Luke’s eyes fell closed, and he drew in a deep shuddering breath as Kelly moved lower, and her lips skimmed over the tightened muscles of his waist.
And then she slid down lower still. Tension heightened as Kelly deliberately wrapped her fingers around his length, before she licked, laved, and finally took him into her mouth. She worked slowly, deliberately, until she could feel Luke losing control.
But she was losing control too. She felt the urgency pounding between them, and releasing him, she rose up onto her knees to straddle him. And Luke groaned. He guided her, when she took him in and rode him–until finally clamping his thighs around hers, Luke moved powerfully, flipping her over, and thrust into her again. Pressing her on, he was driving her harder, until their breaths were ragged gasps, and their senses spun, until surrender rushed in and overtook them, fusing them and ultimately healing their hearts.
****
“Okay—so, how’d you even guess, that I’d decided I was finally ready to see you again?” Luke asked, softly, with his eyes still closed. Twenty minutes later, they were still basking in the afterglow, and Luke felt so damned good.
She laughed. “A tornado by the name of Melinda McDaniel came into my office to visit with me this morning.”
Opening his eyes, Luke smiled and pulled her into his arms. It was time to tell her everything. A few moments later he began speaking quietly into her ear. “My dad was a flight commander, who died when he was training another pilot.”
Kelly started. Easing back within his arms, she was definitely listening intently.
“It was a freak accident that happened while the recruit he was training was landing–somehow he misjudged the distance and crashed into a hangar. They were both killed on impact. That’s why it was such a tragedy. It was peacetime, and my mom was inconsolable. I think that’s why she latched onto the first man who paid any attention to her after my dad died. She’d never held a full-time job. She and Dad got married straight out of high school. And she had to find a way to take care of me.” Luke hesitated, adding softly, “Along with my little sister, Cassie.”
Kelly blinked, tightening her arm around his waist. “A sister? Oh, Luke–I never knew you had a sister.”
“I think that was why, it was so easy for me to talk to you at the beach, when we were kids.” After a long, thoughtful silence, he continued, “How much can I say, Kel? I think you know what my stepdad was doing to me–he’d been molesting his own son, Josh, for years. My mom and sister died in a car accident after she and my stepdad began fighting–over me, according to Josh. I think she finally realized what was going on. They’d only been married for about a year–and I’ve always been proud of the fact that she stood up to him–she was stronger than I thought. But I’d disappeared that night, and my mom was frantic, trying to find me. The car she was driving had–issues, and it wasn’t safe for her to drive. Apparently, the brakes went out in the car, and she lost control—the car rammed into the guardrail, near the boat landing, and she and Cassie drove straight into the water. And since it was the middle of the night…” Luke closed his eyes.
“Oh, Luke.” Kelly wrapped her arms around him more tightly, burying her face into his shoulder. “So how did you end up living with your stepdad, after your mom died?” she asked.
Luke sighed, glancing down at Kelly. She was looking into his eyes again, since he’d opened them up. “For a long time, I never knew how I happened to end up with him, either. I found out later–after my stepdad was captured–when Sam Danielson discovered records in the house. Turns out, John Turner had adopted both me and my sister, right after he married my mom.”
“I don’t understand. Why would he go to so much trouble, to try to take care of you–and take custody–considering the slime that he was?”
“Can’t you guess, Kel?” Luke scowled. “What else could it be, but money? My Dad had left annuities in me and my sister’s names. Unlike life insurance, which he would’ve gotten in one lump sum–the company made regular payments after the death of my mom. He could only collect the payments, if I was living with him. And he never took care of me. There was rarely any food in the house. If it wasn’t for Mrs. Barelli at the bakery, Josh and I would’ve starved to death. And—as far as the abuse…” Luke closed his eyes before continuing, “it went on and on for the next few years. Sometimes Josh could stop it–and sometimes he couldn’t. I pretended I was an eagle, Kel, soaring overhead, thinking about everything except for what was really happening to me at the time.”
