Kate shot a glance to Austin. Was he asking her to marry him today? He shrugged as if he couldn’t control the situation, but he was grinning.
“We also know that Austin wears the necklace from your grandma,” Gavin continued, “and you sent him a pendant each year you were apart. So we thought …” He released his arm from around Kari and popped open the black box. Inside was a gorgeous oval diamond pendant framed in silver and attached to a silver chain. Gavin pulled it from the box and turned it around. Kate leaned in and squinted. Engraved on the back where the words Kate Joy Strong. Family Forever.
If she’d been able to find her words, she would’ve teased Austin about things being out of order, but as it was, all she could do was blink back the tears and whisper, “Thank you,” to Gavin and Kari. “I’ll wear it, always.”
Gavin stepped forward, and Austin lifted her hair. Gavin gently secured the necklace for her, then gave her a brief hug and said, “I’m glad my boy found you.”
“Me too,” she whispered back.
Kari hugged her next, followed by Mama Strong, and the whole family started pressing in. Austin held up a hand and said, “Wait a minute! My dad stole my thunder, which has never happened before.” Everyone laughed. “Isn’t there some saying about the cart before the horse?” Austin winked at his parents.
“Just giving a gentle nudge,” Kari said, grinning unrepentantly.
“I got the message.” Austin tilted his chin up to them. He turned to Kate, pulled something out of his pocket, and dropped to one knee.
Kate felt the tears pricking again as she clasped her new necklace with one hand and Austin’s hand with the other.
“Kate,” Austin started. “I’ve never been a mess for anyone before. You made me crash into walls, get concussions, almost get killed.” He winked, and she winced. “All worth it if I can be with you. It was love at first sight for me, and it’s only grown stronger over the past five years, as I showed patience that nobody knew I had.”
Everyone laughed at that.
Austin grinned and waited until the din quieted. “I love you completely, Kate. Will you please marry me?” He held up a massive, sparkling oval diamond ring that matched her new necklace.
“Yes,” she said. “Of course, yes!”
Austin stood, slid the ring on, and—amidst the hoots and hollers of his family—gave her a long, tender kiss.
“You all planned this?” Kate asked, looking from him to his grinning parents. She’d never seen Gavin smiling so broadly.
“Yeah, but in the plan, I got to go first.” Austin gave his dad a mock glare.
Gavin shrugged. “I can’t help it if you’re a slow mover.”
The family laughed uproariously at that.
Kate framed his handsome face with her hands. “Definitely a slow mover. Twenty minutes after I met him, he told me he loved me.”
“When it’s right, it’s right,” Austin said. He ran his hands through her hair, and she trembled. “You wouldn’t have wanted some wussy cop guy who took things slow.”
Kate smiled. “I want you, Austin Strong. End of story.”
He tugged her closer and murmured, “I’d go through it all again for you, Kate Joy.”
When he kissed her, she registered the cheers of his family around them. Austin was right. This family was right. She was finally home.
Thank you for reading The Strong Family Romance Collection. I just loved this family and especially Austin!
Keep reading for an excerpt of Her Hockey Superstar Fake Fiance as well as an excerpt of the first book in Cami’s new Jewel Family Romance series: Do Marry Your Billionaire Boss.
Do Marry Your Billionaire Boss
“You okay?” a deep male voice asked from her right.
Jade jumped and spun to face him. “Holy heck! Can’t you tell I’m in deep meditation?”
The man grinned and she found she liked his wide grin, white teeth, and the dimple that appeared in his cheek, visible even through the short, dark beard he kept. She wished she could see past his sunglasses and the hat pulled down low to shade his face. “Sorry for interrupting,” he said. “You’ve paced along the beach in the hot sun so many times this past couple of hours I worried you might be in severe dehydration and need me to buy you a drink.”
She wrinkled her nose at him. “Is that a pickup line?”
“Do you want it to be?”
She found that she did. His jawline was strong and his body well-built. She was definitely attracted to him, but of course it couldn’t be that easy with her. She shook her head and gave him a challenging smirk. “I don’t share drinks unless I can see a man’s eyes.”
He smiled. “Well, that’s a disappointment.” Turning away, he glanced over his shoulder at her. “If you change your mind I’ll be right there.” He pointed to a cabana with a couple of beach chairs and a small table with a laptop sitting on it.
