by Ranae Rose
“Yeah, I knew that as soon as I saw Troy Levinson with his hands on you.”
For a few moments, all was silent, and then the quiet was broken by the sound of the nurse’s shoes squeaking against the tile.
“What did she look like?” Alicia asked, eager to know more before she was whisked back to her own hospital room. “The woman you saw in the house.”
“The smoke was stinging my eyes, and I had to squint… It was kind of hard to tell much. Slim though, dark hair. Pretty enough that with my eyes half-shut I thought she was you. White dress.”
A handful of memories tumbled through Alicia’s mind – memories of a white dress whipping in the phantom breeze, the impression of a figure standing over her bed, gone a split second after she opened her eyes.
Of course, the memory that stood out most vividly was that of the woman in white standing over Alicia as she’d lost consciousness. The pretty, dark haired stranger whose name she didn’t know. Unless…
“Did she have wings?” The nurse finally spoke up.
Liam shifted his gaze away from Alicia for the first time since she’d entered the room. His expression betrayed no emotion, but there was a note of steel in his voice. “No,” was all he said.
Alicia gripped Liam’s hand back and squeezed to let him know that she believed him. “I saw her too.” She pressed a kiss against his cheek. “I guess Sasha and Kerry will be saying ‘I told you so’ next time I see them.”
The nurse seemed unperturbed by Liam’s gaze. “Come on Ms. Dalton, you’re not going to be a very happy camper if you don’t take your medications on time.”
Liam was staring at Alicia now, eyes locked with hers.
She gave him an apologetic look. They’d just have to talk about the Lady in White later.
“I’d better go,” she said. “Kerry and Sasha are on their way over here to visit me anyway. Do you want me to ask them to bring you anything?”
Liam shook his head. “Grey and Henry are coming to see me.”
Alicia had little doubt that Grey and Henry would find themselves bumping into Sasha and Kerry at some point, especially if she let Sasha know that they were visiting too.
“Hey,” Liam said, holding on tight to her hand as she straightened, preparing to leave. “I still owe you that date.”
She smiled. “Yeah, I know.”
“When I get out of here I’ll be taking a little time off work.”
“You think?”
“Let’s go to Wilmington as soon as we can. And the beach, too. In fact, I’ll show you all the best beaches around here.”
“You just want to see me in a bikini.”
“Guilty as charged. You’re not going to say no, are you?”
“Of course not. It’s a date.”
EPILOGUE
Three Weeks Later
The Atlantic Ocean glittered, throwing itself on the sand and retreating, blue-green water slipping back into itself, leaving the scent of brine in the air. Alicia was busy admiring it from her towel on the sand when Sasha stepped directly into her path.
“Well, hello sailor.” She stood with her hands on her hips, staring out at the sea like she was trying to spot an incoming ship.
At first Alicia thought Sasha had caught sight of some active duty navy guys or Marines from one of the nearby bases, but she soon realized that Sasha was gaping at Henry.
No surprise there. Her interest in him was still going strong – if anything, it had reached fever pitch. There was no way Henry would be able to keep his distance much longer.
Not that he seemed to want to keep his distance. He was pretty reserved, but Alicia had caught him and Sasha exchanging some pretty hot and heavy looks.
“Wasn’t he a Marine?” Kerry looked up from her fitness magazine – one that she’d been sneaking glances at Grey over the top of.
“Yes,” Sasha conceded. “But Marines spend a lot of time on ships too.” She sighed. “What I wouldn’t have given to have been there when he first stepped foot on dry land after a long time at sea.”
“Why don’t you go talk to him?” Alicia suggested.
Henry, Grey and Liam stood in a cluster near the crashing surf, looking down at something. Occasionally, women strolling the beach stopped in their tracks to stare.
Alicia couldn’t blame them, and secretly, she hoped that Sasha would draw the men back to the towel spread so that she could admire Liam up close.
“I don’t want to get in the water,” Sasha said, narrowing her eyes at a wave that crashed around the guys’ knees, the spray soaking their swim trunks.
“Why not? Are you afraid of sharks?” Alicia was, though she risked the occasional dip anyway, as long as someone came with her – preferably Liam.
Sasha shrugged. “Shark attacks are incredibly rare. I just don’t swim. It wouldn’t be fair to hide this body underwater. I prefer the sun and the sand.” She wriggled her hips in demonstration, as if Alicia and Kerry hadn’t noticed her curves showcased in her fire engine red bikini.
The bottom half was high-waisted, the top halter-style with golden rings that secured the straps to the push-up cups. It smacked of old-fashioned glamour and although Alicia would’ve looked ridiculous in it, somehow Sasha pulled it off, looking like a modern-day Marilyn Monroe.
“How thoughtful of you,” Kerry said drily, lying on her towel in her modest navy blue tankini suit.