Kelly probably didn’t know it, but tears were running down from her eyes. “So that’s the significance of your tattoo,” she said softly, laying her fingers lightly over his shoulder.
“It was Josh’s idea–he asked me what I would want to be, if I couldn’t be me. I think it was the way that he tried to handle it all, when he was younger, and he was the one being abused. In fact, once, when Josh tried to stop my stepdad from coming after me, he nearly died himself. Somehow, I eventually dragged Josh into the car later that night, and got him in to see a doctor, all on my own. But it wasn’t too long after that, when Josh drove me over to his friend’s, and she began working on my tattoo.” Luke paused. “I think that he’d realized, that it was just too difficult to stop my stepdad.”
“But I’m curious. With everything that was happening, why didn’t Josh go to the authorities?”
“Initially, I think it was a trust issue. Josh tried to go to the cops when he was younger—and whoever he told, sold him out.” Lifting his hand, Luke covered her mouth gently with his fingers. “You’d better not ask me anymore, Kel. There’s a lot more to the story, and I’d be getting too many people in trouble.”
Although her curiosity didn’t appear to be even remotely satisfied, Kelly nodded her agreement. She looked surprised when Luke reached over with his finger, and gently rubbed away the tears from her eyes.
“I found out after they arrested my stepdad for the robberies, that there were a bunch of people here in town, who were working on getting me away from him–including your dad and grandpa. Apparently, I wasn’t as good at hiding the sordid details of my life from my school counselor, as I’d thought.”
Kelly was shaking her head, rather dazedly. “I can’t believe everything you’ve survived, Luke.”
“Believe it or not, there’s more,” Luke added grimly. “Sam discovered that John had a life insurance policy on my mom—and had upped it to an incredible amount. I doubt that John wanted my sister dead, but I’m not so sure that he felt that way about my mom.”
Kelly’s eyes went wide. “Oh, Luke. I’m so sorry.”
“But Sam was never able to prove it. The brake line was worn out in the car–and not actually cut–but I’ll never believe that it wasn’t intentional.”
“He’s in jail now?” Kelly asked, wearing a worried frown.
“For now.” Luke hesitated. “I testified about the robberies, you know, and about…uh, the other.”
“I had no idea,” Kelly said softly. “All that time you were living with Grandpa, and coming over to our house nearly every day.”
“It was something you never needed to know about, Kel. You were only a kid.” He kissed her lightly on the lips. “Now–it’s time to drop the subject,” Luke said firmly. He moved the back of his hand gently over her cheek, staring deeply into her beautiful blue eyes, still moist with tears. He’d never been able to open up this much with another person before.
Kelly suddenly smiled, and Luke felt so happy, it hurt. For the first time in his life, everything was right with the world.
EPILOGUE
Luke watched as Kelly approached him from the pathway, circling around the beach. Dressed in a pair of super tiny shorts, her legs seemed to go on forever. Even though she was obviously wearing a bikini under a loose cover-up, Luke frowned. The itsy-bitsy top of royal blue barely covered her breasts.
But damn, she was a lovely sight with her white-blonde hair dancing loosely over her shoulders–and she was all hi
s. Now–if he could only get used to all the envious stares from other guys, he’d have it made.
But Kelly was obviously irritated with him about something–her deep blue eyes were flashing fire when she left the graveled path, hiking towards him through the sand.
Just noticing Kelly, Hawk got up to his feet with an excited yip, and strained at his leash, trying to reach her.
She finally halted, and immediately began scolding. “Luke Bryant, I can’t believe you walked all the way over here by yourself. And with the dog, too? What if you’d fallen? Or gotten hurt? You didn’t even leave me a note. If you hadn’t mentioned something yesterday about walking over here, I never would’ve guessed where you were. Do you know how worried I’ve been?”
But Luke was suddenly taken aback, when Kelly stood over him, backlit by a smoky blue haze. He shook his head dazedly. “Did you ever have that feeling, Kel, that everything was finally right with the world, and maybe you’re exactly where you needed to be?”
