A small sound in one of the stalls alerted her and she peered around the door, her eyes widening when she saw a familiar slight figure emptying yet another can of gasoline. She could not see the woman’s face from her angle but she recognized the hoodie she had seen the other day from the kitchen window as well as the tell-tale wisps of wine-colored red hair.
Slowly, she edged away, intending to go call Christian but of course, her feet chose that moment to strike against a can and the resultant racket was loud enough to wake Sleeping Beauty without the prince’s help.
The woman spun around, revealing a long mane of more of the wine-colored hair, beautiful green eyes, a wide, generous mouth, slender throat and a pretty face which contorted in rage and hate when she spied Tiana.
With a roar of rage, she dumped her can and charged.
Tiana screamed instinctively as the other woman tackled her to the ground and then she screamed again when the woman pulled her hair.
“Ouch,” she yelled as she retaliated.
The woman let out a satisfying yelp of her own.
Tiana slapped the woman as hard as she could and the bitch stopped yelping enough to return the favor.
They rolled, scratching and pulling hair. It was a regular slap fight.
Tiana rolled, pinning the other woman beneath her and kneeling astride her as she prepared to mete out as much pain as she had received; and oh did she! But just when things were beginning to get interesting, a pair of strong hands wrapped around her waist and lifted her right off of the other woman as though she weighed nothing more than a pair of sandals.
Tiana struggled frantically, eager to get in another lick at the bitch but Christian’s hands were firm as a damn iron band.
“Let me go, Christian!”
But he wasn’t listening. “Vanessa?”
“You know her?” Tiana asked, ceasing her struggles.
“Vanessa Sparkles. Our old cook.”
“Well your old cook decided to roast herself some barns and a few horses on the side for dinner!” Tiana spat renewing her struggles to get her hands on the other woman who had hurt Christian so many times by slashing tires, hosing down his alfalfa and of course, the great bonfire. She wouldn’t admit it out loud but in her book, the greatest crime that deserved the most punishment was that this woman had been responsible for interrupting her lovemaking with Christian twice!
Christian’s lip quirked a little; Tiana could be a little spitfire when she wanted to be. And the sarcasm just seemed to roll off of her sometimes. Roasted barn with horses on the side?
His men had begun to gather in the barn themselves, their faces all showing surprise at seeing Vanessa there. Rose had told everyone after all that Vanessa had left to join a convent.
He released Tiana to one of his men to keep her from scratching Vanessa’s eyes out.
“What are you doing here?” Christian asked.
Vanessa sat up on the floor, her face filled with hate and anger. The proverbial woman scorned. “You threw me out like a floozy.”
“You were acting like one but I didn’t throw you out, I only politely declined your offer. You decided you couldn’t live here anymore, you left for the convent, and you have been terrorizing my ranch since! Dammit I thought it was Hank or Rick.”
“Who are Hank and Rick? For your information I never left. I have been here the whole time.”
Blaring sirens signaled the arrival of the cavalry and Christian grinned wickedly at Vanessa when he heard the sound.
“Good for you, Vanessa. You can tell the cops all about it. And yes, you’re going to do some time in the slammer because I will press charges.”
“You told me you didn’t sleep with employees, but I have been watching you bang that piece of trash for weeks!”
Tiana blinked; no wonder she had always gotten the sensation of being watched. Pity for the other woman welled in her heart but she ruthlessly quashed it. Anyone who would try to hurt animals did not deserve much sympathy.
Three cops rushed into the barn, Read Vanessa her Miranda rights and took her away.
Christian pulled Tiana into his arms hugging her close as he watched the cop cars pull away. Slowly, he guided her upstairs to his room.
For once, she didn’t protest or worry about Jamal and he liked that; he liked knowing she felt safe.
Even now, with her hair in disarray from her tussle with Vanessa, she looked hot. Her short skirt revealed miles and miles of the long, legs that never failed to drive him out of his mind; her tiny waist still begged for a man’s touch and her smile was pure welcome.
“I have a mind to see if we can rotate my mattress. Wanna help?”
“Whatever you say, cowboy,” she agreed huskily.
He leaned down and kissed her briefly, enjoying the soft ripeness of her lips beneath his.
“Answer me this, though,” he said, raising his head and dipping his hands in his pockets.
“Sure. What do you want to know?” she asked, smiling at him even though her eyes revealed her confusion.
“Will you make me the happiest man alive and agree to be my wife?” Christian asked, going down on one knee.
After everything they had been through together, Tiana finally let go of all the hurt from the past, and embraced her love in the present.
“Yes! Oh yes, Christian! I would love nothing more,” she said, tears filling her eyes.
He slid the ring onto her finger and then rose to take her lips in a kiss so tender it brought her to tears.
Tiana clung to him, this strong, silent cowboy who had given her the gift of his love and made her trust again.