Alicia had achieved a happy medium with her purple bikini, and although it wasn’t as flashy as Sasha’s suit, it had certainly managed to attract Liam’s attention throughout the day. In fact, a part of her wondered if the three men hadn’t retreated to the water’s edge in order to escape the pheromone-charged holding pen the group’s towel and blanket set-up had become. After all, there were children on the beach, and swim shorts didn’t do much to conceal excitement.
“Aha,” Sasha said, “here they come.”
The three men approached the towels, shirtless and unbelievably hot-looking, the bottom halves of their bodies dripping with seawater.
Liam’s scars were visible, pink slashes across his otherwise perfect torso. Henry had a pretty serious collection of scar tissue on his back, but neither man’s imperfections made them any less attractive. If anything, they added a rugged sort of appeal that had Alicia gaping openly at Liam as he settled down on the towel beside her.
“What was the big deal down at the water?” Kerry asked.
“Jellyfish,” Grey replied. “Pretty big one washed up on the beach. Be careful not to step on it. We set some driftwood around it to help people see it.”
“That reminds me,” Sasha said, “I’d better put some more sunblock on or I’ll burn. Curse of fair skin.” She glanced around at the group, blinking, then settled her gaze on Henry, smiling. “Do you think you could give me a hand with my back?”
Henry didn’t ask what sunblock had to do with jellyfish, just took the bottle when she handed it to him, a vaguely dazed expression on his face.
Watching him rub the lotion onto her shoulders seemed almost voyeuristic, and Alicia felt herself blush.
“I’d like to see that jellyfish,” Kerry said, jumping up. “Will you show me, Grey?”
He agreed readily, and soon he was leading her down to the water, a spring in his step, like he was just a big kid with the physique of an underwear model.
“Hey.” Liam caught Alicia’s eye. “Wanna go for a walk? A little kid on the beach said there were dolphins out here a couple hours ago. If we’re lucky, we might see some.”
“Sure.”
When she stood, he took her hand and she felt a familiar rush of excitement, a chemical reaction that had butterflies fluttering to life inside her stomach. They’d been living together ever since being discharged from the hospital a couple weeks ago – he a few days later than her – but being around him hadn’t gotten old yet.
Not by a longshot.
“How do you feel?” he asked when they were on their own, feet leaving side-by-side tracks in the su
n-warmed sand. “You haven’t had one of your headaches today, have you?”
“No. I’m fine.”
Ever since Troy Levinson had slammed her head against her car, she’d been prone to migraines. They were intense and tended to come on without warning. In truth, they were pretty bad, and lately she had trouble with short term memory, too. Not an ideal problem for an event planner to have, but Faye and everyone at Wisteria had been very understanding.
Monster Bride had been a different story, but Faye had graciously stepped in and handled that particular wedding.
“Good,” he said. “I wouldn’t want anything to ruin this day.”
She shared his sentiments; so far, the day had been perfect. They planned to stay on the beach until sunset, then head to Wilmington for dinner – finally. Alicia had dropped off Holden with Faye for the day, since dogs weren’t allowed on the beach during summer.
As beautiful as the water was, and as much as she hoped to spot a dolphin, they hadn’t been walking long when her gaze was drawn irresistibly to Liam.
“It’s a shame about your tattoo,” she said, reaching out and touching his side lightly, tracing the area around the slashing line of pink scar tissue that cut through the heart of the wolf inked down his side. “Although personally, I think the scar makes it even more of a turn on.”
Liam laughed. “I won’t try to have it inked over then, if you really feel that way.”
“I do.”
“Good. Having my ribs tattooed really hurt.”
She winced as she imagined a needle digging into the skin over his ribcage. “I bet.”
He shrugged. “Back when I was 23, it was a sacrifice I was willing to make to look cool. Thought having a little ink to show off when I took off my shirt might help attract the ladies, especially at the beach.”
She grinned. “Did it work?”
“You tell me.”
A little wave of guilt sliced through her, making her blush. She still hadn’t confessed to Liam that she’d watched him through his open bathroom blinds.
“Well, it certainly got my attention. I have to admit though, the thought of women flocking to you on the beach, asking to touch your tattoo, makes me a little jealous.”
“Who says they asked to touch it? You’ve got an awfully vivid imagination.”
She reached out and let her fingers brush the ink, absorbing the heat of his skin. “Only when it comes to certain things. Which reminds me… Liam, there’s something I probably should’ve told you a long time ago.”
He stopped in his tracks, turning to face her. “What is it?”
She drew a deep breath as guilt wriggled through her. Yes, he’d watched her too, but he’d admitted it ages ago. Why had she put off confessing for so long?
“Back before your house burnt down… I could see you getting in and out of the shower through your bathroom window. You left the blinds open, and there were no curtains.”
For several moments, he just stared at her, his expression unchanging. “You watched me getting in and out of the shower?” His tone was incredulous, and one of his eyebrows crept slowly higher than the other.
