She shifted her hips, making sure Bruce had full access to enter her. When he did, a feeling of bliss settled over Kate. Feeling his hard body against hers was a complete turn on.
"How does that feel?" he asked as he slowly stroked her.
Kate silently nodded, unable to verbally respond as she felt him plunge deeper and deeper inside of her. He gripped her, pulling her closer and closer into his embrace. It felt as if he wanted to melt in to her.
Their bodies made their own music, sweet melodies of love. Kate was completely lost in the moment as Bruce patiently commanded all of her moods and emotions. Just as she was coming close to climax, it felt like he was reading her body's language and he worked harder to bring her to her release.
The quick interlude was exactly what she needed to start her day. With a stretch, she rolled over, completely satisfied from her lover. She kissed him on the lips.
"I now think that I have the energy to start my day," Kate teased.
"Oh really?" Bruce asked.
"We should make it a point to do that every morning."
An eyebrow raised, Bruce opened his mouth to speak, then stopped abruptly.
"Go ahead, you look like you have something to say," Kate prompted.
"We can," he blurted out.
"We can, what?"
"We can do this every morning. We can, if you move in with me. Or we can find a place together. I just want to make sure that I wake up to you every morning, Kate."
Now it was Kate that was stalling for the right words to say.
"Kate, move in with me."
*****
Heart racing, Kate was unsure of whether she should answer immediately or give Bruce's question some thought.
His gaze penetrated her, and she knew that she would have to give him a response very soon.
"Come on, Kate. For once, just do what is in your heart. Stop thinking so hard." Bruce took her by the hand.
"Close your eyes."
She paused, wondering where he was going with the conversation.
"Seriously, Kate. Close your eyes."
She sighed, doing as he asked.
"Okay, now. Kate Walker, let's move in together."
She could feel him squeezing her hand, and that, along with his comforting presence, was reassuring.
Her heart swirled and her mind was fighting, forcing a tug of war between the two. Bruce was right. She needed to stop over analyzing each situation and just go for what she wanted.
"Yes."
"Yes?" Bruce's response was more of a question to reassure that he heard her correctly.
"Let's move in together." It was worth repeating so that Bruce knew that she meant what she said.
"You have just made me the happiest man in the world, Kate."
She relaxed in his embrace, knowing that she had made the right decision. He was the right man for her and there was no reason why they could not take their relationship one step further.
Bruce planted soft, feathery kisses on her neck, still holding her close. "This is so right, Kate. We are perfect for each other."
"I know," she replied. "You and I are perfect together. Thank you for being so patient with me."
"I told you that I would wait forever for you."
Kate heard the words, but she was not sure that in reality, the man of her dreams would wait an eternity for her to accept his proposals.
"I think you have kept me in bed too long. It's time for me to get dressed for work."
"Fine. I guess I have to let you go." He leaned in for a kiss, and she accepted.
"I have money to make today, thank you very much."
"Hmm."
She rolled out of bed, without a stitch of clothing on, knowing that Bruce's eyes would be glued to her.
The hot shower felt wonderful, and it gave her time to think. Moving in together would not be such a bad thing. The two of them spent so much time with one another, that it only made sense. If he was not staying over at her home, she was staying over at his apartment. They spent the majority of their free time together and woke up next to one another every day that they were in town together. In the past year, they had created a comfortable rhythm that worked.
Making things between them more official was going to be great for their relationship. The more she thought about it, the better it felt.
By the time she stepped out of the shower, the scent of bacon and coffee floated into the bedroom. Bruce was a great cook and he always made sure she was well fed. It was a great compliment to the fact that she was no kind of cook at all. The kitchen was not her domain and she never claimed it to be.
She scanned her closet, never feeling like she had anything to wear. It was a casual day today; three consultations and she would spend the rest of the day at the boutique. Kate settled on a pair of vintage denim pants and a white button down collared shirt.
The smell of breakfast pulled her out into the front room.
"What did you cook for breakfast? It smells amazing."
"Pancakes, bacon, and a little coffee."
She took a seat at the bar counter. "I was not even aware that I had any ingredients to make pancakes."
"That, my love, is why I am the cook. Sit down. Eat."
He pointed to the seat where a fully made plate of breakfast sat waiting for her.
"What is this?"
A small black box sat next to the plate.
"Open it," he urged her.
Kate could not wait to unwrap the package. She pulled the ribbon and took the top off of the box.
"Bruce, you spoil me." A pair of princess cut diamond earrings shined brightly.
"I saw them and they just called out for a new home."
"Where would you have been that you would have happened to see a pair of diamond earrings?" she teased.
"My little secret." He flipped the last pancake and turned off the stove.
Before digging in to the breakfast, she put the earrings on.
"Bruce, you always make me feel like a princess."
He popped a piece of bacon in his mouth, smiling. His expression made him look like a young mischievous boy.
"Those look amazing on you. Next, I have to convince you to wear some good old cowboy boots. You have on my uniform today."