He walked away without another word. Jade gaped after him. From what she could tell he was handsome, fit, and probably successful if he could afford to stay at this place and work on his laptop on the beach, but men didn’t just walk away from her.
“Excuse me?” She called after him, sinking in the soft sand as she pushed through to his little private cabana.
He turned around and faced her, a smile playing at his lips. “Excuse you?”
“Who do you think you are?” she demanded, really wanting to know. There was an off-chance he wasn’t showing his face because he was a celebrity. She’d heard this resort was ripe with celebrities, most importantly the Jewel family all stayed her regularly. This could be a score for her blog, but she didn’t really care too much about that at the moment.
He put a hand to his chest and his lips turned down. “Jesse. And you?”
“Jade,” she said shortly. “But that’s not what I meant. You think you’re so high and mighty you can’t even take off your sunglasses or hat?”
He smiled but she didn’t sense any sincerity from the smile. “Maybe it’s just really bright out here and I have sensitive eyes.”
Keep Reading here.
Her Hockey Superstar Fake Fiance
Faith rushed out the door of the spa at Angel Falls Retreat, only briefly stumbling as the brisk winter air threatened to knock her backward. She zipped her coat and upped her pace. She’d had a walk-in haircut come in at the last minute, and now she’d be late for practice; she was the coach of a competitive youth swim team in Vail, but it was twenty minutes away and practice started in eighteen minutes. Pulling her phone out, she started typing quicker than she walked, asking the assistant coach to start warming the team up without her.
“Oof!” She slammed into something hard and large. Bouncing back, she hit the pavement on her rear, pain radiating up her backside and her phone skittering away underneath a parked car. Glancing up, way up, she saw a man towering over her. The sun was bright reflecting off the snow, so she couldn’t quite make out his face, but his body was tall, lean, and beautifully muscled under a fitted long-sleeved shirt.
“Faith?” he asked.
Her stomach did a funny flip-flop it hadn’t done in years. When that voice said her name, she found herself diving back into dreams she’d long since stored and tried to forget. Those dreams were nothing like reality, as she’d buried her husband Blaine a year ago. Her life for over ten years now was far removed from Jag’s deep, husky, beautiful voice saying her name.
The man bent down low and swept her off the ground. Thankfully, her thick coat dampened the impact, but excitement and heat still shot through her as she was lifted face to chest with the man who dominated her night dreams, no matter how many times she’d prayed to stop dreaming about him. If she had any money, she’d hire a therapist or voodoo witch doctor to exorcise him from her memory.
“Faith,” he repeated, saying the name this time almost reverently. Jag’s handsome face looked all lit up. He appeared for all the world like the boy she used to adore, grown into an irresistible man with hard lines
and firm muscles and yet a softness in his eyes as he gazed at her.
He lifted her off her feet, without her permission—and much to her body’s happiness—and swung her around like he used to do. Setting her back down, he was still grinning at her. “Faith.” How many times could he say her name in different ways? This time it was a husky groan. She knew exactly what was coming when he said her name in that way, and she wanted him to capture her lips more than she wanted her swim team to win state this year.
He bent down close, his blue eyes taking her in as if she were his entire world. His muscular body surrounded her, and for the first time in years, she felt safe. Any moment now their lips would connect, washing away all the pain and misery she’d been through these past ten years, and Jag would make everything right in her world.
“And who is this?” a snarky voice asked from his side.
Jag wrapped Faith tight and turned her, as if to shelter her from the woman standing next to them. Faith peeked over his muscular arm to see a gorgeous redhead in a tight business suit that pushed her well-endowed front out for the world to enjoy. Faith worried that the woman would get frostbite on her beautiful front alignment. It was chilly out here.
“What are you doing here?” Jag demanded.
The woman smiled silkily. “You know exactly why I’m here: to finish the story I was promised an exclusive on.”
“You weren’t promised it by me. Butt out of my life, Sheryl.”
“Oh, but I can’t. You’re my ticket, Jag, and we both know you owe me much more than a story.”
“I don’t owe you anything.” Jag looked back down at Faith. The tightness in his brow and mouth eased, and he said, “Sorry about the interruption. Give me a second, and we’ll continue.”
