Mia blinked at him. He’d talked to his dad. He wanted to do the merger. He was standing there telling her he loved her.
She couldn’t wrap her mind around it.
“Maybe I should have run that by you first, but I just…I read through it, and I knew it was right. You and the farm, it’s right. More right than giving a shit what my dad thinks.”
She tried to swallow at the lump in her throat. He’d realized it. All on his own. She wanted to wrap her arms around his neck and squeeze and never let go, but something held her back. Fear or uncertainty or just being blown away by everything.
“If you don’t love me, that’s okay. Just…give me a chance to show you that you could. That’s all.”
“I do love you.” Her voice was little more than a squeak, but she said it. The relief on his face made her want to touch him, but she couldn’t. Not yet. Not yet.
“You do?”
“Yeah.”
“Okay.” He grinned. “That’s good.” Hesitantly, he took her hand in his. “So, I love you and you love me. And we can just erase the past few days and me being an idiot and move on from this point.”
Mia took a deep breath, looked at their joined hands. “I believe in you, Dell. I think we could do great things together, but…”
His hand squeezed against hers. “But what?”
She had to look him in the eye when she finished. Had to. Even though everything in her screamed to hide, she absolutely had to meet his gaze. She steeled herself and met his eyes. “You have to believe in yourself. I can’t fight your dad. Or Charlie or anyone you think believes you’re not capable or smart or everything you are.”
“Kind of funny I’m having to be told to believe in myself from you.”
Mia smiled, leaned her cheek to his hand. “Eh, it seems about right. I’m becoming an expert.”
He leaned his forehead to hers. “I get it. Took me a while, but I do.” He squeezed their joined hands. “Let’s do it, Mia. Let’s do the merger, let’s do us. Let’s take what we deserve and screw what anyone else thinks.”
It was everything she wanted. How could she say no? “Yeah, let’s do exactly that.” When he pressed his mouth to hers, she was confident they would.
Epilogue
Dell pushed the last pallet into the truck. Spring was just springing and this new season of the market was the first time he and Mia weren’t just sharing a ride; they were sharing a business.
Pruitt Morning Sun Farms’s stand was ready for its first season at the market. Dell couldn’t help but grin. A year ago, Mia had been a blip on his radar. Now, well, he patted his pocket. Now, she was a hell of a lot more.
He climbed into the truck, and then just sat there, a weird nervousness battling it out in his gut.
“Going to start the truck?”
He glanced at Mia, who had her hair back in a ponytail and her big black framed glasses on. She hadn’t been able to wear her contacts all week after somehow managing to scratch her actual eyeball.
Damn, but he loved her.
“In a sec.”
“What are we waiting for?”
“Kind of a big occasion. Our first official market as Pruitt Morning Sun.”
She smiled and took his hand. “Yeah, I guess it is a pretty big deal. No battle of the sexes this year. No competition.”
Dell pulled her hand to his mouth and kissed her palm. “Hopefully no hail or drought, either.”
“Oh, don’t jinx it.”
Dell rolled his eyes, but the nerves in his gut didn’t let him get too cocky about it. “You know, speaking of mergers…”
“Were we?” She laughed.
Dell took his hand from hers and moved to his pocket. If he could wait to toss his breakfast until he got through with this, that’d be great. He pulled out the little gold band with a really little diamond on top and held it out to her.
She stared at it, comically open-mouthed. He moved it back and forth so the light danced on the diamond.
“That’s a ring.” Her voice was little more than a whisper.
“An engagement ring, at that.”
“An…” She trailed off, breaking her gaze at the ring to look at him. She swallowed, both visibly and audibly. “Engagement ring?”
He nodded. “I was thinking we needed to totally merge. Business. Us. Makes sense.” His voice was casual, but the next words were a little harder to be casual over. “So, Mia, will you marry me?”
She blinked and then nodded emphatically.
“Oh, don’t cry.”
She sniffled. “I’m sorry. Girls get to cry when they’re proposed to.” Over the console, she leaned into his shoulder. “Dell.”
