Finally A Bride: A Valentine's Day Romance

by Colleen Charles

  Angelica’s eyes narrow into slits. “I was very clear with you yesterday, Dravon. You’re not welcome here. Go home. Go home before I tell all these good people why we’re no longer engaged and haven’t been for quite some time.”

  My rival gesticulates wildly, his hands arcing in front of him. “Dammit. Just go back inside and we’ll talk like adults. I know you don’t mean anything you’re saying.”

  Puffs of Angelica’s breath dot the air. “You are either stupid or delusional.” She puts up a hand between them and juts out a curvy hip. “There are two choices. You either leave now, or I give a speech in the middle of Main Street. Imagine how fast it will go viral on social media? What will your business associates think of that, huh?”

  “Now you wait just one minute…”

  Her pointer finger shows the way. “Get inside that expensive German sedan and drive on out of here.”

  “Angelica…”

  “Now. I’m not kidding, Dravon. I don’t want to ever see you again unless I’m home to see my family and we meet in passing.” Her full lips curl into a pout. Then, as soon as Dravon spins on his heel, she places a hand on her hip. “And if we do, you better just keep right on walking.”

  Callahan leans in for a better look and I clap him on the shoulder. “I knew she could do it herself.”

  By the time I reach Angelica, she’s shaking a bit, despite her show of bravado. The taillights of the white Mercedes round the corner and I breathe a sigh of relief. Good riddance.

  Cool Beans has emptied out and every single customer stands around Angelica. Even some from the surrounding businesses for good measure. The whole darn town witnessed my gorgeous girl getting shit done.

  Despite the claps and cheers at her performance, our eyes meet and hers drops. A flush blushes her cheeks along with the cold. I know where this is going all too well. She’s mortified that I saw her argument with Dravon, when she should be anything but. Even with Sweetheart Hills milling around us and firmly in her corner, it’s as if we’re alone in the street. I don’t break eye contact.

  I don’t even want to.

  I watch the sun dip below the horizon, bathing Main Street, the twinkling lights and the red, heart-shaped decorations in a subtle glow of orange. A garbage truck beeps in the background. Everything looks idyllic – like one of those Christmas movies on Hallmark that always end in a happily ever after. And none of it matters. Not one thing but her and me.

  Her mouth opens to protest, but before she can say one word, I plant a kiss on her waiting lips. “You should be so damn proud of yourself.”

  I kiss her again, lifting her clear off her feet and claiming her as mine. Mine. It’s a wild, wicked, slow kiss that I can’t contain despite the rapt audience.

  After I release Angelica, she sighs. “That was my ex-fiancé.”

  “So I’ve been told.”

  Her arms hold on to my waist for dear life. As if her confessions might make me walk away. I will never, ever leave my Angelica. No fucking way.

  “I never meant to cause a commotion in the middle of the street. You have to believe me, Knight. I tried every single thing I could think of to make him go back home.”

  I understand Dravon’s dilemma. Angelica’s the best thing to ever happen to me. He must be kicking himself in his own ass that he let her get away. “I believe you. Sometimes life throws us a curve ball and we just have to step up to the plate and take a swing. And if I’m ever in a situation with my own back against the wall, after what I just saw, I want you in my corner.”

  “You do?”

  “Forever and ever,” I say against her lips in a husky whisper. “I’ve never met a woman quite like you Angelica. You might not need me, but I need you. Will you marry me?”

  I’ve seen the love in her eyes before but nothing like the emotion shining back at me right now. I’ve never felt so raw and vulnerable. So worried my happiness hinges on a single word.

  A pause. A heartbeat. “Yes.”

  As the crowd erupts into a new round of applause all around us, I sweep Angelica in my arms again. My heart fills to the brim, then overflows right there in the street of a Northern town like no other. “I’m going to make you so happy, Angel. Count on it.”

  She leans up to whisper in my ear. “There was a time when I didn’t think I could say yes even though I wanted to so much. I thought I might not be good enough for you. Thank you for helping me see the value within myself.”

  I tuck a silky platinum lock behind her ear. “It was there all the time. I just gave you a nudge in the right direction by believing in you until you could take over for me.”

  Angelica hooks her arms around my neck. “We’re in public, so I know it’s wrong. But can you take me home now? I’m not going to feel like this engagement is real until it’s consummated. Maybe a few times just to be sure.”

  I smile, the one that I reserve only for her. “I could care less about the crowd, but the part about going home and being alone, I’m all for multiples.”

  “Then why are you babbling about it and not doing it?” Her soft lips find mine again. “Take me home Grizzly Adams. This is our fairytale ending. We own it. And everything with you is just right.”

  “Gladly, Goldilocks.”

