Smiles By Trials (Rays of Sunshine Book 2)

by Leonard,Jewel E.

“So.” He folded his hands over hers.

  When Rhea orchestrated their reunion in her daydreams, she imagined the passionate stripping of two lovers in romance movies, with clothing hanging from ceiling fan blades, lingerie strewn across the floor in a trail leading to the bedroom, followed by sex too hot for Cinemax 2 AM pornography.

  Reality was two adults too shy to make the first move for whatever ridiculous reason.

  “Here we are. Alone. And engaged to each other. Together, physically. In the same room.” She kissed his neck.

  “I can’t help thinking there’s something we should be doing . . .” Adam released her hands and turned to face her, fishing around in his right pocket.

  “Don’t tell me you’ve got another diamond solitaire ‘cause I’m really rather fond of the one you already gave me.” It was probably half a carat, maybe a little more, mounted in a simple white gold setting. It sparkled like a Twilight vampire’s chest.

  “Not a back-up solitaire, no, but something else I know you wanted me to give you.” Adam produced another jewelry box.

  “Oh what the hell is this?” she gasped.

  He handed it to her. “See for yourself.”

  Rhea popped open the palm-sized blue velvet box and burst out laughing. “This is so not what I meant by wanting you to give me a pearl necklace. But oh my God, I love it. Thank you so much!”

  “I know it’s not what you meant,” Adam replied, tilting his head with a large smile. “But it was so worth seeing your reaction.” He helped her secure the pearl strand against the nape of her neck. “It’ll do for now ‘til I can give you the type you meant. Until then . . .” He produced a condom packet from his other pocket. “Lots more where this came from so we’d better start using them.”

  “Oh. Um, well . . . We’re engaged now and I’ve still got my IUD. So as far as I’m concerned, that’s extraneous.”

  Adam’s face lit up and he flicked the foil packet off to the side. In a swift movement, he hoisted her into his arms. “Well then that’s more cause for celebration.”

  Rhea wrapped her legs around his waist, clinging to him as he charged for her bedroom and fell atop her on the mattress.

  “Oh you think it was good before—” he kissed her all over her face, his lips traveling down to the side of her neck where he nibbled her. “Mmm, Sunshine, you ain’t seen nothing yet.”

  “Do you get off on commitment or something?” Rhea moaned as he slid a hand along her thigh, caressing her through her khakis.

  He snorted. “I get off on you. And you need to get the hell out of these pants.” He fumbled with their button and zipper.

  “Fine by me. I’ll do it.”

  Adam rolled off her and watched her remove her clothing. She was too eager to get the show on the road to bother with a sexy strip-tease. Maybe next time.

  “Aw, you didn’t go commando. A little birdy told me you were doing that now.”

  Rhea glanced at him wordlessly.

  “What?”

  No; this wasn’t the time to inquire about conversations he’d had with Brianna.

  “If I’d had my way, today would’ve been in the mid-seventies and I could’ve worn a certain yellow strappy sundress with a pearly lacey G-string.”

  Adam looked at her, deadpan. “You did not find an outfit like the one from my dream!”

  “No.” Rhea pouted. “But it wasn’t for lack of trying. I don’t think I’ve ever wanted to know how to sew that bad. Believe me, I’ll keep looking.”

  He smiled, pulling her into a brief kiss.

  She opened his denim pants and pulled them down. He was happy to see her and she wasn’t going by his expression to know it. His boxer briefs followed; since she was already on her knees in front of him, she took him into her mouth, watching as he reeled in sensation. She missed the taste of him, the weight and feeling of his balls as she caressed them.

  “Oh God Rhea I missed you—”

  After a couple minutes, Adam retreated, pulling her onto the bed with him.

  He kissed her on the lips as he shifted between her legs, slipping his hand between her thighs; he smiled against her mouth. “You really didn’t know I was here? You didn’t see the proposal coming?”

  “No, I didn’t know, I swear!”

  “But it was so obvious—”

  Rhea attempted a failed scowl. “Less yap, more sex.”

  He pulled her forward and sucked her breast into his mouth, playing with her barbell with his tongue as she rubbed up and down his bare member. He slipped a hand between them, repositioned himself and thrust into her with a moan.

  As he moved beneath her, she caressed her clit with her fingers and it didn’t take long before she came. No squirting this time, not that it was a competition.

  And then, so did he—stamina, it appeared, waned where excitement waxed.

