by Every, Donna
“ ‘All things work together for good for those who love God and are called according to his purpose,’ ” he quoted to her.
Shari shook her head at the change in Nick. “Wasn’t it only a few hours ago that you were saying that didn’t apply to you?”
“Things have changed since I spoke to you. Let’s get a cup of coffee and a sandwich and I’ll tell you everything.”
Shari woke up and stretched, looking around the unfamiliar room blankly for a moment. Then she remembered; she was at Nick’s house. Her face broke into a wide smile as their conversation last night came flooding back. She threw back the sheet, eager to be with Nick again. He had come to his senses like the prodigal son and had been welcomed back home by his Father. Amazing!
She hurried to the en suite bathroom, had a quick shower and got ready to go downstairs. She had packed so fast that she had forgotten her journal and now she would love to write down everything that had happened. That would have to wait. Nick had said that his lawyer was coming over first thing in the morning.
The housekeeper directed her to the patio where Nick and his lawyer were meeting.
“Good morning, my love,” greeted Nick, getting up to give her a quick kiss. “Shari, this is Michael Bryant, my lawyer. Michael, this is Shari Goodwin, my…”
“Fiancée?” filled in Shari with a question in her voice.
“Fiancée!” confirmed Nick, pulling her in for a long, emotional hug.
“Congratulations. When did this happen?”
“Just now,” they said together and laughed.
Nick pulled Shari down on his lap as he and Michael continued to discuss the case. It probably wasn’t very businesslike, but he didn’t want to let Shari go, not even for a minute.
His phone rang, interrupting them. It was Steve calling to tell him that he didn’t know if it meant anything, but Tim had called him when he was still in Barbados and had questioned him about the retreat and whether they were using the same hotel. He had totally forgotten about the conversation until that morning.
“That’s it!” Nick said and silently added his thanks to God before relaying the call to them.
“Great! We have motive, evidence of his knowledge of your whereabouts and the evidence in the room,” his lawyer said in satisfaction. “It’s a good thing they sealed the room because, according to you, you hadn’t even gone into the bedroom yet so leaving cocaine in the bathroom would be a bit unlikely. I also think the girl’s credibility can be called into question in light of what you say happened a few years ago. With a little pressure she’ll probably cave. I’m confident that you won’t even see the inside of a court room. Leave it to me.”
“Thanks, Michael.” Nick lifted Shari from his lap and stood up to shake his lawyer’s hand.
“I’ll call you as soon as I talk to the prosecutor and get him to drop the charges,” Michael said as he made his way to the door.
Shari’s tummy made a loud protesting noise to remind her that she hadn’t eaten yet.
“Let’s get you fed and watered,” teased Nick. It was clear that he had total faith that he would be vindicated.
By the time his parents arrived, followed closely by his sisters, Michael had called to say that the charges had been dropped due to lack of sufficient evidence and also the accuser had confessed that she had been put up to it by Tim Benton.
“Sorry that you all came for nothing, but I really appreciate you dropping everything to support me. And while we’re here we can have a small celebratory party.”
“To celebrate the charges being dropped?” Nick’s mother asked.
“That too, but, more importantly, to celebrate the fact that Shari has agreed to marry me.”
There were shrieks from his sisters and hugs from his parents for both of them. In the midst of the celebration, Lily called to tell Nick to turn on the TV.
“…station has had news that the case against Nick Badley has been dropped. Sources close to Badley says that an investigation is currently being carried out to confirm that Nick was framed and the cocaine was planted in his room by his accuser who apparently visited the bathroom shortly before tearing her own dress and running out of the suite. They have a suspect in custody.”
“All things work together for good…” his mother said.
Nick and Shari looked at each other and smiled. While Nick’s arrest had seemed like the worst thing that could happen, it had brought him to his senses and restored his relationship with God and now Shari could marry him.
“Where should we get married?” he asked Shari. “And when?”
“How about in a couple months in Barbados?”