He kissed her temple, wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “I love you, Mia.”
She sniffled again. “I love you, too.” She looked up. “Well, don’t I even get a little bit of a kiss?”
He laughed. “Hold on. I’m trying to breathe again.”
Mia couldn’t stop staring at it. She wouldn’t have cared if it was the most hideous thing on the planet, but it was perfect. A little gold band with a diamond set in it. She could even wear it while she worked without worrying about it.
Dell pulled the truck into the parking lot. “You know, you will have to stop staring at it long enough to work today.”
She gave his side a little jab. “It’s perfect.”
He smiled, pleased with himself. Mia leaned over and kissed him until someone started rapping on the window. She wrinkled her nose at Cara.
“Stop being gross,” Cara yelled through the closed door. “I didn’t wake up this early to have to watch that.”
Mia pushed the door open, unable to stop grinning. “Sorry.” She held out her left hand, jiggled the ring around in the light. “I was a little overcome.”
Cara’s screech had at least ninety percent of people’s heads turning her direction. “Oh, my God. Oh, my God! Oh, my God! You’re getting married!” Cara all but jumped up and down while holding Mia’s hand and examining the ring.
“And now the entire town knows.” Dell walked around the truck and opening the truck bed door.
Cara swatted him on the shoulder. “Good. They should. So, how’d you do it? Was it super romantic? Or super lame?”
“How about you help unload?”
Cara shook her head, turned back to Mia. “I need all the details. Every last one. Immediately.” She started pulling Mia toward the stand, then stopped abruptly. “Oh, man, now that you’re engaged are you going to let Dell take off his shirt?”
Mia grinned. “Actually, yes. Anna and I came up with a little plan for that.”
“Why am I suddenly very afraid?”
“Come here, sweetheart.” Mia crooked a finger at him. He followed but he shook his head.
“I have a terrible feeling about this.”
“Don’t worry. It won’t hurt a bit.” Slowly, maybe a bit slower than necessary, she unbuttoned his flannel shirt.
He leaned his mouth to her ear. “If the idea is to give me an erection, you’re succeeding, but I’m not sure what your end game is.”
Mia laughed, then shook her head. “Is that all you think about?”
“Occupies a lot of brain space, yes.”
Mia held out her hand and Anna slapped a paintbrush and tube of black paint into her palm. “You just sit still.” Carefully, she painted five large letters down Dell’s chest.
TAKEN.
He glanced down, and chuckled when he read it. “Taken, huh?”
“I’m too much of a businesswoman to let a prime opportunity like using the Naked Farmer to my advantage go.” She grinned. “But no touching allowed.”
“I see.” He shook his head. “I’m not sure how exploited I’m supposed to feel.”
“Well, you think about it and we can discuss it later when I wash the paint off.” She waggled her eyebrows until Dell laughed.
He leaned down, kissed her nose. “I guess it works. I am very much taken.”
/> “Good.” Mia looked down at her finger, couldn’t help but enjoy the little sparkle in the light. It symbolized a future, a promise. One that really could not be more perfect.
Maggie Wells is a deep-down dirty girl with a weakness for hot heroes and happy endings. By day she is buried in spreadsheets, but at night she pens tales of people tangling up the sheets. The product of a charming rogue and a shameless flirt, this mild-mannered married lady has a naughty streak a mile wide.
Fueled by supertankers of Diet Coke, Maggie juggles fictional romance and the real deal by keeping her slow-talking Southern gentleman constantly amused and their two children mildly embarrassed. They are the food purveyors to three dogs, a passel of fish and one impertinent house rabbit she claims is the love of her life. Shh. Don’t tell her husband.
You can find her online at www.maggie-wells.com; on Twitter, @maggiewells1; or on Facebook, www.facebook.com/authormaggiewells.
Light My Fire by Kristina Knight
Dedication
For Kyle, who understands my obsession with passion for classic rock. And for D’Ann, who stayed up waaaaay past her bedtime to brainstorm Adam Levine into book form.
