It didn’t seem possible that, after everything that had happened over the past year, especially Adam’s death, that I could feel such a surge of joy. I may have spent most of the month doubting the realness of my own emotions (not to mention Dane’s), but after his absence over the past week, I couldn’t deny the feeling of pure happiness on his return.
It’s a gift. Never let it go.
Those words echoed in my head until I surrendered to the power of Dane’s mouth on mine and let myself get completely pulled in.
When we finally came up for air, he whispered, “You said you wanted me. Is that still true?”
“It’s true.” I met his gaze and held it. “But I don’t know much more than that. I don’t know where we go from here. What’s next for all of us—you, me, my daughter and yours. How to work out the details. If what we’re feeling will last forever. But, yes. Yes, I want you. I…I’m falling in love with you. It was foolish of me to try so hard to fight it.”
I watched him take this in, swallowing several times after I spoke. His eyes were suspiciously moist, but he swiped the back of his hand across them before speaking. “This doesn’t have to be a ‘life in the fast lane’ thing,” he whispered. “We can take everything slow. It’s best that way. But I’ll warn you. You’ll find me a very hard man to get rid of.”
“Why’s that?”
“Because I love you, which you already know. And you sure as hell better believe me this time.” He smiled slightly. “And because you’re the one that I want.” He stared at me for a long moment. Until I knew that he was sure I’d taken his words seriously.
I nodded. “Okay.”
“Good.” Then he sighed. “Unfortunately, Julia, I leave for New York tomorrow. After I see Cat, I’m immediately off to L.A. for seven or eight straight weeks of shooting. So right now I’m feeling a desperate desire to hold you and to make love to you one more time before I have to go.” He tugged me toward the stairs to the basement. To our sofa.
“But my daughter—”
“Is on a long bike ride,” he finished for me. “We’ve got a few minutes. And, trust me, I’ve been aching for you for over a week. This will be quick.”
I laughed. “Then come to my bedroom,” I said, tugging him in a different direction. “That door at least has a lock.”
“Wise plan.” He sniffed the air suddenly, as if finally noticing the scent. “Hey, smells delicious in here. Chocolate?”
“Yes. Oh, your cake!” I stopped mid step. “I promised you a warm piece with ice cream and—”
“Seriously? You actually think I’d choose cake over you?” He grinned. “Maybe cake on top of you, but…”
“Well, it is your birthday.”
“Damn right. And, Julia Meriwether Crane, I thought I made this clear—you’re the only gift I want.”
~*~
Eventually, we did eat the cake (warmed up in the microwave) and topped with Rocky Road. Dane confessed that it was the best birthday cake he’d ever tasted.
“No way you could possibly remember,” I said with a laugh. “You told me the last time you’d had a homemade birthday cake was about twenty years ago.”
“I have a good memory,” he claimed. “Especially for important things.”
Ah, yes. Important things.
He reached across the table and squeezed my hand. “We’ll work out the details. Don’t worry. Plus, I don’t want to have to wait another two decades to meet somebody who cares enough about me to make me a special birthday cake. I’ll be sixty then.”
“Bet you’ll still be cool and cute at sixty.”
“Don’t know,” he said with a shrug and a sly smile. “Let me stick around that long, and maybe you’ll find out.”
Analise returned from her bike ride in the middle of our dessert discussion and joined us for a piece.
“So, tell us about the movie you’re making this month?” my daughter asked Dane.
He raised his eyebrows at me, asking silently for permission.
I bobbed my head. I wasn’t sure how my daughter would react to our idea, but it was worth asking. And, having it come from Dane almost guaranteed success, given the respect Analise was showing him. Then again, he’d earned that respect from her.
“It’s called The Scorpius Project.” he explained. “It’s a science fiction film that takes place on Earth in the year 2424 and in another galaxy as well. The plot includes lot of suspense and action, so they call it a sci-fi/thriller. I have the script in the car, actually, if you’d like to see what it looks like.”
“Sure.” She looked mesmerized. Dane knew just how to set up a story.
“All right. I’ll get it in a sec. And also, Analise, your mom and I were talking this afternoon. Got any interest in maybe visiting California sometime this year? If you and your mom came out in the next month or two, I could show you the set where I’m filming the movie, or you could see—”
“YES! They’d really let me go in there to watch? Could I see you shoot a scene?”
“Definitely.” He gave my daughter two thumbs up as he stood and stepped away from the table. “I’m gonna grab the script. When I come back in, we’ll compare schedules. So tell your mom to pull out the school calendar. That way we can block off a good date.” Then he glanced over at me and winked.
“I will,” she said.
Mission accomplished.
The instant he was out of the house, Analise turned to me with the hugest, most triumphant grin on her face. “See? Aren’t you glad you invited him over?”
“I am,” I admitted. “And you, my sweet girl, were absolutely right to insist on it.”
