Finally Fell, page 16
I pulled her in for another hug and whispered into her ear. “You deserve everything, my friend. All the love. All of it.”
When I looked at her again, she was smiling too, her eyes still sparkling. But they weren’t looking at me. I followed her gaze and clapped a hand over my mouth when I saw what—or I should say who—her gaze was fixed on.
Dylan, whom I hadn’t had much of a chance to get to know yet, looked particularly sharp with his black cowboy hat.
“A cowboy, huh?”
“What are you talking about?” Sandy pretended to look shocked, but she wiggled her eyebrows, and I laughed.
Shifting my attention to the room, I signaled a passing waiter. “I’d like to propose a toast,” I declared, catching everyone’s attention. Trent joined me at my side and like magic, a waiter appeared with a tray of champagne-filled flutes.
“I thought we were the ones who were supposed to be proposing the toasts,” Trent’s friend Blaze said.
I knew he was a huge movie star, but it had honestly been so long since I’d seen any movies, I would have been hard-pressed to say which ones.
“I’ll tell you what,” I told him. “You can propose as many as you want.” I lifted an eyebrow. “When I’m done.”
He laughed and waved elaborately, giving me the floor.
Trent snugged his arm around my waist as I lifted my glass. “I want to thank all of you for being here today and being such good sports about our surprise wedding.” There were a few hoots of appreciation. “Your support means a lot.” More cheers and Trent kissed my cheek. “I never thought this day would come,” I continued. “And I think my friends can all vouch for that.” They nodded and laughed. “But I know now that nothing good in life comes from playing it safe or putting arbitrary rules on yourself. It took me awhile to learn that, but I’m sure glad I did, because I finally fell.” I looked up at my husband, who watched me with love in his eyes.
The way he looked at me took my breath away and almost derailed me completely. Almost. I had one more thing I needed to say. “So…” I raised my glass high. “This is to just going for it.” I grinned and looked at Jessie, Abby, Darla, and Sandy in turn, my gaze resting on Sandy, who smiled knowingly at me.
“I’ll toast to that,” Jessie yelled and raised her glass before pulling Shane close.
“Oh, hell yes,” Abby said as Phillip laughed and wrapped his arm around her shoulders.
I knew they knew. And as we all toasted, my wish for Sandy and Darla was that they might know it soon, too.
Epilogue
“I think I’m probably supposed to carry you over the threshold or something.” I punched in the code for Brittany’s apartment, which had become our apartment, and pushed the door open.
She laughed and started to walk in. “That’s an old-fashioned—”
She shrieked a little, a sound that turned into a giggle—the sweetest sound—as I swept her off her feet and cradled her in my arms.
“Turns out I’m a little old-fashioned.” I pulled her in closer, and she threaded her arms up around my neck.
“I like it.”
“I like you.” I kissed her deeply, loving the feel of her in my arms. I could have kissed her all day. My cock, which had been in almost a constant state of arousal all afternoon since I’d first seen her step out in that dress, had other ideas, however. “And I’d really like to get you to bed.”
That wasn’t entirely true. It didn’t have to be a bed. It could be the couch. The hallway. The dining room table. The kitchen counter.
Hmm… I liked the sound of that.
I carried her across the threshold and kicked the door shut behind me, but I wasn’t ready to put her down yet. I kissed her again before looking down the hallway toward the bedroom, and then to the kitchen and the large white marble countertop.
“Is there some kind of rule about making sweet, sweet love on our wedding night?”
Brittany’s eyes widened. “You better be planning on fucking me tonight, husband.”
My cock twitched in my pants. “Damn, I love it when you talk dirty. And not to worry, my lovely wife. I have full intentions of fucking you tonight.”
Decision made, I moved toward the kitchen and deposited my beautiful bride on the countertop. “Have I told you what an incredibly sexy bride you are?”
“Only a half dozen times.” Her red lips curled up into a sassy smile. “But you can say it again. I’m getting used to your compliments.”
“You…” I moved between her legs. “Are the sexiest…” I gathered the silky fabric of her gown up in both hands, trailing my fingers up her thighs as I went. “Woman in the whole entire world.” With her gown rucked up around her waist, I could see the white lacy panties she wore underneath. “Ummm.” I dragged my finger up the front of her mound.
She shivered under my touch and moaned.
“Nice, but they’ll have to go.”
I was pleased to see there wasn’t much to the scrap of panties, and they tore easily.
Brittany gasped, but her breath came faster and her breasts heaved. Braless, her nipples pebbled against the fabric.
“So. Fucking. Sexy.” I traced my finger between her legs and her sensitive bud until she squirmed. My free hand cupped her breast through the dress, and I kissed her hard. She moaned into my mouth, and I was almost completely gone. There would be no slow, sweet lovemaking. Not yet.
For now, we were going back to the beginning with white-hot passion.
It only took me a moment to shed myself of my pants, releasing my hard, throbbing cock.
My hand threaded through her hair and tipped her head back.
With her arms holding her up, her tits pressed into the air, her dress rucked around her waist, and her long, smooth neck exposed, Brittany was absolute perfection.
