My mother nodded. “When I first talked to Granny about coming back to see you, she made it very clear to me that you meant everything to her and that you had meant everything to Joe.”
“I’m surprised Ford didn’t tell me sooner.”
My mother smoothed my hair. “Probably because you were always with Joe and Helen. Maybe they thought it was easier for everyone involved to keep on pretending that you were Ford’s daughter. They may have pressured him not to say anything to you. Now that they’ve passed, I guess he felt like there was nothing preventing him from telling you in a moment of spite.
“Dara, please don’t be mad at me. I know I could’ve told you since I’ve been back in your life, but I had just found you again. I didn’t want to lose you, and I don’t want to lose you now. I love you. Emma loves you.”
I hugged her. “I love you, too, Mom.”
I pulled back and really looked at her face. She’d been the perfect mother since she’d come back to Quail Mountain with Emma. “In a weird way, I think Ford’s letter has actually been a good thing. I always knew Granny and Papa loved me, but now, our love feels even stronger. There was no reason for them to raise me, except for the fact that they loved me.”
“They would have done anything for you.”
“I feel…I don’t know…free…like a burden’s been lifted from my shoulders,” I told her. “I never could figure out why my own father wanted nothing to do with me. At least now it makes a little more sense.”
“I feel better now, too,” my mom agreed. “I’ve been so afraid of what would happen if you found out that I’d lied to you about him being your father. But the charade had gone on too long, and Granny and I both thought that it would be better for you if I didn’t mention it. It was enough of a shock for me to show up after all those years. It might have been different if I knew who your real father was, but….”
“It’s okay, Mom. Granny and Papa loved me, and now I have you and Emma and Stone. I’m okay with the way things are right now.”
She hugged me again. “Dara, I love you. I feel so blessed to have you and Emma.”
“Is there anything else I don’t know?” I asked only half-jokingly.
“I swear to you that you know everything now. No more family secrets.”
“Good. I guess we should go rescue Stone from Emma now.”
We walked outside, and I saw Stone’s relief when he saw me smiling.
Emma ran to my mother to show her the candy that Stone had given her, and he took that opportunity to ask me how I was.
“I’m good,” I whispered. “Better than good, actually. I’ll fill you in later.”
“I’m glad to hear it, babe.” He smacked me playfully on the butt.
“I’m hungwy,” Emma complained.
“Hungry?” Stone asked. “Why don’t Dara and I take you and your mommy to eat? Would you like that?”
Emma nodded adamantly and jumped up and down. “Can we go, Mommy? Can we?”
“It’s up to Dara,” my mother said.
I knew she was probably still a little unsure about the entire situation. “Let’s go. I’m hungry, too.” I patted her on the shoulder, hoping to put her fears at ease.
Our family may have had an unconventional start, but Granny taught me how important it was to love people and to take care of them and that sometimes, the best way to show love was to forgive.
***
Stone
After dinner, I left Dara to spend time with her mother and Emma while I paid my parents a visit. I filled them in on the latest development regarding Ford Baxter. They were both extremely concerned about Dara’s welfare, but I assured them that Dara was quite resilient and eager to focus on the family that she did have.
I kept my visit brief because I had visions of having my lovely wife to myself, and as we lay in bed, the soft glow of a candle flickering shadows along the walls, I held her close, savoring the softness of her skin, the clean scent of her hair, the touch of her fingers.
“Stone,” she whispered.
“Yeah, babe?”
“Will you make love to me again?”
In one quick motion, I poised my body over hers, my arms holding up my weight as my tongue teased her collarbone. “I’ll make love to you however many times it takes.”
“However many times it takes to what?” she giggled, her hands roaming over my hips.
“To get you pregnant with quadruplets.”
She slapped me on the ass. “I told you I didn’t want four babies at once,” she screeched.
“Fine, but five babies is my absolute final offer. Even a guy as awesome as me has his limits.”
“You are so conceited,” she laughed as she pressed a kiss to my lips.
“That’s what having a hot babe in your bed will do for your ego,” I whispered as my lips brushed against hers.
“Stone?” she whispered.
“Yeah, babe?”
“You make me happy.”
