“Heath, please.”
I moved lower and slipped my tongue into her body, loving the taste of her as she convulsed around me. Her thighs began to tremble and I knew she was close to losing it. But I didn’t want that to happen before I got inside her. I wanted to feel her convulse around me.
“Fuck, I can’t take any more.”
I crawled back over her and rubbed my dick along her core. Her head moved fitfully on the pillow. She dug her nails into my ass cheeks and held my hips still.
“No more teasing,” she ordered. “I want to feel you deep inside.”
As usual, there was nothing I could deny her. I took my cock in hand and slid into the warmest, tightest place in history. Some days I could come from that initial entrance alone. But I held still, letting myself adjust. At least I tried to. Jenna was having none of that, though. She used the grip on my hips to pull me forward.
“Harder.”
I moved back and slammed forward again. “God, yes.”
I kept up the pace, thrusting into her over and over again. I couldn’t last much longer and started to lose my rhythm. The moment her body gripped mine in a vice, I gave up fighting it and let go. The release so spectacular, my vision grayed out at the edges. I rolled to my side, trying to catch my breath without crushing her.
“I love you,” I whispered against her lips.
“I love you, too.” She snuggled in closer.
I knew I’d have to get up soon and clean us both up, but lying there with my whole world in my arms I had not a single desire to move. If I could have, I would have stayed there forever.
CHAPTER 39
Jenna
Two months later.
The plane had arrived only a few hours earlier and the car brought us directly to the hotel. I almost passed out when I saw the size of the hotel room. My house could have fit inside the place. Heath laughed and then raced to change for the night’s award show. While I wanted to go with him, I wasn’t ready to leave Mia with a stranger just yet. Not to mention I was her only food supply at the moment. The smart move seemed to be to fly out for the award show and wait for him at the hotel. I knew Heath understood, but I also knew deep down he wanted me there to celebrate with.
In the end, he agreed he wasn’t ready to leave her with anyone else yet either. So he and the rest of the band had climbed in the limo over two hours ago to give them time to walk the red carpet. Honestly, I wasn’t sure I was ready to have the spotlight on me that much.
Mia was fast asleep in my arms. I thought about going into the other room to place her in her crib, but I couldn’t bring myself to take my eyes from the TV. Best new song was up after the commercial break and I didn’t want to miss it.
The commercial ended and I scooted forward, sitting on the edge of my seat, waiting to see what happened.
“Welcome back,” Kristen, one of the hosts, said. “Our next presenters for the night are Zach and Tracy.”
Tracy stepped out onto the stage in a gorgeous red sequined gown.
Shit, I’d kill to fit in something like that again.
Not that I’d ever mention that thought to Heath. He always got so upset, telling me over and over again how beautiful and sexy I was. I believed him, but I could feel my body was different than before. I glanced down at the small bundle in my arms and knew I wouldn’t change a single thing. Mia and Heath were my entire world.
“…and ‘You See Right Through Me’ by Jaded Ivory.”
My attention snapped right back to the giant screen on the wall.
The camera showed all four bands on the screen with the announcers in the middle.
“And the winner is… ‘You See Right Through Me’ by Jaded Ivory.”
I leaped from my seat screaming, as the band filled the entire screen. Mia’s eyes flicked open, crinkling at the sides.
“Shit.” I bounced her around in my arms. “Shh, baby. Mommy’s sorry.” She opened her mouth like she was about to let out a vicious cry, so I kept talking. “Daddy’s band just won a really big award.”
But it didn’t work. A wail left her throat, her face an angry shade of red. I did my best to console her, as I grabbed the remote to turn up the volume.
All five members of the band walked up the staircase leading toward the podium. The award was immediately handed to Mari. I was glad to now call her a friend.
In true gracious Mari form, she turned and placed the award in Heath’s hands.
He stepped up to the podium and adjusted the mic. I hoped Mia’s cries didn’t drown out his speech. Apparently, I had nothing to worry about. With the first word out of his mouth her attention was immediately drawn to the TV screen and the crying stopped.
I shook my head. “Such a Daddy’s girl.”
Heath looked at the award, then back out to the crowd. “I don’t know what to say. It’s not often I’m at a loss for words, but I know all of us”—he gestured at the band members behind him—“couldn’t do this without our fans, our family, and each other. The members of Jaded Ivory are part of my family. Tonight two of the most important members of my family are watching this on TV.” Heath lifted the gold statue. “Jenna and Mia, I miss you so much tonight. Without you, ‘You See Right Through Me’ would have been never written. Jenna, you were the first to see right through me and I love you so much. Thank you for letting me in. My life is so much better with you in it.”
The salty taste of tears hit my tongue as the tears raced untouched down my cheeks.
Heath sucked in a breath and Sawyer came up and wrapped an arm around him.
“What my friend is trying to say is thank you to everyone who believed in us and loved ‘You See Right Through Me.’ We couldn’t have done it without you. And, Jenna, I think Heath has something he wants to ask you later.” A cheer went through the crowd and Sawyer winked.
The music started to play and the band cheered and hugged as they were led off stage.
