“I’m mad at you,” she said, whirling around. “So…” She could barely speak. “So mad.”
For a second, surprise lit his eyes and then a slow, sexy smile drifted across his face. “Bluebell, if that’s the greeting I get when you’re mad, then I hope you’re mad at me for the rest of our lives.”
“I wanted to be the one to surprise you.”
“What do you mean?” His finger traced her exposed collarbone and she had a hard time concentrating.
“I was planning on going home with Betty and Beau.”
“You were?” Now his mouth was tracing the path his fingers had just travelled.
Chest heaving, Grace took a moment. “I was.”
He kissed his way up to her jaw. “And what were you going to do when you got to New Waterford?”
“I was going to…” She groaned and told him that he missed a spot. When he nipped at her earlobe, she shivered. “I was going to have my way with you.”
“What exactly does that mean?” His tongue swept across her ear and then he blew on her, sending a host of shivers rolling across her skin.
“Oh God, you have to stop that.”
Mouth dry, her hands crept up to his face and she held him steady so that she could look into his eyes. This was it. Crunch time. There was so much she wanted to say and she had every intention of saying all of it, but Matt Hawkins did something unexpected.
He pressed his forefinger to her lips and whispered “my turn” into her ear.
His dark eyes glittered and that sensual mouth swept one last kiss across her skin. He stared down at her for a few moments and then cradled her head in his large hands.
“I love you.”
Her heart was going to explode. She would die here. In his arms. Because her heart couldn’t take this.
“I’m pretty sure I’ve loved you since the first time I saw you and all that blue hair. And I’m sorry that it’s taken me this long to get my shit together.” He flashed a smile, but she saw worry in his eyes. “Truthfully my shit isn’t all that together. Justin is living with me and, uh, I’m not sure how you feel about that.”
“How I feel?” She wasn’t sure where he was going with this.
“How you feel about sharing a home with two men. We’ve got stuff to deal with. Justin’s pretty screwed up and he reminds me a lot of myself, but I can’t turn my back on him. I’m all he’s got and you’re what I need so…”
That stupid, stupid, lump was back in her throat and she squeezed her eyes shut as she desperately tried to keep herself above water. Her knees were shaking and if Matt wasn’t holding her, Grace was pretty sure she’d be a mess of red silk spread all over the floor.
“Yes,” she finally managed to say. It came out more like a squeak and she wasn’t sure Matt heard her. Her eyes opened and she smiled tremulously. “Yes, I’ll live with you.”
He frowned a bit, and shook his head. “That’s not what I’m asking.”
“Oh. I…” Crap. How had she got this all wrong? Embarrassed, she attempted to look away but she couldn’t—on account of those large, warm, hands that still had her trapped.
“I want to marry you, Bluebell. I want everyone to know that you’re mine. Because I can’t imagine my life without you and, right now, I can’t remember what it was like before I met you. And I never thought I’d meet a woman who had the power to make me forget all the crap I’ve lived through.”
Damn. Her heart was still going to explode. She was still going to die. Right here. In his arms. She could see her gravestone now. Grace Simon. Died of too much happiness.
It would happen. Unless she could get it together.
“Okay,” she finally managed to say.
“What was that?”
She didn’t answer. She kissed him like no tomorrow. And the kiss was just like that first kiss they shared beneath a snow-filled sky two years earlier. It was full of passion and promise and spoke volumes. It spoke of a future, and of love and, of forgiveness.
It an imperfect world, it was utterly and wholly…perfect.
EPILOGUE
The Barker triplet’s father, Trent Barker, died a few weeks into the new year. It didn’t matter that his end was inevitable or that his family knew it was coming. It hurt. The man was much loved and the community, his children and all those he knew mourned him.
On a cold, gray, Sunday afternoon, Matt and Grace attended the memorial service. Hundreds turned out and much later, the family gathered together at the Barker place. Herschel’s heart was broken—no parent should ever have to bury their child—but the man had backbone like Matt had never seen. He would be okay.
He knew where the girls got their strength.
And now it was late, after midnight, and he couldn’t sleep. He’d woken up with one thought—the envelope Mrs. Jefferson had given him in Phoenix. What the hell had he done with it?
Without waking Grace, he slid from bed and, naked, padded across the bedroom. He searched his armoire but came up empty, and after slipping into a pair of track pants, headed downstairs. His bag. It had to be there.
Matt found it in the utility room, right there behind the periwinkle weekender. He searched through it and there, stuffed inside one of the compartments, he found the envelope. He stared at it for a few moments and then headed to kitchen. Rosie was asleep on her bed near the fireplace and Rookie was curled up beside her. The pup raised his head, saw it was Matt and then, with a groan, cuddled into his mother once more
Matt slid onto one of the barstools at his island and opened the envelope. Throat tight, he gazed at the bold script and started to read.
MATHEW
A lot of things go through a man’s head when he’s told that there is no more time. And I’m almost out of it. I have a lot to say and no strength to say it. I’ll do my best.
I WILL NEVER FORGIVE myself for turning my back on you. I won’t try to explain why or how it happened. I just hope that one day you can forgive me. I’m not being selfish when I say this, but I think it might help you.
I’VE KEPT my eye on you over the years and I know that things haven’t been easy. I’m sorry I didn’t have the strength to reach out. Sorry I screwed things up. Pride will do that to a man but I’ve seen the man you’ve become and I’m proud of you. I want you to know that.
I KNOW this is a lot to ask but I’m hoping you’ll check in on your brother. He’s not doing that well. Seems parenting isn’t my strong suit and Delilah is a mess I helped create. Justin needs a man. He needs someone more than what I was. I hope you can find it in yourself to right my wrongs. I hope you find happiness. I wish nothing but that for you, son.
DAD.
MATT WIPED at his wet eyes. He carefully folded it and put it back into the envelope, and after staring at it for a few more moments, tucked it into the pockets of his track pants. He went over to the dogs and, with a gentle pat, headed upstairs. He passed Justin’s room, took a moment to peek in on the kid, and then returned to his bedroom.
He slipped out of his track pants and slid into bed, his body immediately seeking the warmth of the woman who slept there. His woman. His love. His truth.
A few days after she’d moved in, she’d told him that she’d thought in December she thought she was pregnant. It was just a scare—said she’d missed taking the pill a few days in November. But he saw the yearning and the need and even though it scared the crap out of him, he was looking forward to starting a family with her.
Truth-be-told he was looking forward to all the work that went into making babies.
Matt listened to her breathing and felt her heart beat steadily beneath his hand. He’d found his happiness and for that he was grateful. Because not everyone did. Not by a long shot. He pulled Grace close and swept a kiss across her brow.
He was a lucky bastard and he knew it.
ALSO BY JULIANA STONE
The Family Simon series…
Tucker -Free
Jack
Maverick
Te
ague
Grace
And coming soon in early 2016 COOPER!
THE BARKER TRIPLETS TRILOGY
Offside - Free
Collide
Conceal
A Barker Family Christmas
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I just want to take a moment and thank all the lovely readers who reach out to me with their kind words. It means so much. Every. Single. One. You guys are the reason I love to write and it warms my heart to know you’re enjoying the characters I’ve come to love as family! Please visit me on my Facebook page, or give me a shout out on Twitter! I love hearing from you all!
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All the best,
Juliana
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Grace (The Family Simon Book 5) Page 21
