So Wrong, So Right

by Brenda Ford

  “I’m really happy.” She brushes her nose against Sierra’s. “I have had some news today.”

  “A promotion?” It has to be something work related, right? “A pay rise? Something like that.”

  “Don’t try and guess, it ruins the surprise.” She throws a cheeky wink my way which makes me feel all shivery with excitement. I guess this might be something to do with me as well. Us. That’s awesome.

  “When do I get to find out then? If I’m not allowed to guess what’s going on?”

  “Just wait. You will find out soon enough. First, I’m going to call in a takeout for us. I don’t feel like cooking.”

  “I actually already cooked us a meal. Can’t you smell it coming from the kitchen?”

  To be fair, the pie isn’t making the strongest of smells, but I’m surprised that she hasn’t noticed it at all. That isn’t like Rue and it only highlights the fact that something is definitely up here. She isn’t herself.

  “Oh!” She giggles. “Thank you. That’s really nice. Can I go and plate it up? Do you mind?”

  I nod at her curiously, wondering what the hell is going on. But before I can get too sucked in to worrying, Sierra grabs my focus and I begin playing with her instead. She’s a wonderful little distraction, my girl. That smile, her little giggles… she can make me forget about anything in the world. Except my worries for Rue.

  “Dinner is served!” Rue calls out. “Come on guys, before it starts getting cold.”

  I can immediately feel tension in the air as I step into the dining room. It might be something to do with the dancing emotion in her eyes. She is excited about something which drags up my anxiety once more.

  “Oh my God.” As I move over to my place at the table, something catches my eye. Something white and plastic, an item that I have only seen in pictures, but never in real life. “Is that…?”

  “It is.” Rue claps her hands together excitedly. “Can you believe it? We’ve only been trying for a month.”

  “A baby?” The tears begin flowing down my face. “We’re having a child? Another baby?”

  “We are.” Rue opens her arms wide and I fall willingly into her arms. “We really are.”

  The emotion clings to me, runs all the way through my body, and I remember my father’s words. He told me to go with the flow if the moment feels right. And now, the moment feels right now. So, I dig my hand in to my pocket and I pull out the little box that I have been carrying around with me like a trophy.

  Rue’s eyes widen in shock as I take a step backwards and I drop to one knee. “What are you…?”

  “Rue Nelson,” I begin, the emotion already thick in my voice. “I love you. I have loved you for a very long time now. I have fought for you and with you, I have had you and lost you, and now I have the most amazing family in the world… which is about to get even bigger.” I lean forwards and rub my hands over her stomach. Of course, there isn’t a bump there yet but there will be and this time I’ll get to see it. I can’t wait to be there for the whole process. “And I want to make things official between us now. I would love absolutely nothing more than to finally be able to call the most beautiful woman in the world my wife.” Rue’s face crumbles and she starts to cry as well. “So, what do you say? Will you make me the happiest man alive? Will you marry me?”

  It takes her a moment to suck in her breath a couple of times, but she nods the entire time, letting me know that she wants this just as much as I do. Thank God. “Yes, James, of course I will. I’d love to be your wife.”

  I slide the simple diamond ring on to her finger, so glad that I listened to my father’s advice. This might not have been the perfect big romantic gesture proposal, but it’s right for us. Perfect for me and Rue.

  “I love you,” I declare loudly and proudly as I rise to my feet to kiss her. “So much.”

  “I love you too,” she whispers back. “And I can’t wait to be Mrs. Roberts.”

  Knowing that she means it, that she wants me not the bank account, is the most incredible feeling in the world. I have finally got everything that I want and more. My happy ever after at long last…

  Epilogue

  Rue

  One Year Later…

  “Can I have another cuddle with baby Madden?” Lydia asks in a voice that sounds incredibly British here in America. I never noticed it before when we were in England, but here it’s really thick. “Oh, he’s so cute.”

  I smile proudly as I look at Lydia with Madden who is a big boy for only three and a half months old, and Annie who is dressing Sierra up in her flower girl dress, along with her little girl. Veronica who of course is always going to be a part of my wedding party, glad to finally have all of my worlds together in one place. But it isn’t just my US and UK friends, it’s my family as well. Dad and Kira have managed to be in a room with Mom and Antonio without any fireworks. They have actually had a civil conversation. Benjamin and Janine are there too, and so far, everyone is behaving to help make this the happiest day of my life with James.

  “I can see why you like it here so much,” Lydia declares. “I always wondered why you wanted to leave England but now I get it. I get why you put up with all the stress from your family and everything. Because it’s amazing and you have a really great guy here. Wow, I’m glad you didn’t take my advice to stay away from him.”

  “She didn’t take anyone’s advice!” Annie joins in. “But that’s what makes her so special, because she’s so head strong. She seemed to know what was right for her, even if we didn’t.”

  I grin to myself, so happy to have ignored what everyone told me to do. I’m not sure that I was being head strong, more that I couldn’t ignore the powerful chemistry between us, but it all worked out okay in the end. That chemistry is still there between us. It seems to grow more powerfully every single day. I know that getting hitched will only make us stronger. That’s why we don’t need to go anywhere for our honeymoon. A few days at hoe together, spending some alone time, some time with the kids, is all that we need. Plus, with everyone here from England, I didn’t want to jet off somewhere else. I want to spend some time with all of them.