  Epilogue

  Angelica

  The snap of a branch and the whisper of wind jolts me awake, dawn crawling across the sky. For a second, I forget where I am until I feel the body heat snuggled against my backside. I wiggle backward until his arms snake around me and pull me even closer against his groin.

  “Good morning, Angel,” Knight says, his steamy breath feathering my earlobe.

  My entire body crackles with appreciation. “It is, isn’t it?”

  His hands seem to be everywhere all at once, but I don’t mind. Knight’s main love language is physical touch. I’ve never felt more wanted or more adored since becoming his wife and hitching my star to his.

  And I haven’t regretted it for even one breath. One heartbeat.

  I never did get to sell my organic candles at the Sweetheart Hills Valentine’s Day Festival. I was too busy marrying my very own Knight. A girl needs priorities.

  His warm breath feathers across my neck. “Are you ready to learn more about the mating patterns of the largest north American rodent?”

  His arms snake around my waist and I put my hands over them. “Hmm… sounds scary. What if I scream and feel faint like I would if I saw a rat in the kitchen?”

  “Nah, these guys are cute. There’s even a lady on TikTok who rehabs babies for the wild in her home pond. She videos one creating dams in her house out of common household items.”

  I glance at the roof of our heavy-duty canvas tent. “No way. You’re telling me a lady has wild beavers in her house?”

  “Well, beavers aren’t very wild in the vicious sense. They’re very calm and gentle in that type of situation. The worse thing they’ll do is steal your shoes and pile them up. Maybe gnaw on them a little.”

  I raise an eyebrow that he can’t even see. “I’m surprised you even know what TikTok is, Evermore. You don’t get out much and most of your friends are furry.”

  He gives my middle a gentle squeeze. “Hey, now. You’re my friend and I see you every day.”

  I turn my head so I can give him a kiss. “Is that what they’re calling wives now?”

  A smile plays at his lips. “Did I ever tell you there was a time I thought I might never get out of your friend zone?”

  His words cause a strange flurry inside my stomach. “You were never really in the friend zone. I tried to shove you there. But no matter how hard I pushed, your huge body just stayed in the same place. You’ve never been very good at following my directions.”

  He shoves a tendril of my long hair behind my ear and then traces the line of my jaw. “I’m kind of stubborn that way. Once I claim something as mine, it’s mine forever.”

  The breath stalls in my lungs. “Your loyalty is kind of hot. To me. To the critters. You
’re a darn fine human, husband. I’m glad I stumbled into Hilda’s forest that day.”

  He smacks my lips and my rump at the same time. “Me too. Now, let’s get up and get my work done today so we can play house in this tent. Have you noticed the new sleeping bags are really soft?”

  I roll my eyes and my body at the same time. After washing, dressing and a quick breakfast of protein bars and instant coffee, we head toward the pond just outside of Sweetheart Hills. That’s right. My man’s current assignment brought us full circle – right back to where we first fell in love. Knight has been charged with checking on the beaver babies and making sure everything is as it should be. Beavers are born in May here in Northern Minnesota. Thank goodness they aren’t born in spring, because I couldn’t imagine staying in a tent in the still frigid temps of March or April. That’s just a little too much roughing it.

  Once we reach the water’s edge, Knight crouches down and lifts his binoculars. I sit beside him, and my gaze trails the dam I can see with the naked eye. “Are all their feet webbed?” I whisper.

  “Nope. Only their back ones. Did you know that an adult beaver can chew through a six-inch tree in fifteen minutes? They eat hundreds of trees every year.”

  I put my hand up to shade my eyes from the morning sun. “I guess I wouldn’t want one in my yard then like that TikTok lady.”

  “Probably not. When beavers live where they’re wanted, they’re the best furry conservationists around. When they’re not, they can do some serious damage, flooding roads and destroying people’s fruit and shade trees. But out here, they’re solid forest citizens.”

  As if on cue, mama beaver skims the surface of the water along with three tiny swimming logs. I lift my finger. “There they are!”

  Knight clamps a hand over my mouth. “You’re getting too excited. Just give me a few minutes to make sure everything is as it should be before you decide you need to meet them. Knowing you, you’d probably just jump right in and swim out to greet mama beaver like that’s what humans do every day.”

  I blow my bangs skyward. “As if. I hate being wet. But they’re so dang cute, I do want to pet them. Do they face any predators? There aren’t any alligators in Minnesota.”

  “Coyotes. Wolves. Lynx… bears.”

  I hiss in a breath and my stomach clenches. “No way. Not Hilda! She eats these little guys. Girlfriend and I have to have a talk about that.”

  Grrrrr.

  As if she heard me say her name, the huge bear lumbers through a nearby grove of evergreen trees, heading straight for Knight, almost like she wants to hug him. He gives her a talk to the hand gesture, and she skids to a stop. My eyes tear up when I see two liquid brown pairs of eyes peer around behind their mother. Hilda’s cubs are three months old now and they’re about as cute as anything I’ve ever seen since becoming Knight’s wife. I almost can’t believe my eyes that she’s letting us this close, but then she’s known Knight since her own birth, and she trusts him not to hurt her or her family.

