Love Lasts Forever
Page 28
“Willow, wait!”
Thor closed the front door and then an upstairs door slammed hard, rattling the living room windows. “What happened?”
“She overheard us. She was crying. I’m leaving before another dam bursts. If you need me, you have my number.”
“Thanks, Cal. Sorry about your lip.”
“What’s a split lip between brothers?” He shrugged. “You have a good woman up there. You should let her know how much she means to you. G’night.”
Thor took the staircase two steps at a time. He knocked on Willow’s bedroom door. A muffled voice told him to come in. He did and his stomach flipped when he found her packing.
“What are you doing?”
“I have overstayed my welcome,” Willow explained in a hoarse whisper. “Kendra needs a roommate, and she asked me if I was interested. I told her I would let her know.”
“You don’t want to live with me anymore?”
She shook her head without bothering to look at him. “Not if you don’t want me here. I heard you say it was bad, and I don’t want to make you unhappy.”
Her voice broke, and he crossed the room in two steps to reach her. Despite her weak protests, he gathered her in his arms. “You misunderstood. Having you here isn’t bad. That’s not what I meant.”
“You were fighting with Cal, and that was because of me,” she said tearfully. “I don’t want to be the cause of dissension between you.” She rested her hands against his chest and pushed. “It’s better if I go.”
“No!” His hands locked around her waist. “It’s not better. It would be awful. I’d hate it.”
“You’re just saying that.”
“No, I’m not. I mean it. I don’t want you to leave.”
Fat tears rolled down her cheeks. “You just want me here because you feel responsible for me.”
Thor cupped her face and tilted her head so that their gazes met. Tears filled her eyeglasses so he removed them and lowered his head close enough that only a breath separated the tips of their noses. “I do feel responsible for you, but that’s not why I want you here.”
“You think I may be with child and that’s why—”
He pressed his forefinger against her mouth, and her words stopped. Her lips quivered beneath his caress. His stomach clenched in response. His jeans suddenly felt too tight. He fought a hard battle against the raging desire that demanded immediate attention. Removing his finger from her mouth, he exhaled a sharp breath and quickly said the words he wanted to say a long time ago, but never had the courage.
“I don’t want you to go because if you do, I think I’ll just die again.” Her eyes widened, and she opened her mouth to speak. He continued before she uttered a sound. “I don’t mean in the literal sense, but I guess if you don’t have much to live for, it doesn’t matter. You saved my life, Willow. You showed me that there’s more to life than the rush of adrenaline on game day. I thought I loved football, the roar of the crowd and everything that went with it. It meant so much to me for so long that I associated myself with it, and when I couldn’t do it anymore, I didn’t know what to do with myself. Losing football hurt, but I swear to you, it can’t compare to the thought of losing you.
“When I returned home to Pop and Cal and left you behind to deal with Grady Falls, I completely lost it. They can tell you; I was totally messed up. The very idea of Grady putting his hands on you made me want to kill him. The fear of not knowing how to get back to you made me want to die. I can’t bear the thought of anything hurting you, and knowing that I’ve caused you pain lately makes me mad. I am sorry, Willow.”
“You don’t have to apologize.”
“Yes, I do. I’m bad at this. With football, you get a playbook to tell you what to do. When you fall in love, you get nothing but a bad case of stubborn stupidity.”
“You don’t have to say that. I know that you care for me.”
“But just caring isn’t enough for you. You deserve more. I should have said it a long time ago, but I thought you knew. I tried to show you, but I messed up somehow. I wanted to give you the world when I brought you here with me. Instead, I just gave you a world of heartache.”
“I didn’t come here because I wanted the world. I came because I wanted to be with you.”
He exhaled. “Well, I don’t want you to go. Please, don’t leave. Stay with me.”
“I want to…”
“Before you say anything else,” he said, leading her to the bed, “have a seat. I have to get something. Don’t move.”
Willow watched his retreating back until he slipped out the door and then she drew in a deep breath. Although she was seated, her legs felt wobbly.
Thor loves me. Blessed be! It did her heart good to hear the words.
He returned to the room with a bounce in his step. Crimson darkened his tan face. His eyes sparkled with a secret. He balled his right hand into a fist, and as he knelt on one knee at her feet, he placed both hands on her thighs.
