She smiled back at Shane, thinking that his comment was about finally seeing the ocean. It was about time; they had been hearing and smelling it for over half an hour. “It is beautiful, isn’t it?”
“No mom, look. The people.”
Jessa gasped softly, following her son’s gaze. There were several hundred people, coming and going along a beach. Behind them were tents and the smell of food. It looked like a small community on the water, just like she had been envisioning, whether she was too afraid to acknowledge her hope or not. Immediately, Jessa was filled with mixed emotions. There was the hope that they were nice people, just trying to make it like they were, but there was the nagging feeling of what-if. What if they were just like the others she had met?
“I see them baby. Well, it looks like we have finally made it.”
She squeezed Mike’s hand and he smiled back at her. “Are you ready?”
Jessa nodded. She was as ready as she was ever going to be.
Shane tugged on Milo’ good arm and the boys began running down the beach toward the settlement. She had never been able to show Shane the ocean before, and the sight of his excitement made her heart swell. It was almost as if they didn’t live in a post-apocalyptic world. She had always hoped that her son would be able to find a way to simply be a kid. Even though he had recently shot and killed someone, he was still a young boy, who was thrilled to be showing Milo the shells he was finding along the beach. She rested her cheek against Michael’s arm, and they continued forward toward the settlement.
***
Everybody watched in concern and bewilderment as the small troupe of people wandered down the beach. A tiny boy was beaming as he ran along the beach, followed by a taller, much older boy. His face was set in a grimace of pain, and his arm was bandaged. Behind the youngsters were two adults; a beautiful woman holding onto a rugged, powerful looking man.
“You suppose they’re friendly?” Andie said to her mother. Her mother shrugged.
“I’m not sure anyone with a boy that young could be all bad, but you never know these days,” she replied.
Soon the small group made it to the settlement, and stood awkwardly, taking in the scene.
“Welcome,” the matriarch of the village said warmly. She had been around as long as the hills, and everybody trusted her to judge the true character of the people who passed through. It seemed these people had her blessing, and so they knew without a doubt that they could trust them.
“What happened, child?” she asked, walking creakily to Milo. She touched his bandaged arm gently and Milo hissed in pain and fear, pulling it away from her.
“He was shot by a motorcycle gang,” Jessa replied, coming forward and laying a comforting hand on Milo’s shoulder. Milo relaxed into it for a moment, and turned his eye on the woman. She gave him a warm feeling; like someone he had known long ago but couldn’t remember.
“Did they follow you here?” she asked, frowning.
“No, ma’am. We took care of them. We protect our own,” Michael interjected.
“Good, good,” the woman said. “I’m happy to meet you. We’ve been building this community for years now, far away from the influence of other people. We don’t want their kind around here. And to be fair with you, if you turn out to be too much trouble, we’ll have to come to an agreement, if you catch my meaning.”
They did.
“That’s fair,” Jessa said, looking around at all the people. There was a large abundance of food. Livestock were roaming all around, being tended to and played with by groups of happy children. There were no signs of the deep worry lines that creased the faces of most of the other groups that they had encountered over the years. These people were relaxed and only worried about outside trouble coming in to ruin their happy homes.
“Good. Let’s say we give it a week to decide whether we’re a good fit for each other? And if not, we can part ways peacefully.”
“We’d like that very much, ma’am,” Jessa said, knowing in her heart of hearts that they had just found their new home.
Epilogue
“He’s going to be a fighter,” Michael said with a grin, stroking Jessa’s stomach. The baby had been growing rapidly since they’d arrived on the coast, where Jessa’s heart had been telling her to go.
“Actually, I think it’s going to be a girl,” Jessa said, beaming up at him. He grinned broadly.
“A daughter…”
“Yes,” Jessa said.
“It’s time for your fruit, Jessa. These help the baby grow strong,” Andie said. Andie was a young girl around Milo’s age. She was close to being an adult but not quite. Her mother was a very skilled healer, and had medical training that Jessa didn’t. She had been able to patch up Milo and take the shrapnel out of his arm. Jessa had feared he might never be able to use it again, but with the help of Andie and her mother, he was already getting some movement back.
“Thank you, Andie,” Jessa said, taking the fruit. “I think Milo was looking for you.”
“Oh!”
Andie hurried out of the tent in search of Milo.
“Young love,” Michael said, inhaling as if the idea were the most refreshing thing he had ever heard.
“It’s sweet,” Jessa agreed. “I didn’t expect them to hit it off.”
“Me either,” Michael agreed. “But then, I’m sure some would say the same about us.”
Michael took Jessa in his strong arms and started showering gentle kisses all over her body. He let his hands roam between her thighs and she gasped softly.
“It’s daylight,” she whispered, smacking him playfully.
“All the more reason,” he said into her ear, his voice sending shivers down her spine. “Shane is in school, and Milo will be busy all day with Andie…”
Jessa closed her eyes as she surrendered to Michael’s advances. They made love well into the afternoon, and lay together, their fingers intimately entwined.
