Sweet Haven (The Sweet Series Book 2) (21 page)

I’ve also heard they are very forgiving and give second chances. I’m hoping this is true because I’ve come to realize I can’t live without peaches.

I need them to survive.

I need you.

Tears stream down my cheeks, blurring the last of the words in front of me. Noticing a trail of peaches wrapping around my house, I follow them and find Jase sitting on my front steps, holding a small wrapped gift box. My hand covers my mouth, stifling the sob that escapes when he flashes me his sexy smirk.

“Hey, Peaches,” he greets me, rising to his feet.

“What are you doing here?”

He walks down the steps, stopping just in front of me. “I came to see you.” His large hands cup my cheeks, the touch sending my fragile heart into an emotional tailspin. “Can we talk?”

Unable to speak, I nod, leading him up the steps and into my house. I’m aware of how close he is when we enter, that ever-present pull between us more profound than ever. Dropping my purse on the counter, I spin around and find him standing a few feet away. Close enough to smell. Close enough to touch.

“Can I get you something?” I ask, my voice raw from the emotion threatening to suffocate me.

He shakes his head. “You’re all I need right now.”

My heart warms yet yearns for more. So many words hang between us. I desperately want to tell him how much I’ve missed him and how I haven’t stopped thinking about him since I left, but I swallow the confession.

“You look good,” he remarks softly.

“You’re a terrible liar. I’m a total mess.” I swipe at my tear-stained cheeks, knowing my mascara is probably everywhere right now.

His steps are purposeful as he closes the distance between us. Placing the gift he’s holding on the counter, he plants both hands on either side of me, his powerful body crowding mine against the sink. My breathing turns shallow, his close proximity wreaking havoc on my senses and heart.

Leaning in, he trails his nose across my damp cheek. “You’re the prettiest mess I’ve ever seen.”

I bite my trembling lip, my fingers curling into his shirt as I fight the need to drag him closer and soak in his warmth. I’ve missed him so much it hurts.

“I’m sorry, Sam.” His sincere apology is nothing more than a whisper but it has the power to heal so much. “So fucking sorry for what I said. I didn’t mean it. You have to believe me.”

My eyes drift closed, my heart breaking at the painful memory. “I do believe you, but it doesn’t stop it from hurting any less.”

“I know, and I’ll regret it for the rest of my life. But, if you give me a chance, I promise to make it right. I can’t lose you.”

“I don’t want to lose you either.” I swallow hard, trying to contain my emotions. “But I’m at a loss, Jase. I can’t choose between you two. I love you both too much.”

His arms come around me, holding my shattered pieces together. “You don’t have to choose, baby. I’d never make you do that.”

I shake my head, not understanding how he can say that when they’ve made it clear I can’t have them both.

His fingers curl beneath my chin, lifting my eyes to his. “I went and saw him today,” he tells me, his thumb swiping away my flowing tears.

I still, hope flaring inside of me. “Sawyer?”

He nods. “After I saw your parents.”

Complete and utter shock rolls through me.

“You have a nice family. I especially enjoyed meeting your niece and nephew.”

My breath hitches on a sob. “You met Hope and Parker?”

“Yeah. They’re nice kids, even though they tried feeding me Asshole Pie from your brother.”

A watery laugh escapes me. I can only imagine how awkward that was for him. I feel bad he was alone to deal with it, but he doesn’t seem bothered by it, if his sexy grin is any indication.

His expression softens as he reaches up to stroke the edge of my smile. I place my hand over his and lean into his touch, feeling the cracks of my soul beginning to heal.

“We had a good talk and came to an understanding,” he continues. “We found something that we both agree on.”

“What’s that?”

“Your happiness.”

Warmth explodes through me; warming the cold and empty space I’ve had inside of me this past week.

He rests his forehead on mine. “I love you much more than I ever hated him.”

Hot tears track down my face as he finally says the words I’ve longed to hear. “I love you too, so much.” Wrapping my arms around his neck, I bury my face in his shoulder and cry. His familiar scent invades me, soothing my fragile composure.

He picks me up off my feet, hugging me tight, before placing me on the counter and coming to stand between my legs. Reaching up, he brushes a piece of my hair out of my face. “I’d do anything to make you happy, Sam. That’s all I care about.”