“I don’t have a speech prepared. I learned that winging it sometimes works, so that’s what I’ll do.”
“What are you doing?”
“I’m asking you to marry me. I don’t have much to offer, but what I have is yours. I love you, Willow, and want you to be my wife.”
A soft gasp escaped her. His declaration caught her off guard. A marriage proposal? “Blessed be.”
“Is that all you have to say?” The corner of Thor’s eyes crinkled as he teased her. He opened his balled hand and lifted a ring from his palm. “I have a ring. Pop gave it to me the day we came back. It was Eva’s. If you say yes and let me slide this on, the engagement can be official as of this moment.”
Willow bubbled with joy. A warm glow shot through her. She extended her hand. “Yes!”
Thor slid the ring on faster than a speeding bullet. His mouth closed over hers in a devouring kiss and not much later, he took her to heaven.
Epilogue
Canton, Georgia
October 2005
Thor couldn’t sleep. Lovemaking usually tired him out, but tonight not even Willow’s unrestrained passion tuckered him. The idea of watching the DVD again refused to let him rest. Careful not to wake his sleeping wife, he rolled out of bed. He pulled on his robe and wandered downstairs.
His hands glided over the railing. Since his marriage and the birth of his first child, the cabin underwent a number of changes. Thor was mindful of Anders’s original design and workmanship, taking great pains to match it.
The second floor was efficient, yet spacious. He and Willow decorated it in an old country style with oak furnishings and warm, thick quilts in every room. Cal and Pop teased them at first, but weren’t shy about offering their suggestions.
A window here and the den over there. The cabin became the family’s preferred vacation spot, and Thor made sure his children knew the history of it and appreciated the Magnusen legacy.
He turned on the lamp beside his recliner and grabbed the remote. With one push, the large screen digital television roared to life, and with another push, the DVD player did, too.
A velvet carpet of green covered the football field. Two sets of players sized each other up over the fifty-yard line. The Falcons had the ball this go ’round and the quarterback threw the sweetest pass Thor ever saw. Even though he knew the outcome of the game, the Falcons whipped the Eagles twenty-four to eighteen, his breath caught in his throat. The pass set a record, and that quarterback did his heart proud.
“How many times do you plan to watch that?” Willow asked, surprising him as she hopped onto his lap. “You’ve seen it at least ten times already and the game was yesterday! You’ll wear the disc out.”
He pulled her close to him and snuggled. “It’s okay. I made copies.”
“Olivia will be mortified.”
He shrugged. “She’ll get over it. It’s not everyday my little girl scores the pass that wins the homecoming game.”
“She’s sixteen. If you pull that DVD out
the night her date picks her up for the prom, I’ll take care of you myself.”
He growled, and his lower body twitched with renewed vigor. “That sounds promising.”
She giggled and rested her head against his shoulder. Her hand slipped underneath his robe. Sensual caresses teased his chest. He flattened his hand over hers and shook his head with mock warning.
“Your three children are upstairs fast asleep. What would they think if they knew their mother was initiating a forward pass?”
“They’ll think she’s happy and very much in love.”
“Still?” He cocked an eyebrow and regarded her closely. “After twenty years?”
“Yes.” Her voice was a wanton mixture of silk and huskiness. “And you?”
“You don’t have to ask. I love you, Willow Elkridge Magnusen, and each day that passes, I know that our love will last forever.”
About the Author
Dominiqua Douglas discovered the joys of writing through fan fiction. Readers’ responses, awards, and encouragement prompted her to focus on her own original work. Her desire to learn more about the craft prompted her to join Romance Writers of America, which provides a wealth of information for unpublished and published writers. When she is not writing or reading, she enjoys listening to 80s music, designing websites, watching movies, traveling and delicious chocolate.
Dominiqua loves to hear from her readers. Please send a self-addressed stamped envelope for a personal reply to the following address:
P.O. Box 1963
Grenada, MS 38902
Dominiqua’s email address is dominiquad@aol.com and her Web page is located at http://www.dominiqua.net
Table of Contents
Love Lasts Forever
Indigo Love Stories
Dedication
Acknowledgments
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Epilogue
About the Author
Table of Contents
Love Lasts Forever
Indigo Love Stories
Dedication
Acknowledgments
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Epilogue
About the Author