His disconsolate expression touched Lucy’s heart. She reached out to cover his hand with hers. “It’s okay, Aaron. You don’t have to explain anything to me. I understand.”
“Yeah?”
“Of course. She was your ex-girlfriend. There was obviously some baggage there, emotions that were hard to just toss away. I get why you’d give her another chance. And it’s not like you had any obligation to me or anything.”
His eyes bored into her, and she saw a maelstrom of regret and worry churning in their hazel depths. “I just don’t want you to ever think that you were my second choice, okay? It wasn’t like that. Not really.”
Lucy nodded, even though now she felt more confused than ever. “Okay, but what are you talking about? Your second choice for what?”
“There’s another milestone I have to meet soon if I want to get the rest of my inheritance. See, I have to get married before I turn thirty.”
Lucy’s pulse pounded in her temples, and her face got hot. “That’s really soon,” she said. “Your birthday’s in, like, six months.”
“Yeah, I know. Time is of the essence.”
A thought struck Lucy, and she said, “All those girls. All the dates you always went out on—you were looking for a wife!”
“They were more like interviews than dates,” he said, “and it was my cousin Neil’s idea. See, if I don’t get married, all the rest of my uncle’s money goes to charity instead of me. I’d be fine with that, honestly; it’s not like I need it. But Neil would definitely rather I have it, so he can keep wheedling little bits of it out of me over the years, like he’s been doing ever since I got the first million. So, a couple years ago he started trying to find a woman for me. I wasn’t opposed to meeting someone, so I just let him have his fun, thinking maybe something would come out of it. My only stipulation was that he not tell my dates anything about the money. But it didn’t matter. I never liked any of the girls he picked out for me very much. Certainly not enough to marry them. And not the way I like you.”
Now Lucy was starting to sweat. “Are you…I mean, is this…what…?” She swallowed and tried again, but the words still wouldn’t come out.
Aaron picked up her hand, his thumb stroking her fingers. “When I invited you to dinner the other week, Lucy, I was hoping it’d be the start of something serious. A relationship. I still want that. I’ll be honest, though. At the time, I wasn’t thinking about marriage. Seeing how close I was to my birthday, and that you and I had never even gone out yet, I’d basically just decided to write off the whole wedding goal. I didn’t want to rush into anything that major just to get my hands on more money. But now, after everything that’s happened lately…” He tightened his grip on her hand, looking at her intently. “Well, I don’t know where I’m ever going to find anyone else quite as perfect for me as you.”
Lucy’s temperature shot up another degree. “What are you saying, Aaron?”
“That maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad idea to try and make the deadline. What do you think? We can date for a little while, get to know each other even better than we already do, and then in a few months, if things are still working out, maybe you’ll pencil in a week in your planner to fly to Vegas with me? Become Mrs. Aaron Ames? How does that sound?”
Lucy gawked at him. “How do you know I won’t just marry you for the money?”
“Because I know you would never do something like that.” When she looked at him inquisitively, he went on, “You want to know why Ava dumped me? The second time, anyway? It was because I’d told her about my plan to quit Acray-Sys, and she hated it. She thought I was throwing everything away, that I was going to end up in the gutter or something.” A soft chuckle punctuated the last sentence.
“You mean, she didn’t know about your inheritance?”
“Nope. And I didn’t want her to. I tried to reassure her, though. I didn’t get specific, but I told her she didn’t need to worry. I had plenty of money to live off of, and to maybe support a family someday, if that’s where things ended up between us. But hearing that didn’t change her mind. So, that’s what we argued about. I figured it wasn’t an insurmountable problem, and that eventually I’d get her to come around, but then…while I was at the Red Palm that night, we talked on the phone, and she gave me another earful about what a dumb decision she thought I was making.”
He caressed Lucy’s hand, gently stroking each of her fingers. “Look, it’s not like I think Ava’s the devil or anything, but we’re obviously not on the same page about things that are pretty important. For her, it isn’t only about the money. Dating a manager on the corporate fast track just seems a lot more appealing to her than being with some bartender at a gastro-pub.” He lifted his free hand in a relinquishing gesture. “I can’t fault her for wanting whatever she wants. But when I told you what I was doing, you were just happy for me. The only time you seemed sad was when you said you would miss me.” He smiled at the memory. “You didn’t ask me about money or seem to care what I was giving up. In fact, you’ve never seemed to care about anything like that, and, believe me, I’ve been paying attention.” A sparkle ignited in his eyes. “And, come on, let’s not forget you risked your life to save me from getting stuck as a vampire. That was before you knew I had a cent to my name. So, yeah, I think I’ve gotten a pretty good glimpse of your character, Lucinda Booth, and I like what I see. I think I can count on you to have my back in just about any situation, supernatural or otherwise.” His mouth tilted into an adorably crooked grin. “Also, I think you might have a thing for me.”
“Oh, you do, do you?” Lucy laughed.
“Maybe just a little bit?” He held up his thumb and forefinger, pinching at the air.
Lucy felt an answering grin breaking out over her face and assumed she looked completely goofy, but she couldn’t help it. And she didn’t really care. Her head was abuzz with excitement, her heart dancing with joy. “I’m in love with you,” she said. “I have been for, like, the past six months!”
“Six months? You mean it took you two whole months to fall in love with me?”
“Okay, maybe it’s been more like seven months.”
