As carefully as could, he reversed their positions until he was the one on top. Lifting his head, he looked down into her passion-dazed face and smiled. “When we get home, I’m shutting off all the phones and locking all the doors. We’ll call everyone tomorrow. We have a lot of lost time to make up for.”
“But they’re expecting me back home. My mother is supposed to pick me up from the airport.”
He shook his head. “Gabriella already called her and let her know about the change in plans.”
Summer looked up at him and smiled; her love for him was obvious to see. “You’ve been pretty busy, haven’t you?”
“I’m efficient. I believe that’s the word we’re going for here. I’m extremely efficient.”
“Uh-huh,” she said and lifted her head to place kisses along his jaw. “So basically, no one is expecting to hear from us until tomorrow.”
“Well, I’m sure they would have preferred to hear from you today—to make sure you’re all right and that I didn’t do anything to force you to stay…”
“Oh, but you did,” she teased and then used her tongue to torment his earlobe. He groaned in response. “You were pretty forceful back there in the airport.”
“Yeah, well…desperate times called for desperate measures,” he said with a low growl as she continued to work her way along his jaw, his throat, and his ear.
“Were you?” she whispered. “Desperate?”
His resolve broke. She was teasing and tormenting him, but he’d reached the end of his rope. He lifted his body up slightly and looked down at her with a dark and fierce expression. “Would you like to see how desperate I was?”
She shivered with excitement. “Please.”
He ran a hand from her shoulder to her knee and back again. “Anything for you,” he said as he lowered his body to hers.
* * *
It was after nine that night and they were lying in Ethan’s bed. “Welcome home, Summer,” he said and kissed her temple.
She, however, was still trying to catch her breath. Since they’d arrived at his house almost eight hours ago, they had managed to christen almost every room. He saved the bedroom for last on his house tour. Rather than speak, she turned her head and placed a light kiss on his chest.
“Stop that,” he said with a weary chuckle. “That’s how this all started the last time.” Truth be known, he never wanted her to stop. She was here, she was his, and for the first time in his life, Ethan was looking forward to a little less adventure and a whole lot more settling down.
Together they shifted and got more comfortable under the blankets. “Do I need to take Maylene out?” he asked.
Summer peeked across the room to where they had set up the puppy’s bed earlier. “She’s sound asleep. Let’s let her be for now.” She snuggled closer to him. “Thank you.”
“For what? She’s just a puppy. This space is new to her and I want to make sure she’s all right.”
She smiled against his chest. “Not that. I mean for everything. For not letting me leave. For canceling my flight and commandeering my movers.” She lifted her head and looked at him. “Thank you for loving me enough not to let me leave.”
With a soft kiss to the top of her head, Ethan relaxed even more. “Thank you for wanting to come home with me.”
Home. It had a nice ring to it, Summer thought. And she couldn’t think of a more perfect place for it than right here in Ethan’s arms.
Epilogue
The timing wasn’t ideal, but it couldn’t be helped. As Summer rushed around the house gathering her things, she checked her watch for the hundredth time. “Darn it,” she muttered. “I’m going to be late.”
Ethan strode into the room as he adjusted his tie. “You okay?”
“Just late as usual.”
“So? Just call Mark and tell him you’re running a few minutes behind. He’ll understand.”
She knew he would, but at the same time, it frustrated her that she was so completely out of sorts lately. Between settling in and getting her things set up in Ethan’s home while still moving forward with designing a vacation home for them back in North Carolina, she was exhausted. “I just hate to make him wait.”
“It’s fifteen minutes, sweetheart. Not hours.”
“I suppose.” She pulled on her shoes and then stood up. “I just wish you were able to go with me.”
He walked over and kissed her until he felt her relax. “I wish I could too, but with Zach coming home next week, and trying to get his place ready for him to recuperate, I just can’t get away.”
It had been almost a month since Summer had moved in, and while she had been looking forward to working with Casey on her business, she came to realize how much she was needed here until Zach came home. They had discussed the possibility of splitting their time between the East and West Coasts, but until they got Zach settled, it wasn’t something they could solidify.
“I’m going to do my best to be back here before he gets home. I think we’ve got it coordinated so Mark will fly me back here and then head right on to Alaska to pick up Zach and the medical team.”
“Do you really think that’s going to last?” Ethan asked as he poured himself a cup of coffee.
“What do you mean?”
“Do you think for a minute your brother is going to tolerate having all those strangers in his house for any length of time?”
“Well, he’s going to have to if he wants to do his rehabilitation and everything at home rather than in an actual rehab center.”
“I don’t know… I don’t think this is going to go smoothly.”
“Where Zach is concerned, it rarely does,” she said with a sigh. She didn’t want to leave, but it was Selena’s baby shower and she desperately wanted to be there. Plus, it would give her the opportunity to discuss business with Casey and see if there was anything she could do long distance to help with the day-to-day operations of their wedding planning business.
As if reading her mind, Ethan placed his mug down and asked, “So you have plans to meet with Casey?”