  They kissed briefly and Rhea dismounted to catch her breath. She rolled onto her side to face him, entwining her legs with his and having to focus on him rather than the feeling of his seed leaking out of her. It wasn’t the most pleasant feeling in the world, though infinitely better than wearing jeans with a wet crotch on a freezing night.

  “Never done that without condoms,” Adam admitted, running his fingers through his hair. “I had no idea it would feel so good. Holy shit. Sorry I didn’t last; you feel—oh, you feel amazing. I’ll . . . I’ll work on lasting longer for you, I promise.”

  She laughed, caressing his chest. “I could tell how much you enjoyed it.” For her, there was no real discernible difference in the act without a condom beyond not having to stop sexual momentum for her lover to dress for the occasion. It would certainly be a fun thing to play with in the shower. Safely and slowly. No potential trip to the ER. Rhea smiled. “I have something I’ve been dying to tell you in person.”

  “Oh?”

  “I love you.”

  Adam sighed, caressing her face. “I love you, too. So much. I can’t wait to start our lives together.”

  Rhea’s smile fell. “That’s . . . gonna be a bit of a problem.”

  “What? How? Why?”

  “I’ve got a job here at a place I like. I just renewed my lease for another year.” And oh shit, Brianna.

  “Can’t you break it?” he asked with a pout.

  Rhea could. Her problem was that she didn’t relish returning to California.

  “Look,” she said, her voice soft to counter the hard reality of what was essentially a rejection. “We just got engaged. We have plenty of time to work this stuff out. Am I right?”

  “Yeah. Yeah, you’re right. And I knew—I know that.” Adam sighed. “I was kinda hoping I’d gotten here before you had the chance to renew your lease.”

  She decided a change of subject was in order. Rhea asked, “So how long are you staying here this time?”

  “Two weeks. Two weeks of lazy strolls hand-in-hand with you after you get home from work. Long hot nights in bed with you.” Adam kissed her on the lips. “Lots and lots of sex with you. In bed. In the shower. On the couch. Maybe against the kitchen counter? Your hotel room didn’t have one of those.”

  “Maybe against a window?” Rhea batted her eyelashes at him.

  “At night with the lights off and the curtain closed?”

  “I’ll break you down someday. I’m not giving up on that one.”

  He gave her an awkward smile. “Why don’t we start with your car in a deserted parking structure at night.”

  “That all sounds absolutely wonderful. So, um . . .” She hesitated. “Will you be visiting with your parents? You know, since you’re already here?”

  “I was planning on it and I want you to come with me this time.”

  “Of course.” Though she didn’t relish hanging out at a cemetery, she was thrilled he wanted her companionship this time.

  From the nightstand behind her, Rhea’s phone buzzed. She shifted to get it but thought better of doing so; anything and everything could wait until after Adam left for California.
/>
  “Go on, check. It might be important.”

  Rhea could’ve made the argument nothing was more important to her than he was. Instead, she twisted in her spot to grab the phone. When she turned back toward him, she felt the spot of their juices on her bedsheet against her butt and tried not to grimace. “It’s a text from Bri. She says to check Facebook. Okay . . .” Rhea switched between apps. “We’re both tagged in a post on Fevered Pitch’s page.”

  Adam replied, “We are? Why?”

  “Kim here,” Rhea read the post. “Fevered Pitch was so lucky to have been involved in the most amazing proposal today.” She bit her lip in a smile. “Mazel Tov to the newly engaged Rhea Josse and Adam L’amoreaux! Smiley emoji, smiley with hearts-for-eyes emoji, kissy-face emoji. If you were blessed to be with us at the Aurora Street Fair today and got pics or vid, please share and join us in sending our best wishes for a fruitful union to the happy couple.”

  Adam leaned in to see the update himself, all smiles. “When was it posted?”

  “Five minutes ago.” In shock, she noted, “It already has ten replies.”

  Seven were photos, all of which Rhea saved to her phone. One was a congratulatory comment, the remaining two were videos. They watched through both and butterflies flapped in Rhea’s stomach anew. “My God, Adam! How did you even do this?”

  “Well, after that Skype call when you hung up on me, Cass texted me and told me you thought things were over between us. I knew I had to fix it before I lost you forever. I had a huge amount of help from Gary and Bri.” He nudged her leg with his. “Didn’t I tell you people are more than happy to help a nice guy?”

  “I’ll say. That was a hell of a production. I just don’t understand Bri helping you when she tried to talk me out of being involved with you. She kinda tried to keep me involved with herself.”