Then I kissed the top of her head and waited, my eyes on the door, for the second love of my life to walk back into the room.
Epilogue
Tinseltown Buzz ~ September 7th Edition
BREAKING NEWS!
Labor Day in L.A. just got a little steamier for Oscar-nominated actor Dane Tyler, who was reportedly hosting visitors from the Windy City over the long holiday weekend.
The romance is apparently still going strong between Tyler and his Midwestern lady love from the summer—Julia Crane. He’d been in Chicago for several weeks, starring in a live production of “The Bachelor Pad” at the Knightsbridge Theater, where they supposedly met. But from the looks of things, Tyler may not be a bachelor himself for much longer. Sorry, ladies!
Just take a peek at these candid and oh-so-cozy shots we snapped of the actor and his guests at Disneyland, Universal Studios, the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and Madame Tussauds! We even have a few exclusive behind-the-scenes photos at the ReelMax Pictures set where Tyler’s upcoming film, The Scorpius Project, is currently shooting. (It’s not slated for release until November of NEXT year, folks, so don’t get too excited yet.)
Tyler’s famous costar—Brazilian actress and fashion model Cassandra Inigo, who’s still recovering from her recent battle with yoga addiction—confided her jealousy over the Tyler-Crane love match to a source close to both actors. “Cassandra thought she and Dane had a special spark between them ever since they were introduced at the spring auditions. Their screen-test chemistry was off the charts,” Inigo’s good friend claimed. “She’s done everything to try to reclaim his attention since filming began last month, but he’s been freezing her out.”
However, another source hinted that Inigo hasn’t been kept in the cold—at least not when it comes to time spent with Golden Globe-winning director Stan Henley Miles.
“All I’m sayin’ is that Stan’s wife would be SO pissed if she knew what was going on between takes…” said a buddy of the director’s, who spoke to us only on condition of anonymity. Hmm. Could this mean one tall glass of Marriage on the Rocks for Mr. Miles?
Who knows what’s in store next for the hot Hollywood pairing of Dane Tyler and Cassandra Inigo? Much as we love what we’ve seen of their onscreen sizzle, it appears their offscreen romantic paths may be headed in different directions. We’ll be the first to let you know, though, if the
changing winds of love blow them back together in the near future… Stay tuned!
~END~
**Look for Vicky Bernier & Blake Michaelsen’s romance—You Give Love a Bad Name—coming soon!**
A Note from the Author
If you enjoyed this novel by Marilyn Brant and would like to read more of her stories or be the first to find out about new book releases, special sales, and giveaways, please be sure to sign up for her free newsletter:
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Other Books by Bestselling Author
Marilyn Brant
Stand-Alone Women’s Fiction Novels
(contemporary romantic women’s fiction)
According to Jane
Friday Mornings at Nine
A Summer in Europe
Mystery Novels
(coming-of-age romantic mystery)
The Road to You (YA version)
The Road and Beyond (an expanded book-club version of The Road to You) (WF version)
Romantic Novella
(sexy contemporary romance)
All About Us (an Abbott Springs novella)
Nonfiction
(parenting essays)
Wanderlust in Suburbia and Other Reflections on Motherhood
Series Books
But Each Novel Can Be Enjoyed As Stand-Alone Story
The Sweet Temptations Collection
(sexy contemporary romance series)
On Any Given Sundae
Double Dipping
Holiday Man
The Sweet Temptations Collection (3-Book Set for the Series)
The Perfect Pair
(sweet romantic comedy series)
Pride, Prejudice and the Perfect Match
Pride, Prejudice and the Perfect Bet
The Perfect Pair (2-Book Set for the Series)
The Mirabelle Harbor Stories
(sexy contemporary romance series)
Book One: Take a Chance on Me
Book Two: The One That I Want
Book Three: You Give Love a Bad Name (coming soon)
Book Four: Stranger on the Shore (coming soon)
Look for all the books in the MIRABELLE HARBOR series!
About the Author
Marilyn Brant has been told she writes with honesty, liveliness and wit (descriptors she’s grown terribly fond of) about complex, intelligent women—like her friends—and their significant personal relationships. Although her favorite pursuits undoubtedly involve books, she proves she’s not just a literary snob by confessing her lifelong fascination (read: obsession) with popular music, especially from the ’70s and ’80s, most flavors of ice cream and a variety of sensuous body lotions/oils.
As a former teacher, library staff member, freelance magazine writer and national book reviewer, Marilyn has spent much of her life lost in literature. She is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling and award-winning author of nine novels to date, and a lifetime member of the Jane Austen Society of North America. The Illinois Association of Teachers of English (IATE) selected her as their 2013 Author of the Year.
