Help Wanted (26 page)

Keira hadn’t realized Jim had moved closer to her until she felt his hands on her shoulders. “Keira, I can’t think about spending another moment without you in my life. Let me show you how much I care about you.” Jim slowly turned her back around so she was facing him.

“Jim, you aren’t going to win me over with sex.”

“Sweetheart, I don’t want to have sex. Well, at least not right now.” He smiled. “I need to show you something. I was hoping you would be here tonight for the grand opening and would see it when I showed it off to everyone else, but you weren’t so you will get your own private showing.”

Taking her by the hand, Jim led her over the far wall he was going to have a design painted on. Keira stopped in her tracks when she laid eyes on what Jim had done. It was a drawing of Jim on his motorcycle with her standing next to him wearing a form fitting outfit with the word “Choppers” air brushed in silver and gold above the heads.

“How in the world did you do this?” she asked staring at the picture with tears forming at the back of her eyes.

“Do you like it?”

“It’s beautiful, but why did you add me to the picture?” Keira asked.

“I want my wife to be apart of this place as much as I am,” Jim answered as he let go of her hand.

Wife?

Twirling around, Keira looked down and found Jim down on one knee with a ring box in his hand. “Keira, I have so much love in my heart for you that I think it might burst from it. I used to think my dream was all about owning this shop, but I was wrong. My real dream is for you to forgive me and take me out of this misery I’ve been living in and become my wife.

“I know we had a rocky start and a lot of obstacles thrown in our way, but none of that ever stopped me from loving you. If you still feel half of the love you used to for me, will do me the greatest honor and marry me?

“You don’t want to get married. You just feel remorse for the way you treated me and want to fix it,” she whispered.

“Yes, I do,” Jim said, standing up. “I never knew how much I wanted to get married until you walked out of my life and I couldn’t get you to come back.” The look in his eyes was so tender and filled with so much love that Keira couldn’t move as he came closer to her.

“I thought I could bury what I felt for you, but I couldn’t. Each and every day I resisted coming over to your house and knocking the door down begging you to take me back,” Jim confessed as he rested his forehead against her. “Keira, I have never felt so alone in my life.

“I’m getting too old to fight off advances from waitresses in bars who I don’t want. I thought I was content on raising Trevor and losing myself in work, but I see I need—no crave—more than that now.”

Lifting his eyes, Jim stared at her until Keira was positive that she could see a part of his soul through his eyes. “I’ve said this several times to you, but I’ve never meant it as much as I do now. Baby, I love you and would love for you to marry me.”

“Hmmm…I don’t know,” Keira said as she leaned back from Jim. “I love you, but I don’t know if I’ll be able to marry you.”

“Why in the hell not?”

“You fell in love with the Keira who Dave told you to help. I’m not quite sure if you’ll be able to handle the strong, sassy Keira Winters that I truly am.”

“Oh, I think I’ll be able to handle her.” Picking her up, Jim laid her down on the floor and covered her with his warm body.

“You sound very sure of yourself. How do you know that you can?” Keira asked as she started working on the buttons on Jim’s shirt. She already knew she was going to marry him and so did he, but she couldn’t wait to hear what his answer was going to be.

“It doesn’t matter if you are weak or strong because you are still the same woman who makes my heart skip a beat every time I look into your beautiful eyes.

“Besides what real man doesn’t want a feisty woman to fight with and of course love? It only makes the sex better and I’m all about having mind-blowing sex with a good-looking woman especially when she’s going to be my wife,” Jim whispered into Keira’s mouth a second before he kissed her.

Epilogue

One year later

“I’ve been meaning to ask you. How does it feel?” The question was tossed at Jim as he joined the other men at the table in Dave’s backyard.

“How does what feel?” Jim asked, clearly confused by the question.

“Leaving bachelorhood behind and joining us in the old married men club,” Hayward joked. “I know you were determined to stay single for the rest of your life.”

“I only said that because I hadn’t found the love of my life yet, but when I did I wasn’t going to let her get away.”

“Just think, none of us would be married to the women of our dreams if we didn’t open our hearts and minds to their love,” Clinton said looking at Jenisha who was playing with Jim’s newest addition to his family. “How does Trevor like being a big brother?”

“He loves Drew so much. Trevor is like a different little boy now since I got sole custody of him. I thought Kathy was never going to give up with the custody battle.”

“Yeah, she only gave up after you signed over a huge check to her, the judge never found out about,” Clinton said. “I still can’t believe she would give up custody of Trevor like that and then move out of the state. How are Trevor and Keira doing now?”

“For the first couple of months of our marriage Keira wouldn’t be alone with Trevor for anything in the world. However, I made the two of them have a long talk while I was in the room and they are so much better now. I’m thrilled about it. Trevor wanted to be close to Keira again and now he is.”

“Everything is going good with me too,” Hayward said. “True and the boys are doing amazing. I was surprised by how fast Kevan bounced back after the kidnapping.”

“Guys, do you realize that we’re talking about how much we love being married with kids?” Dave pointed out. “When Hayward first hired me at Campbell Construction and Design all I thought about was making money. Now all I think about at work is how soon I can get home to my wife and son.”

“It’s the same with me,” Clinton admitted. “I adore Jenisha and my kids. She truly is the love of my life.”

“I totally agree. I don’t know what I would do if I didn’t get to see True and my sons every day,” Hayward added. “Look at them. None of them know how much they changed our lives for the better.”

All four men stopped talking to watch the four beautiful women who’d come into their well-balanced lives when they least expected it and changed them for the better because of three little initials: CCD.

* * * *

Coming soon

Dante’s Way

Book # 1 in the Bikers and Bars series