“That’s my girl,” praised Nick. “Sounds like a plan to me.”
The villa and pool house were covered with flowers. Shari didn’t know how Nick had managed to get it again so soon, but a couple of months after they had left they were back again, this time with her mother and his family and some of their close friends. They had kept the wedding plans very quiet, preferring to announce it after it was a fait accompli rather than having to battle paparazzi with telephoto lenses trying to capture photos to sell to the highest bidder.
The beautiful ceremony was performed by her mother’s pastor who had baptized Shari as a child and was delighted that she had “returned to the flock” as he put it. He had been flown in along with their families and friends by private jet.
They ate a sumptuous buffet prepared by the staff who was pleased to see them again, especially since they were getting married this time. They had even created a two-tiered wedding cake for them.
The sky was beginning to turn pink as the sun sunk beneath the horizon when everyone started to make noises about leaving. Nick had rented an eight-bedroom villa nearby for their guests so that he and Shari could have this one to themselves.
“Don’t you think it’s time to leave?” he whispered to his sisters, encouraging them to encourage the folks to move in the direction of the waiting cars. He and Shari stood at the front door and waved to their departing guests before going in and closing the door behind them. The staff finished cleaning up quickly and then left in the van provided to take them home.
“Alone at last, Mrs. Badley,” Nick said as the door closed.
“I can’t believe we’re really married,” Shari told him. “I feel incredibly blessed. Your case was dropped, you recommitted your life to the Lord and you love me. What more can I ask?”
“You’re obviously easy to please. That’s good because my desire is to please you… all night.” His voice dropped an octave as he swooped her into his arms and mounted the stairs.
Shari laughed delightedly.
“I remember the night you carried me up these stairs. I think I had too much to drink that night.”
“You think?” Nick asked in disbelief. “You were totally drunk and you came on to me.”
“Don’t remind me. I don’t know how you managed not to take what I was offering.”
Nick stopped at the master bedroom where the maid had turned back the quilt.
“God stopped me. He clearly said to me: ‘Stop Nick’. Walking away from you was the hardest thing I’d ever done.”
“I’m sorry that I tempted you, Nick.”
“That’s water under the bridge. From now on you can tempt me all you like because now I don’t have to walk away.”
“In that case, I’ve been eyeing the huge tub in the master bathroom. Would you like to share it with me?”
“I’d like nothing more.”
Minutes later, Nick pulled Shari back to lean on him. Bubbles hid her from his eyes and he had fun discovering interesting places covered by the foam.
“We’d better get out before we turn into prunes,” he said, remembering the night he had pulled her out of the Jacuzzi.
“We can’t have that,” agreed Shari, turning on the handheld shower to rinse the soap off them.
Nick’s eyes darkened with desire as the shower rinsed off the foam, revealing her
beautiful body for him to admire.
“Fearfully and wonderfully made.” He wrapped a towel around his hips and dried her with another fluffy one, dropping little kisses on her neck and shoulders.
Shari grabbed a third towel and dried his chest and back with sensuous strokes.
When Nick had had enough, he dropped all the towels on the floor, picked her up and deposited her in the king-sized, four poster bed. Nick joined her as he had before, but this time he didn’t have to stop and walk away. This time he leisurely explored her body until she let him know with unspoken words that she was ready to be joined with him as man and wife.
He let her set the pace until her shuddering body gave him the satisfaction of knowing that she had reached fulfillment before he allowed himself to join her in that special place.
“My wife,” he said possessively, pulling her close.
“Thank you for that wonderful gift,” she whispered, wiping a tear from her cheek.
“Thank you,” he insisted. “I never knew that making love could be so pure. I thank God every day that he sent you into my life.”
“I resented having to make the documentary, but he had it all planned out.”
“Yes and his plans are perfect.”
“Amen to that!”
Epilogue
Nick sat on a stool with an acoustic guitar cradled on his lap. He adjusted the mike in his ear before speaking.
