place we’re talking about, honey. And if my family gets involved with the planning - which they will, like it or not - we could have all of the arrangements made by Valentine’s Day if we really wanted to. Which, by the way, is not such a bad idea. You could wear a red dress if we got married then.”

  She socked him on the arm, a bit too hard to be considered playful. “I am not wearing red at my own wedding,” she insisted.

  He rubbed his sore arm. “I was just kidding. Besides, one of my top two fantasies of all time is seeing you walk down the aisle towards me wearing a beautiful white gown.”

  “Really? What’s the second one?”

  Dante gave her an unholy grin as he deftly untied her bikini top, baring her breasts to his eager gaze. “Watching you sunbathe naked.”

  The End

  Dear Readers,

  This does, in fact, mark the end - not just of this particular book, but of the entire Inevitable series. I can hardly believe that it’s been nearly four whole years since the release of Serendipity, my very first book and the first in this series.

  I’ve loved creating these characters, and making them come to life. To me, they often feel like real people, like longtime friends, rather than just characters in a book I’ve imagined. I know that for some readers the stories have seemed too long, too detailed, at times, but it was vital for me that in creating these characters I was able to truly make them seem alive. And doing that required perhaps far more details that some readers are used to seeing in a book nowadays, but I’ve never been one to compromise my standards or what I believe is crucial to a story.

  I’ll be embarking on a brand new trilogy next, each book a standalone but connected to the other two, and will have more news on this over the next few months.

  And for those of us who just can’t get enough of the characters we’ve come to know (and hopefully love!) in the Inevitable books, I do have some exciting news to share! I’ll be releasing a holiday-themed anthology featuring each of the couples from the series. The anthology will be a free read, available to my newsletter subscribers, so if you aren’t already on the list, please head over to my website and sign up. I’ll also be posting more information on the anthology and how to sign up for the newsletter on my Facebook page.

  I cannot express how much I appreciate all of the kind words of support and encouragement I’ve received from readers, reviewers, and bloggers over the past four years. It has been your support that’s kept me going over the years, especially during times when I received a negative review, or didn’t get invited to an author event, or simply hit a writing slump. I hope to continue creating these amazing, vital characters and their stories to share with all of you for a long time to come.

  Please be sure to keep in touch! I try to be as responsive as possible with answering emails, messages, etc., and love to interact with readers, bloggers, and other authors.

  Happy reading!

  Janet

  Email – janetnissenson@gmail.com

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  ADDITIONAL TITLES BY THIS AUTHOR

  The Inevitable Series:

  Serendipity (Book #1 – Julia and Nathan’s story)

  Splendor (Book #2 – Tessa and Ian’s original story)

  All You Need is Love (Book #1.5 – the Serendipity sequel)

  Shattered (Book #3 – Angela and Nick’s story)

  Sensational (Book #4 – Lauren and Ben’s story)

  Serenity (Book #5 – Sasha and Matthew’s story)

  Stronger (Book #6 – Cara and Dante’s story)

  The Splendor Trilogy:

  Covet (Book #1)

  Crave (Book #2 – same book as Splendor [Inevitable #2] but with a dozen new/additional scenes)

  Claim (Book #3)