Kelly blinked, and seconds later her anger was apparently forgotten. “Yes, I have, as a matter of fact.” she answered softly. “The first time we made love.”
Luke laughed. “Yeah, well…me, too–when it comes to that, it’s a given.” He waved a hand in the air toward the beach, and then pointed at a bunch of scraggly white pines. “Do you recognize where we are, right now? You were pretty young at the time.”
Kelly started, before gazing around her at the beach and the trees. Finally smiling warmly, she walked straight toward Luke and bent down, kissing him lightly on the shoulder. And the effect was the same as it’d been years ago, after he’d just pulled Kelly out from the water; Luke felt like he’d been blessed.
Luke sighed contentedly. “Am I wrong for enjoying it–when you yell at me?
Kelly began to laugh, dropping down beside him on the sand. “You really shouldn’t be sitting here at the beach without a shirt on,” she said, matter-of-factly.
Luke didn’t care about exposing his wounds to the world anymore. Kelly had convinced him that his scars were a badge of honor–although soon he’d be going through surgery to remove some of the heavier scar tissue. “I think that I’m ready to move forward–to drive again–maybe even to fly again. I’ve gotta begin getting out on my own.”
Reaching into her bag, she pulled out the tube of suntan lotion that she carried with her everywhere. After opening it up and squirting it out on her palm, she began rubbing the ointment into the skin of his arms and shoulders. Once she was finished, she grinned, popping the top onto the lotion, and shoving it back into her bag.
“But I surrender, Kel,” Luke said softly. “I love you, taking care of me.”
Kelly hesitated. Luke could tell she was becoming emotional. “I surrendered my heart to you a long, long time ago, Luke.” She gazed out across the lake. “Maybe even back when I was six years old, when you ran into the water to save me.” She sighed. “But I know that it’s time for me to cut loose a little. I just love the way you’ve depended on me these last few months–after you went so long without even speaking to me.”
“Don’t remind me about what an idiot I was.” Luke said, gruffly. “You were always there for me. I think you knew how much I really needed you. Heck, you even bought the cabin, cause you knew it’d be the perfect place for me to heal. But that doesn’t mean that I’m ever going to stop depending on you, babe.” He stared out across the lake, before gazing back at her. “And now, we’ll even be working together, with the plans for the airport. I can’t believe I went nearly an entire month, without realizing you were the one feeding me all that useful information.”
Giving him a pensive smile and looking over at the beach, Kelly appeared to be distracted. A family on board a pontoon was passing by, far out in the water, and gentle waves were lapping in across the shore. Kelly began rubbing Hawk behind the ears–he’d wedged his body between the two of them–before turning her attention to the mass of shiny metal attached below Luke’s knee. “Alright, already. Just tell me–how’s the prosthetic working out?” she asked.
“Good.” Luke grinned. “It’ll do, for now.”
She looked surprised. “For now?”
“Yeah. I’ll need to upgrade within a couple of years.” Luke hesitated. “I need to have a little more flexibility, to do everything I want to do.”
“Hmm?”
“Not just for driving, and maybe for flying, someday–but what I’m really gonna need it for is…dancing.”
Kelly blinked. “Dancing?”
“Mm-hmm.” Luke continued to gaze at her intently. “Let’s say on the gazebo–at the Dragonfly Pointe Inn? Maybe at our own wedding?” He gave her a rueful smile, as her eyes filled with tears. “It’s kind of a fantasy, that I’ve had, Kel–you and me–getting married on that gazebo–and dancing out there under the stars again afterwards.” He hesitated. “It’s weird, but it was one of the first regrets that I had, after I discovered I’d lost my leg–thinking that I’d never get the chance to dance with you again.”
By this time Kelly was crying in full force, and Luke scooped her up into his arms and onto his lap. “Do the tears mean yes, babe?”
“Oh, Luke. Of course, I’m saying yes. I’ve loved you forever.” Kelly settled back into his arms with a contented sigh, and Luke rested his chin on top of her shoulder, cheek to cheek.
As they continued gazing out across the lake, Luke’s thoughts became insightful. Did he really believe in happily-ever-after?
