by M. L. Young
Blake
Saying goodbye to my parents was always bittersweet. Sometimes I wished that they lived a little closer to me, but I knew that they belonged here in this house, in this town, in this part of their life.
Penny and I had a good visit with them, and I couldn’t believe how easily they took to her. My father even pulled me aside this morning as I was packing up and said I had a keeper. It wasn’t that I didn’t know that, but it was nice to hear it from him. My mother cried as I said goodbye and asked if we could stay just a little bit longer. I felt bad, knowing that she likely was truly sad about us leaving, but I promised her I’d come back and see her again soon. With her health, I knew I had to. How long would it be before she started forgetting who I was?
I was able to avoid saying goodbye to anybody in town as they all shoveled their driveways and played in the snow. There was something comforting about watching kids playing in big yards and fields compared to what the kids back in San Francisco were able to do. The only snow they got to play with had been driven on and walked over so many times it was black and muddy. Not here, though. A kid could really be a kid here.
The plane was ready and warming up as we pulled up in the SUV and had our bags taken out of the trunk and stowed away.
“The pilots are just about ready for takeoff,” the flight attendant said as we walked up the stairs and into the jet.
“Feeling okay?” I asked Penny.
“I’m good as long as you’re here,” she said with a smile.
We sat down in our seats and buckled ourselves in as I could hear the pilots making final preparations. Before I knew it, the plane was being closed and the flight attendant, Sara, was getting herself strapped in at the pilots’ recommendation.
We taxied the runway and took off, as no other planes were anywhere near the vicinity of this small Iowa airport. As we took off and soared through the air, I looked out the window and saw the open expanse of snow-covered cornfields as they turned into patches in the air. I sometimes still couldn’t believe that everything in my life, all of this, was a result of this little town. It shaped me and molded me into the man I am today, and even though some outside forces throughout my life have continued to change me, I’m still just a small-town boy with big-city dreams.
I looked forward at Penny, her hands not quite as white or red any longer from gripping the armrests, and as she looked back up at me, her eyes opening, I felt a warm feeling inside my stomach and my chest.
I was the luckiest man in the world, and I knew it for a fact.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Penelope
Almost three months have passed and my life has changed in a way that I dreamt of for so long.
Just a few days ago I walked across the stage and received my diploma before switching the tassel on my hat and beaming with joy. The degree I’d worked so hard for all those years was finally mine, and with a job already lined up, I knew that things were looking bright.
My family, at least some of them, had come into town for the occasion and Blake finally got to meet them. I knew he was nervous, but I told him to just be himself and not to try to impress them. He did just that and they took to him so much that I was waiting for them to ask him when he was going to marry me.
Speaking of Blake, things couldn’t be better with him than they are at this very moment. I spend a lot more time at his place now, and I even have a space in his closet for a lot of my things. I wouldn’t quite say I’ve moved in, or that I will anytime soon, but it’s all good progress and I’m happy to have it.
We spend a lot more time together, and we’ve even gone on double dates with Nicolette and her new boyfriend, Edward. He isn’t the most gorgeous man alive, at least not by her old standards, but he treats her like a queen and all she ever talks about are the butterflies he gives her and the cute things they do together.
As Blake and I walk onto his terrace as the falling summer sun fades into the distance, I can’t help but feel like things in my life are finally coming together. I have my degree, a job, great friends, and the most amazing man in my life close to me.
“We’ve had a crazy ride, haven’t we?” Blake asked as we sipped a glass of wine while watching the sunset.
“Yeah, the craziest. For a while there I wasn’t sure we were going to make it,” I said.
“I think I always knew we would,” he said, looking at me with a smile.
“Oh yeah? How come?” I asked.
“Because when you love someone, you always make it work,” he said.
My stomach dropped as my heart began to race and a million thoughts ran through my head. Did he really just say that? He’d come close once before, but he never once said that word to me like this.
“You love me?” I asked.
“Yeah, I do,” he said, his gaze fixed on me.
I bit my lower lip, gripped my glass tighter, and finally said the words I’d been waiting to say for so damn long.
“I love you too.”
Thank you for reading my series, Taken by You. It was an idea I had for a long time and I’m glad I was able to finally get all three books out to you. I really hope you enjoyed it, and please connect with my social media accounts below!
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About the Author
M.L. Young is a New Adult Romance author currently residing in northern Illinois. When not writing, she enjoys horseback riding, sewing, and dreaming about the hot guys she writes about in her books.
M.L. loves interacting with fans, so interact with her! You can find her on Facebook, Twitter, and through e-mail!
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Table of Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
About the Author