“I can’t believe you’re mine,” I murmured as I gripped her hips and pulled her toward me.
“And you’re mine.”
“Fuck yes, I am.” I sank myself deep inside her, making us both groan.
Neither of us needed long. Only a few thrusts later, I felt the familiar tensing in her body as my own orgasm built and together, we took our climaxes.
“Damn, I’m a lucky man.”
Brittany, regaining her senses, sat up and reached for me.
I kissed her.
“I think I’m the lucky one,” she said.
“I don’t disagree.”
She laughed.
“I love that sound, you know?”
“My laugh?” Her hair fell over her shoulder. Her cheeks were pinked from her orgasm and at that moment she was even more beautiful than usual, if it were even possible.
“Yes,” I said. “I don’t think I’ve told you this before, but your laugh is the most amazing sound in the whole world, I think.”
She ducked her head. “That’s crazy.”
With a finger under her chin, I lifted it until she looked at me. “No,” I said. “It’s not crazy, because the first time I heard it, it was me who caused it.”
“Oh yeah?”
“I did.” I nodded, feeling quite proud of myself. “And you know what my second favorite sound is?”
She shook her head.
“It’s another sound I can get out of you.”
Her eyes narrowed in suspicion, her lips still curled up in a smile.
“And I think it’s time for you to make that sound for me again.”
She squealed as I scooped her up from the counter and this time carried her over my shoulder into the bedroom.
I put her down on the bed and she laid backward with a laugh.
“Ohh, yes.” I groaned. “I do love that sound. But…”
I shed myself of my shirt and dropped to my knees in front of her.
“Trent! Again?”
Before I began my mission to get my second favorite sound out of her, I stopped and looked into her glacier-blue eyes. “Always, my wife. Is that okay?”
“More than you know, Trent. More than you know.”
I hope you enjoyed Brittany and Trent’s journey to love.
* * *
And next…
* * *
It’s Sandy’s turn next as she finally makes the decision to go for it with billionaire, cowboy, Dylan.
But is Sandy really ready to let loose and have a little no-strings attached fun, or are the secrets and hurts from the past too much for her to get over?
And what happens when self proclaimed playboy, Dylan starts to have real feelings?
* * *
Find out next in Finally Forever.
You can read an exclusive excerpt next…
* * *
And if you want even more romance…click HERE for an exclusive FREE novella that isn’t available anywhere else!
Finally Forever
It’s Sandy’s turn to FINALLY find her Happily Ever After in Finally Forever
* * *
No strings.
No commitments.
No problem.
That was the deal.
A fling with a sexy cowboy? Sure, why not? Besides, it’s not like he's a total stranger. Dylan Scott is the friend of a friend, and as a self-proclaimed player, he's perfect for me to break my five-year dry spell with. Especially since he’s made it quite clear that a relationship of any kind is totally off the table. When my little holiday at his ranch is over, we are, too.
Fine by me. I'm a widowed single mom. The last thing I have time for is a brooding, self-important billionaire cowboy, even if he does make my body come alive in ways I never thought possible beyond the pages of a romance novel.
A lifetime of following the rules and being the good girl has left me with nothing but secrets and hidden desires that I've managed to keep from everyone.
Trust me, it's safer that way. But I was not counting on having any actual feelings for Dylan, at least none beyond the passion fueled physical. And when I do, dammit if things don't start to get complicated—fast.
And it doesn’t take long for the safe—and boring—bubble I’ve created for my life to become anything but. And now, for the first time in my life, the only thing to do is face the truth. No matter how much it hurts.
* * *
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**Please note this excerpt is unedited/subject to change/and may contain typos**
* * *
Chapter One
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I would do anything for my friends. Including, it seemed, leaving my two young children in the care of their grandmother for an entire week—for the first time ever—so I could go to a farm. Okay, it wasn’t a farm. Not really. It was a dude ranch. And despite the fact that I secretly devoured cowboy romance novels when no one was looking, and every single one of my dreams involved strong, tall cowboys in tight jeans and boots, I wasn’t under any illusions that actual cowboys were nearly as sexy as the ones I read about late at night.
And fantasized about.
No.
Fiction was nothing like real life. Widowed at thirty-seven with two small children, I knew that for sure. Unlike the movies, there had definitely not been any sexy men waiting in the wings to sweep me off my feet and take on my small family. At least, if there was, I was still waiting almost five years later.
“You’re not sleeping, are you, Sandy?” Darla nudged me in the ribs before reaching across from me to open the window. She was sandwiched in the middle of the backseat of Abby’s SUV. Jessie was on the other side of her was fast asleep. Brittany was riding shotgun, surprising everyone when she didn’t demand to drive. Britt liked to be in control, but ever since her completely unexpected and absolutely amazing marriage to billionaire land developer, Trent Thomas, she’d mellowed. A lot. It was actually pretty incredible to witness. And continued to take me off guard.
“Oh, that’s better,” Darla sighed as the fresh air rushed into the back seat. “Isn’t it great to get out of the city?”
