* * * *
Naja closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She was so nervous she felt nauseous. Once she’d composed herself enough to get out of the car, she opened the door. She made her way through the parking lot and stepped inside the restaurant. Her breath caught in her throat at the sight of Sterling standing there. If it were possible, he’d gotten more handsome since she’d last seen him a week ago. Instead of the casual beach clothes she’d become used to, he wore a buttoned down shirt and a pair of slacks. The facial hair still adorned his face, but it’d had clearly been groomed. He was absolutely gorgeous.
The corners of his mouth curved upward. He held out his hand to her and her steps quickened. When she was within arms reached, he pulled her into his embrace. “Hello, beautiful.”
She didn’t get a chance to respond due to his mouth covering hers briefly. When he lifted his head she sighed.
“Hi,” she murmured.
He released her then turned toward the hostess. “We’re ready.”
The hostess bowed then led them into the restaurant. Naja could barely focus on the beauty of it from being so preoccupied at being in Sterling’s presence. Up until the point she’d spotted him, she’d wondered if it was all a dream. This was definitely not a hallucination.
Once they reached the table, Sterling held out her chair so she could sit. She ordered hot green tea in the hopes it’d settle her nerves. After their drinks had been placed in front of them and their food orders taken, Naja stared across the table at the man she hadn’t expected to see again. But she was grateful for the opportunity.
“So, how have you been?”
Naja opened her mouth to respond, but no sound came out. She couldn’t do this any longer. Trying to hold back had become exhausting. “I’ve missed you, Sterling.”
The smile spreading across his face was heartwarming.
“I’ve missed you as well.”
She closed her eyes briefly. “I’m scared to death of the things you make me feel.”
“Considering what I’ve told you of my past, do you think I’m not?”
Sterling reached across the table and took her hand in his. “Naja, I can’t swear to you everything will be perfect. I can’t even promise everything will work out between us. What I can assure you is I’ll be the man you need, want and desire every day you give me the opportunity to be. There’s something between us that can’t be denied and I want to explore it to the very end.”
She squeezed his hand fleetingly. “You make my heart race when you say things like that. I’m so afraid of being hurt again—”
“Naja, I—”
“But I’m even more frightened of the loneliness I’ve felt in the week I’ve been away from you. Like you, I don’t know where this will go, but I want to find out.”
“You don’t know how glad I am to hear that.”
She gave him a small smile. “Be patient with me, Sterling.”
“I will and you have to do the same with me.”
“Shall we kiss on it?”
He chuckled. “It would be my pleasure.”
Epilogue
A year later
Naja stretched slowly, yawning as she shifted in the bed. She didn’t want to get out of bed and fortunately she didn’t have to. As of yesterday she was officially on vacation. She looked forward to taking a break to the madness otherwise known as her life.
“Are you up yet, sleepy head?”
She smiled at the sound of Sterling’s voice. “Nope, just getting comfortable so I can get another hour or two of rest.”
“If you do that it will put us severely behind schedule for meeting Imani and Carson for lunch.”
She exhaled heavily, opening her eyes just a bit to squint against the bright sun. “You should’ve thought about that before you kept me up half of the night with your lusty demands.”
He chuckled. “You didn’t appear to be complaining all that much last night.”
“What can I say? I was under the influence.”
“I just bet you were. I’m going to go get breakfast started. You should have enough time to grab a quick shower if you want before you join me.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
She slid from underneath the sheet and headed for the bathroom. As much as she wanted to lounge around in bed she was anxious to see her sister. Naja hadn’t seen Imani her and Carson had come to Raleigh three months ago to share the news of their engagement.
She was happy for her older sibling. Carson made Imani happy and the two of them completed each other, in the same way she and Sterling did. Their age difference hadn’t made a bit of difference. If anything, it seemed to add to the layers of their relationship. Sterling had just the right amount of maturity she needed, but he also had a wicked sense of humor to balance it out. In other words, he’d proven himself to be all the man she needed.
She shuddered to think she’d almost passed up on the opportunity to have him in her life. Flipping the switch on in the bathroom, she made her way over to the sink. Studying her reflection in the mirror, she smiled. There was a spark in her eyes that hadn’t left since the moment she’d invited Sterling to be a part of it. Life was better than it’d had ever been and she looked forward to seeing what the future held.
Turning on the water, she closed her eyes and leaned over the sink. She splashed water on her face a few times before reaching for a drying towel. After wiping the water from her eyes, she checked her reflection once more and screamed. Jumping as the sound reached her ears, she squeezed her lips and eyes shut. A few moments later she opened one eye, then the other.
Nope. Nothing had changed.
She lost track of how long she stood there staring at her image before she smiled. Her smile turned into laughter and her laughter to tears of happiness. She dropped the towel and ran out of the bathroom in search of Sterling.
He sat on the edge of the bed, grinning like a loon. She threw herself at him and he caught her without hesitation, allowing her momentum to carry them both back onto the bed.
“I take it that you like it?”
She grasped his face between her palms. “Like it? I love it! I love you!”
Lowering her head, she pressed her lips passionately to his, kissing him with everything she had until she needed to come up for air. Once she did, he brushed her untamed hair out of her face.
“I love you, too, Naja, and I hope you will do me the honor of becoming my wife.”
Tears sprang into Naja’s eyes and she bit her lip to keep it from trembling. The engagement ring sprinkling on her hand twinkled brightly in the well-lit room. How he’d managed to get it on her finger while she was asleep she’d never know. Nor did she care. All that mattered was he’d kept his promise. There wasn’t a day when she’d regretted giving him a chance.
Nodding frantically, she whispered, “Yes.”
This time Sterling who initiated the kiss. It was tender and loving in a way that only he could be. When she lifted her head, she laughed.
“You know, on the way here, I thought to myself there is no way this vacation could top last year’s.”
One of his brows rose high on his forehead. “I assume you’ve changed your mind about that.”
“Oh, most definitely. I have a feeling this is going to be one hot summer.”
He chuckled. “Good thing I like it hot.”
The End
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Stephanie Morris enjoys creating a story that combines a sensual energy with a captivating storyline. Sometimes her heroines have an edgier persona to them and sometimes they are of a softer essence. But all the time, her heroines are like real women, just trying to make a living and keep on going no matter what challenges life brings them. In Stephanie’s opinion, there is nothing like curling up with a good book that you can’t put down, and she is addicted to writing them.
http://www.stephaniemorris.webs.com
Hot Summer Anthology
One Hot Summer Anthology Page 18