She nodded.
“Any chance you’re up for discussing an actual event?”
Summer thought about it for a minute. “I’m guessing she has several events on the calendar. With any luck, I’ll be able to observe her in action while I’m there. Otherwise, I’ll have to pencil in another trip so I can see what they actually do.”
“Clueless,” Ethan muttered with a laugh.
“Excuse me?”
He stepped in close to her. “What I’m saying is, do you think you might want to talk to her about a wedding? Not someone else’s. An actual…wedding. Like…ours.”
Her mouth formed a perfect O as she looked up at him. “Are you serious?”
Right then and there, he reached into his pocket and dropped down to one knee. “Summer Montgomery, I love you. I cannot imagine my life without you in it. I want us to build a home, a life, a family together. Will you marry me?”
Never in a million years had Summer imagined Ethan proposing so soon, and yet it seemed as though she had been waiting forever. “Yes,” she said as the first tear rolled down her face. “Yes, I’ll marry you!”
Ethan stood and slipped the ring on her finger before leaning down and kissing her. He hadn’t planned on proposing to her this morning, but when he thought about her trip and all of the possibilities, he knew the timing would be perfect. He lifted his head and looked down into her eyes. “I want you to start planning your dream wedding,” he said softly. “I want you to have everything you want to make your dreams come true.”
She reached up and cupped his cheek. “They already have because I have you.”
Other than her agreeing to be his wife, those were the sweetest words Ethan Reed had ever heard.
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Made for Us
Book 1 in Samantha Chase’s brand-new series
The Shaughnessy Brothers
Late on a Friday night, Aidan Shaughnessy sat alone in his apartment. He was tired but his brain wouldn’t shut down enough for him to go to sleep. He was restless. His skin felt too tight for his body. And for the life of him, he didn’t know what to do about it.
Earlier at dinner his sister had accused him of being too nitpicky—but that was hardly new, and didn’t seem enough to keep him awake. Meticulous was a word that was often thrown around when people talked about him. It didn’t bother him. Much. Meticulous could be a good thing, if his brothers didn’t add “anal-retentive control freak” to it all the damn time.
He rested his head on the back of the sofa and let out a long sigh. If he allowed himself to stop being the big brother for a minute and just be a bystander, he could admit Darcy wasn’t asking for anything out of the ordinary. He knew she was itching to spread her wings. But there was no way in hell he or any of his brothers were going to let her go off to some faraway college on her own. She’d just have to learn to deal with it. But he supposed there were some things they could compromise on.
Looking at the clock on the wall, he saw it was after midnight. He should be getting ready for bed.
Instead, he grabbed his cell phone and pulled up Hugh’s number. Although Aidan couldn’t remember exactly where his brother was this month, he knew it was somewhere on the West Coast, and three hours earlier.
“If you’re calling me this late on a Friday night it can’t be good,” Hugh said as he answered the phone.
Aidan chuckled. “Maybe I just wanted to hear your cheery voice.”
“Yeah, right,” Hugh said with his own laugh. “Seriously, everything okay? This is late for you, old man.”
The comment burned more than it should. He was responsible, so what? Why did everyone have to make it sound like there was something wrong with him? “It’s not that late,” Aidan grumbled. “I just…” He paused. “Something’s going on with Darcy.”
“Oh, shit,” Hugh muttered. “That is all on you and Dad, bro. There is no way I’m dealing with a teenage girl. She scares the hell out of me.”
This time Aidan’s laugh was hearty. “For crying out loud, Hugh, she’s a child. And she’s our sister!”
“What is it this time?”
“It’s mostly the same song and dance but she’s getting more…vocal about it. At dinner tonight she kind of yelled at me and Dad about the whole college thing.”
Hugh sighed loudly. “Listen, Darcy is going to be pissed because, well, she’s Darcy. She’s a female and she likes to argue. Aidan, look…it’s Friday night. I’ve got a resort filled to capacity…”
“I’m thinking of letting her work for me a couple of days a week after school.”
“That’s brave, man. Very brave. And she’s good with that? I would have thought she’d take issue with having to work for family.”
“I haven’t mentioned it to her yet. I just thought of it right before I called you. What do you think?”
“Like I said, you’re brave.”
“Bravery has nothing to do with it. It’s just that …”
“She doesn’t need to work,” Hugh interrupted. “Dad takes care of everything for her. Why can’t she just be grateful and…go shopping or something?”
“I agree with you, but maybe she wants to feel like she’s contributing.”
“To what?”
“To her family,” Aidan said. “With all of us moved out, now it’s just her and Dad at home.”
“And you.”
Aidan sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “I don’t live with them. I have a place of my own and…”
“And you still spend a whole lot of time at home,” Hugh said carefully. “It’s not a bad thing, Aidan. I think it’s great you’re close by in case either of them needs you, but don’t you ever want more?”
How had the subject suddenly turned to him? This wasn’t about him; this was about Darcy. Ignoring Hugh’s question, Aidan went back to his original train of thought. “If she has a job, maybe it’ll pacify her about the whole college thing, and I can still keep an eye on her.”