Aspen Valley, the mountain town we’d all lived our entire lives in, was hardly a city. With the world-class ski hill and multiple high-profile golf courses, it was more like the playground for the city’s rich and famous. Especially with more and more company headquarters relocating there for a love where you live lifestyle. Still, Aspen Valley had managed to maintain its small-town feel, despite the changes and there wasn’t a day that went by that I felt like I was being stifled in a city.
“What are you doing? It smells like doo doo.” I grabbed my nose with one hand and reached for the window controls with the other.
“Doo doo?” Darla stared at me, not even bothering to hide the humour on her face. “Did you seriously just say that?”
Abby adjusted the rearview mirror to look at me. “Seriously, Sandy. You are spending way too much time with children. This week will be so good for you.”
I opened my mouth to object, but she was right. I’d recently gone back to work as a second-grade teacher, and if being surrounded by seven-year-olds all day wasn’t enough, I spent the majority of my free time with my girls, Isabella and Willow. Although, at eight and six years old respectively, there was no doubt that they both would have made fun of me for saying doo-doo. Even if it did smell like it.
“It stinks like shit,” I said with extra emphasis on the last word. “Is that better?”
Abby laughed so hard, Jessie woke up with a start. “Why so sleepy, Jes?” Britt spun around in her seat to wiggle her eyebrows. “Your sexy, hot biker keep you up late saying goodbye last night?”
Jessie blushed but didn’t bother denying it. “Probably no more so than your husband or Abby’s sex god of a man.”
I tried and failed to contain my groan. I was so jealous of my best friends and it didn’t bother me to admit it. Three of my best friends in the whole world had recently hooked up with not only some of the sexiest men in the country but also some of the richest. But that wasn’t why I routinely turned green with envy. Not even close. It was the fact that Abby, Brittany and Jessie were all having absolutely mind-blowing, toe-curling sex on the regular. If their reports were to be believed—and why should I doubt them—the kinds of things their men did to them and made them feel on a regular basis were like scenes directly out of the hottest of my romance novels.
And then there was Darla, who had that kind of sex all the time and with different men, because as she put it, “Life is way too short to choose just one.”
So really, it was just me who’d been living like a nun. An increasingly sexually frustrated nun. Was that a thing?
“Okay, okay,” I interrupted Brittany as she began to detail exactly how Trent had said goodbye to her that morning. Morning sex? That was definitely something out of one of my books. Real people didn’t have morning sex. No way. With messed-up hair and stale breath. Nope.
But just because I hadn’t…my eyes locked with Brittany’s. She offered me a small smile and I had to look away because I knew she felt bad for me and the last thing I wanted or needed was anyone feeling badly for me.
“You know you can have wild and crazy sex, too, Sandy?”
Jessie’s voice broke me out of my thoughts. Automatically, I shook my head, but my protest held less conviction than it usually did. The truth was, my friends weren’t wrong. They’d been gently but consistently leading me to this realization. I loved them for not rushing me. But Greg had been gone for over four years now and while I wasn’t completely convinced that wild and crazy sex was on the table for me, or if I even wanted it, I had to admit that some sex, even boring and tame, would be more than welcome right now.
“Maybe they’ll be some sexy cowboys at the ranch?” Abby offered. “Some single cowboys who are more than ready to—“
“Do not finish that sentence,” I stopped her. “I beg of you.”
“But isn’t that what you need, Sandy?” Jessie asked, trying and failing to sound innocent. “A sexy, single cowboy ready to mingle.” She dissolved into giggles, but I only shook my head.
“I thought we were here for a girls’ trip,” I said. “No men.”
“None of our men,” Brittany said. “But we didn’t say anything about men in general…”
“Oh thank goodness,” Darla whooped. “Because I could use a little—“
“You could always use a little…”
Darla wrapped an arm around me and squeezed. “And there’s nothing wrong with that, my friend.” She left a wet, sloppy kiss on my cheek.
“Seriously though,” Brittany said. “This is a ladies’ week. We’ve all been so busy lately, I’m really looking forward to reconnecting with you girls. And so nice of Dylan to offer us an entire cabin.”
“That’s right,” Abby said. “There is definitely at least one very sexy cowboy at Rock Creek Ranch.” She wiggled her eyebrows in the rearview mirror.
I squeezed my eyes shut at the mention of Dylan Scott. I’d only met him a few times. First at a casual dinner at Jessie and Shane’s. He was tall and muscular with the kind of muscles that were made working outside with his hands. Using his body. Not that I’d noticed.
Okay. I’d noticed.
I’d noticed a lot of things about Dylan Scott. Including the fact that he looked exactly like I’d imagined every single hero in my novels to look. Never mind the way he’d made me feel all warm and tingly when he smiled at me. Or the way my body came alive when he’d shook my hand before kissing the back of it. He’d kissed it. It was such an old-fashioned move, but I had not been able to stop thinking about it.
Especially because it had happened only one other time. A lifetime ago. With a man who if my memory could be trusted, reminded me more than a little of Dylan Scott.