EPILOGUE
Tiana smoothed a hand down her stomach, trying not to groan as the baby kicked merrily up and down her womb. It would be just her luck that this one would be a boy too, she thought grimly as she gingerly sank onto a wicker chair on the sun porch.
Her husband was working a horse in the stable while Jamal, Marsh and Evans, their three sons, looked on from the fence. She sighed when she noticed Evans, the youngest at three, was without his windbreaker again.
“Tiana? Shouldn’t you be putting your feet up?”
Tiana tried not to roll her eyes. Every time she turned around, someone was pestering her about resting. Thanks to the plenty hours of sleep and inactivity, she was now as round as a ball. She suspected Christian had put them up to checking up on her every time but he would never admit it. They had been married five years now and he still was the most over-protective of husbands.
“I’m fine, Mom,” she said. It was Christian’s mother and the woman had taken to her like fish to water and become a loving grandmother to all her grandkids, including Jamal.
“You look parched, honey, here’s some water for you.”
Tiana sighed then with a mischievous smile, she looked up, “I look ‘parched’ because my water just broke.”
Predictably, the woman was shocked and then she yelled so loudly for Christian that everyone in a five-mile radius turned around; or at least it seemed that way because suddenly they were surrounded by everyone from cooks to ranch hands to her husband and kids. You would think they had never seen a woman give birth before.
“Honey? Where does it hurt?” Christian asked, white as a sheet.
Tiana sighed. The man had witnessed two separate childbirths and yet every time she went into labor he acted like she was an accident victim.
Where does it hurt? Really?
“Just get me to the hospital, Christian, and quit making a nuisance of yourself,” she scolded gently.
Hours later, Tiana’s heart swelled with joy as she looked down into the face of her new daughter. She was a cute little... bald thing. She had the biggest brown eyes on the planet, a wide smile and a cheek that promised to dimple with time. She was beautiful!
Christian gently brushed back a strand of hair from her face and dropped a light kiss on her mouth.
Her heart exploded with a different kind of joy as she basked in the absolu
te love that comes from family.
The End
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More Titles By Violet (Free on Kindle Unlimited)
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Meeka Brown has been having a tough life. After a robbery gone wrong took the life of her husband, she was left alone to struggle to raise her son for the last two years on a waitresses salary.
Her job as a waitress is nothing but stress, and she juggles an online degree, while her boss makes her life miserable. It seems like she just can't catch a break. She finds herself driving home from work one night when her car breaks down and she has to walk the rest of the way home.
On her way home, a friendly stranger offers her a ride, but she declines. He persists, and he doesn't seem like the usual creeps that hit on her and her babysitter is on the clock, so she decides to take a ride with him, keeping her pepper spray close by of course.
He turns out to be an absolute gentleman, and a doctor, who just has a totally different attitude towards life. He seems like he comes from a totally different world from her, but she feels a connection. It doesn't hurt that she's been going through a two year dry spell too.
The next morning, she miraculously finds her car all fixed up, with a note from the Doctor asking her out. She thinks nothing of it, and chalks it up to either a rich guy looking to feel good about himself, or someone just trying to get into her pants.
But after finally getting some alone time for herself, and with the helpful encouragement of her mother, she decides to give him a call. And she is so glad she did, because they fall madly in love together. They date for the next few months and become even more infatuated with each other. They become so close that she even finally decides to introduce him to her son. When the doctor meets her son, his face goes pale white, as he discovers a disturbing secret.
Their relationship stays great for the next little while until she gets into a car accident and learns they are connected in a way that she would not have imagined. To top it all off, while she is in the hospital she finds out that she is pregnant.
Will this disturbing secret keep them apart? Or will their love overcome all odds and bring them together again?
Note: This is a bundled release of Doctor's Love Book 1, Book 2 and Book 3 all for one low price!
Loving The Doctor
Shenice Washington was never a stranger to drama.
After her husband had left her and her daughter Rachel at the tender age of three, this strong independent woman knew how to take care of herself. Working several jobs while trying to put herself through nursing school she finally graduated with her degree.
But after almost 13 years of raising her child on her own, her teenage daughter while out with friends was in a horrible car accident. Four of the other girls in the car died instantly, and her daughter was the sole survivor, but stuck in a coma.
The attending physician for her daughter, Dr. Roger Stewart, showed more care than she could imagine, and while her daughter soon came out of the coma, Shenice found herself falling for the doctor.
Will Shenice find love with the doctor, after such a tragic incident?
The Nurse's Secret Love
As a nurse at a busy Atlanta hospital, Latoya had no time for love, or so she thought...
Nurses and doctors work together every day, but for Latoya there was one doctor who she wished she knew on an intimate and emotional level. Mark Waters had been a colleague and close friend of hers for many years but they never explored anything further as he was a married man.