Her simple declaration twisted something in my gut, releasing a surge of raw emotion through my veins. Dara stirred feelings deep in my soul, feelings that I’d never experienced before her. I wanted to lie in bed with her every night and feel the soothing touch of her fingertips, hear her whispered words of encouragement. I wanted to give her every part of me.
I wanted to make her as happy as she had made me.
No, not just happy. I wanted to make her…delirious…like a hummingbird that had finally found its sweet drink of nectar.
Epilogue
Three Years Later
Stone
As I pulled my truck into the driveway, I saw Dara rocking on the huge front porch. When we’d moved out of her grandmother’s house, Dara had insisted we bring her grandpa’s rockers. To help preserve them, I’d stripped them down, made some repairs, and given them a fresh coat of black paint to match our more contemporary house with its gray stone exterior and siding. She’d also kept a few of her grandmother’s trinkets, but she’d left most of the furniture in the house for her mother and Emma to use when they moved in.
“Mommy!”
“Yeah, you see Mommy, too?”
My son nodded his head, his bright blue eyes widening at the sight of his mother.
“Do you wanna show her your birthday present?”
“Yeah.” He nodded in agreement.
I pulled into the garage, removed my son from his car seat, and lowered the tailgate. After I unfastened the bungee cords, I lifted the small, blue fifty from the back of the truck and set it on the ground.
“You want to ride it over to Mommy?”
“Yes!” he exclaimed, his head bobbing up and down in his excitement.
I picked him up and set him on it.
“Vroom! Vroom!” he said as he pretended to twist the throttle.
I pushed the kickstand up and leaned over as I grabbed the handlebars and pushed him around the house to the front yard.
“Look, Mommy!”
“Stone! You did not buy him a motorcycle!”
I gave her a sheepish grin. “Yeah, I kinda did.”
“Look, Mommy!”
Dara focused on our son. “What do you have, Luke?”
“A vroom-vroom.”
“Did you get a motorcycle?” she asked him.
Luke nodded his head.
“Stone, you do realize he’s only two, don’t you?”
“I know, but he loved it. Besides, he’ll be riding before you know it.”
I pushed the kickstand down and picked Luke up. “Come on. Let’s go give Mommy a kiss.”
As I approached Dara, she stopped rocking and turned her face toward me, planting a quick kiss on my lips before she kissed Luke’s rosy cheek.
“Kiss,” Luke said, pointing at his little sister, asleep in her mother’s arm.
“You wanna give Zoe a kiss?” I asked Luke.
“Kiss.” He pointed again.
I lowered him over his baby sister until he planted a slobbery kiss on her
forehead. Then, I set him on the porch as he yawned and rubbed his eyes.
“Did she eat?” I asked Dara.
“Yeah, I think she’ll sleep for a while.”
“Here, I’ll take her and lay her in her crib while you put Luke down for a nap.” I took the little pink bundle of baby from Dara and cradled her in my arms. I rubbed my fingertip across her tiny, clutched fist. She was beautiful like her mother with hair so light, it was barely visible. I kissed the crown of her head, breathing in her sweet, baby scent. “How’s Daddy’s girl today?” I cooed softly, so I wouldn’t wake her up. “Don’t worry. I’m gonna buy you a motorcycle on your second birthday, too. A pretty pink one.”
As I walked into the house and down the hall to the nursery, I was amazed at how light she was. It was difficult to believe that Dara and I had made this perfect, tiny person. I kissed her again and settled her into the crib, propping her on her side and covering her with a pink blanket.
“Sleep sweet, my little princess,” I whispered.
Her lips started making sucking noises, but she never opened her eyes, and after a few minutes, she appeared to be sleeping soundly.
I watched a few moments more, mesmerized by her. When I finally left the nursery, I partially closed the door and went to find Dara.
“You already got Luke to lie down?” I asked, finding her stretched out on the couch.
“Yep. I just told him to look at his new book from Luke’s Place, and when he gets up from his nap, Daddy would let him ride his motorcycle. He looked pretty sleepy, though, and I imagine he’s already conked out.”
I kneeled on the floor in front of the couch, gliding my hand beneath Dara’s shirt as I rubbed my palm over her slender abdomen. “So now what?” I asked,
“I need to get everything ready for Luke’s party tomorrow.”
“We have plenty of time for that later,” I whispered as I lowered my lips to her abdomen and trailed feathery kisses across her silky skin.