Prologue
Nate Lansford watched the red carpet closely from the shadowed corner while he waited for his turn before the paparazzi and entertainment journalists. He hated this part of his job. Writing songs, entertaining arenas filled with people? That was the fun part. Standing on a red carpet while someone asked about his latest breakup or when he planned to settle down? Too invasive for his taste.
Especially when he had no plans to settle. There was only one woman who might make him consider it and she was fifty feet down the red carpet. His best friend’s little sister. His friend. Two Grand Canyon–sized reasons to keep up the playboy, bad-boy rocker image he’d perfected over the past ten years.
Lily MacIntyre posed, tilting her head down and smiling that crooked smile she’d never grown out of. He’d lost count of how many etiquette and poise instructors had tried to unhinge that smile from her, but Lily never changed. Tonight, her dirty-blonde hair was pulled up in a neat French twist, and while he knew the four-inch stiletto sandals had to be killing her pretty pink-painted toes, she didn’t show it. Her navy dress plunged just a little too low in the back, giving the photographers too much access to the cute dimple just above her curvy ass.
Nate crossed his arms over his chest, watching as she answered another question. She turned, giving him and the rest of North America a glimpse of one firm, tanned breast before sashaying down the carpet, completely at ease despite the fact that one slip would give the photogs a whole other image of her.
Damn, but he needed to get over this newfound infatuation with Lily. Marriage and kids destroyed relationships. He had to only look to his parents for confirmation of that. He wouldn’t risk the friendship he had with Lily—or her brother—for a few fun nights in the sack. Because felonious dress or not, Lily was a forever kind of girl.
It was so much simpler when she was still playing the part of Rayna, so much easier to pretend Lily was still seventeen. That she was only his best friend’s younger sister. Nate couldn’t put his finger on it, but somewhere between her show being cancelled and tonight everything changed. She wasn’t just his best friend’s baby sister. She had become the woman he couldn’t stop thinking about. Lily meant more to him than she should.
So damned much more.
Glancing over at Lily now, he caught the hesitation as one more question was tossed across the velvet rope barrier between the paps and the stars. She looked back, her complexion turning pale. Another question was heaved across and the slight pallor grew. Nate clenched his fists.
He knew what they were asking, and Lily didn’t deserve it. They’d been looking for a reason to tear her down for months. Since the cancellation of The Rayna Show. The press liked nothing better than to build up a celebrity and then bring them back to mere human level.
The event manager motioned toward him, letting him know he had a few more minutes to wait.
Two more questions were peppered across the barrier. They had her rattled and knew it.
Before he could talk himself out of it, Nate pushed past the manager and started down the carpet.
“Come on, Lily, one more smile, show Trey how little you miss him,” one of the photographers coaxed.
So he was right. Trey Williams, Lily’s former costar, had been hinting that she broke his heart and that was why he wouldn’t re-sign for another year on the show. Teenage girls across the country were up in arms that their favorite show was cancelled, and instead of putting the blame on the person who thought he could do better than a weekly sitcom, they preferred to heap their anger on Lily. The victim of Hollywood lies.
Nate put his arm around her shoulders and whispered, “Keep smiling, you’re almost through.”
The photographers turned their attention to Nate. “What gives, Nate? Are you the reason Lily dropped Trey?”
He grinned and dropped his arm from Lily’s shoulders to her waist, squeezing gently. “From what I heard, there was nothing to drop. Trey wanted off the show, so he didn’t sign the contract. You can’t fault Lily for his actions.”
“So you’re playing publicist now?” The photographer, a balding man who had reported for a number of Hollywood magazines over the years, wouldn’t give up.
“Nah, I saw a pretty lady on the red carpet and couldn’t stay away.” He turned his attention to Lily and shot her a come-hither look. “How you doin’, Lil?”
She giggled, and just like that, she had the carpet back under control. “I do just fine, you rock-and-roll Lothario.” She playfully pushed him away, but he grabbed her hand, leading her down the carpet as flashbulbs popped and more questions were peppered at them.