But after they both attended a medical conference in the romantic setting of Savannah, Mark discovered some disturbing news. His wife was cheating on him with their realtor. Broken, tipsy and disheveled he came to Latoya's hotel room in the middle of the night looking for a shoulder to cry on. But one thing led to another and they both made passionate love to each other that night.
While Latoya thought it was a onetime drunken fling in his moment of weakness, the next morning they ended up making love again. She couldn't be happier and was now hopeful that they could have a future together. The weekend passes and they are both set to go back to Atlanta. But before they leave Mark has some very bad news. He spent all night on the phone with his wife, and they were going to try and work it out. While he wasn't very excited about it, he thought he at least owed her that much. Latoya's heart shattered into a million pieces and she cried all the way back to Atlanta.
Over the next few weeks they both tried to avoid each other as much as possible, but a few chance encounters showed them both there was something more there. But neither of them wanted to break up Mark's marriage so they never ended up exploring what they felt for each other.
But then everything changes. A terrible accident happens and Mark's wife's true colors are shown...
Will Mark and Latoya end up together in a happy ending?
Falling For The Doctor
Her world torn apart, Sherina calls off the wedding to the man of her dreams…
With a week left before her wedding to her dream man, Sherina was sitting on top of the world. This strong willed woman had the perfect fiancé, was about to land a great new job in New York, and had a super supportive best friend. But this all came crumbling down, when she came back early from her interview to share the great news with her future husband.
What she saw tore her world apart, and shattered it into a billion tiny pieces before her eyes. Her best friend and her fiancé were making love together. After being frozen with shock, she throws a fit and calls off the wedding. She decides to take the new job she got in New York and just leave this all behind, allowing herself to heal.
But they say the past follows you no matter where you go, and after feeling very sick, she takes a pregnancy test only to find out she's pregnant with a cheater's baby!
Her world collapses in on itself yet again, and she decides to confirm the pregnancy with a doctor. After several nervous days, she finally gets a chance to see a doctor, but there is something very different about this physician. The way he looks at her almost makes her forget about all her sorrows, and her body lights up with fire when he touches her.
The Doctor lets Sherina know that the pregnancy test was false and she actually isn't pregnant. They end up hitting it off, and through a few chance encounters start a relationship together. After a few months they are totally inseparable, until Sherina finds something at the Doctor’s house that shatters her world all over again…
Love works in mysterious ways, but does this new couple have a future together?
Will Sherina be able to mend her wounds and find love with the Doctor?
Heart of Fire
As the head nurse of the ER, Aliyah has seen her fair share of emergencies. But when she faces her own, she is amazed by the sweet and handsome fireman that comes to her rescue, and saves her and those she most closely holds dear.
Days go by and she keeps thinking of him until one day she bumps into him at the grocery store. She tries to thank him and offers to take him out for lunch but this fireman is full of surprises. Instead, he offers to cook her dinner claiming he is as close to a gourmet chef you will get outside of a 5 star restaurant.
They hit it off at dinner and realize they are so different, but there's something that keeps bringing them back together. She loves predictability and routine, while he loves taking it day to day and a living with a little danger. The fireman shows Aliyah there is so much more to life, and that she should start really living. After so much encouraging they end up doing activities Aliyah never imagined herself doing like mountain climbing and other extreme sports. Everything starts moving very fast and while Aliyah think
s she is falling for him she still has a few doubts. They say you never miss something until it's gone. That is until a terrible accident keeps them apart...
Will their love make it through the fire? How much heat can their love take?
Country Vibes
Mimosa Hughes isn't your typical Country transplant. As a professional tracker she makes her way in a male dominated cowboy town showing men a thing or two. While her riding partner Ryley is always there for her, sparks fly, until an old flame comes into town. Will Mimosa keep her fire with Ryley alive, or will she be put out?
City Vibes – Complete Series
Just your average curvy, hardworking African American girl with a modest upbringing, two jobs and no sleep, Reese Allen struggles to put herself through school and maintain a love life.
Through sheer chance she meets a wealthy man of her dreams, the complete opposite to what she thought she would want, who shows her a side of New York she could only imagine.
Everything is all roses, until he loses it all and their love is put to the test. In the midst of it all another white knight comes to Reese's rescue with more money than she has ever seen, specifically for her to further her career. Can she choose her career over love? Or does she even have to?
The Billionaire's Bodyguard
A bodyguard romance with a twist!
Being a powerful billionaire, Alex has made many enemies over the years. As a result he has decided to hire a bodyguard. Unfortunately, Alex has very high expectations and after firing a long string of guards, he lands on someone you would never expect to be in this profession let alone a pro.
A young African American woman, named Cristina Bias, shows up as Alex's newest candidate and he couldn't help but laugh. Little does he know that Cristina has been dealing with people like him her entire career and his laughs do nothing but motivate her more to prove herself. She shows him what she knows and she is hired on the spot.
The Love Ranch (BWWM Romance) Page 10