I hoped, prayed that we would all come out alright, but I had no guarantees.
In my arms, Ashley looked up at me with wonder in her eyes and on her expression. She was trembling and I knew she was scared, too, but I thought she also felt some admirations for me having the courage to tell dad the truth.
At least, I hoped that was what it was.
In front of us, dad sighed and shook his head. With a half-smile he said, “I know. I think… I think I’ve always known, ever since you guys were kids. I just… I didn’t know what to do about it.”
I stared at him with wide eyes. Knew about it? What the hell?
Dad took a deep breath and added, “But I know what to do it now.” I felt Ashley cling a little tighter to me and I held my breath, waiting as though for the axe to fall across my neck. But when dad spoke, it was nothing like I could have imagined; “I give you my blessing.”
“What?” This was Ashley, her tone incredulous, but laced with just a little bit of hope. She wanted to believe what dad was saying. I did, too. “What are you saying?”
Dad smiled kindly at the both of us. “We’ve all lost so much, you especially Ashley,” he said and I knew he was thinking about his first wife, Ashley’s mother, who had died of cancer. “I think that if anything can come from this, any love at all, it should be welcomed and embraced.”
“Oh, Dad!” Ashley gave me a quick squeeze before rushing from my arms and into that of our father’s. “Thank you!” I heard her tell him.
He whispered something to her quickly and she nodded, then her beaming face turned towards me and when she came back her hug was twice as strong as it had been. I wrapped my arms around her again and clung tightly to her.
“I don’t ever want to be without you,” I whispered into her soft hair. “I’ve known forever that you were it for me. The only one I’d ever really want to keep for the rest of my life. Please, stay with me?”
She pulled back from me just enough so that she could look up at me with shining eyes and a wide smile. “Always.”
I grinned and we kissed. We were still aware of dad standing right there, though, so we kept it chaste. When we broke apart, I said, “You can stay in New York. We can live there and you can travel with me for away games. I don’t give a crap about anyone else, so long as I have you.”
She nodded excitedly and added, “And we don’t even have to worry about changing our names.”
I laughed and pulled her to me again. Our family would be okay and more importantly, I would never have to give up Ashley. There could be nothing wrong when two people loved each other this much; there could be no shame.
All I had to do was hold on to her as tightly as I could and everything else would work itself out. I just knew it.
THE END
I f***ing hate him!
He's arrogant, he's cocky, he's the star of a college soccer team... and he's everything that a girl like me should despise.
He didn't even know my name before this year.
So why can't I keep him off my mind?
Maybe it's because his dad is about to marry my mom.
Maybe it's because I've had the worst crush on him through all of high school.
Maybe it's because he's at my house now taking a shower after soccer practice, and my mom just told me to go hang a fresh towel by his bed.
The water stopped and I know he's getting out, so why am I still at the foot of his bed with the towel in my hands...
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xoxo
Heather
More works from Heather West
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Jasper
Jasper Duboix only knows how to talk with his hands
The arrogant bad boy who has taken the MMA world by storm, Jasper gets what he wants no matter what. But the visceral heat, the pain and pleasure of fighting in the ring has all paled in comparison to the feisty Kait, and Jasper just might be in deep. And with the biggest tournament of his career coming up, he might have to make a painful decision…
Kaitlyn Stewart needs more than a searing touch
The last thing Kait expected after getting mugged was to fall in love with her savior – a raw-knuckled, taut-muscled man with a penchant for blazing caresses at night. Problem is, she’s pretty sure she now feels much more for him than he does for her, and she’s not sure if her heart can take it…
The heart wants what it wants, but sometimes the mind is good at getting in the way. Jasper’s career is on the line, but something keeps bringing him back to her. And Kait’s wild heart might just be okay with that…
Miles
Brea
How did I end up here?
Always the good girl, with a pen in my hand just focusing on my drawings.
Now I’m a tattoo artist dealing with some of the baddest guys around town.
They’re mostly harmless to me, and I pay them no attention.
Until I’m face-to-face with a stranger with a broad chest and a smoldering gaze that is leaving my legs trembling and my heart racing.
He’s a man of a few words, and the exact opposite of what my mind is telling me I need. But I am drawn to him like no one else before.
There’s just one other problem, my brother Sylar thinks I’m his property.
Miles
Guys like me don’t fall in love, just f*ck and move on.
So what am I doing back in her tattoo shop when I already have more ink on my body than I can fit?
Maybe it’s the thought of her hands spread across my chest while working on a new piece.
Or her good girl attitude and gorgeous smile that drives me insane thinking about how I would turn her bad in just one night.
Whatever it is, I NEED her body pinned underneath mine, moaning my name until she forgets her own.
But in my world, there is no such thing as love without tears or bloodshed…
Shadow
Sky
He seems to hate me but I have no idea why.
Or am I mistaking hate for something else?
If only I could remember him. Or anything, really.
Within that perfectly chiseled body, his insides are black—he’s rotten underneath. He’s dangerous, dark, and yet somewhere deep inside myself I know what it feels like to scream his name.
I catch him staring and he pulls away like I’m the poisonous one. He’s a killer. I know it. He lives to harm others. I’m sure those rugged, strong hands have squeezed the life out of many. And yet I still want them on my body.
And he wants it too.
But this is madness. My life is in shambles and adding him to the mix with his murder and mayhem will only make it worse.
So why am I living for the moment I’ll scream his name again?
Shadow
I don’t have room in my life for her bulls***.
But there she goes again, playing the little wounded bird, always needing me to swoop in and save her.
She says she can’t remember what made her shut me out—she can’t remember anything at all. But I see that familiar look in her eyes like she knows how good we made each other feel.
I’m the fool who falls for it again and again. For a wounded bird, she’s got her claws in me deep.
And that’s exactly how I want it. She might not be able to recall her sleek legs wrapped all around me, her perfect ass perched on the bars of my motorcycle in the moonlight, but I’ll never forget it.
This time I’ll keep my guard up. I’ve got bigger things to worry about than Sky taking flight once more. She can’t break my heart again if I don’t give it up.
As if I ever got it back from her the last time.
ank you for reading books on Archive.
Crush Page 24
