by Amy Ayers
“Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. Please enjoy the rest of the evening.”
Senna stood as still as a statue. The orchestra that had been playing softly all during dinner began a new song and, before she knew it, she was in Marco’s arms and being whisked into a small alcove off the main stage.
“I know you have questions, princesa.”
“Um, yes. You could say that.” But for the life of her she couldn’t form them coherently in her mind. All that mattered was this man in front of her and how right it felt to be in his arms. He pulled her close, his warm spicy scent made her giddy.
“I’m stepping down, with my father’s blessing. Marcellus will be stepping up in the CEO role for now, and I will be free to manage our charitable giving—with you by my side, of course.”
“But what about your tradition and all that about being the Medina heir? Are you walking away from that?”
“No. I am a Medina and always will be. Senna, you told me once you wanted me to come back for you, to follow you. To choose you.
“This is me choosing you. This is me loving you and choosing our love and our son and putting that first.”
Senna wasn’t a crier. But there in Marco’s arms she felt the tears roll freely down her cheeks. She couldn’t have stopped them if she tried, and she was too busy absorbing the beauty of his words.
“Please say something. It’s not like you to not speak your mind.”
“I love you, Marco Medina. I love our family, and I choose you, too.”
He leaned down and found her lips with his own. Warm and soft, his kiss was hesitant but only for the tiniest moment. She leaned in to his embrace. His kiss was searching, aching, and she gave everything back to him. Her arms wrapped around his neck, his skin hot under her touch, his muscles tensing and releasing. He pulled back, and Senna was bereft by the loss of his lips on hers. She wanted more. She never wanted him to stop.
“I love you, too, Senna. We’ll never be apart again.”
Senna smiled. “Well, since we’ll be working side by side, you may regret saying that. What if you get tired of me?”
He growled. “Never. I’m going to work with you all day and be in your bed every night. Now kiss me again before we have to go back out there and charm all of those wealthy donors out there for donations to our charity.”
“I don’t know. If I kiss you again we may not make it out of this hallway. That bench over there looks pretty sturdy.”
His eyes flashed and narrowed into slits. “Don’t tempt me, princesa.”
She smiled again, taking his hand and leading him back into the main ballroom. She put an extra swing in her hips since she knew he was watching. “Fine. Work first.” She looked over her shoulder and all but whispered, “Play later.”
Epilogue
Six months later
“You know most babies spend much longer crawling before they figure out the whole walking thing. Or the running thing.” Senna gulped for breath as she landed faceup on the large blanket. The ocean waves rumbled in the distance, choppy and churning a dark gray thanks to an incoming tropical storm.
“Princesa, do we need to carve out more time in your busy schedule so you can increase your stamina?”
She looked up sharply only to find those honey-colored eyes filled with laughter.
She pushed herself up to her elbows and gave him what she hoped was a dirty look. “My stamina is just fine.”
Fresh desire rumbled over his features and suddenly the fact they were on a public beach in Miami with their son seemed relatively unimportant.
Marco dropped to his knees next to her, setting Max down near a scattering of toys that he immediately busied himself with. Her heart leaped into her throat as Marco leaned over her and caressed her cheek. “Well, then, maybe we need to look into that.” He leaned closer. “Study that. Scientifically.” A warmth bloomed deep in her core, and she let out an involuntary moan.
Finally his lips crashed into hers, and the solid heat of his body pressed her into the sand with delicious pressure. His tongue tangled with hers in a slow, languid dance as he reached down and stroked up her side in one smooth caress.
The last six months had been the happiest of her life. Marco moved out of the CEO suite at the Medina Enterprises building, and the two of them shared a suite of offices down the hall. It didn’t take long for them to realize the worst part of the day was going home to separate residences so, when Marco asked her and Max to move in with him, she’d shocked herself with how quickly she said yes.
They bought a home in a quiet gated community populated with families and close to the city’s best schools. It was a home that as a girl Senna had only dreamed of. To live somewhere safe and secure with her little family was her reality, and she was terrified she’d wake up to find it just a dream.
It had only been six months but Nonna’s Friends was thriving. They’d already started their first award cycle and had gifted over five million in grants and funds to support families caring for incapacitated loved ones. She knew her own nonna was looking down with love.
Marcellus took on the role of CEO with quiet efficiency. Marco had told her more than once that Marcellus was a natural, and his intensity and attention to detail made everyone around him work that much harder. Senna had invited him over for dinner more times than she could count, but he’d managed it only once or twice and even then had spent most of the time glued to his phone. She’d been toying with trying to set him up with Abby, but their schedules would never align. She wanted her best friend to be as blissfully happy as she was.
