by K. M. Scott
He and his future son-in-law shook hands and commented on one another’s cars before Killian helped my father carry the enormous box inside to the living room. Tressa watched them and then handed me a tiny black gift bag.
“I have a feeling whatever’s in that box is all our mother’s doing since Daddy doesn’t shop much,” I joked.
She smiled at my all-too-true comment. Dressed in a white sundress and wearing her favorite Louboutin pumps, Tressa looked exactly like what the wife of one of the world’s most famous athletes should look like. I’d always wished I could look as put together as my sister always did. Although we looked alike in many ways, especially our long dark hair that she wore down today, we’d always seemed so different.
“This is from Killian and me. I thought since everyone else was getting you housey things that you deserved something purely decadent and utterly not-utilitarian.”
Opening the bag, I saw a robin’s egg blue colored box from Tiffany’s. “I can’t believe you went for something so extravagant, Tressa.”
She smiled and cupped my cheek with her hand. “Today’s an important day for you. I thought it deserved to be celebrated appropriately. You’ve come a long way, Diana. I’m proud of you. I always knew you’d do it.”
“Just on my own time,” I said with a smile. “That’s what Daddy said. He says it’s a Stone thing.”
“And it’s something you, Ethan, and I share from him. It may take us a while to get where we’re meant to be, but when we find out where that place is, God help anyone who decides to get in our way,” Tressa said, tilting her chin up defiantly. “You did what you wanted on your schedule, Diana. I’m proud of you for that.”
I’d never before in my life felt like Tressa and I were alike when it came to being strong, but now as I stood on my porch welcoming my family to my housewarming party, I saw that we did have that in common. She’d worn her strength for much longer than I had, but I understood why she prized it so much. Being strong felt good.
“Thanks, Tressa. You have no idea how much that means to me.”
She wrapped her arm around my shoulders and began to guide me into the house. “Sisters have to stay together. We’re the Stone girls. You remember how teachers used to always say that. Whenever any of them had the two of us in a class at the same time, they knew they were in for it because we were both smart. I was a little sassier and you were a little quieter, but they knew who we were. Those Stone girls. If they could see us now, right?”
“If they could see us now,” I repeated, happy my sister could be here to celebrate my day of independence.
Every person I cared about in the world stood in my house talking about how much they loved it and how happy they were for me. We’d weathered the tough times and come out stronger than ever.
Cole held my hand and I took a deep breath in as I prepared to make my big announcement. He knew what no one else knew and gave me a nod, as if to tell me he had my back. But my family would be thrilled at what I had to say, so I wasn’t worried.
“Attention, everyone! I want to start off this party by saying thank you for coming here today. I am so proud to show off my house. It’s not a mansion or anything close, but it’s mine and I love it. I’ve got food and drinks, but before we get to all that and I give you a tour of the place, I have an announcement.”
I saw everyone’s eyes grow wide as their gazes moved from me to Cole and then back to me. I knew what they thought, but not yet.
“By the looks on all of your faces, I can tell what you think I’m about to say, but you’re guessing wrong, so I’ll just tell you. Starting next week, I am going back to college. You’re looking at a Columbia University junior, or close to it. I think I’m a few credits short of that level. Anyway, it’s been a long road I’ve had to travel to get to this point, but I’m finally going back to school.”
For a moment, my living room filled with a collective gasp, but then my mother rushed over to give me a hug. “Oh, this is the best news, Diana! I’m so proud of you for doing this.”
“What are you going to be studying?” Summer asked.
“I don’t know. I’m still interested in the law, but I’m also interested in communicating with the deaf. I have been since Daddy taught me how to sign when I was a little girl. For now, I’m just going to start slow and get back into being a college student again. I’m picking up where I left off nearly ten years ago.”
Turning to look at Cole, I smiled. “It worked so well the first time I tried going back, so I thought I should try it with college too.”
He smiled and kissed me. “Congratulations, babe. You’re going to be the best at whatever you decide to do.”
My father raised his glass and announced, “A toast. To my daughter.”
“Wait, Dad,” Ethan said, stopping him. “We need to get everyone a glass of champagne.”
Surprised to hear there was champagne for a toast since I hadn’t thought of buying any, I said, “Who brought the bubbly?”
My brother smiled and held up the bottle he was pouring from. “I come bearing beer and champagne. Now everyone take a glass and Dad can make his toast.”
Once we all had our glasses, we raised them in the air as my father continued. “A toast. To my beautiful daughter, Diana. We never doubted for a second that this day would come. To doing things on your own time.”
In unison, my entire family repeated his words. “To doing things on your own time!”
I’d taken much longer than I ever thought I would to come back from the accident. By twenty-eight, I thought I’d already have a law degree and the life I’d planned.
But things didn’t always go according to plan.
The years I spent hidden away in that hotel room were years I’d never get back. That’s okay, though. I needed that time to show me how much I never wanted to live in fear like that again. I still worried about so much in life and was afraid of more than I wanted to admit, even to the people who loved me the most, but I was getting better with each passing day.
When I looked around the room at my family, I saw happiness. Ethan had found love with Summer and finally found the acceptance he’d sought from my father all his life. It was amazing how two people who looked so alike couldn’t see that all along it wasn’t differences that kept them on opposite sides of nearly every issue but their similarities.
My sister also had found what she was looking for all those years. Through Killian, she finally felt secure enough to be her true self. The real Tressa was that girl I loved as a teenager—sassy, smart, and confident, but also loving and sweet. I loved the fact that she’d returned to us.
