Unconditionally Mine

by Nadine Gonzalez

  It was perfect for what she had in mind: a first date of sorts. She and Jon never had one. Theirs had been an unconventional courtship from the start. What they needed more than anything was a reboot.

  Ericka checked the time. “He should be here any minute. Good luck!”

  Sofia stood waiting at the marina, her heart in her throat. It was stupid to be this nervous. They’d lived together, been on trips together and jury duty counted as a first date. Back then, at least, their hearts hadn’t been on the line. They’d just been having fun. Now they wanted a full life, at least that’s what she wanted.

  The Porsche pulled up to the marina parking lot. She breathed in deeply, taking in the bay breeze. She was ready.

  * * *

  Jon was enamored with the yacht. Sofia watched as the captain gave him a guided tour. He took the wheel at the cockpit, giddy like a kid. The man she loved was gorgeous in the hazy afternoon sun. She couldn’t tear her gaze away from his toasted-brown skin and dazzling smile. When he joined her on the deck, he said, “When I grow up, I want one like this.”

  “And you’ll get it,” she said. “I’m sure.”

  Sofia waited until they’d left the city behind before she took his hand and led him to a seat. The bay was smooth like glass. In the distance, the buildings were silhouetted against the sky. She had her little speech rehearsed and, with the sun setting in a tangerine glow, it was time.

  “Jon,” she said hesitantly. “I’m sorry for the way things started out with us. I wish we could wipe the slate clean.”

  “Don’t apologize,” he said. “I crowded you when you weren’t ready. I could’ve taken a hint, given you space.”

  She was so glad he hadn’t done those things. “I’ve never been as happy as when I was living with you.”

  “Good.” He slipped off his sunglasses and looked her dead in the eyes. “Because if you buy that condo, I’m selling the house.”

  “What?” More conditions! Hadn’t this man learned a damn thing?

  “I’m serious,” he said.

  How could he think of selling the house? The thought of it tore her up inside. She rose off the banquette and held on to the boat’s rail to keep steady and better confront him.

  “I knew the house didn’t mean anything to you,” she said. “It was an investment. That’s all.”

  “It means everything to me,” he said. “But I’m not going to live there without you. I’m miserable and I won’t live that way.”

  “Where will you live?” she asked.

  Was he thinking of buying a proper bachelor pad? Resuming his bachelor life?

  “In the condo...with you.”

  “That’s not the point of the condo,” she said.

  “What’s the point of the condo?” he asked. “I’ve been curious.”

  “For us to live apart and start dating like normal people.”

  “That’s not going to happen.”

  “Why not, Jon? I don’t think that’s too much to ask.”

  She must’ve looked like a crazy woman, curls flapping in the wild breeze and screeching like a hyena.

  He stood and brushed her hair away from her face. “Because I’ve got a better idea.”

  One moment she was looking into his lively brown eyes, the next she was staring at a square-cut yellow diamond.

  “What is that?” she whispered.

  “What do you think?” He carefully removed the ring from its red-and-gold box. “I picked yellow because I love you in color.”

  He’d bought her a ring, a gorgeous ring, but why? Was he convinced she couldn’t live without a rock on her finger? That she lived to be engaged?

  “Jon, I don’t need a ring,” she said. “I don’t need anything.”

  His expression darkened. “Are you saying no?”

  “I’m saying it’s way too soon.”

  “Your mother thought it was too soon,” he said. “But she also thinks you’re turning into a cow.”

  “I’m not a cow!”

  “I told her as much,” Jon said. “No one calls my girl a cow.”

  “Hold on. When did you speak with my mother?”

  So much was happening; Sofia’s head was spinning. She wished they could get off the damn boat and talk on solid ground.

  “Last night over paella.”

  “You had ‘so-called paella’ at my parents’ house?”

  “Why ‘so-called’ paella?” he asked. “It’s delicious.”

  “What were you doing there?” she demanded.

  “Your mother said I had to ask your dad for your hand in marriage,” Jon explained. “Even though we both know she runs the show.”

  “You asked my dad for my hand?” Sofia was screeching now at an unattractively high pitch. “And you kept all this from me?”

  “I don’t know the rules,” he said. “It’s not like I do this every day. Was I supposed to ask your permission to ask your dad? Is that how it works?”

  She waved her hands before her eyes. Another pressing question came up. “Were they nice to you?”

  Her parents must have been stunned. They’d only met Jon for the first time on Father’s Day. At the restaurant, before he’d arrived, they questioned the wisdom of inviting a “newcomer” to the most sacred of family events. Her mother noted that Miguel hadn’t invited any of his interim girlfriends to dinner. That had pushed Sofia onto her feet. “Jon isn’t an interim anything,” she’d said. “You all better be nice!”