  “Remember the episode of Friends where Chandler pretended to not want to marry Monica when he was preparing to propose to her? We used it as inspiration. I didn’t want you ruining the surprise but I also didn’t want you finding another guy if you thought we’d broken things off. Bri suggested the idea of keeping you for herself. Or . . . at least trying to keep you for herself.”

  “Oh my God,” Rhea laughed, smacking Adam on his chest. “You used my favorite show against me. I should be so mad at you—”

  “But you love me too much.”

  “I’m crazy for you, you big jerk.”

  He cleared his throat. “So with you good and distracted and off our scent, Bri and I scoured the calendar for potential events. When we found the street fair and saw Fevered Pitch was gonna be there, she contacted them. They replied with an enthusiastic ‘fuck yeah!’ and I bought my train tickets that night. Gary worked with the street fair committee to allow me to do the chalk art and he put me in contact with the jeweler who custom-made your ring. When Bri realized you were scheduled to work today—”

  “That’s why she was talking with Jodie on Thursday.” Rhea groaned. “Oh my God, you two got me good.”

  “What can I say? An amazing girl deserves an amazing proposal.” He kissed her softly, muttering against her lips, “Don’t ever doubt how much people love you. Especially me.”

  Rhea snuggled in and they watched as more comments, photos, and videos of Adam’s proposal rolled in.

  “I can’t wait to start my life with you,” she whispered. “I love you, Adam.”

  He replied with a wide smile, “I love you, too, Rhea. Hey, question.”

  “Shoot.”

  “There were a few points I got the distinct feeling something happened between you and Bri. Like . . . her act of keeping you for herself wasn’t entirely acting.”

  “That’s not a question.”

  Adam chuckled. “Sorry. How’s this: Did you two ever make out?”

  Rhea sighed. “What did she tell you, exactly?”

  “The only time she ever divulged anything was when she mentioned you go commando. Nothing more. I read between the lines and it put my imagination into a spin.”

  “I suppose since we’re committed to each other now I should tell you the truth. Yes. We did it. We had sex. Once.”

  “What?” Adam darted upright, his face aglow. “Really? You’re not shitting me.”

  Rhea shook her head. “No sir, no shit. She definitely wanted to screw around again.”

  “And you didn’t?”

  “No. Why do you ask?”

  Adam shrugged casually, his cheeks going pink. “No reason especially.”

  “Says someone who has reason, especially.”

  He laughed a little too hard. “You don’t suppose Brianna might wanna maybe join us sometime?”

  Rhea smirked, her gaze shifting to their apartment’s shared wall. “Well, your birthday is coming up.” And she was sure they could find an arrangement where Adam kept his parts for Rhea’s body only. A Rhea sandwich. Yummy! One of her eyebrows arched.

  “I don’t know what you’re plotting but it sure as hell makes me think I’ve got the best fiancée in the world.”

  “Yes,” Rhea replied smartly, leaning in for a kiss. “Yes, you do.”

  The End. Or is it?

  Acknowledgments

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  Ashley (@writer_ag on Twitter), who would need a whole novel to describe how much she’s encouraged and helped me with my writing. If you’ve seen an ad for my book, chances are that was her contribution.

  Christina (@ceeleeolson on Twitter), for taking her time to beta-read these tales for me, for being my idea-sounding-board.

  Lo-arna (@loarnagreen on Twitter), for her enthusiasm for my writing and her contributions to my romance-lover’s giveaway.

  Scott (@HaRcTweets on Twitter), for being my inspiration and helping me to write my way out of corners, for beta-reading, for his Photoshop skills, for everything.

  Vania (@V_Rheault on Twitter), for her enthusiasm, for being willing to beta-read these tales for me, for helping with the publishing process. If you’re reading these words in a paperback, you have Vania to thank. I wouldn’t have even considered releasing my work in physical form without her encouragement.

  I love you all!

  About the Author

  Jewel lives in North Central Texas with her husband, son, daughter, minion of darkness kitty, and a tadpole that will likely never actually frog.

  When not chasing the kids or writing, Jewel may be found wielding pointy sticks (knitting hats, gloves, and socks), crocheting, or daydreaming. She has a penchant for all alliteration, costly coffee, fabulous fiber, fanciful flowers, feisty felines . . . and pretty much whatever music she can get her eardrums on. (And yes, she hates that she can’t alliterate that better.)

  Visit Jewel online by going to her website:

  http://www.jeweleleonard.com/

  Join Jewel on social media by liking her Facebook page (no frenemies, please):

  https://www.facebook.com/Jewel.E.Leonard/

  Or chat with Jewel where she’s most active on Twitter:

  https://twitter.com/JewelELeonard