I saw what was happening on the stage almost as in a dream. Heath has something to ask you swirling around my head.
What could he possibly want to know? We already lived together and had a baby together. I couldn’t imagine him wanting to get married. My heart raced in my chest.
I glanced at the clock. It was still early. I knew it would be hours before he came back to the hotel with all the after-parties.
By the time I regained my focus, the winner of the next award had already been announced. When I looked down, Mia was sound asleep in my arms.
With Heath’s award over, I walked into the second bedroom and placed her into her crib. She looked so peaceful in her sleep. If only my brain could have that kind of peace.
Beyond exhausted, I thought about heading to bed myself, but I knew there was no way I’d be able to go to bed thinking about Heath’s question.
Thanks, Sawyer.
Next time I saw him, I was going to kick his ass for getting me all worked up. I went back out to the sitting room and dropped onto the couch. No sooner did my ass hit the cushion, my phone started ringing. A quick glance and I saw Rachel’s name flashing on the screen.
Damn, if I didn’t answer, she’d keep calling. I picked it up off the table.
“Hey, Rach.”
“Don’t hey Rach me. Holy hell, woman, what does that fine ass man want from you?”
“Your guess is as good as mine.” I curled my feet under me on the sofa.
“You know that man wants to marry you.”
I rolled my eyes, refusing to even think about the possibility. “He doesn’t want to get married. He’s got his career to focus on. Besides, he’s only twenty-seven.”
“And you’re only twenty-five. Age doesn’t mean shit.”
“Did you only call to gripe at me about my age?”
“No, I wanna gripe at you for not thinking that man wants to marry you and to have you tell him congratulations for me. Awesome win tonight.”
A yawn passed my lips. “I’ll tell him tomorrow. There’s no way I’m making it unt
il he gets home when the after-parties are done.”
“What after-parties?” a smooth, familiar, masculine voice said.
I whipped around in my seat, my hand flying to my throat. “Oh my God, you scared me. What are you doing here?”
He smirked, the dimple I loved so much appearing. “Sawyer told you I had a question to ask.”
“But…um…”
“Hey,” Rachel called in my ear. “What about me?”
“Hold on, Rachel.”
Heath strode forward and slipped the phone from my hands. “Thanks. Don’t worry, she’ll call you tomorrow, Rachel.”
He hit the end button on the call. He tossed the phone onto the couch and walked around, coming to a stop in front of me.
“What…what did you want to ask me?”
He reached out, taking my hands in his, and lifted me to my feet. He brought me to the center of the room and held his finger up. “Stay here.”
He walked back into our room and I wanted to yell at him, but I had no desire to wake up Mia. But my stomach was in knots waiting for him to come back. He returned a second later with a guitar in hand and lowered down to one knee in front of me. My hands flew up to my mouth.
He gazed up at me, eyes beginning to shimmer. “You’re my heart. My sun. My moon. Nothing has been the same since you walked into my life. You’re the only person who sees me, not the outside shell everyone expects, but the real me. Every person I tried to date before you wanted Heath, the keyboard player for Jaded Ivory. You just wanted Heath. And I want you.”
My heart thundered in my chest as Heath went down on one knee, guitar in hand and began singing. The words were ones I memorized from the first moment I heard them. Ones that were now tattooed on Heath’s ribs and on the back on my shoulder.
The song he won an award for tonight and walked away from the celebration to come back to me.
“You See Right Through Me.”
The song he wrote for me.
He saw right through me too. He saw through the person trying to hide from the world and just making it to the next day. He saw through the woman inside who lost everything and was afraid to let anyone in so they wouldn’t get to leave her.
He saw me.
The last few notes of the song filled the room. Heath laid the guitar to his side and pulled a small black box from the pocket of his jacket. He flipped the lid open and held it out to me.
“Jenna Forino, will you marry me?”
His image shimmered before me, but I didn’t bother to stop the tears as they traced down my cheeks. I tried to speak, but the words wouldn’t come. I nodded and finally pushed the word ‘Yes’ past the lump in my throat.
“Yes,” I said again. “I’d love to marry you.”
The dimple appeared as a full smile filled his face. He stood and took the ring from the box and slipped it on my finger.
“I’ve never seen anything so beautiful,” I whispered as I took in the large, square-shaped diamond surrounded by tiny sapphires. The ring was more than I ever dreamed.
He placed his finger under my chin and tilted my face up to his and captured my lips in a kiss that curled my toes. And it didn’t stop there. The love passing between us soon turned into an inferno as his mouth slowly devoured mine. My mind was so dazed with passion, the next thing I knew, I was being lifted into his arms and carried down to our room.
EPILOGUE
Jenna
Two months later.
I stood at the beginning of the beach. The light breeze blew my hair behind me. I watched from behind the trellis we’d set up for me to walk through as Heath took his place in front of the minister.
Dressed in dark jeans and a white button-down shirt, he looked every inch the rock star her was. Long, shoulder-length hair blowing lightly with the ocean breeze, his sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, revealing the tattoos on his arms. Next to him stood Sawyer in the same dark jeans, but with a light blue button-down.
