Dream Lover

by Stacey Keith

  “Holy shit,” Maggie said behind her.

  “Who is that?” Cassidy asked.

  “Shhhh,” Priscilla whispered excitedly. “Come along now. Let’s go inside.”

  April couldn’t move. She stood with her hands limp by her sides. Considering how they’d parted ways the last time they spoke, maybe she should have felt like yelling. But she was just so happy. All she wanted was for him to hold her.

  When he stood in front of her, she saw love blazing in his eyes. It was clear he’d come here not knowing what kind of reception she would give him, and she knew exactly how much courage that took.

  “Baby, I can’t tell you how sorry I am,” he said in his deep, sexy voice. “I don’t want to do this without you. Hell, I can’t.”

  “How did you find me?” April asked. It didn’t matter really, but she thought if she knew, her heart might have an easier time believing what her eyes were telling her was true.

  “Long Jon told me you were working at your brother-in-law’s ranch. Didn’t have to put too much muscle into finding out where that was.” He had his hands in his pockets, the way he did when he wanted to touch her but wasn’t sure it was the right thing to do yet. “April, those hard words I said. I’m asking you to please forgive me. I just figured…well, I don’t have much to offer you in the way of nice things. But you have no idea how much I love you. And if that means anything—”

  April threw herself in his arms, breathing him in as though she could never get enough. And she wouldn’t. She loved him so much, she thought it might kill her.

  And now his arms were around her, his lips devouring.

  “As long as you want me,” Brandon said between kisses, “I’m yours, baby. You’re my dream come true.”

  Epilogue

  “My God, are you seeing this?” Jacey asked April as she stared through the kitchen window. “First of all, I don’t think your dad has ever been this happy. Second, I’ve never smelled this much testosterone. Third, I love Ryan with all my heart, but when Brandon takes his shirt off, I’ll admit it, I get a little tingly.”

  April set the clean plates inside the cupboard and went to the window. Brandon, Matthew, Long Jon and her dad were all backing Matthew’s new dirt bike down a trailer ramp. They planned to store it inside the new garage they’d built where the carport used to be. Sure enough, her dad was clearly in hog heaven—or maybe she should say hawg heaven. He’d been the only man in a houseful of women for far too long.

  “They’re for sure going to crush the begonias,” April said.

  “Boys crush a lot of things, don’t they?” Jacey mused. “Big and small, they’re just hell-bent on destruction.”

  April smiled indulgently. There were certainly a lot more boys in her life and her house these days destroying things, but she wouldn’t have it any other way. She wiped her hands on a dish towel and counted her blessings.

  In just this past year, Matthew had not only gotten a motocross sponsorship, he was doing great in school and even kept his room clean. Mostly. Well, enough to show off his trophies. Long Jon had a new girlfriend over in Banderas, which meant he visited often. She was just right for Long Jon, too—equal parts sweetness and sass—and managed to keep him in line, which Brandon said qualified as a modern-day miracle. Brandon and Doak had opened up a garage together in town and business was booming, so there was that to be thankful for, too.

  But the thing that always made April’s heart feel as though it might burst was the pretty gold engagement ring on her finger. She, Matthew and Brandon had been living together for the better part of a year now and Brandon had surprised her with it last Christmas.

  “Who would have thought?” Jacey went on. “You, the town virgin, shacking up with the sexiest outlaw biker badass this side of the Rio Grande. Me with the sheriff, for heaven’s sake. And now both your sisters are preggers. I’m telling you, if somebody predicted it would all turn out like this, I would have called them a liar.”

  And not just pregnant, but due. At least Maggie was. Cassidy would have her baby boy early next year. Maggie and Jake were over the moon about their little daughter, who was expected in about three weeks. According to super-protective Jake, she already had her own curfew.

  And because Mason, like Jake, was a first-time father, he almost outdid his friend in the absurdly proud department. April glowed inside every time she thought about them with their good-natured boasting and celebratory cigars. Mason could not have been more attentive to Cassidy. She was and would always be his everything, just as Maggie was for Jake.

  April winced when her dad planted his foot squarely on top of a fragile begonia. “It’s humbling when you realize your mother was right about everything. She always told me dreams come true, but I never really believed her.”

  “You should never doubt your mother,” Jacey said. “She’d tell you the same thing, you know, if she were standing in the kitchen right now.”