He was chuckling as he leaned in and finally touched his lips to hers. His kiss was everything Lucy had remembered and more. His mouth was warm, his lips firm but soft, and Lucy’s eyes fluttered closed as her body started to melt into the bench beneath her.
“Mmm,” he said against her mouth, the whisper of his breath making her skin tingle all over, “I’d wondered what it would be like to kiss you like this for so long.”
“Really?”
“Mm-hm. Although my fantasies usually involved us making out on my desk. Or yours.”
“Oh, wow, me too.”
His eyes gleamed. “Yeah? Well, I’ll be at Acray-Sys for another week, so…maybe Monday morning?”
“We could get fired,” she reminded him with a laugh.
“So?”
“Yeah, I guess you don’t have to care about that anymore, but I do.” As happy as she was for him, a twinge went through her heart as she wondered who her new boss at Acray-Sys would be. No one as wonderful as Aaron, she was sure. No one could ever compare to him.
“No, you don’t,” he said, and smoothed her hair behind her ear. “Did I forget to mention I’m part owner of the pub where I’ll be working? We could use an office manager there. Someone with strong organizational skills.” He gave her a look laden with significance and hope, smiling along with her as the meaning of his words sank in.
“Seriously?” Lucy gaped into his eyes. “You would hire me?”
“Of course. I want you with me, Lucy, in whatever capacity I can get you.” He cupped her face and kissed her again, and when he pulled away, his eyes were bright and intense. “Please say you’ll think about marrying me, Lucy,” he implored, his voice suddenly steeped in longing. “Because I’m in love with you, too, and if you wind up saying yes to me I promise I’ll do whatever I can to make sure you never regret it.”
Shivers of pleasure and anticipation skittered over her nerves. Whether she actually wrote it down in her planner or not, she knew flying off to Las Vegas to marry Aaron in just a few short months would still feel like a whim to her, the sort of impulsive, whirlwind adventure she’d have once thought impossible for someone like her. Two weeks ago, just the idea of being so impetuous would have leveled her with fits of anxiety. But she didn’t feel anxious now. She only felt excited—and more than ready to take the leap.
“I don’t need to think about it,” she replied. “I’d be honored to marry you…Mr. Ames.”
His face lit with happiness. He made an approving noise and clasped his hands around her waist, lifting her easily into his lap. She gave a little squeal and linked her arms around him. Soon he was trailing his lips down her neck and nuzzling the hollow of her throat, and Lucy knew they wouldn’t be watching a movie any time soon, but it didn’t matter. Nothing mattered except this moment of triumph. Not the triumph of Lucy snagging Aaron as her husband—even though that was certainly thrilling enough—but the triumph of light over darkness, of hope over despair.
Of love over evil.
Against all odds, Lucy had helped Aaron overcome his seemingly impossible predicament. She had found a way to save him from the clutches of the vampire who would’ve taken his life and enslaved his soul for all eternity. She had earned him. She had won.
In a good love story, there’s always a happy ending, she heard Jessica saying in her head. As Lucy leaned eagerly into another of Aaron’s breathtaking kisses, she was overwhelmingly glad that—in this instance, anyway—her best friend had known exactly what she was talking about.
What’s next for Nathan, Jessica, and company?
Find out in Back to Bite You, available NOW on Amazon!
Author’s Note
Dear Readers,
Thank you so much for reading my humble contribution to vampire fiction! I hope it made you smile.
If you enjoyed Lucy’s adventure, please consider leaving a review on Amazon, Goodreads, or anywhere else you rate and review books. Your opinions can help other readers find the story. I appreciate you taking the time to share your recommendation!
Sincerely,
Elizabeth Myles
2019
Other Books by Elizabeth Myles
Fear and Laundry
Fear and Laundry 2
The Real You
A Very Merry Carreen Halloween: A The Real You Bonus Holiday Special
Acknowledgements
Thank you to Melissa Studdard, Noel Ramirez, Tricia DuBose, Oscar Marrero, and Kevin Wheeler for their continued help and support, and to Victoria Cooper for her genius cover design.
Special thanks to my amazing husband, Steve, for his hours of hard work reading, re-reading, formatting, and designing the original cover for this and every other of my written works. His comments and suggestions never fail to improve my manuscripts (and to make them funnier!) and I don’t know where I would be without his insights, as well as his unwavering support in every weird project on which I decide to embark :).
I love you so much, baby!! XOXO.
And thanks also, as always, to YOU, the reader, for giving my books a chance. I appreciate it more than I can say.
About the Author
Elizabeth Myles is a graduate of Lone Star College – Tomball and the University of Houston. Her prize-winning short fiction appeared several times in Inkling, the Creative Arts Magazine of LSC-Tomball, and her previous novel, Fear and Laundry, was honored as a notable entry in the teen category of Shelf Unbound Magazine’s Writing Competition for Best Independently Published Book. Fear and Laundry was subsequently included in a special contest issue of Shelf Unbound Magazine spotlighting the work of “some of today’s best indie authors.”
Elizabeth and her handsome husband, Steve, live and run together in Texas, where Elizabeth also spends her non-writing time reading, cooking, baking, listening to Nine Inch Nails, and geeking out over sci-fi and horror movies, episodes of “Supernatural,” and “The X-Files.” She loves hearing from readers, so please feel free to contact her at [email protected], and connect with her on the social networks below:
Website: elizabethmyles.com
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Thanks for reading!
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