  I think she might even trust me too.

  I slap Knight on the shoulder until he drops his binoculars and glances over his shoulder. “Look! Hilda’s cubs. I’m naming them Hansel and Gretel.”

  Knight’s booming laugh rings out through the trees, causing a few songbirds to take flight. Mama beaver seems undeterred, leading her little family in circles around the pond as she teaches them to be strong swimmers. “You’ve got the wrong fairytale, gorgeous girl.”

  “Is any fairytale really wrong?” I ask, watching the beautiful cubs and their equally beautiful mama. I suppress a sniffle. I’ve gone and gotten emotional because I’ve fallen in love with Hilda just like Knight has. And now I love her babies too. “You’re Grizzly, I’m Goldilocks, they’re the three bears and I’ve decided to name them after Hansel and Gretel. At this rate, we can be the whole Brothers Grimm.”

  He hugs my waist, leaning in to gently nip my neck as we rise to our feet. “Just don’t call me the big, bad wolf.”

  I reach behind and caress him through his jeans. “Really? The big, bad wolf sounds dangerous, but he also has the most beautiful dick in Minnesota. Kind of like a sculpture. We should show all of your furry friends.”

  He groans and arches into my touch. “Aren’t you supposed to ask me about the size of my… teeth?”

  A wicked hand glides up my inner thigh but then stops short of its destination. My stomach tightens as my pussy throbs. “It’s not the size of your teeth I care about, Knight. And if you haven’t noticed, I don’t look anything like Grandmama.”

  “Thank goodness for small favors. You’re beautiful, wife.”

  I sigh into the emotion of our perfect union in name and heart. “I never wanted to be the prettiest woman in the room, Knight. I just want to be the prettiest in your eyes.”

  “You are, Angel. Hilda’s cubs pale in comparison. So do the baby beavers. But I can think of another beaver I’d much rather be researching.”

  My heart stutters. “Really? Do tell.”

  Those deft fingers that are just as at home saving a wild animal as they are chopping wood for our fireplace unsnap my jeans and slip inside. “Interesting. I might need a microscope, because this one is nothing like the others.”

  I ignore the little quiver in my knees. “Why?”

  “It doesn’t have any fur. I wonder if it’s been exposed to the elements. Or maybe it got into some poison ivy and rubbed it off on a tree.”

  Giving his forearm a playful slap, I snort at his ridiculous and naughty game. But I wouldn’t change Knight for the world. He makes me laugh. He makes me feel the best version of myself. Even when he has his hands down my pants, because our hearts are already strung together like a line of twinkle lights.

  I jut my hips forward. “Perhaps you would like to inspect it further. All in the name of science, of course.”

  Before I can blink the desire away, he slips my jeans down around my ankles and backs me up to the closest evergreen. His lips find their way to my fluttering pulse and nip me there. “I am a man of science.”

  “I know,” I say on a breathless sigh. Knight’s fingers slide into my wetness and circle my swollen clit. Once. Twice. “Um… I can’t feel my knees.”

  “Let me rectify that.” With one hand, he releases that cock that I just called beautiful and lifts me a few inches with the other one. In one delicious thrust, he drives home, just the way I like it. His hands span my waist, and he stops for a few seconds, allowing me time to adjust to the exquisite fullness.

  I wiggle and Knight captures my lips with his. “What are you trying to tell me, Goldilocks?”

  Our tongues tangle in a dance of desire, connecting us in more than one place. This man owns me anyway – all my dark places and all the ones that have found the light. “Claim me, Knight. Make me yours.”

  “Gladly.” He lifts me up a few inches and then drops me back down. With the motion, my clit hits his pubic bone at exactly the right pressure and angle, and it isn’t long until I’m panting and moaning. I’m close… so close.

  I don’t even care if Hilda’s watching. Or Hansel and Gretel. I guess they’re getting an education in the birds and the bees whether they want it or not.

  Knight leans in and bites my neck just hard enough to leave a mark that I know will bruise tomorrow, marking me. “I love you so much, Angel. Thank you for choosing me.”

  As we tumble over the edge together, pleasure erupts around me even brighter than the rising sun. Exhausted and spent, we collapse to the soft bed of needles underneath us, cuddling together until reality returns to our perfect place.

  In that moment, I know that I’ve come into my own. And even though I can barely believe that an epic love happened to me, I’ll never, ever let it go.

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  Copyright

  Finally A Bride by Colleen Charles ©2021 All Rights Reserved

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual events, locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

  Colleen Charles loves reading and writing stories that entertain and sweep the reader away from their everyday life.