Two hours later, the awards show was over and Nate fielded the last question from the meet and greet following the event. He offered a wave to the crowd of reporters and slipped from the room into his limo.
And froze.
“Lily.”
She sat in a corner of the seat, legs curled under her, mascara streaked over her cheeks.
“Hi.” She waved her hand toward the windows. “My limo was…gone. And that photographer kept hounding me.” She wiped her cheeks with the back of her hand. “And then I saw your driver and decided to hide out here for a little while.”
“I’ll take you home.”
She smiled a watery smile. “Thanks. And I’m sorry. For all of this.”
Nate shrugged and tapped on the glass to signal the driver that he was ready to leave. They were quiet for a moment.
“You need to fight back, you know. Malibu and Beverly Hills etiquette won’t help with a guy like Trey. He’s making you the scapegoat for the show’s cancellation.”
Lily shrugged, and moonlight caught her pale skin through the rear window. “It will just sound like I’m making excuses. I wanted off the show just as badly as he did. The networks and producers know that. I can handle the storm.”
“Like you did tonight?” She didn’t reply, so Nate pushed. “They had you rattled. You didn’t know what to say or where to look. You were frozen to the carpet and they swarmed like the vipers they are.”
He reached across the backseat, pushing a lock of her hair behind her ear. His fingertip grazed her smooth skin and fire lit in his veins. Nate ignored the burn.
“Don’t.” Her words were a whisper, but still loud in the back of the limo.
“Don’t, what?”
Finally she looked at him, her deep brown eyes molten in the darkness. “Don’t be my brother’s best friend tonight. Don’t be my cheerleader. Just…” Her hand trembled against his on the cool leather seat. “I’m not America’s favorite sixteen-year-old any longer. I don’t need to pretend I’m still sixteen, and the magazines are already burning me at Trey’s sacrificial altar, so why not send that old image up in flames all the way?”
She leaned across the seat, brushed her sweet lips across h
is cheek, and Nate nearly lost it. He was holding on by a thread. This was Lily.
The same girl he’d grown up with. The Lily who’d brought him home after school because she noticed he hadn’t eaten lunch for three days. The Lily who cheered for him at the high school talent show. The Lily who couldn’t really want him, because if she did…he would ruin her.
Nate groaned when her lips brushed against his. A bit of her hair had come loose from the sleek updo and brushed against his neck, fanning that trickle of flame even hotter.
Her hand traced the line of his jaw, and Nate’s resistance burned to the ground. He pushed her back into the corner and dug his hands into her hair. “You don’t know what you’re asking for.”
She panted. “I know exactly what I want, Nate Lansford, and what I want is you.”
Nate lowered his lips to hers, tasting the sweetness of her lips for the first time. Her tongue tangled with his, pushing him further, asking him for more. And Nate gave it.
When Lily arched her back, Nate reached for her breast, feeling her nipple pucker beneath the fine silk of her dress. She moaned, a tiny sound, but it was enough to pull him back into the present.
What was he doing? This was Lily. The girl who made him want to be more than the kid from the wrong side of Malibu’s tracks. His friend.
He couldn’t mess that up.
Nate pushed away from her, fisting his hands in his hair as he tried to put a few more inches between them. The back of the limo was too tight. He was too close to Lily. He needed air. Space.
Distance.
“I’m sorry.” His voice was rough. “That shouldn’t have happened.”
“Don’t. Don’t put that friends-first excuse out there. I don’t want any more friends—”
“I know. You want the bad boy. The guy who will push all the lies and innuendo from Trey into the background.” She blanched at that, and Nate wanted to apologize. Lily didn’t deserve that; things had been…tense between them for months. But he couldn’t back down. Couldn’t apologize because he wasn’t sure he could regain control if she offered him one more taste of her sweet lips. He hit a button on the side panel and the limo pulled to the side of the road. “Larry will make sure you get home. And we’ll just forget this ever happened.”
Harlequin E Contemporary Romance Box Set Volume 2: Maid to CraveAll I HaveThe Last First DateLight My Fire Page 43