She felt herself blush. “I used to watch you in the mornings, from my kitchen. Over my morning cup of coffee.”
“Over your morning cup of coffee.” His eyebrow went even higher.
“Yeah… Are you mad?”
“That depends,” he said, holding her gaze. “How much could you see?”
She swallowed in an attempt to banish a feeling of sudden tightness in her throat. “Everything.”
He held her gaze for another second, then tipped his head back and laughed. He was so loud, not even the wave that crashed at their feet could drown out the sound. A few people turned to stare, and her blush deepened.
“Oh God,” he said, “if only I’d known. Do you have any idea how worried I was that you’d be pissed when you found out I’d been watching your silhouette against your bedroom blinds?”
“I meant to tell you,” she said, “but the longer I went without doing it, the more awkward it seemed like it would be to confess.”
“I get it,” he said, “and I have something I need to tell you too.”
A little pulse of nervousness raced through her. His eyes looked serious somehow, even if they were crinkling around the corners from laughter. “What?”
“I think we should get married.”
Her heart stopped – flatlined for one breathless second, then burst back to life, beating in double-time. A wave crashed at their feet, spraying her legs with cool water. She barely noticed. “Are you serious? Because you’re still laughing.”
He took a few moments to smooth his expression.
“I know we’re already living together,” he said, “but I’d like to make sure it stays that way. I love you, Alicia.”
She savored his words for a few seconds, letting them sink in. “I love you too. Is this all because I was spying on you in the shower?”
He smirked. “I do think that proves that we’re compatible, but it’s just icing on the cake. It’s hard to pinpoint the exact moment I knew I wanted you to be my wife, but I think it was when I found out that you’d broken Troy Levinson’s nose.”
“I am pretty proud of that,” she admitted.
He nodded. “So we agree: you’re amazing, and that’s why I want us to get married.”
“When you put it that way, it’s hard to argue…”
“Then what do you say we make it official?”
Her heart leapt at the thought, still speeding.
“I’d love to. Are you sure you’re ready? We haven’t exactly known each other for very long.”
She felt one corner of her mouth quirk in a smile. More than a month after getting together, they’d only now managed to make their long-awaited beach and Wilmington daytrip happen. “I wouldn’t want to think this is a spur-of-the-moment idea you came up with after seeing me in my bikini.”
He grinned and shoved a hand into the pocket of his boardshorts. “It’s not – look.”
He held up something that flashed, shining with the light reflected off the waves. “I meant to do this right, get down on one knee and everything, but you threw me off kilter with that whole voyeurism confession thing.”
She didn’t even have time to blush over his teasing – the sight of the engagement ring had taken her breath away. “My God, Liam, that looks expensive. You’ve been walking around with that in your swim shorts pocket?”
“I got the insurance payment for my house the other day,” he said. “Went straight out and bought this.”
Hours at the beach had leant Alicia’s skin a light tan, but she felt herself go pale beneath it. “You spent the insurance money on that?”
“Just some of it,” he said, reaching for her left hand. “So – think you can stand a lifetime with me or what?”
She couldn’t help it – she grinned. “Yes.”
He slid the ring onto her finger, and next thing she knew, she felt the heat of his lips against hers, at odds with the cool ocean water swirling around her ankles.
“I’ve been thinking about what to do with the rest of the money I got for the house,” he said, still holding her hand after they pulled apart. “You know, after I pay off the balance of my loan. There’ll be a chunk left over and I thought it might be good to put it toward a new place – somewhere we can pick out together, with a little more room. You know, in case someday we want to have a family.
“Or if you want to keep renting for now, I can just save the money and we can worry about that when the time comes. Either way, I don’t want to make any big decisions without you.”
Standing there with the surf crashing around her ankles, she couldn’t look away. A thousand dolphins could’ve swum past and she wouldn’t have been able to spare them so much as a glance. “You have no idea how happy that makes me.”
“Yes I do. You make me happy.”
He reached out and took her hand, pulled her close and k
issed her.
An especially big wave put them shin-deep in water, but they didn’t pull apart. By the time the kiss ended, their feet were buried in the wet sand.
“This is one hell of a first date,” she said.
He kept holding her hand as they began to walk again. “It’s been a long time coming. I knew I had to make it good.”
Things are just beginning to heat up in Riley County.
Sasha and Henry’s story is coming next.
Look for Officer out of Uniform (Lock and Key, #2) in ebook and paperback soon.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Ranae Rose is the best-selling author of more than twenty adult romances and counting. She calls the US East Coast home and resides there with her family, German Shepherd dogs and overflowing bookshelves. Writing and reading are lifelong passions that consume most of her time, and she’s always working on bringing her latest love story idea to life for readers.
www.ranaerose.com
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Read on for an excerpt from Ranae’s best-selling romance Battered Not Broken.
Battered Not Broken
