Trusting You (24 page)

“What is it?” I asked, furrowing my brow. “Is something wrong?”

He smiled and shook his head. “No baby, everything’s right. I wanted to talk to you about our future. I want to know what you want out of life and what you want to do. You quit your job as a teacher, and now you’re free to do what you want, anywhere you want. In your heart, where do you feel like you belong?”

Lifting my hand, I caressed his cheek. “I belong with you, Brett. Wherever you are is where I belong.”

“Do you mean that?” he asked, searching my gaze for the truth.

I smiled and leaned up to kiss his lips. “With all my heart.”

Biting his lip, he grinned mischievously at me. “Well, with that being said I need you to do something for me.”

“Is it my turn to make love to you this time or something?” I asked teasingly, moving my hips against his still hard cock in between my legs.

He chuckled and shook his head, pointing to a specific spot on our Christmas tree. “No, but I do want you to look over at the tree.”

Breaking away from his gaze, I glanced in the direction he was pointing. I searched for a clue but found nothing. “What am I supposed to be looking at exactly? I see ornaments, Brett.”

“Look closer,” he demanded warmly.

“Look closer,” I repeated his words out loud. “Okay, I’m looking closer.”

The presents underneath were the same, they were all from me to him so nothing odd was going on there. He was staring at the tree so I tried my best to look at the exact spot he was looking at. Slowly, I searched each branch and each ornament until something sparkled and immediately caught my attention. My favorite ornament was a crystal ballerina that always glittered against the twinkling lights of the tree. I could stare at it for hours if time allowed it. It was my most precious ornament as a little girl and my mom made sure to give it to me when I moved out. But it wasn’t just the ornament I was staring at … it was the shiny, emerald cut diamond ring that glistened on the arm of my crystal ballerina.

I gasped and covered a hand over my mouth. “Brett, is that what I think it is?” I asked, completely in a state of shock.

He chuckled and fetched the platinum band off the ornament. Taking my shaky hand, he slipped it down my finger and released a nervous breath. “Yes, it’s what you think it is,” he said, gazing into my tear-filled eyes with such longing. “When you say you belong wherever I am well that’s the way I feel about you. Wherever you go I will follow. I love you more than life itself, more than the breath I take in every day. You are my forever, Melissa, and it doesn’t have to be right now or next year. Hell, we can wait five years if that’s what you want, but know this … I want to be with you until my heart stops beating and I take that last and final breath. I want to take care of you and watch your belly swell with the children we make with our love. You are and will always be the fire that burns in my soul that keeps me going. You are the reason I live, Melissa.”

Eyes glistening, he leaned over and kissed me tenderly on the lips. “I want you to be my wife, firecracker. I want to hear you say you’ll love me for the rest of your life just as I will love you for mine.”

“Yes,” I answered from my heart. “I’ll be your wife, Brett, for now and always I will forever be yours.”

Wrapping his arms around me, he held me tight and descended on my lips, claiming me for his own. When he pulled back from the kiss, I wasn’t expecting the next words to come out of his mouth. In all seriousness, he gazed into my eyes, and uttered, “I hope you know I meant it when I said I will follow you anywhere.” He stopped for a second while a devilish grin spread across his face. He continued, “… even if that means we move to California. I’ve heard you talking to Claire, baby. I could hear it in your voice how much you want to go out there and help her with the vineyards. And now that your house has sold there’s nothing keeping you here.”

“Except you, Brett. You’re here and that’s where I belong just like I told you.”

Brushing a stray hair off of my face, Brett smirked and bit his lip. “What if I told you I would go out to California with you? What would you say then?”

“Is it even possible?” I asked, wide-eyed. “What about your job?”

He smiled and winked. “Let’s just say I got promoted. I’ve been given the opportunity to partner with M&M and have my own branch on the West Coast. I figured it would be a good starting out place for us. You could work with Claire like I know you want to and I wouldn’t have to travel so far all the time with me already being on the West Coast. But it’s completely up to you, Melissa. Say the word and we’ll go. I’m ready to take the next step when you are.”

I gazed at Brett in awe and wonder. Who would’ve thought that a one night stand would turn out to be the second chance I longed for. I feared I had lost him when Daniel took me away, but now I didn’t have to worry about him or anything else standing in our way.

Completely confident in my decision, it didn’t take me long to make up my mind. “I’m ready, Brett. Let’s take the next step … together.”

And that’s just what we did.

Ten Months Later

After Brett proposed to me, we spent another two months in North Carolina to get all of our affairs handled before the big move. When we moved, Brett had managed dozens of accounts on his own on the West Coast before it became too much and he needed to hire several people to help him. M&M Architectural Building and Design had flourished in the past year, leaving Brett with a partnership and his own thriving branch on the other half of the United States.

The Tuscan villa I inherited from Daniel’s mother was a place she found peace and solitude in when life got in the way for her. Claire kept everything inside it just the way her mother left it and I was honored to not change a thing about it.

However, there were changes today. The whole place was adorned with bouquets of flowers, decorations, and everyone from my life that I cared about … including my parents, Brett’s grandmother, and Mason. Everyone was outside waiting patiently for me to make my entrance.

I picked out a white, strapless wedding dress that hugged my waist and flowed gracefully down to the ground. Crystals were threaded around the bust and they glittered like diamonds when I turned circles in the light. It reminded me of my ballerina ornament and how my ring twinkled around it on our Christmas tree on that fateful night many months ago.

Through the window, the whole scene was gorgeous. Korinne had put her designing skills to good use and became my wedding planner for the whole occasion as well as one of my bridesmaids. Claire was my maid of honor and both of them looked amazing in their red gowns. Tears pooled in my eyes when I saw the hard work she put into my special day.

“Hey, none of that,” Mason demanded, passing me a tissue. “I don’t handle tears very well.”

He clasped my arm and steered me toward the patio door that led to all of our guests and my awaiting husband. I had chosen Mason to walk me down the aisle on my special day. He deserved the honor more than anything and I wanted him to know that.

Taking the tissue, I dabbed under my eyes and sniffled. “Do I look okay?” I asked, turning to him.

Leaning down, Mason smiled and took me by the shoulders. “You look beautiful,” he uttered wholeheartedly. “But if we don’t go Brett’s going to come looking for you.”

We both laughed. “That’s true,” I agreed. Taking a deep breath, I nodded toward the door. “Lead me out there, Mason.”

Opening the door, he escorted me down the path to where Brett was standing, all handsome in his black tuxedo and spiky brown hair, his gray eyes only focused on me. No one else existed in that moment but me and him. Time stood still as Mason passed me off to Brett and we stood there staring at each other, his warm hands clasping mine. His smile made my heart flutter like the first night I met him; the night that changed our paths.

“Are you ready for this?” he whispered to me as the preacher began the ceremony. “I may not always be perfect, but I will love you and cherish you for the rest of my life. You can trust me on that.”

Gazing up into his smoky gray eyes, I could see and feel the love and honesty coming from his words and in the look in his gaze. Moving closer, I whispered back, “And I you. I love you, Brett … always.”

I trust you …

Other Books by L.P. Dover

Forever Fae Series

Second Chances

Standalone