“And working for her brother is going to accomplish that?”
“It’s a start.”
“Fine. Go ahead and ask her, but do me a favor.”
“What?”
“Have someone record it. I want to see her reaction.” He laughed. “Look man, do what you think is best. Let me know what you need from me and I’ll do it. You’re the responsible one in the family. You always seem to know exactly what to do and say to smooth things over. If you think offering Darcy a job in your office is the answer, then do it.”
“But…?” Aidan knew there was more.
“But…” Hugh began, “maybe it’s time for you to stop smoothing things over for everyone else and start doing something for yourself.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Dude, it’s midnight on a Friday freaking night and you’re on the phone with your brother. And that’s after you went and had dinner with your father and sister. For God’s sake, go out! Go on a date! When was the last time you were even with a woman?”
“None of your damn business,” Aidan snapped.
“That long, huh?” Hugh chuckled. “Okay, fine. Don’t tell me. I can pretty much guess.” He stopped and collected his thoughts. “Just…think about it, okay?”
“About what?”
“And you call me a dumbass,” Hugh said with exasperation. “Think about yourself, damn it! Think about doing something on a Friday night that isn’t family-related. Think about going out with a beautiful woman and wining and dining her and spending the night with her nails raking down your damn back.”
Aidan hadn’t thought about it that way but he had a feeling he would be now. “Fine. I’ll think about it.”
“Hey, and Aidan?”
“What?” he said grumpily.
“You can call me any damn time you want. Seriously.”
A small smile broke on Aidan’s face. “Thanks, man. I appreciate it.”
“Keep me posted on the whole Darcy situation.”
Aidan agreed and they hung up. He was no closer to any decisions on anything. The only thing that had changed was that he definitely had an itch that needed to be scratched.
Chapter 2
“Reason number nine hundred and forty-seven why my life sucks. This job. At least this job today.” Zoe Dalton slouched down in her office chair and looked at the pile of messages in front of her. She’d been an interior designer for years, but she’d just moved to the East Coast the month before and working for well-known designer Martha Tate was quickly grating on her nerves.
A flurry of activity outside her door made her look up and her boss appeared as if Zoe’d conjured her up by force of griping.
“Zoe,” Martha said breathlessly as she stepped into the office and sat down at the desk, “I’m going to need you to take over on the Shaughnessy job.”
From what Zoe had heard in the previous weeks, the Shaughnessy project was a huge undertaking. There were a lot of houses going up in a brand-new community, and at least half a dozen model homes needed to be decorated. “Why? What happened to Sarah?” Zoe asked.
Martha waved her off. “She went rogue and the client is majorly pissed.”
“Went rogue?”
“She ignored the design plans the client requested,” Martha said reproachfully. “This was a fairly straightforward job; everything was clearly specified per Mr. Shaughnessy’s directions.”
“So I have to go in and do damage control, is that it?”
&
nbsp; Her boss nodded. “And…redo everything Sarah did. And make sure the next five houses are done exactly as requested.”
Seemed like a no-brainer. Zoe shrugged and smiled. “I’m on it.”
Martha looked visibly relieved. “Good…good. You have a meeting with Mr. Shaughnessy in an hour. Sarah’s collecting all her files, along with all her personal belongings, and you’ll have them to go through in a few minutes.”
“Her personal belongings?”
“Her files. She’s fired,” Martha said.
Maybe this job wasn’t a no-brainer. She was going to have to tread very carefully from this point forward.
She nodded and straightened in her seat. “Okay, I’ll go and meet with Mr. Shaughnessy at ten and then I have an eleven o’clock with…”
“Oh, no, no, no, Zoe,” Martha interrupted. “You aren’t meeting with anyone else today. You’ll have to cancel.”
“But—”
“You have to give this project one hundred percent of your attention.”
“But—”
“You can’t expect someone like Aidan Shaughnessy to wait on you and your schedule. I know you haven’t been here very long, but the Shaughnessys are a very important family in the community and this account is huge for us. Sarah can fill you in about them. You’re going to need to be available not only to fix Sarah’s mistakes but to make sure absolutely nothing else goes wrong with the rest of the houses. You need to be on this 24/7.”
Zoe was not one to raise her voice but right now it was the only way to get her boss to stop interrupting her. “Hold on!” she said. “I have at least six other active projects I’m working on. I’ve put a lot of time and effort into developing relationships with these clients. I can’t just toss them aside, Martha!”
“Already taken care of,” Martha said dismissively. “I’ve reassigned all of your projects. If you’ll just go through your messages, I’ll be sure to pass them on to the designers who are taking them over.”
Zoe’s head felt ready to explode. Back in Arizona, she’d had her own firm and had been her own boss. Zoe had known there were going to be some compromises when she went to work for someone else, but this was worse than she’d expected. The decision to move had been an emotional one and she had hoped for a more positive transition. This was not something she was willing to take lying down.
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