My mother and father, the example of the truest love I’d ever seen, still gave one another cute looks of love when they thought no one was watching. To the world, Tristan Stone was a successful businessman, but in private, he was my mother’s best friend and his children’s biggest fan.
Cole slid his arm around my waist and nuzzled my neck. “You look beautiful.”
I looked up at him and saw an imperfect person just like me. But I loved his imperfections just as he loved mine.
“Thank you for being here to celebrate this big day with me. You’re officially now part of the Stone family. Are you ready for that?”
He pressed his forehead to mine and smiled. “I’m ready for whatever happens as long as I’m with you.”
From across the room, I saw my father walk up behind my mother and wrap his arms around her. I’d learned from them what real love was. Every day, they’d showed me it wasn’t expensive gifts or fancy things but those little gestures when they thought no one was paying attention.
I’d always dreamed of finding a love like theirs. We all had. It had taken me longer than my siblings, but finally, I could say we’d all found that perfect kind of love.
COMING CHRISTMAS 2019, THE FINAL HEART OF STONE BOOK, ALL OF ME!
Tristan and Nina have a fairytale love story, and after twenty years of marriage and three children, they
seem to have it all. But Nina worries they need something to keep the spark alive between them, so what better than a date night with her husband?
What begins as a sexy night together turns into something darker neither one anticipated, and their fairytale is threatened by something they have no control over. Tristan won’t give up on the love of his life, and all he can hope is she won’t give up on him.
All they have together is worth fighting for, but will that be enough to make sure they get their happily ever after?
PREORDER YOUR COPY TODAY AT THE SPECIAL PREORDER PRICE!
COMING NOVEMBER 12, THE FINAL BOOK IN THE SONS OF NAVARUS SERIES!
I am everything. I am vampire.
Theron has grown into adulthood knowing he is the war machine the Sons will need to defeat their enemy. The most powerful vampire ever, he’s finally ready for what the Prophecy of Idolas foretold all those centuries ago. But is he destined to ascend to power forever alone?
For ages, the Sons and the Archons have known all-out war was inevitable, a fight for the domination of their world. The Archons have nothing less than a god on their side, but the Sons and their allies have something more to fight for, more than just control of the vampire world.
The Sons fight for family, for friends, and for love, but their duty to the vampire world is clear. Stop the Archons. No matter who must die and what they must sacrifice, the Archons must be defeated.
PREORDER YOUR COPY TODAY!
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About the Author
K.M. Scott writes contemporary romance stories of sexy, intense, and unforgettable love. A New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, she’s been in love with romance since reading her first romance novel in junior high (she was a very curious girl!). Under her Gabrielle Bisset name, she writes paranormal and historical romance. She lives in Pennsylvania with a herd of animals and when she’s not writing can be found reading or feeding her TV addiction.
Be sure to visit K.M.’s Facebook page at facebook.com/kmscottauthor for all the latest on her books, along with giveaways and other goodies! And to hear all the news on K.M. Scott books first, sign up for her newsletter today and be sure to visit her website at www.kmscottbooks.com
Books by K.M. Scott:
Crash Into Me (Heart of Stone #1)
Fall Into Me (Heart of Stone #2)
Give In To Me (Heart of Stone #3)
Heart of Stone Volume One Box Set
Ever After (Heart of Stone #4)
A Heart of Stone Christmas (Heart of Stone #5)
Return To Me (Heart of Stone #6)
Forever With Me (Heart of Stone #7)
Heart of Stone Volume Two Box Set
Hard As Stone (Heart of Stone #8)
Set In Stone (Heart of Stone #9)
Silent As A Stone (Heart of Stone #10)
All of Me (Heart of Stone #11)
Temptation (Club X #1)
Surrender (Club X #2)
Possession (Club X #3)
Satisfaction (Club X #4)
Acceptance (Club X #5)
The Complete Club X Series Box Set
If I Dream (Corrupted Love #1)
If You Fight (Corrupted Love #2)
If We Fall (Corrupted Love #3)
The Corrupted Love Trilogy Box Set
Crave (Addicted To You #1)
Adore (Addicted To You #2)
Shatter (Addicted To You #3)
Claim (Addicted To You #4)
The Addicted To You Box Set
In The Darkness (Project Artemis #1)
After The Storm (Project Artemis #2)
Behind The Scenes (Project Artemis #3)
The Project Artemis Box Set
Hard Work (Standalone)
K.M.’S BOOKS ARE IN AUDIOBOOK TOO!
Books by K.M. Scott writing as Gabrielle Bisset:
Vampire Dreams Revamped (A Sons of Navarus Prequel)
Blood Avenged (Sons of Navarus #1)
Blood Betrayed (Sons of Navarus #2)
Longing (A Sons of Navarus Short Story)
Blood Spirit (Sons of Navarus #3)
The Deepest Cut (A Sons of Navarus Short Story)
Blood Prophecy (Sons of Navarus #4)
Blood Craving (Sons of Navarus #5)
Blood Eclipse (Sons of Navarus #6)
Blood Ascendant (Sons of Navarus #7)
The Sons of Navarus Box Set #1
The Sons of Navarus Box Set #2
Stolen Destiny (Destined Ones Duet #1)
Destiny Redeemed (Destined Ones Duet #2)
Love’s Master
Masquerade
The Victorian Erotic Romance Trilogy