“Who would have thought we could have found ourselves in paradise?” Michael asked softly, kissing her fingertips.
“It must have been fate,” Jessa said. They exchanged contented smiles and dressed slowly. Shane and Milo would be home at any time, and they would soon be having dinner as a family. What more could she ask for?
THE END
Stepbrother Romance
My New Billionaire Stepbrother
Cynthia Wilde
Copyright ©2015 by Cynthia Wilde. All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic of mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Thank you so much for your interest in my work!
1
Jennifer wished that she didn’t have to be there at all. But there she stood in a hideous pink bridesmaid dress, standing next to her mother while she married the man of her dreams. She was having every girl’s fantasy wedding. Her fiancée had told her that money was no object, and by the attention to detail and the spare-no-expense feel of this affair, it was clear he hadn’t been lying. Jennifer hated his constant show of wealth, but her mother Darla apparently was looking for the financial reassurance of stability over the spiritual connection of emotional attachment and chemistry. At the same time, Jennifer had to admit that the chocolate fondue fountain her mom had planned would be pretty awesome. The light show would be cool too, for that matter. Still, she would have rather stayed home.
Her mother’s new husband Ryan was a bit older than she was, maybe by ten years. Jennifer was never privy to their exact age difference, but everyone with eyes could tell when the couple was out together. To be fair that was really not a big deal. If she had really liked the guy she wouldn’t have thought twice about it. But Jennifer never really did warm up to him during the whirlwind three month courtship. She kept that to herself as best as she could though, because her mother just seemed so happy. She couldn’t bea
r to be the one to rain on the woman’s parade, so she just kept her mouth shut and tried as best as she could to be supportive.
Jennifer was happy to see that the ritual ceremony was over and people were getting up to head to the reception. She went to congratulate her mother one last time before leaving them to go change and get to the other venue.
“Congrats mom, you look so adorable.”
Jennifer was being honest, as her mother was radiating a glow that was hard to surpass. She looked as close to radiant as she ever got and the dress was just beautiful. That dress probably cost more than Jennifer would make in a year, and it showed. All of the detail and embroidery really made it stand out.
“Thank you baby. Stick around Jenny, so you can meet your new brothers.”
Jennifer looked confused since she had never heard of Ryan having any children. She envisioned a couple of teens that he had from a previous marriage.
“I didn’t know I was getting new brothers out of this deal, mom. No one ever tells me anything. I go off to school fifty miles away and ….oh, never mind. I will see you at the reception and meet them then, okay?”
The blonde tried to smile, hiding her true feelings from her mother. As always her mother was distracted and didn’t seem to notice her daughter’s annoyance. She walked away as she heard her mom gushing to her oldest friend, Ruth. Jennifer pulled her hair out of the fancy up-do which had taken an hour to create. Shaking her hair out, she slid into her old Mazda, which had been parked in front of the church, and headed down to the country club where the reception was to be held. Well, at least she wouldn’t have trouble finding her car in that parking lot later. Being almost 10 years old, it would certainly stand out, she thought, shaking her head.
Jennifer sat in her car for a few minutes after she pulled in. She hunted for her party dress and pulled it on after taking off the pink fluffy nightmare dress that her mom made her wear. It was now the tackiest, most expensive dress she owned and she hoped to hock it on Ebay as soon as she got back to school. Maybe someone would buy it, or at least she hoped so. She figured it would at least pay for a few books if nothing else.
Jennifer fluffed her hair and re-applied some light pink lipstick. She lit and took a few quick drags on a cigarette before stubbing it out and going inside, blowing smoke out of her lips as she went. She knew almost no one there and Jennifer found herself walking towards the bar. The buffet would be her second stop.
“Do you have an I.D. miss?”
“Oh come on, I’m the daughter of the bride. If I have to be here, the least you can do is give me a couple of shots.”
“I’m sorry miss, but no card, no drinks.”
Jennifer was about to say something else when a tall, dark-haired man came up behind her.
“I need….”
The man looked over at Jennifer and waited for her to answer.
“Double vodka.”
The bartender looked between the two, and rather than protest, did as the man, who also seemed to be his employer, bade. Jennifer thanked the attractive stranger and then headed towards the buffet table with drink in hand. She didn’t care for weddings in general, and especially not for this one in particular. Probably as a direct result, her cup was empty by the time she got back to the table. Jennifer looked around for the handsome stranger for a moment and when she didn’t see him, she decided to try her luck for another drink on her own.
The young, tuxedo clad bartender already had another one poured and ready for her when she got back. Pleasantly surprised, she thanked him.
“I told him to keep ‘em coming for you all night, as many as you wish…as long as don’t get too wasted.”
The change of tone was welcomed, as well as suspicious. She took the drink and walked toward the closest available table. For the moment she ignored decorum and the standard prearranged seating. She just wasn’t in the mood. Jennifer had just picked a random seat when her new tall, dark and handsome friend joined her, taking a seat on her left.
