Under His Skin
Page 19
“I love you, too.”
Epilogue
Football is back.
Annabelle leaned over her kitchen counter, chopping tomatoes for the salsa dip. It had been nine months since she found out her best friend was an alien. There hadn’t been any more visits from their friends at the FBI, but Kaden swore they were still being watched. She chose to brush it off, focusing instead on the happiest months of her life. Shortly after Uriel was killed, Kaden moved his stuff into her apartment permanently. When he wasn’t in D.C. with his brother Hayden, he was behind the counter helping her at the bakery.
Yummy continued to be a massive success, and she’d recently purchased the building next door. Six months from now, she hoped to have her restaurant up and running. There was lots of work left to do, but she was up for the challenge. She had hired two more bakers and three additional front counter employees. Now that she had a full-time staff, she took days to herself. Kaden had even managed to pull her away for a weekend in Cabo San Lucas. Sun, sand, and the man of her dreams. It was literally the best weekend of her life. But really, every day with Kaden was the best. She couldn’t imagine being any happier than she was.
Scooping up the tomatoes, she added them to the bowl of veggies. All she needed now was the avocado she’d taken out of the refrigerator. Glancing around her kitchen, she couldn’t remember where she’d put it. She bent down to see if it had rolled onto the floor, but no luck. “Kaden, can you get me an avocado from the fridge?”
Kaden rose from the sofa. He was watching the pre-game commentary. “Sure, Bells.”
She ran her knife under the kitchen sink faucet, cleaning the blade. When she returned to her cutting board, there was no avocado. Instead, there sat a one-carat round-cut diamond engagement ring. She put her hands over her mouth and gasped. When she turned around, she discovered Kaden bent on one knee.
He held up the ring. “I love you, Bells. You are my mate. My everything.” Sliding the ring halfway up her ring finger, he continued, “In my world, we are already one, but I want you to have the traditional human commitment as well. Will you marry me?”
Butterflies did somersaults in her belly. He had given her everything she had ever hoped for, and now he wanted to marry her.
“Yes,” she squealed. “A thousand times, yes!”
He rose, picking her up by the waist. Her feet dangled in the air as his lips joined with hers.
Tears ran down her cheeks, and only one thought rang in her mind: Happily ever after.
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Acknowledgments
Along the way, I have had the opportunity to work with so many people that have made a difference in my career. I wish I could personally thank each one of you, but that’s not possible without writing a separate book of acknowledgements. Instead, I will attempt to highlight all of the people that made a difference in the publication of Under His Skin.
I will never forget the day I met Tamar Rydzinski for coffee at a café in New York. It was such a surreal experience. I mean, who gets to sit down with a literary agent—before they signed a contract or read a manuscript—and talk about book ideas? It’s still hard to believe it ever happened. Afterwards, I was certain you were meant to be my agent. All these years later, I’m glad I was finally able to convince you. Seriously, you are the best!
A big, ginormous hug goes out to my editor, Candace Havens. It’s hard to put into words what you did for this novel. All I can say for certain is that you worked me until all my creative juices had been squeezed onto the pages. Because of you, the novel has a new sheen and sparkle. I can’t thank you enough. You are the Jedi to my Padawan. ;-)
I would like to thank Liz Pelletier for all the things. Specifically, you gave an inexperienced blogger a chance to work in the publicity department of a publishing house. You taught me so much about marketing, and somehow, managed to turn me into a publicist. As if that wasn’t enough, you also gave me my first publishing contract. It may sound trite, but you have changed my life and made my dreams possible. I am forever indebted to you.
This book would not have been published without the unending support of my family. My husband and daughter have made an unbelievable amount of sacrifices so that I can chase my dream. I’m not sure I will ever be able to thank you as much as you deserve. All I can do is tell you how grateful I am, and how much I appreciate your patience. I know I can be a pain in the ass. My career would’ve never even started without the encouragement of my parents, Russell and Brenda Howell. Your love, support, and guidance is priceless.
I have received so much love from book bloggers. There’s really no way to thank them for what they have done for me. I can’t tell you how lucky I feel to be embraced by you. Here are just a few that really stand out in my mind: Ethan Gregory, Christina Mitchell, Jennifer Halligan, Jessica Reigle, Kayleigh Gore, Vi Nguyen, Katie at Mundie Moms, Valerie Fink, Jena Freeth, Jaime Arnold, Kelly Nagy, Bella Colella, Malissa Jayne Coy, Damaris Delgado, Merissa Sheppard, Brittany Truman, Gaby Navarro, Fallon Vaughn, Jina at Wicked Reads, Amber Gest Troyer, Evie Seo, Yara Santos, Rachel at Parajunkee, and Andye at Reading Teen.
A special thanks to Jennifer L. Armentrout. Back when I was her publicist, I told her about this story idea. She suggested I add the best friends to lovers’ trope. It ended up being the missing piece I needed. Jen, you are made of awesome.
Last, but far from least, I would like to thank my readers. You took a chance on me when I published the Mortal Enchantment series. Since the release of The Shadow Prince, I’ve received tons of lovely emails, tweets, Facebook, Instagram, and Goodreads messages from you. Many of you have also joined my Goodreads group and subscribe to my monthly newsletter. I genuinely feel honored to have your support. You mean more to me than you will ever know. I heart you so hard!
About the Author
Award-winning author, Stacey O’Neale, lives in Annapolis, Maryland. When she’s not writing, she spends her time fangirling over books, blogging, watching fantasy television shows, cheering for the Baltimore Ravens, and hanging out with her husband and daughter.
Her career in publishing started as a blogger-turned-publicist for two successful small publishers. Stacey writes young adult paranormal romance and adult science fiction romance. Her books always include swoon-worthy heroes, snarky heroines, and lots of kissing.
Stacey loves hearing from readers. Follow her on Twitter @StaceyONeale, look for her on Facebook, Pinterest, and Goodreads. You can also visit her blog at http://staceyoneale.com/
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