A sharp squeal followed by a shower of wet sand broke their kiss. Marco sat up and swept Max into his arms, dislodging the clump of sand on his back. “Oh, you think that’s funny? Dumping sand on Papi’s head?” Max’s gleeful laugh seemed to answer Marco’s question. Max laughed louder when Marco jogged toward the water and dunked his little feet in the waves.
She sat up, hugging her knees, and watched her two men playing in the water. My family. Mine. A shiver of a different type of pleasure charged through her. The last six months had been perfect in every way, and she was finally starting to believe that Marco had truly chosen her. Chosen them. Their family.
Jakob’s company, Vandermere Global, filed for bankruptcy and was currently in the middle of a hostile takeover. Jakob himself had fled to no-one-knew where, but Marco suspected he was on an island somewhere licking his wounds and avoiding his creditors. Both she and Marco had regrets about Brynn’s role. Ultimately, she was a victim as well, and Senna could empathize with having your whole life unraveling right in front of you. Marco had tried to help her financially to get a fresh start, but she’d declined any help. The last they heard she was staying with friends in Manhattan.
The golden rays that heralded the late afternoon sun illuminated Marco’s chiseled features. He took her breath away every day, in every possible way. She watched as he scooped up a squealing Max in his powerful arms and held him close. Their eyes locked, and the hunger his eyes revealed made her anxious to get home and get Max settled for the night.
Marco set Max down and watched him with rapt attention as he toddled straight to where Senna sat. Marco wasn’t far behind.
“Okay, petit rei, give it to Mami.” She noticed both of Max’s chubby fists were closed tight.
“Did you find a treasure, baby? A shell? Can I see it?” She held out her hands expectantly.
With impressive precision, Max uncurled his fingers one by one and dropped his precious gift into her waiting hands.
Senna couldn’t move, she just stared. Max seemed to think that meant he could take his gift back and, when Senna closed her fist around it so it was out of sight he squawked his displeasure. Out of habit she grabbed one of his sippy cups and handed that to him instead, which seemed to mollify him for the moment.
Marco knelt in front of her, and she scrambled up to her knees. He gently peeled back her fingers.
“Senna, you and Max are the only thi
ngs I truly cannot live without. You are my life, my love, mi amour. Please, will you—”
“Yes! Yes! Of course I’ll marry you.”
He laughed. “You didn’t let me finish.”
“Sorry, didn’t mean to steal your thunder.”
“You know you’re the only woman I’ve ever asked to marry me.” Marco took her left hand in his.
“As long as I’m the last one.”
Marco slid the ring onto her finger and she threw her arms around his neck. Between kisses she repeated, “Yes. Yes.”
He pulled back and rested his forehead on hers. “I love you more than I ever thought was possible. Tell me you’ll be mine forever.”
“Forever and always.”
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Acknowledgments
I’m so excited to be publishing my debut with Entangled! I hope it’s the first of many more titles to come. This book was a labor of love and a huge learning experience. I’m grateful to the process and so excited it’s finally finished!
Thank you to Summer, for doing initial edits on my first draft. You were the first person to encourage me to pursue my fiction writing and that was invaluable validation.
Thanks to the entire Entangled team, but especially Stephen Morgan. Thank you for fishing my submission out of the slush pile and being patient with me as we whipped it into shape.
Thanks to my tribe—my mom, dad, sisters, and loved ones who support me and love me under any and all circumstances. I am blessed beyond measure to have you all in my life.
For my PAI mom friends—for over 15 years we’ve stuck together through life’s crazy seasons and each of you inspire me in every area in my life. I love you all.
Thank you to my cabin buddies who took me on a girls’ weekend and fed me bacon and coffee cake while I pounded away at my draft. You are so dear to me in so many ways. And rest in peace our beautiful Janie. You are sorely missed.
For my four boys—you’re not allowed to read this book until you are at least 18 (not that you would want to). But you are the best parts of me and you buoy me up every day. If I was half as good a mother as you all seem to think I am this world would be a better place.
And to my Mark, thank you for being my real life romance hero.
About the Author
Amy Ayers remembers writing her first fiction as an introspective tween in rainy Portland, Oregon. She took a break from writing to move with her family to the desert of Phoenix, Arizona. She currently divides her time between her writing, her family (including one husband, four boys, and two dogs), and her far too lengthy daily commute to work. A life-long lover of literature, she began writing her own contemporary romance in earnest in 2014 and is thrilled to be published with Entangled.
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