by Heather Anne
His brow furrows “I’ll never make the mistake of walking away from you ever again.”
I snuggle deeper into his warm body, letting the truth of his words engulf me. I firmly believe that we needed to go through everything we have to get to the place. Together.
Chapter Sixteen
COLTON
It’s been four weeks since Everleigh gave me a chance. Also, thirty days of love, laughter, and just being with her.
After the response to my editorial, Nadine approached me with a promotion; assistant editor. I graciously accepted. I still get to write travel pieces, but locally, which gives me more time to be with my girlfriend.
Girlfriend. I never thought that I would use that word as a description for Everleigh. She’s always been so much more than that, even if I was too busy running from it to notice.
Her foot has been healing nicely, so much so that she has graduated to a walking boot and can finally put pressure on it, which has me excited because I’ve had something planned, and I’m excited to bring that to fruition.
We’re on her couch, making out like teenagers. It’s a usual occurrence when we are together. I will never get enough of the feeling of her tongue tangling with mine, or the way her small hands play with the hair on the back of my head when we kiss.
“Jesus Christ, not again. This is the third time this week,” Paul whines as he walks through the front door.
I help a giggling Everleigh to a seated position.
“Sorry?” she laughs. Paul rolls his eyes.
“You’re here so much, you should move in here and I’ll roomie with Sienna,” he deadpans.
“You know, that’s not a bad idea.” I look to Everleigh. “What do you think? Too soon?”
Her smile is wide, her amber eyes filled with so much love, it’s humbling.
“Not soon enough,” she squeals, jumping to my lap, taking my face in her hands. “This is the future I’d always hoped for us.” Unshed tears of happiness fill her eyes. “I love you, Colton. So much.” My chest constricts like it does whenever she says those words. I lean in, taking her mouth in a deep kiss.
“Seriously?” Paul breaks our moment.
“Sorry, man, we’ll talk to Sienna and figure out the details later. Right now, your sister and I have someplace to be,” I say shifting my girl from my lap and rising to my feet.
“We do?” Curiosity overtakes her expression.
“Get your shoe, and let’s go.”
She hops up, slides her foot into the flip-flop that’s right in front of the couch.
“Where are we going?” she inquires as we make our way to my truck. Once she’s buckled in, I produce a blue silk tie from my glove box.
“It’s a surprise. Do you trust me?”
“Of course, I do.” And she does. Earning her trust back wasn’t as hard as I thought it was going to be. I show her every day a different side of me. She is never without the feeling of being loved and wanted. If I have it my way, she never will be.
I tie the fabric around her head, making a blindfold.
“Kinky,” she giggles. I groan, thoughts of having her blindfolded and tied to my bed filling my mind.
We ride in comfortable silence. I look over at her to make sure she isn’t peeking and my heart swells with pride at the look of contentment on her face, knowing I put it there.
When we arrive at our destination, the atmosphere in the truck is buzzing with excitement. I cut the engine, lean over, and release her seatbelt.
“Blindfold stays on until I take it off,” I command.
“Yes, Sir,” she giggles.
I help her out of the truck and turn her so she is facing the way I want her.
I slip the knot of the tie, giving her back her vision.
Her hand flies to her mouth, her eyes fill with tears.
“Colton,” her voice is hoarse as she stares at the Thunder Park entrance. “What are we doing here?”
“Having a do-over. You, sweetheart, are getting the date you should have gotten a month ago.”
“Oh, my goodness. This is the sweetest thing ever.” She throws her arms around my neck and I hold her to me, for way longer than necessary.
We make our way through the park, riding the rides, playing games, and eating blue cotton candy.
I hold her hand the entire time, I steal kisses, I do everything I wrote about in the article.
We’re browsing through the stuffed animals in one of the gift shops when I find a panda bear with a pink bow on its head. Seeing that she’s too busy inspecting the t-shirts on the other side of the shop, I go over to counter and discreetly make my purchase. Hiding the bag behind my back, I walk up to her. “See anything you like?’
“I’m happy with Mr. Panda,” she giggles, and we make our way out of the store.
The last place we need to go before we call it a night, is just up the hill. I lace my fingers with hers as we walk together like we should have the last time we were here. She almost bumps into me when I come to an abrupt stop, the smile on my face wide.
“The tunnel of love,” she sighs when she realizes where we are.
“We should have done this last time too,” I say, leading her to the line of wooden swan boats that awaits us.
She gets into the boat and I follow suit.
“I got you something,” I say placing the bag in her lap.
She opens it and laughs when she pulls out the panda.
“It’s a girl panda,” she exclaims.
“Every Mr. needs a Mrs,” I say and her breath hitches. I laugh, I probably should have planned this better.
I shake my head. “I’m not proposing” I laugh. She exhales a sigh of relief.
“Trust me, sweetheart, when I propose, it will be a grander gesture than a ride on a wooden bird.”
“When?”
“When.”
“So, what is this? A promise panda?” She giggles.
“Exactly. This is a promise of our future, baby. No matter what, like Mrs. Panda has her mister, I’m yours Ev, for as long as you’ll have me.”
“For eternity.” She leans up, kissing me with fervor. We continue to kiss as our boat disappears into the darkness, knowing that we’ll always be each other’s light at the end of the proverbial tunnel, and I couldn’t be happier.
Copyright © 2018 by Heather Anne. All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system without the written permission of the author and or publisher, and where permitted by law. The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000. Ebooks are not transferable. They cannot be sold, shared or given away, as it is an infringement on the copyright of this book. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage the electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author's rights is appreciated.
This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters, and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, actual events or locations or other public venues is entirely coincidental.
Edited by Teresa Banschbach
https://www.icanedit4u.com/
Proofread by Sharon McPaul
Cover by Judi Perkins at Concierge Literary Designs
https://www.cldesignsky.com/
Formatted by Samantha A. Cole
About the Author
Heather Anne’s passion has always been reading and writing. After many years she finally crosses “writing a novel” off of her bucket list. When she isn’t fangirling over fictional characters, Heather can be found, usually with a cup of coffee or energy drink in hand, and hanging out w
ith her amazing son. When this New York native has time to herself, she enjoys karaoke, live music, 80’s movies and rewatching her favorite TV shows over and over again.
Connect with Heather
Facebook Reader Group: Heather Anne’s Sweet Girls
E-Mail: [email protected]
Also by Heather Anne
Fractured Paths (Fracture Love Series, Book 1)
Available Now
Fractured Connections (Fracture Love Series, Book 2) Coming late 2018.