“Hi.”
Jennifer looked over at the man and said hello back. He was ruggedly handsome and he was dressed impeccably. Jennifer didn’t know that much about custom tailored suits, but she suspected that was what he was wearing. He reeked of money, as most of the people around her did. Some of those at the reception seemed to make a show of every bit of jewelry, and took every opportunity to mention their connections, but he carried it all off effortlessly, as if he might as well have been wearing a pair of old overalls. His brown eyes held hers captivated for a moment, before she looked down at her plate.
“So um, thanks back there. I really needed a drink.”
“That bad?”
“Yes.”
She didn’t elaborate and he didn’t press. She ate a few bites and then looked over at him. Jennifer could feel the man’s dark eyes on her and she waited for him to say something.
“Are you here for the bride or groom?”
“Bride, ugh, definitely the bride.”
“You don’t like the groom?”
“He makes her happy. That’s what’s important.”
“So what you really mean is that he’s a pompous jerk,” he laughed.
“Are you here for the groom?”
The man chuckled and nodded.
“That I am. My name is Charles, yours?”
“Jennifer, nice to meet you.”
Jennifer finished her drink and looked over at the bar, debating if she wanted to leave to get yet another one. She found herself attracted to the tall, handsome man and he seemed to be interested in her as well. Before she had time to act first, he excused himself and headed to the bar. Walking back with the drink in each hand, he looked devastatingly gorgeous. He placed her drink in front of her nonchalantly. His hair was a bit longer than was the fashion at the moment, ending at the collar. It had a slight wave to it and was almost pitch black. His skin had an olive tone and his eyes, when focused on a person, were hard to hold a gaze with. They were just so intense.
“Thank you. I think I should slow down, I am starting to feel a bit of a reckless smile on my face.”
“There is a smile on there, and it is beautiful. If you were mine, I would make sure you smiled like that every day.”
Charles leaned in close, but instead of going for a kiss, he just asked her if she wanted to dance. His face was beside hers, his words whispered gently into her ear. She tingled with the non-touch, his hot breath playing with her sensitive earlobe.
“Sure,” she said, trying to play it cool, while a wave of heat washed over her entire body.
2
Jennifer took another gulp and set her glass down. They had long since abandoned their hijacked seating in favor of a more subtle bench of to the side of the venue where they could enjoy some light conversation. The liquid courage helped her hands shake less as he led her out onto the dance floor once again. The quick beat they had risen to was almost immediately replaced with a slow and steady love song that pulled all the couples, including them, in closer. His hand grabbed her around the waist and pulled her near. She gasped as his hands settled just below her hips and her front was pushed against his hard, and apparently very athletic, body.
He moved her around slowly, but she was already breathing quickly from his touch. Her hands encircled his neck and she looked up at him with clouding green eyes. Jennifer could feel her body heating up, both from the vodka, as well as from her carnal reaction to his proximity. There was just something about the way he held her and looked at her that made Jennifer almost swoon. She couldn’t be sure, but she sensed it was more than just the alcohol. The song was over too quickly and she disengaged her arms almost reluctantly as he led them off the dance floor.
She moved back towards the table and decided she needed to sit down anyhow. Her knees were a little wobbly, though she blamed it on booze. Her mother was coming out about the same time and waved to her as Charles sat back down next to her. His chair seemed closer and he was definitely leaning towards her jus
t a little more than was usual.
“So what are your plans Jennifer?”
“Stay here as long as I have to and then get some studying done. What about you?”
“Studying? So you are in college?”
“Yeah, upstate.”
“What are you studying?”
“Law. I plan to work pro-bono.”
“Why?”
“Because I would rather help people than make money.”
Charles did not see a need for a distinction, but he nodded empathetically nonetheless.
“Well, I guess we all have to ‘follow our bliss’, as they say.”
Jennifer looked down at her plate, unsure of how to take his comment, and feeling the effects of the alcohol more strongly than ever. She gaped when she saw her sister on a small stage about to give a speech. She had completely forgotten that she was supposed to give one as well. There was no way she was going to get up there in front of all of those people at this point and give a slurred speech though. She ducked her head slightly and looked around to be sure no one else had located her. Spotting her mother and seeing that she wasn’t looking, Jennifer got up quickly. Walking towards the front of the building, she checked around and then pushed open the door to the coat room and stealthily slipped inside. She figured this would be a safe place to ride out the speech portion of the party.
Breathing out a sigh after a moment, she looked around at the rows of coats, numbered tags stuck to most of them. Hearing the door open behind her, she was pleasantly surprised to see Charles when she turned around.
“Why did you run off?”
“I am supposed to make a speech and I really don’t think I am in any condition for it at the moment. Trust me. It’s better for all of us if I sit this one out.”
DIESEL (Forsaken Riders MC Romance Book 13) Page 86