The love and devotion in his eyes makes my heart leap. I know he means every word. Not just by the conviction in his voice, but the fact that he made peace with Sawyer proves it, too.

Picking the gift back up, he brings it between us. I accept it with a smile. “What’s this?”

“Open it.”

Plucking the red silk ribbon that’s wrapped around the box, I remove the lid and push aside the mounds of tissue paper to unveil a beautiful peach ornament made entirely of glass.

With shaking hands, I carefully reach inside and pull it out, my breath freezing in my lungs when I discover a ring attached to the stem.

My watery eyes shoot up to his, hope filling my chest.

“I’ve done a lot of thinking this past week,” he starts, removing the ring from the stem. “And I’ve come to realize that Madam Juju might not be such a whack job after all.”

His comment takes me by surprise but I can’t help but smile. “Why do you say that?”

His warm eyes hold me captive, rendering me speechless and helpless to this incredible hold he has on me. “Because I know, without a doubt, that I loved you before I ever met you.”

“Oh.” My breath catches on a sob. It’s all I can manage at the moment.

“I left it all behind, Sam,” he says, confusing me. “My job, my life back in Colorado. I left it all. I start at the Charleston Fire Department in two weeks.”

“Jase, no,” I breathe. “You don’t have to do that. We can talk about it. We’ll work something out. We—”

He presses a finger to my lips, silencing me. “Nothing matters more than your happiness, and I know how much it means for you to be here with your family.”

“Yes, it does, but your family is important too, and I won’t take that from you.”

He shrugs. “My family will come visit and we can go back there. It’s not as important to me as it is to you.”

I shake my head, guilt plaguing me. “I can’t do this to you. I can’t take that away from you.”

“You’re not taking anything from me, baby. I’m gaining so much more,” he says, making me fall in love with him all over again. “You’re all I need, Sam. Just you forever and I’ll be happy.”

Taking my left hand, he slides the ring on my finger, and it fits so perfectly that I swear it was made just for me.

“Marry me.” He leans in close, his breath tickling my lips. “Marry me or I will have no friends here.”

I burst out laughing, tears of joy spilling down my cheeks.

His smile fades as he rests his forehead on mine. “Say yes, Sam.”

I wrap my arms around his neck, pulling him as close as he can get. “Yes, I’ll marry you. Nothing would make me happier than to be yours forever.”

He flashes me that sexy smile of his. “You are way better at words than me, baby.”

His mouth seals over mine, effectively cutting off my giggle. The kiss is deep and soul shattering. My fingers thread through his hair while his slip beneath my skirt, his touch setting my skin on fire.

I moan into his mouth and lock my legs around his lean waist, needing him more than my next breath.

With a growl, he cups my bottom and lifts me from the counter. “Where’s your room?”

“Down the hall, last door on the right,” I mumble against his lips, our heated mouths never severing as he carries me to the bedroom. He lowers me onto my mattress, his heavy weight settling over top of me as his skillful tongue coaxes mine, fueling my hunger. A stark, ravishing hunger that only he can bring out of me.

We waste no time tearing at each other’s clothes, our hands urgent, each of us desperate for the other. Pleasure steals my breath when I feel his heated skin upon mine.

“Oh god, I missed this. I missed you,” I cry, my fingers digging into his strong shoulders.

“I missed you too, baby. So fucking much.”

I lift my hips, seeking more of him, needing him inside of me. “Jase, now. Please, I need you.”

A harsh groan rumbles from him, vibrating against my lips. “I wanted to take my time with you, taste every inch of you that I’ve missed this past week, but fuck it. We have forever for that.”

“Yes, forever,” I breathe, my heart soaring at the thought.

With swift precision, he rolls us over, positioning me on top of him. “Ride me, baby. Show me how much you missed me.”

I quickly obey. Aligning myself above his hard cock, I sink down on him. My head falls back on a blissful moan as he completes me, body and soul.

“Jesus, Sam,” he grits between clenched teeth, his fingers digging into my hips.

“It’s always so good.”

“Always, baby. It’s like coming home. I don’t ever want to be anywhere else.”

His words light up my soul. He is home.

My home.