Kate looked down and noticed that she did have on what Bruce called his uniform: a crisp, white button down shirt and a pair of jeans. He always paired the outfit with cowboy boots and usually a ten gallon hat. Despite the fact that they lived in Los Angeles, Bruce was the requisite cowboy. Raised on a rather large ranch in a more rural part of the state, Bruce had not let go of his roots despite living in the metropolitan city.
"I guess I do. But I think I do it so much better. Especially with these gorgeous earrings." She finished her breakfast and poured her coffee in her thermos to go.
"I've really got to go, Bruce."
He leaned over the bar counter and kissed her on the lips, leaving her thinking briefly about whether she wanted to stay home with her beau.
"I know. I'll clean up here and we will catch up later."
He smiled softly as he turned back to start cleaning up the dishes in the sink as she walked out into the sunshine.
It was a warm, clear day, full of possibilities. Kate made her way to the boutique, all the while trying to get her mind focused on work. Spending the morning with Bruce always got her a little off kilter. Her mind would replay the way his hands felt against the small of her back, and how his lips felt against hers. They were still in the honeymoon phase of their relationship, and she could not get enough of the man.
That was exactly what worried her so much because she knew she needed to demonstrate some of that focus on her career. It was always a delicate balancing act to figure out how to spend time with the man she loved and continuing to move forward in her career.
Over the last year, she had the pleasure of going from a freelance fashion consultant to owning her boutique to gaining notoriety as a fashion stylist to c
elebrities. A recent gig with a well known pop star resulted in her name being mentioned in all of the fashion blogs and media outlets, creating an explosion of work that came out of nowhere overnight.
Fortunately, she had a team that she trusted and they all were riding the wave of success together. By no means did Kate feel like she hit the big time. She knew that there was so much more to do to get to the point where she would be in any position to slow down or scale back. After all of this time, she was finally getting to where she envisioned herself in her career, and there was no way that she wanted to stop and trade all of that in.
She heard so many women who spoke of how they balanced work and home, and it all sounded so difficult. When Kate envisioned herself having the husband, the kids, and the house behind the white picket fence, she thought that it would be best to be able to fully commit to being a wife and a mother. Her mother had done so. Having her mother around full time was something that Kate appreciated. She wanted to do the same for her children. And besides, she was only in her late twenties, so she had plenty of time to get started with a family of her own. Bruce did not have any children and had never been married, so they would embark on the journey together. But with him being in his early forties, she knew that at some point soon, he would want to have children.
As she pulled up to the boutique, she inhaled deeply, closed her eyes, and repeated a soothing mantra to ready herself for work. Her assistant, Amelia had already sent an email with her schedule and it was loaded with follow up phone calls and Skype video calls with potential clients.
"Hello, ladies!"
"There she is," Linda replied.
"Oh, goodness, it looks so busy in here." Business had picked up so much, Kate had to hire a few sales consultants for the boutique.
Linda followed her back to the office. She was such a Godsend. Linda had proven to be a great business partner and an even better friend along the way.
"It is. I'm telling you, after going to Paris, the inventory is flying off of the shelf. We still need to sit down and do this blog so that we can reach more potential clients."
Kate rolled her eyes. "You and this blog. I will take a look at it. If it does what you say it will, we will have to hire more employees."
Linda smiled. "Not a bad problem to have if I do say so myself."
The two women set about starting their work day, and before she knew it, the early evening was before her.
"Oh my goodness, I have about thirty minutes to get out of here. I have a dinner date with Bruce and I'm trying my hardest to make sure that I am on time for everything."
Linda laughed and shook her head. "Please be on time. That man adores you and I would hate to see you push him away because you have tunnel vision."
"Tunnel vision?"
"Yes. I get that we have this business to run, but you have to have a little balance too, Kate."
"Oh, no. Not you too. On that note, I'm leaving." She tried to respond playfully, but there was tinge of seriousness to what she was saying.
Linda meant well and had Kate's best interest at heart, but it was always a bit irritating to constantly be reminded that she had to figure out a way to juggle her career and her love life. She had not gotten to the point where she could manage it all, and hated the fact that everyone else made it all sound so easy.
Kate waved goodbye to her team, and set out for the restaurant where she would meet Bruce.
She was halfway there, proud of herself for being on time, when he sent a text that they would be meeting for dinner out at his parents' ranch.
Slightly agitated that she had plowed through the traffic already, Kate made her detour to the freeway that would take her out to the ranch. Once she hit the open road, she did not have a care in the world. Besides, Bruce's mother was a great cook and it would be nice to have a small escape from reality of life in the city.
Chapter 2
The Stanger family ranch was a cozy place. It was the kind of home that looked like the ones in the Christmas catalogs that made you remember what it meant to be a family. Mr. and Mrs. Stanger had been together for decades and reminded Kate of her own parents.
It was nice to see that Bruce came from such a loving home. Kate was sure he would model his own home after all of the love and affection it seemed that he grew up with.