  Eventually, they’d mellowed. Jon worked his magic and before the meal was over, he was making plans to catch a baseball game with her father and Miguel. Her mother, though, had been more reserved. It generally took her a long time to warm up to people. And now, to have this new man show up talking marriage, it must have thrown her for a loop.

  “Your parents love me,” Jon said.

  She cupped his face and kissed the cocky expression away. “Tell me the truth. Did my mother put you up to this?”

  Sofia wouldn’t put it past her mother. That woman was obsessed with marrying her off—as if matrimony was the only path to salvation.

  Jon put the ring back in the box. “You’re impossible to propose to.”

  “I’m sorry. I don’t know where all this is coming from.”

  “From my heart,” he said pointedly. “I love you, Sofia. I want a life with you, and I want your family to be a part of that life.”

  Sofia fell quiet. She really was impossible. She’d questioned his motives, doubted his sincerity and come up with excuses to reject his proposal wholesale rather than consider it with an open heart.

  “Let’s start over,” she said brightly. “Let me see the ring again.”

  He pocketed the box. “No.”

  She went to him, rubbed her cheek against his and purred, “Let me see it.”

  He took out the box and opened it, revealing its white lining. That ring! A square-cut canary diamond bracketed by two smaller white diamonds that drew out the fire in the yellow stone.

  He loved her in color.

  Sofia shut her eyes, fighting its power. “I can’t look at it. Put it away.”

  “You’re saying no.”

  His voice was flat with disappointment.

  Sofia drew him onto the bench. She spoke as gently as she could. “I’m saying ‘not now.’”

  Jon snapped the box shut again, and Sofia grabbed it from him.

  “You’re not listening,” she said.

  “You’ve made your point.”

  Sofia changed tactics. It was time to speak to him in a language he’d understand. “Look,” she said. “How about this? We’ll put this ring somewhere safe. You keep the house. I’ll lease an apartment for one year. When the lease is up, you propose again.”

  Jon, though, couldn’t simply agree to her terms. He had a c
ounterproposal. “One year lease. No renewals.”

  “That’s fair.”

  “Let’s say I agree to this,” he said, “and in exactly one year’s time, I propose to you again. What will be your answer?”

  “Will one year be enough for you to work on your proposal?” she asked. “As it is, it’s kind of rocky.”

  Jon looked away, shaking his head.

  “The ring is phenomenal,” Sofia added to soften the blow. “That’s a start.”

  He faced her. To her surprise, his eyes were tender. She couldn’t help but tear up when he sank to one knee before her and took her hand.

  “Sofia, sweetheart, you’re my sun. I had nothing before you. You’ve given me everything.”

  “Jon...”

  “Now,” he said. “In a year, when I ask you to marry me, what will you say?”

  A flare cut an arc in the evening sky. It exploded into shards of light that rained down over the horizon. Fireworks. Sofia looked up at the spectacle, then back at Jon. With quiet confidence, she said, “Yes.”

  Epilogue

  Eight months later...

  The bride didn’t wear white. She wore a silk slip dress the color of pearls. Her hair was swept back with diamond combs. A pair of blue satin pumps completed her look. She walked alone down an aisle fashioned out of rose petals.

  The groom, in classic black, forgot the vows he’d written and memorized. Instead, he vowed to give her the world if she’d be his forever. The newlyweds kissed well before the officiant invited them to.

  Leila and Nick were married in their backyard. From her seat next to Jon in the front row, Sofia couldn’t help but dream of her own wedding. She’d wear organza and a veil long enough to trail behind her. She’d carry a bouquet of circus roses and wild orchids. Her father would walk her down the aisle.

  After the ceremony, they ducked into the kitchen while the bride and groom posed for photos. Sofia had hired the caterer and they were treated to shrimp cocktail.

  “What’s the plan for tonight?” Jon asked. “Your place or mine?”

  “Mine,” Sofia replied. “I’m going to need industrial strength makeup remover.”

  Jon grunted. She scoffed and fed him shrimp. “Don’t be grumpy. You love my place. You said my bed has good lumbar support.”

  He chewed and nodded. “I do like lumbar support.”

  Sofia winked. “Who takes care of you, baby?”

  “Here’s an idea,” Jon said. “Let’s get away to get married.”

  “We’d agreed on a backyard wedding,” Sofia said. “Like this one.”

  “Not sure I want a wedding like this one,” he said. “We can top this one.”

  “Jon!” Sofia looked around to make sure no one had overheard them.

  He freed a lock of her hair from her bun and twirled it around his finger. “We could leave everyone behind. Wouldn’t that be less pressure for you?”