I could have asked them to wear suits or tuxedos, but that wasn’t Heath. I wanted this day to be about us, about who we were as individuals and as a couple.
To say he looked handsome would be an understatement. Heath waited there like the guy on the front cover of a magazine. The kind that woman women would swear made their panties wet.
And he was mine.
“Fuck, he’s hot.” I turned to see Rachel walking up behind me.
“Never gonna get over that, huh?”
“Not likely. You have to be marrying one of the sexiest men on the planet. And I think I’m a little bit jealous.”
I giggled and glanced back at Heath. Standing there in front of the crashing waves, I realized dreams I never expected were coming true. Things I didn’t even think about wishing for. They were right there waiting for me to walk toward them.
My gaze moved from Heath and Sawyer to where Mari sat with Mia in her lap. It was a year to the day from the moment we met. Heath had suggested it after he’d convinced me we could pull all of this together in two months. He wanted me to have good memories of this day.
“We both deserve to have good memories.”
We did.
“Are you ready for this?”
I looked back at Rachel. “Ready to get married?”
She shook her head, a serious expression replacing the amusement from earlier. “Are you ready to spend the rest of your life with a man who loves you more than life itself?”
“I’ve never been more ready for anything.”
“Okay, then let’s go get you married.” Rachel threaded her arm through mine.
She looked stunning in the thigh-length halter dress. The blue matched the color of Sawyer’s shirt exactly.
After many sleepless nights, I decided to walk down the aisle with Rachel. Plenty of people in my life had offered to do the honor for me, but it never felt right. That was a place my own father was to hold and since he couldn’t, I decided to buck tradition and make my grand entrance on the arm of my maid of honor.
When we stepped beneath the flowers hanging from the trellis, the music stopped.
My feet stopped and I glanced over at Rachel, who had the biggest smile on her face. When I looked at the front again I saw Mia now in Reagan’s arms and Mari and Jackson sitting behind a keyboard and Heath with a guitar in his hands. I knew he could play both the guitar and the keyboard, but he didn’t choose the guitar very often.
The music started up again and I went weak in the knees, barely keeping myself upright. And that was before their voices filled the air.
Exactly like the night of our engagement he sang the song written about me. This time, though, Mari and Jackson created a beautiful harmony that made the song mesmerizing.
I couldn’t draw my gaze away from Heath’s as I almost hypnotically moved toward him down the aisle. Tears streamed from my eyes, the moment more beautiful than I could have ever imagined. When I reached the end of the aisle, the music of the guitar faded out as Heath passed it off to Sawyer. He cupped my face with his hands, brushing the tears away with his fingers.
“Please tell me those are happy tears?”
I smiled. “The happiest.”
“Ready to become Mrs. Marshall?”
“More than I’ve been for anything in my life.”
Heath reached a hand out to me and everything in the world around me fell into place. From the moment I met the man in front of me, I knew he was different even if I didn’t let myself see it right away. He was everything I’d ever wanted and more. As he led me, hand in hand, up to the altar, I knew the life I’d always wanted had finally been given to me.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Write Later
OTHER BOOKS BY REBECCA BROOKE
Forgiven Series:
Forgiven
Redemption
Healed
Acceptance
Standalone Titles:
Letters Home
Coming Home
Beautiful Lessons
Ryder
> Traded
The Folstad Prophecies:
Twin Runes
Coming Soon:
Second Chances
Binding Consequences
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Rebecca Brooke grew up in the shore towns of South Jersey. She loves to hit the beach, but always with her kindle on hand. She is married to the most wonderful man, who puts up with all of her craziness. Together they have two beautiful children who keep her on her toes. When she isn’t writing or reading (which is very rarely) she loves to bake and watch episodes of Shameless and True Blood.
Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/Rebecca-Brooke-Author-397664770332282/
Twitter
@RebeccaBrooke6
Website
www.rebeccabrooke.com
Table of Contents
CHAPTER 1 Heath
CHAPTER 2 Heath
CHAPTER 3 Jenna
CHAPTER 4 Heath
CHAPTER 5 Jenna
CHAPTER 6 Jenna
CHAPTER 7 Heath
CHAPTER 8 Jenna
CHAPTER 9 Heath
CHAPTER 10 Heath
CHAPTER 11 Jenna
CHAPTER 12 Jenna
CHAPTER 13 Heath
CHAPTER 14 Heath
CHAPTER 15 Jenna
CHAPTER 16 Heath
CHAPTER 17 Jenna
CHAPTER 18 Heath
CHAPTER 19 Jenna
CHAPTER 20 Jenna
CHAPTER 21 Heath
CHAPTER 22 Jenna
CHAPTER 23 Heath
CHAPTER 24 Jenna
CHAPTER 25 Jenna
CHAPTER 26 Heath
CHAPTER 27 Jenna
CHAPTER 28 Jenna
CHAPTER 29 Jenna
CHAPTER 30 Heath
CHAPTER 31 Jenna
CHAPTER 32 Heath
CHAPTER 33 Jenna
CHAPTER 34 Heath
CHAPTER 35 Jenna
Cover Me (Jaded Ivory Book 3) Page 29