Mrs. Stanger was the consummate hostess as she always served wonderful food and drinks whenever Bruce brought Kate to the ranch. It was also wonderful to see Bruce's face light up when he was around his parents. He was completely in his element when he was there with them. Seeing him on the ranch, Kate was able to view Bruce in a different way. His laugh was more hearty and he was way more relaxed. It was as if when he was at the ranch, he gave in to the side of him that liked to take things slow.
In the city, he was accomplished, a strong businessman who knew the boardroom and how to work a client. At the ranch, he was a family man who worked the land. Seeing him with his boots and his jeans as he cleaned the pens and groomed horses helped Kate to learn more about who Bruce really was as a man.
She loved both sides of him. After all, no one was one dimensional. It was rare that one got the opportunity to learn everything about the person he or she loved. And here was Kate, able to see Bruce for who he truly was. A simple man that loved nature and loved his family.
Kate made a mental note to call her own parents and plan a time when she and Bruce could go and visit. They knew that she was dating someone seriously, but she had not yet brought him around to meet her parents, she wanted to make sure that when she introduced Bruce to her parents, that everything was right in her relationship with Bruce and they were committed.
That time would definitely be now.
Bruce had brought her to the ranch several times. He was completely comfortable with her being around his family and she wanted him to experience the same.
She barely knocked at the door before Mrs. Stanger swung the door open.
"Kate, darling, there you are. We were just talking about you." Mrs. Stanger met Kate with a warm embrace. The woman smelled like freshly baked cookies.
"All good I hope," Kate replied.
"Most definitely," Mr. Stanger commented as he approached the foyer. "We were just saying that we wondered how Bruce lucked out and found such a wonderful woman like you."
Mrs. Stanger gave her husband a light pat on his arm. "He's just joking," she said in reference to her other half.
"Come on in, Kate. Dinner is ready."
Whatever was for dinner smelled divine and just that moment, Kate's stomach began growling.
Mr. Stanger led her in to the living room. "Bruce is outside at the stables. I should go and get him."
"Maybe I could go and get him."
Bruce's parents looked confused about Kate's offer.
"Well now, you can't go out there in those shoes." Mrs. Stanger pointed to Kate's designer pumps.
Kate had not thought about that when she offered to go and get Bruce from the stables for dinner.
"I have a little something you can wear outside. You look to be about a size seven like myself." Mrs. Stanger smiled.
"Actually I am. Thank you."
Bruce's mother disappeared down the hallway and came back shortly with a pair of what looked like rain boots.
"These are what you need to walk out to the stables."
"Thank you. I will remember to bring some out here the next time."
Mrs. Stanger smiled. "Let him know that dinner is ready and we will be ready to eat within the next thirty minutes."
She pointed Kate in the direction of the stables. The hike down hill made her appreciate the fact that Mrs. Stanger gave her the boots to wear. The soft soil under her feet would not have been the place for her to wear six inch heels.
In the distance, she could see Bruce walking one of the horses around the corral.
"What a great surprise." He tipped his hat to her as she approached.
Kate tried to walk on her tip toes to ma
ke sure she was treading lightly to her destination.
"I thought that I would not let you corner the market on surprises. This city girl can get down and dirty with the best of them."
Kate watched as Bruce ran the large bristled brush over the horse's coat. He was so gentle with the animal, such a beautiful sight to see.
"If you say so, love. Why don't you come on over here? Have you ever ridden a horse before?"
She shook her head. "No. I can't say that I have."
Bruce beckoned for her. "You can come closer."
"I'm not sure about that." Kate nodded in the direction of the horse.
"Paddington is a calm soul."
"Paddington? You mean like the bear?"
"Yes, like the bear. Now come on over here. I promise I won't let him hurt you."
Kate inched closer to where Bruce stood. She moved slowly, not wanting to make any sudden movements that would scare the horse.
She took Bruce by the hand and stepped closer to the horse. Bruce took her hand and helped her come even closer to the animal. He instructed her to hold her hand out slowly. When she did, she began to feel more comfortable being in such close proximity to the animal.
She eventually touched his soft hair, running her hands through the horse's mane.
"This is not bad."
"Not at all. One day, I will get you to ride."
"I would love that."
"Let's get Paddington back to the stables. I'm sure that Mother has dinner ready."
"As a matter of fact, she does. That's why I came out here."
Bruce chuckled. "So you did not come out here for my winning smile and my stellar attitude?"
"Definitely not those," she laughed. "But those devastating blue eyes and the charming man behind the smile are more than enough to keep me coming back."
"Dually noted. Follow me."
Kate followed as Bruce led the way to the stables. She admired the way he navigated so fluidly in his surroundings. He put the horse back in the stable, fed him, and did one last check of the area.
In that moment, watching Bruce do something he knew so well, she found him utterly attractive. Even more so than usual.
"Woman, why are you staring at me like that?"
Kate sucked in her breath. Bruce was turned around, with his back to her. How did he feel her eyes on him?
Make Me Whole (Brothers From Money #3) Page 15
