Find Me (9 page)

She playfully smacked his hand.

He dressed the best he could with popped buttons, sat on the mat, and put on his shoes. Next to him, she slipped on hers and grew taller. “You need higher heels.”

“What?” She stood in front of him. “I thought you didn’t like women taller than you?” she asked finger-combing her hair and checking her reflection in the metal bar on one of the bench presses behind him.

“Says who? If you were taller, your breasts would be in direct line with my mouth. No bending over.” He rose, grasped both breasts, and squeezed gently as he kissed her shocked mouth.

Let her stew on that for a minute. He loved her, but he knew she donned the sexy clothes to get to him. If someone compared him to silly putty when she strutted into the gym, they would have been accurate.

“We’re not going back like this, are we?”

His suit jacket covered most of the missing buttons. Between his tie and the one button that hadn’t ripped off, he looked presentable. “We don’t have much of a choice. I’m giving a speech later. Besides, you look thoroughly pleasured. I like it.”

“How will we explain where we’ve been?”

“Tell them we were busy getting engaged.” He unlocked the doors and pulled them open. “What do you say if I design your engagement ring? A heart-shaped diamond with FIND ME engraved on it?”

Her eyes grew wide. “Can you do that?”

“If there is a will, there’s a way.”

“I would love it.”

He laced his fingers with hers and brought her hand up to his mouth for a kiss. They walked the hall toward the gym and the loud music.

“Do you like dogs? I have one,” she said. “A Scottish terrier, named Scotty.”

“I love anything you have, sweetheart.” He opened the gym door, took in the filled room, and the dimly lit dance floor, and pulled her into his arms. “I love you, Lyse,” he said, cause he couldn’t say it enough and covered her mouth with his for another taste before he got busy with his responsibilities.

The loud speaker squeaked. “And there you have it!”

She nudged him with a hand to his chest to ease them apart. “For once, I understood the loud speaker, but what are they talking about?”

The lights clicked on, and he shielded his eyes with a hand. “What’s up?” he asked the man standing on the stage staring at them.

An orange object moved toward them. Squinting, he spotted Felicia’s hair racing toward them. “It’s true! It works!” His sister’s damp face reddened.

She looked as if she underwent several rounds in a boxing ring.
No!
Had some guy forced himself on his sister? He’d kill him.

Felicia stopped beside them. “The hearts…” She opened her palms. In each one, a white piece of candy. The words FIND ME written in Kelly green. “These were in each of the boxes you handed me.”

“Of course they were.” Science didn’t confirm any myth, but Lyse turned him into a believer. He held up his and Lyse’s joined hands, searched out his classmates whose faces finally came into view, and did a double take at Wallace’s scornful expression. He smiled. “We’re living proof, the myth is true. We’re engaged!”

Epilogue

“I think myths, tales, and folklores give people courage to seek out what they should have seen all along.”

~Newlywed Lyse Haynes Schmidt

Heathercream Ice Cream storeowner

Nashville, Tennessee

~*~

“Thank God for storytellers.”

~Cooper Schmidt,

happily married anywhere Lyse is

~*~

“Who’s next? Felicia, I have a story to tell you.”

~Rill Babcock

A word from the author…

Someone’s always to blame…

In my case, I bestow the blame for my love of books and writing on my mother, knowing she would love it. A year after she died from cancer, I picked up her favorite pastime as a way to be close to her and found a niche I didn’t know I possessed, much less loved.

The stories I made up in my head as a child never left, and now that my childhood muse has grown into an adult version, I feel blessed to offer entertainment. Recently, my writing has changed from full-length romantic suspense to romance novellas. My passion has allowed me to become multi-published, achieve award-winning status, and become an Amazon Best Seller.

My hope: you’ll pick up one of my books, lose yourself in the story, laugh, possibly cry—a good one—and smile.

I’d love to hear from my readers; you can contact me at: [email protected]

Join my newsletter at: https://confirmsubscription. com/h/i/76093C2B11569E7C

Join my street team: Cait’s Classy Chicks at
https://www.facebook.com/groups/629181983825796/

Happy reading!

~Cait

Thank you for purchasing
this publication of The Wild Rose Press, Inc.