His hips pump up, burying his cock deep inside of me. A harsh whimper parts my lips, my nails raking across his muscular chest as the most exquisite sensations whip through me.

“Tell me you love me. Tell me you’re mine forever,” he demands, sheer dominance filling his expression as he keeps his pace, relentless with every thrust.

I smile down at him. “I’m madly in love with you, Jase Crawford, and am yours forever.”

“That’s right, baby, and I’m going to fill this hungry pussy every day. Sometimes slow and sometimes fast, but it will always be me.”

“Always.”

He moves a hand between us, running his knuckle through my slick heat, finding the bundle of pulsing nerves.

A heated whimper breaches my lips. Grabbing his wrist, I ride against the pressure of his hand. “Jase. I’m going to come.”

“Yeah, you are, and it’s going to feel so fucking good on my cock.” He switches the angle of his thrusts, sending me over the steep edge.

Ecstasy explodes through me like a violent storm, stealing my breath and washing through me like a tidal wave. Reaching up, he hooks a hand behind my neck and pulls me down to swallow my cries, his greedy mouth inhaling everything I have to give him. He doesn’t hold back and follows along with me.

Our bodies merge, souls tethering together by a love so strong, so powerful, neither one of us ever stood a chance against it.

Afterward, we lie together, my cheek on Jase’s hard chest, a feeling of contentment settling over me with the calming sound of his steady heartbeat.

“I still can’t believe you’re here,” I whisper. “That you came for me.”

“I’ll always come for you.”

Peace wraps around me like a blanket, heavy and warm. His strong hand moves over mine where it lays on his stomach. Lifting it in the air between us, his thumb smooths over the ring on my finger. “We’re going to have a good life, Sam. I promise.”

I turn his hand palm up and bring it next to mine. Our fingers instantly curl, displaying the heart that only we create. “Yeah, we are.”

He drops a kiss on the top of my head and it’s not long before I feel his breathing even out. Before letting myself follow along with him, I slip out from under his strong arm and throw on my robe before tiptoeing to the kitchen. Digging through my purse on the counter, I grab my cell phone out and call Sawyer.

He answers on the first ring. “You’re calling to tell me you said yes, aren’t you?”

His grumpy voice doesn’t deter the smile on my face. “I’m calling to tell you that I love you and to say thank you.”

There’s a long moment of silence before he speaks again.

“I just want you to be happy, Sam. I don’t ever want to see you hurt the way you did this week. Not ever again.”

My throat clogs with tears. “He makes me happy. So happy.”

“Then that’s all that matters.”

I smile, my heart bursting at the seams with love for all of the men in my life.

“Can you do me a favor though? Just this once?”

“What?” I ask, willing to do anything for him.

“Give him one good punch in the nuts for me. Just one.”

Except that.

Rolling my eyes, I burst out laughing. “Good-bye, Sawyer.”

He grunts but it’s half-hearted. “I love you, Sam.”

“I love you, too,” I whisper back.

Hanging up, I crawl back in bed with Jase, making sure to be as quiet as possible. I can’t resist brushing a soft kiss across his lips before lifting his arm and resuming my spot once again, my head resting on his chest. Lifting my chin, I gaze up at his handsome face, loving that I will get to see this every night for the rest of my life.

I know with every fiber of my being, no matter how many lives I live, or where I go after this one, we will always find each other.

Rose

September 2, 1869

W
e met in a peach grove. I had been out picking to make jam when he appeared out of nowhere. He was tall, dark, and handsome, but most of all, mysterious.

He arrived in town six months ago and was supposed to be just passing through, but days turned into weeks then eventually months. Many of the town’s folk were wary and didn’t trust him, but the day I met Joshua Lawson, my lonely existence changed forever.

The first moment our eyes connected, my breath was stolen. Then, he smiled at me and my heart stopped beating altogether. I will never forget the first words he said to me.

“Peaches and a pretty girl. My two favorite things.”

My stomach dipped and a shy smile had stolen my lips, but I did my best to hide the effect he casted upon me. “I guess what the women in town are saying about you is true.”

His dashing grin had spread even wider, making the spot between my legs tingle. It had made me blush furiously. “Depends what you’ve heard. I am quite charming.”