Damn right he did…now, he realized, smiling widely. Sure, his happily-ever-after might be a little bit different than everyone else’s. But staring out across the beach and over at the trees, before looking down at Hawk and then finally at Kelly, Luke realized that even in his dreams, he’d never envisioned the fantasy of the life that he had right now. They’d each surrendered their hearts. And Luke had everything he’d ever hoped for, and more, with Kelly by his side.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
A member of the Romance Writers of America, Tamara Ferguson is the best-selling, multi-award winning author of the Tales of The Dragonfly Romance Suspense Series, the top-ten bestselling Kissed By Fate Series and the #1 Two Hearts Wounded Warrior Romance Series.
Her latest wounded warrior romance novella, Two Hearts Unspoken, is included in the top-ten bestselling Holiday Anthology, Mother’s Day Magic…With Love. Two Hearts Undone (Two Hearts Wounded Warrior Romance #3) is scheduled to be published by AA Publishing in the spring of 2016.
The wounded warrior romance, Two Hearts Surrendered, was her contribution to the bestselling Magical Weddings anthology, which included stories by fifteen USA Today, best-selling, and award-winning authors. Two Hearts Surrenderedindependently earned 3-5★reviews from Readers’ Favorite, and has just become a #1 Wounded Warrior Romance Bestseller, Kindle Book and Series, as well as a New Adult Finalist in The Romance Reviews 2016 Reader’s Choice Awards.
That Unforgettable Kiss (Kissed by Fate Book 1)was a top ten Amazon bestseller in Kindle Saga Fiction, earned 3-5★editorial reviews from Readers' Favorite, and was the 2015 WINNER of The Romance Reviews Readers' Choice Award in New Adult Romance.
That Unforgettable Kiss is currently featured in the #1 bestselling A Touch Of Passion, 12 full-length novels by USA Today, New York Times bestselling and multi-award winning authors. This anthology is a #1 Holiday Romance, #2 Military Romance, #1 New Adult Romance Bestseller, as well as a #1 New Adult Bestseller (and more), and now it’s contending as a finalist for the 2016 Romance Reviews Reader’s Choice Award in Anthology Romance.
Tales of the Dragonfly In Tandem was a romance finalist at the 2013 Indie Excellence Awards, while Tales of the Dragonfly In Flight was a 2014 WINNER at the Readers' Favorite International Book Awards.
Presently, Tamara’s working on Emergence, the third book in the multi-award winning Tales of the Dragonfly Series, as well as a novella for the next installment of the bestselling Wedding Pets and Kisses anthologies, featuring stories by multi-award winning, bestse
lling and USA Today authors.
A graduate of Illinois State University, Tamara Ferguson was a Vice-President of her graduating class and a Who's Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges. She was awarded the Illinois State University College of Applied Science and Technology Collegiate Achievement Award upon her graduation.
A former horticulturist, she resides in central Illinois. Since she remains a full-time caregiver for an autistic son, you can usually find Tammy working at home, where she spends a lot of time not completing her numerous home improvement projects, because she's writing or helping author friends promote their books on twitter.
An Excerpt
From The Award Winning
That Unforgettable Kiss
(Kissed By Fate Book 1)
Kindle
Paperback
The Romance Reviews
2015 Readers’ Choice Award WINNER
In New Adult Romance
AN AMAZON TOP TEN BESTSELLER
IN KINDLE SAGA FICTION
THIS NOVEL IS INCLUDED IN
The #1 Bestseller
A TOUCH OF PASSION
12 Full-Length Romance Novels
By USA Today, New York Times
Multi-Award Winning, Bestselling Authors
Amazon
Kobo
Smashwords
Goodreads
Apple
Nook
One fateful night, not so long ago...
The moon hung bright and full on the night of Christina Montgomery’s celebration of life at the beach on Dragonfly Pointe. Nearly every resident from the town of Crystal Rock had stopped by and visited with Christina, to wish her well, before her sleepover under the stars.
Two Hearts Surrendered Page 11