“Then what did you have in mind?” she asked, her fingers entwining in my hair.
I slid my palm along her leg until my thumb dipped below the hem of her shorts and caressed the soft flesh of her inner thigh. She let out a breathy sigh.
“I was thinking we could go make some mud pies,” I whispered as I stood up, grabbed her hand, and pulled her to her feet. She giggled as I pulled her down the hall, pausing only long enough to peek in Luke’s bedroom and find him curled up in the middle of his bed, his eyes closed.
Once we reached our master suite at the end of the hall, I pulled her shirt over her head, and my hands roamed her body. I teased her lips with my tongue until she opened to me, and I devoured her. Her mouth was hot and sweet, and my palm slid up her back. Once I located her bra strap, my fingers worked deftly to unhook it, and the scrap of fabric fell to the ground as I scooped her into my arms and tossed her on the bed. A peal of laughter erupted from her, and I undressed and climbed onto the bed beside her.
As I caressed her body, my fingers brushed against the silver heart necklace that she rarely removed, and I thought about the day that I‘d given it to her.
Everything I’d told her that day was still true. If anything, my love for her had grown stronger. I placed my palm over her chest. “After all this time, I still make your heart beat faster.”
She trailed her fingertips along my jawline. “That’s because I love you, Stone.” She touched the heart-shaped pendant. “It’s you and me for as long as I live. You’re my husband and my best friend, and when we’re old and gray, my heart will still hammer mercilessly at your touch because you, Stone Hamilton, will still be making me delirious.”
I closed my eyes and let her words settle into my soul. I still didn’t know what I’d done to deserve her, but as long as I had her by my side, I wouldn’t question my luck. I would just do whatever it took to make sure my little hummingbird never got thirsty.
If you enjoyed Stone and Dara’s story, would you please take a moment to rate this book? You’ll have the opportunity to do so at the end of this file, and I would greatly appreciate it!
Love,
Suzannah
Books
by
Suzannah Daniels
Young Adult
Ghostly Encounter (Ghostly Series #1)
Dangerous (Dangerous #1)
Devious (Dangerous #2)
Delirious (Dangerous #3)
New Adult
Perfectly Able
Adult
Viking’s Embrace
Excerpt from Ghostly Encounter
Seventeen-year-old Mia Randall longed for someone to take her mind off her heartrending breakup with her first real boyfriend.
Benjamin Alexander Richards did exactly that.
There was only one problem.
He was a ghost.
__________________________
He continued to walk along the path. She noticed that his Rebel uniform seemed much more tattered than Josh’s. “Have you been reenacting for a long time?”
He stopped then and turned to look at her. A slow, sad smile spread across his handsome face. He studied her with those beautiful eyes. “Far too long.”
She watched as he pursed his lips, and she wondered what it would be like to be kissed by him. “You sound as if you don’t enjoy it. Why do you do it?”
He clenched his jaw and looked away.
“I’m sorry if I said something to upset you.” She went to touch his arm reassuringly and then she stared in frozen horror, her body locked in position as she gaped at him. Her hand had gone right through him as if there was nothing before her but the very air she breathed.
“Don’t be frightened,” he whispered.
She backed away.
“Please don’t go,” he pleaded, begging her with those brilliant, azure eyes. “I beseech you to stay with me, if only for a while.”
About the Author
Suzannah Daniels has had an affinity for words for as long as she can remember. She grew up in North Georgia with four brothers, so she learned at an early age to admire snakes and motorcycles. When she wasn’t pestering her brothers, she could usually be found reading or writing.
Currently, she lives in Chattanooga, Tennessee with her husband and teenage daughter. Her son lives nearby. The family pets include a black Lab mix, a Basset Hound, a Shih Tzu, and a sweet, little kitty.
She is the author of Viking’s Embrace, an adult historical romance, Perfectly Able, a new adult contemporary romance, Ghostly Encounter, Book One of the Ghostly series, a young adult, paranormal romance/adventure, and the Dangerous Trilogy, a young adult, contemporary romance trilogy.
She loves to hear from her readers. Contact her:
Website: www.SuzannahDaniels.com
Email: [email protected]
Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/pages/Suzannah-Daniels/366971616695887?ref=hl
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SuzannahDaniels
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/suzannahdaniels/
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