  “Knock, knock.” My father’s head pops around the door. “I’m not interrupting anything, am I? Only I think that it might be time for Rue to get married in a moment and since it’s my job to get her down the aisle, I don’t want to be late.” He lets out a little laugh. “Although of course I will do whatever my daughter tells me.”

  “Come in, Dad. Come and wait with us. I’m just finishing up my hair.”

  As soon as he sees me, his eyes redden with tears. I just knew that he would be the first one to cry. I have to instantly look away so that I don’t bawl as well. My makeup is exactly as I want it and I can’t wreck that.

  “Oh, Rue. Do you know how gorgeous you look right now? You are like a dream.” He reaches out to me and hugs me gently, trying not to wreck or crease my dress. “I am so proud of you. You are so incredible.” His voice is getting thicker with emotion by the second. I’m not going to be able to hold it together much longer. “You have become such a wonderful woman and an amazing mother… I couldn’t be prouder of you.”

  “Well everything I learned about parenting, I got from you,” I whimper back. “But you need to stop this now because I am about to crumble and weep like a freaking baby in a moment.”

  He pulls back to look at me and we both laugh through our tears. I didn’t realize how much of an emotional moment for him, but looking into his eyes now, it floods through me. All of me. Just because things are good with my mother now, doesn’t mean that I will ever forget how much my dad did for me. He raised me when I didn’t have anywhere else to go. He showed me love when no one else could. I will always thank him for that.

  “Sorry, sorry, I don’t want to make you a mess. I’m just here to walk you down the aisle.”

  “Right, I’m ready.” I nod determinedly. “I think I am anyway. Is everyone else ready?”

  “James is looking
good. He has Noah and Leo beside him in best man position. I think the pair of them are arguing over their duties, but that’s just normal, isn’t it?” I laugh with my dad, shocked that he has gotten to grips with their hilarious relationship already. James’s friends are crazy. “So, it’s just up to you to get there.”

  “Okay.” I glance around at my girls. “Are we all ready to get out there so I can get married?”

  They nod and get to work on my behalf, sorting everything out for me which is great because it means that I don’t have to worry about anything other than finding my husband to be at the end of the aisle.

  “Are you ready now?” Dad holds out his arm for me to take which I do easily. “Shall we go?”

  “Ooh, I don’t know,” I tease him. “I think that I might have cold feet. Will you help me run away?”

  “If I didn’t know how much you loved that man then of course I would. But you don’t want that.”

  “I know, I know. I just wanted to see if you would, that’s all… oh.” All of a sudden, we’re stopped by Mom. For one horrible heart stopping moment, I fear that she’s about to wreck the good vibes of the day. “Mom?”

  “I just wanted to come and apologize to you,” she gushes quickly. “I know this probably isn’t the time or place. In fact, I know that I should have done this a long time ago, but I haven’t. I feel bad for the way that I treated you in the past. You… and you and James. I was horrible. I probably tore you apart…”

  I glance at Dad in shock and he looks completely stunned as well. I don’t think that my mother has ever said sorry for anything in her life. She really has become a much better version of herself.

  “It’s okay, Mom.” I hug her quickly. “I have your support now and that’s all I need. Nothing else matters.”

  “But it does because I affected you so much in the past and I feel dreadful about it now.”

  “You don’t need to worry about the past. I know I’m not.” The look in her eyes speaks volumes. This actually means a lot to her. “Do you want to walk me down the aisle too?”

  She looks to my father who confirms that he doesn’t mind, and then off we go all together. The fact that we can make this happen gives me so much hope for what’s coming next. There is no telling what the future holds for me and James, or the rest of the people in our lives, but I’m excited to find out.

  Soon, we reach the bottom of the aisle and I see my man. I can tell from him that James is emotional, and that brings me to the edge as well. It feels like we have been waiting forever for this moment, and now that we’re here, it’s bound to have us both a mess. It’s a challenge not to run down the aisle to him because I want to get my hands on him that badly, but I have my parents keeping me walking at the right pace. Thank goodness.

  “Hi,” he mouths at me as soon as I get close enough to properly see the movement of his lips. Hs eyes run up and down the length of my ivory white dress appreciatively. “You look beautiful.”

  I wink and nod at his crisp charcoal suit. “So do you! Wow.”

  I have to admit that as much as I’m looking forward to saying our vows aloud, I can’t wait for the wedding night as well. Because we’ve been so busy recently, it hasn’t been the easiest thing for us to get some alone time. But tonight, we have baby sitters, so we will for sure. And I am going to take full advantage.

  Mom and Dad give me away, allowing James to take my hands, and as my fingers wiggle in his, electricity shoots all the way through my body and I grin cheekily.

  “I can’t believe that you are going to be my wife,” he whispers to me. “In a few moments time.”

  I know that I’m supposed to wait until James is told that he can ‘kiss the bride’ but I have never been very good at patience. Especially when it comes to my man, so I rise on to my tip toes and press my lips to his.