Her debut coming-of-age novel, ACCORDING TO JANE (Kensington, 2009), featuring the ghost of Jane Austen giving a young woman dating advice, won the Romance Writers of America’s prestigious Golden Heart® Award and the Booksellers’ Best, and it was named one of the “Top 100 Romance Novels of All Time” by Buzzle.com. Her second novel, FRIDAY MORNINGS AT NINE (Kensington, 2010), was a Doubleday and Book-of-the-Month Club pick in women’s fiction. A SUMMER IN EUROPE (Kensington, 2011) was featured in the Literary Guild and BOMC2, and it became a Top 20 Bestseller in Fiction and Literature for the Rhapsody Book Club. The Polish translation of the novel was released in June 2013.
She’s also a #1 Kindle and #1 Nook bestseller, who writes fun and flirty romantic comedies, like her stories in THE SWEET TEMPTATIONS COLLECTION, that involve sweet treats, unexpected love and large doses of humor. THE ROAD TO YOU—a coming-of-age romantic mystery—was selected as one of the Top 20 Best Books of the Year (December 2013) by The Reading Frenzy. Several of her novels will soon be available in audio CD/download from Post Hypnotic Press. Look for them in 2015 and beyond, and be sure to keep an eye out for more romances in the “Mirabelle Harbor” series, coming soon!
Marilyn currently lives in the Chicago suburbs with her family. When she isn’t reading her friends’ books or watching old movies, she’s working on her next novel, eating chocolate indiscriminately and hiding from the laundry. Please visit her website: www.MarilynBrant.com.
If you enjoyed THE ONE THAT I WANT (Book 2) from Marilyn’s new Mirabelle Harbor series, check out this short excerpt below from the novella TAKE A CHANCE ON ME (Book 1), which is available now, and keep an eye out for the next stand-alone novel in the series, YOU GIVE LOVE A BAD NAME (Book 3), coming soon!
Description and an Excerpt from
TAKE A CHANCE ON ME
July 2015
by Marilyn Brant
Welcome to Mirabelle Harbor! In this scenic suburb on Chicago’s North Shore, overlooking the sparkling waters of Lake Michigan, the Michaelsen family has made their home for generations. Although their parents and grandparents are now gone, siblings Derek, Blake, Sharlene, and the twins—Chandler and Chance—all have fond memories of growing up in town, and most still live there.
Chance Michaelsen, the youngest member of the family (by two minutes) and the quietest (by far), is a dedicated twenty-eight-year-old personal trainer at the local gym. While he might not say much, Chance has made it clear that he’s not a fan of toxic people, unhealthy habits, or sharing too many of his emotions. With anybody.
Enter Antonia “Nia” Pappayiannis—the prettiest member of the loudest and most overly demonstrative family in town. They’re also the owners of The Gala, a Greek restaurant and bakery known for its decadent pastries and located just a few steps from Chance’s gym. He considers their entire family business to be the enemy of good health, but he can’t quite shake his attraction to Nia, who doesn’t seem nearly as impressed with him or his sculpted physique as most of the women around Mirabelle Harbor.
Unfortunately, between her doctor’s orders and the interfering ways of Chance’s crazy-making ex-girlfriend, who just happens to be one of Nia’s long-time friends, Chance gets assigned to be Nia’s fitness coach for the month. Pure torture. And if his ex weren’t already causing enough problems, he also has to deal with Nia’s current boyfriend—some hotshot Chicago CEO who talks big but, in Chance’s opinion, is as fake as a Styrofoam barbell.
The road to romance is going to be a rocky one, and though Nia has her doubts about getting involved, Chance has a well-developed competitive streak and might just be willing to give it a shot…if he can convince her to do the same.
In matters of the heart, would you risk it all? TAKE A CHANCE ON ME, a Mirabelle Harbor story.
From the Novel:
“Nia?” I extended my hand out to her because I was a professional and that’s what we did when we met a new client. It didn’t have anything to do with my desire to touch her. Much.
She looked at me oddly. Hesitant. Like she was afraid I’d try to out muscle her or something. So I added a slight smile.
If anything, she looked even more worried then, but she finally took my hand and
shook it.
God, her skin was so soft.
“Chance.” She stated my name rather than asked. How insane was it that I was proud of this? That she knew who I was already? Then I looked down and realized I was wearing my trainer nametag.
Oh.
“Yes,” I said. “Nice to meet you.” This was such a freakin’ understatement it was almost a lie. I was usually only attracted to very athletic women, but Nia Pappayiannis had a different style and body type than the typical crowd of single twenty-somethings I ran into at the gym. She was all softness and curves, dressed in her very conservative white t-shirt and her stretchy blue yoga pants. Other women might appear frumpy in such a plain outfit. Nia rocked the look.
“Likewise,” she said.
A long, awkward silence followed. I wasn’t used to that either. Most of my clients talked my ear off from the second of introduction on. Not her.
The One That I Want Page 23