  Just then Brandon called for her and April went down the back steps with Jacey in tow. The new dirt bike glinted in the light of early afternoon, but nothing compared to the pride and joy beaming from Matthew’s face.

  While everyone exclaimed over the bike, April melted into Brandon’s arms.

  “Happy?” he asked her.

  “So happy,” she said. “We’re not doing too bad for ourselves, are we?”

  “Except your dad is just killing those flowers.” Calling her dad over to him, Brandon said, “Watch those clod stompers, Doak.”

  Doak looked down and made a face that had everyone laughing. He reached down and tried to fluff the flower, but it was clearly a lost cause. Jacey came marching down the steps to fuss at him.

  “Next weekend, I want to go for a ride,” Brandon told April. “Just you and me. Maybe stay overnight in one of those super classy places with the round beds and the mirrors on the ceiling and the Magic Fingers.”

  “Should I dress up?” she asked with a grin.

  “Dress up?” he murmured, nuzzling her neck. “I was thinking more dress off.”

  “Why don’t you two just get a room?” Jacey complained.

  April looked up at Brandon and they both laughed. But as she gazed into his eyes, a feeling of warmth, love and desire moved through her so strongly, it felt like one of those moments she would remember forever.

  April knew. She knew.

  Love was the key that had opened the gates of happiness for both of them.

  Brandon had awakened her from sleep and opened her eyes to what she really wanted, which was him. This sun, these trees, this house, this town. She would hold them, too, against her heart for as long as she lived. Everything she’d been looking for was right here.

  Love had finally set her free. All she had to do was give in to her heart.

  THE END

  Meet the Author

  Award winning author Stacey Keith doesn’t own a television, but reads compulsively—and would, in fact, go stark raving bonkers without books, most of which are crammed into every corner of the house. She lives with her jazz musician boyfriend in Civita Castellana, a medieval village in Italy that sits atop a cliff, and she spends her days writing in a nearby abandoned 13th century church. But the two things she is most proud of are her ability to cook pasta alla matriciana without burning down the kitchen and swearing volubly in Italian with all the appropriate hand gestures.

  Dream On

  Don’t miss any of the Dreams Come True novels of Stacey Keith, available now!

  This local boy makes it so good . . .

  Deep in the heart of Texas is a small town where secret wishes have a funny way of coming true . . .

  With a nine-year-old daughter, an overdue light bill, and a job slinging burgers while zooming around on roller skates, Cassidy Roby is not living the glamorous life. But Cuervo, Texas, has its charms: quiet streets, loving family, and the down-home fami
liarity of knowing which of your neighbors are mean as snakes. With Cassidy’s reputation, she knows what will happen if she steps a foot out of line. But how can she help it now that Mason Hannigan’s back in town?

  As Cuervo’s high school quarterback ten years ago, Mason was all rock-hard abs and yes-ma’am manners. Now that he’s living the glitz and glory of the NFL, he’s all that plus a couple million bucks. The desire blazing between them is too hot to hide. Cassidy has some experience getting her heart broken by the hometown hero—and having the whole world watch her try to pick up the pieces. Will adding fame, fortune, and paparazzi be a playbook for disaster—or lead to the biggest adventure of her life?

  Sweet Dreams

  She can almost taste it . . .

  In a little town in the heart of Texas, the same old story can turn into happily ever after . . .

  On any given day, Maggie Roby has cake batter on her sleeve, flour where the blush supposedly goes, and sore feet from standing since dawn. For her sister’s wedding day, she’s added a side of heartache. Maggie’s failed marriage taught her that love is a lie and commitment a mistake, and it was an expensive lesson. But with her bakery thriving and her life simplified to work, family, and knitting for her pug, Maggie thinks she’s bought some peace. Until Jake Sutton walks in and she realizes she isn’t safe from desire at all . . .

  Jake has model-perfect looks and about a billion dollars to throw around, but Maggie also sees the same never-say-die grit she prizes in herself. The attraction between them is hotter than her oven in July. But when Jake decides to restore the old Art Deco movie theater right around the corner from her bakery, she worries that temptation is a little too close for comfort. And the added ingredient of a man from her past only complicates the mix. This time nothing less than true love will do. If she can learn to listen to her heart, she just may be able to have her cake and eat it too. . .