  She’d complained that her mother was driving her crazy. Sofia wasn’t even officially engaged and yet her mother was planning the wedding. The unofficial theme seemed to be “more is more.” Every day, she filled her email inbox with photos found on Pinterest and Modern Bride blog posts. But today, Nick and Leila’s simple exchange of vows had reminded Sofia what was at stake. Flowers, ribbons and table decor were all great; expressing love was what mattered.

  “How about a destination wedding,” Sofia proposed. Instead of leaving everyone behind, they could take everyone with them. “We could go up the coast. Or maybe head back to Key West.”

  She had a vision of a beach wedding followed by dinner and dancing. They could make a weekend of it.

  Jon leaned close and kissed her cheek. The kiss was more sensual than any peck on the cheek had a right to be. “We can go wherever you like.”

  He was so handsome in his white dinner jacket. Sofia wondered if they’d be missed if they ducked into the guest bathroom.

  “You two behaving?” Brie asked.

  Taking a break from her maid-of-honor duties, she joined them at the marble breakfast bar. She looked lovely and edgy in a lavender gown, her long braids loose on her back.

  “Never,” Jon answered.

  Soon after, Minerva joined them and the conversation turned lively. The caterer tempted them with a bottle of Veuve Clicquot. “Care to get a head start on the champagne toast?”

  “Isn’t that bad luck?” Minerva asked.

  “Not for us!” Brie answered, laughing.

  “Hand it over,” Jon said.

  “No,” Sofia said. “Tonight, I’ll pour.”

  She was in the mood to celebrate. She cupped the large green bottle, cracked the foil and slowly released the cork. Without fail, it made that sound she liked.

  Pop!

  * * * * *

  Keep reading for an excerpt from One Perfect Moment by A.C. Arthur.

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  One Perfect Moment

  by A.C. Arthur

  Prologue

  Staten Island, New York

  “Just this one time,” Ava Cannon whispered as his hands cupped her butt.

  “Once is enough,” Gage Taylor murmured while moving them farther into her trailer.

  He kicked the door closed with his foot, pausing a second to reach back and lock it. Then his hands were on her once more, his mouth crashing down over hers. The kiss took her breath away, every stroke of his tongue sending searing bolts of desire through her system until her fingers were gripping his shirt. The feel of his strong biceps through the cotton material, coupled with the hardness of his body, now pressed closely against hers, caused Ava’s knees to tremble.

  This was what she’d been fighting for over the last couple of months. Each day she’d stepped onto the set of Doctor’s Orders, knowing that he would be there. The strong hands that she’d seen holding her script as he’d checked the words she’d written, monitoring them for medical accuracy, now touched her body.

  “It will be enough,” Ava whispered when he tore his mouth away from hers and she could take a breath.

  He tugged the hem of her shirt from her pants. She lifted her arms up over her head, and he pulled the shirt off. His hands immediately went around her to the clasp of her bra, which he quickly unhooked before removing and tossing it somewhere on the trailer floor.

  “Enough,” he mumbled as he dipped his head. “More than enough.”


  His lips were on her breast then, teeth holding a turgid nipple before he sucked her in deep. Ava arched her back, her hands going to his shoulders as she tried to hold on to him. When he moved to the other breast she let her head lull back, her eyes closing to the delicious sensations rippling throughout her body.

  Dr. Gage Taylor was a brilliant obstetrician and researcher. He’d come highly recommended when she’d asked who in the New York area would be a good consultant for her show. And when he arrived in her office that first day, she’d been rewarded with how jaw-dropping handsome the guy was. Ava should have known then that she was in trouble.

  Now, she was pulling at his shirt until the buttons popped off. He grunted and hurried to unsnap his pants while she did the same, toed off her flats and pushed her pants and panties down her legs. His shirt was on the floor, his pants undone, his hands moving quickly to pull a condom packet from his wallet. She pushed his pants and his boxers down as he ripped the condom packet open and then smoothed the latex over his length. He wore leather loafers that he kicked off his feet before stepping out of his pants.

  Ava sat on the couch. She scooted back on the wide pillows and looked up at all of the heavenly goodness that was Gage Taylor. Six feet one inch of golden honey-hued skin, ripped abs, muscled limbs and a thick, long erection. She swallowed as her gaze rested there.

  “Just this once,” he said, his voice deep and husky in the confined space of the trailer.

  Ava licked her lips and nodded. “Yes, just this once.”

  He was over her by then, his lips on hers, his knee spreading her legs apart. She opened her mouth to his persistence, clasped her hands to the back of his head to hold him there. He pushed them both back to a lying position on the couch, arranging himself between her legs. He said something, but Ava couldn’t hear him over the pounding of her heart and the rush of desire.

  Her legs were already trembling by the time the crest of his erection touched her entrance. He pressed harder.

  She moaned deeper, and their “one time” began.

  Copyright © 2018 by Artist Arthur

  ISBN-13: 9781488081859