  “I love you,” I reply. “And I can’t wait to be your wife.”

  I never thought that my happy ever after would look like this, even if I really wanted it to. I never thought that James would be able to be mine with everything that stood in our way, but here we are, defying the odds. Once we are husband and wife, nothing can get in our way again. Nothing about our love can be forbidden. It will be perfect and I can’t wait for the rest of my happy ever after.

  I hope you enjoyed reading James and Rue’s story. In the following pages, you can read the excerpt to my HOT Selling Romance, “Men in Control -The Smith Brothers Series”. So, keep reading…

  Excerpt

  6 HOT Men who know how to take control.

  Affairs, cougars, scandals… the Smith brothers have it all.

  None of them have a straight forward love life…even the ones that think they do.

  Escape into their whirlwind romance as the Smith Brothers promise to entertain you all day and night.

  Stories included in the box set:

  The Perfect Boss

  She’s innocent…My assistant…And way younger.

  I’m the last man she should be with.

  At the same time, though…

  I’m the only man who’d do anything for her.

  She’s supposed to be mine.

  I’m way too obsessed to let her go.

  Especially now that she’s pregnant.

  I’ll do whatever it takes to claim my family.

  Tempt Me Forever

  “A rock band drummer dating a billionaire!”

  That in itself sounds like a joke.

  And also like an unattainable fantasy.

  But as luck would have it..

  Our two worlds collide.

  It causes an explosion… and a ton of drama.

  And now, he’s down on one knee.

  Do you think I should say yes?

  Rock Hard

  Freya Brown…

  She is simply perfect…

  I thought I’ve found my love…

  Only to realize that I messed up again,

  But I’m too obsessed to let her go,

  And I’ll do everything to make her mine

  But this girl just doesn’t know it yet!

  Blind In Love

  I know it’s forbidden…her daughter is elder to me.

  I know it’s dangerous…her ex is a stalker.

  And yet, I’m falling for my teacher!

  But looks like destiny doesn’t want us to be together.

  I am forced to move out to New York,

  It’s been four long years, and I am back – to claim what’s mine.

  But would she still be waiting for me?

  Head Over Heels

  Falling in love with the girl next door was never the plan!

  But she’s tempting, alluring, exciting and I can’t stop myself from being drawn in to her dangerous world.

  The deeper I sink, the harder it will be to get out,

  Yet, I can’t stop myself from falling.

  Head over heels in love with her.

  Ellie will create an explosion in my life,

  I just know it.

  But love makes you do some pretty crazy things, right?

  And I’m going to win her back.

  No matter what it takes!

  Unexpected Baby

  I hate her…I’ve always hated her,

  And it will never change.

  I think she’s been faking it all along…

  The baby, the dating, then falling for one another…

  Maybe that’s why she walked away five years ago.

  Now, she’s back, but she’s not alone.

  She’s come back with a little girl,

  God! It’s all so f@cked up!

  And yet, I am supposed to win.

  I gotta do it for my daughter and for Zoe…the girl I fell for long time ago!

  Wesley

  Her red hair spills across the pillow, the curve of her ass sits nicely between the sheets, I can see the tip of her button nose, and it’s a cute one… this woman is beautiful, from what I can see of her anyway, but I feel nothing. Abso
lutely nothing at all. To be perfectly honest, I can’t even remember her name. She’s just the faceless woman from last night. The woman who I talked to for long enough to get her in to bed but that was about it.

  But it was just a fuck. Just another fuck that doesn’t mean anything. Nothing at all. Just like the rest of them. It doesn’t matter how many women I have been with in the last month, none of them have cleansed her. None of them have made me feel any better about the woman that I screwed back then, the one who I definitely shouldn’t have. It makes me shudder to even think about the fact that I fell in to bed with Zoe fucking Portwood.

  I hated her the moment that she stepped in to the office, the moment that she took the job working with me at the technology company. I don’t know what it is but the moment I saw her I just knew that she was going to be trouble for me. I didn’t realize quite how much she was going to tear my life apart. How much she’d ruin me.

  I wasn’t worried on that first day. I didn’t have any reason to be. A chick strolls in wearing harem pants with feathers in her blonde curly hair and not a scrap of make up on her face. I immediately judged her as some one who wouldn’t be able to do the job, who was too much of a hippie to be great with technology but fuck me I was proven wrong. She’s a whiz, something of a genius, and she’s really damn hard to be around. She changed me from being the top dog, eons above other people, to being just normal and I don’t like that at all.

  I’m the one who dresses well, who makes an effort to be there in a suit every day, who gives a shit about the schmoozing of clients and the usual stuff that comes with business. She’s clueless, she cares about none of that, but she has a talent. A talent that I really fucking hate to admit is there. A talent which kills me every day.

  I’m competitive, the best of the best, and I don’t want anyone else to steal that from me. Especially not her. That stupid bitch. I really wish she hadn’t walked through that door and taken it from me, I wish she hadn’t brought out that deep hate within me, I wish I just didn’t know her at all. That she didn’t exist.