“Hello, Western High School! It’s great to be here.” Screams erupted from a thousand students, making Nick smile. His eyes sought out Shari where she sat next to the principal. She smiled at him and gave him a thumbs-up.
“I’d like to introduce my wife, Shari.” She waved to the students. “We’ve been married for six months and I’ve never been happier.” Cheers and cat calls filled the auditorium. “She’s an angel sent from God.” This caused a chorus of “Aaws” from the girls and laughs from the boys.
“We’ve just come back from Africa where she was making a documentary on women entrepreneurs in developing nations. It’s always been her passion to do serious documentaries and I’m happy to be able to help her live her passion.”
“As for me, the media used to call me ‘Nick Bad’ and, believe me, I earned that nickname.”
There was laughter from the kids.
“I’ve been all over the world and done all kinds of things. It looks exciting and some of it can be exciting but, the truth is, being a star is not all glamour. Trying to get to the top and staying there can be sheer hell and it can sometimes be soul destroying. I’m sure you’ve heard stories about celebrities who couldn’t handle it and committed suicide or destroyed themselves with drugs.”
There was total silence in the room as the teenagers latched on to Nick’s words.
“While people were looking at me and thinking that I had it all, I was asking myself the question: what now? I’d been there and done that and I still wasn’t fulfilled. Until I turned back to God.
“So now I’m writing a lot of my own songs again that I hope will impact people’s lives positively. I’ll still be recording with the band and touring but I’ll also be taking time to go into schools and share my story to help inspire kids like you to go after your dreams.
“If any of you has a dream to play a musical instrument but you never had the opportunity, I’m donating a truck load of instruments to the school.” Cheers burst out. “For those of you who see college as an almost impossible dream but are willing to work hard, I’m giving three scholarships for college.”
More cheers and whoops broke out.
“Before I go, I want to sing “I’m Not the Same” which just hit number one on the Billboard Top 100.”
Pandemonium broke out in the auditorium. When they had settled down again, Nick said:
“I’ve had a wild past and many people thought that it would be impossible for me to change and it would’ve been if I’d tried to do it on my own. Thankfully, I had help from God. So I encourage you to pursue your dreams, try to excel in everything that you do and always remember that with God nothing is impossible.”
The End
Donna Every Novels
Clean Read Romances
The Merger Mogul
Daniel Tennant, aka The Merger Mogul, is one of Manhattan’s top merger consultants. His past has made him vow never to be poor again and so he lives by the philosophy: “Women are great but a profitable company and a healthy stock portfolio are better and definitely harder to come by."
The High Road
In this exciting sequel to The Merger Mogul, Daniel Tennant, formerly known as The Merger Mogul, has landed the project of a lifetime – to help transform the nation of Barbados. However he doesn’t bargain for the opposition he will receive, or the lengths to which the conspirators will go to discredit him in an attempt to bring an end to the project.
The Price of Freedom
He owned her and was prepared to give her freedom but was she prepared to pay the price? An exciting, page turning historical novel set in Barbados and Carolina in 1696.
About The Author
Donna Every is a motivational speaker, personal change specialist and author. She lives on the beautiful island of Barbados with her husband, two children and four dogs. Her house is in the middle of the 166 sq. mile island, in one of the only two parishes with no beach.
Donna was an accountant who left the profession to pursue her dream of being a motivational speaker who evolved into an author along the way. She was featured on the cover of Personal Excellence magazine and articles based on her books What Do You Have in Your House? Surviving in Times of Financial Crisis and The Merger Mogul were featured in over 40 publications and websites such as Yahoo! Finance, Reuters.com, MSNBC.com, CBSNews.com and MarketWatch.com. She was listed as one of Barbados Today’s Women Inspiring Change for International Women’s Day 2014.
Donna enjoys writing both historical and contemporary romance novels. In 2013 she released her first historical romance, The Price of Freedom which was set in Barbados and Carolina in 1696. Her latest novel What Now? is a compelling contemporary rock star romance.