Faith had been so enthralled by his presence, followed by the intriguing conversation between him and this picture-perfect woman, but now all the memories and the pain came rushing back and she squirmed to be out of his embrace. With a rush of horror, she realized she’d almost let him kiss her. They weren’t going to simply pick up where they left off. Never. Jag had ditched her ten years ago. She had moved on—well, as much as a woman desperately in love could move on. She now loathed him almost as much as she’d adored him.
Keep reading here.
About the Author
Cami is a part-time author, part-time exercise consultant, part-time housekeeper, full-time wife, and overtime mother of four adorable boys. Sleep and relaxation are fond memories. She’s never been happier.
Join Cami’s VIP list to find out about special deals, giveaways and new releases and receive a free copy of Rescued by Love: Park City Firefighter Romance by clicking here.
Read on for a quick excerpt of the first book in Cami’s Steele Family Romances: Her Dream Date Boss.
[email protected]
www.camichecketts.com
Also by Cami Checketts
Jewel Family Romance
Do Marry Your Billionaire Boss
Do Trust Your Special Ops Bodyguard
Do Date Your Handsome Rival
Do Rely on Your Protector
Strong Family Romance
Don’t Date Your Brother’s Best Friend
Her Loyal Protector
Don’t Fall for a Fugitive
Her Hockey Superstar Fake Fiance
Don’t Ditch a Detective
Don’t Miss the Moment
Don’t Love an Army Ranger
Don’t Chase a Player
Don’t Abandon the Superstar
Steele Family Romance
Her Dream Date Boss
The Stranded Patriot
The Committed Warrior
Extreme Devotion
Quinn Family Romance
The Devoted Groom
The Conflicted Warrior
The Gentle Patriot
The Tough Warrior
Her Too-Perfect Boss
Her Forbidden Bodyguard
Cami’s Collections
Steele Family Collection
Hawk Brothers Collection
Quinn Family Collection
Cami’s Georgia Patriots Collection
Cami’s Military Collection
Billionaire Beach Romance Collection
Billionaire Bride Pact Collection
Billionaire Romance Sampler
Echo Ridge Romance Collection
Texas Titans Romance Collection
Snow Valley Collection
Christmas Romance Collection
Holiday Romance Collection
Extreme Sports Romance Collection
Georgia Patriots Romance
The Loyal Patriot
The Gentle Patriot
The Stranded Patriot
The Pursued Patriot
Jepson Brothers Romance
How to Design Love
How to Switch a Groom
How to Lose a Fiance
Billionaire Boss Romance
Her Dream Date Boss
Her Prince Charming Boss
Hawk Brothers Romance
The Determined Groom
The Stealth Warrior
Her Billionaire Boss Fake Fiance
Risking it All
Navy Seal Romance
The Protective Warrior
The Captivating Warrior
The Stealth Warrior
The Tough Warrior
Texas Titan Romance
The Fearless Groom
The Trustworthy Groom
The Beastly Groom
The Irresistible Groom
The Determined Groom
The Devoted Groom
Billionaire Beach Romance
Caribbean Rescue
Cozumel Escape
Cancun Getaway
Trusting the Billionaire
How to Kiss a Billionaire
Onboard for Love
Shadows in the Curtain
Billionaire Bride Pact Romance
The Resilient One
The Feisty One
The Independent One
The Protective One
The Faithful One
The Daring One
Park City Firefighter Romance
Rescued by Love
Reluctant Rescue
Stone Cold Sparks
Snowed-In for Christmas
Echo Ridge Romance
Christmas Makeover
Last of the Gentlemen
My Best Man’s Wedding
Change of Plans
Counterfeit Date
Snow Valley
Full Court Devotion: Christmas in Snow Valley
A Touch of Love: Summer in Snow Valley
Running from the Cowboy: Spring in Snow Valley
Light in Your Eyes: Winter in Snow Valley
Romancing the Singer: Return to Snow Valley
Fighting for Love: Return to Snow Valley
Other Books by Cami
Seeking Mr. Debonair: Jane Austen Pact
Seeking Mr. Dependable: Jane Austen Pact
Saving Sycamore Bay
Oh, Come On, Be Faithful
Protect This
Blog This
Redeem This
The Broken Path
Dead Running
Dying to Run
Fourth of July
Love & Loss
Love & Lies
The Strong Family Romance Collection Page 110