Fortune's Angel (Fates Aligned Book 2)

by Christi Whitson

  Having her at our wedding was a blessing I hadn’t dared hope for, but Eli had been determined to make it happen. Now, as I watched her, I couldn’t imagine getting married without her here. I chose to believe that she understood what today was about, even if she couldn’t show it. And the smile Mom had given Eli was enough to convince me that she approved.

  Eli had more than followed through on his promise to make the most of his proposal. He’d taken me to an adorable beach cottage a little way down the coast for New Year’s Eve and decorated it to the nines with flowers and candles. I’d been completely surprised by his proposal, but I hadn’t needed even a fraction of a second to consider my answer. We’d danced beside the sea and shared our midnight kiss under the stars. It had been a little chilly, but we’d had no trouble keeping each other warm.

  Hours later, as we’d lain exhausted in each other’s arms, he’d told me that he hadn’t rented the cottage. He’d bought it. And I’d immediately begun to imagine what it would be like to return there as husband and wife. To make love on the double lounge next to the pool at night. To build sandcastles with our kids and watch them squeal with joy as we chased them through the surf… We were headed back there tonight to make more memories, and I couldn’t wait.

  “I think your mom wants her dance,” I told my husband as I spotted Virginia hovering near the edge of the dance floor.

  “If it’ll get us out of here sooner…”

  I chuckled and kissed him one more time before pushing him in her direction. To my surprise, Lee appeared at my side almost immediately, and I smiled as he guided me around the floor. We chatted amicably through the duration of the song before he handed me off to Donovan, who took his turn with me while Eli danced with Kennedy.

  “You doing all right?” he asked with a conspiratory sort of smile. I sighed in chagrin but laughed a little too.

  “I guess it would’ve been unfair to expect your wife to keep secrets from you.”

  “Indeed. But I promise my lips are sealed. No one else knows. Congratulations.”

  “Thank you. Do you think he’ll be happy about it?”

  “If he knows what’s good for him,” Donovan chuckled. “But seriously… Yes, of course. Even if it’s happening sooner than you planned, he’ll be thrilled. Look over there.”

  My eyes moved reflexively in the direction he’d indicated, and I beamed at the sight of my husband and his sister dancing with his one-year-old nephew in the crook of his arm. His movements had become exaggerated, and he was making a complete fool of himself just to get the little guy to laugh.

  “He’s the kindest, most generous person I’ve ever known,” I said, smiling and shaking my head at his antics. “He’ll be an amazing father.”

  “I agree. And you two have been through a lot already. I really can’t imagine there’s anything you won’t be able to handle together.” I thanked him with a hug as the song ended, and his words replayed in my mind as I returned to my husband’s arms.

  Yes, we certainly have been through a lot.

  All things considered, I thought I had come out of the whole Brent Sullivan mess pretty well. Eli had worried that I might have suffered from PTSD or even Rape Trauma Syndrome, but I’d managed to handle the emotional fallout without too much ongoing difficulty. I’d seen a therapist of course, and I knew I’d been lucky not to have issues with physical intimacy. The only thing that still triggered me now was the idea of walking anywhere on my own at night. Even if Eli had been willing to let me, I would’ve avoided it. Where once I might’ve been irritated at his zealotry over my safety, I was all too happy to let him have his way on this one.

  Brent had been held without bail after his arrest, and he’d eventually been convicted of felony sexual assault and attempted rape. He wouldn’t be breathing free air for a very long time. Of course, he’d tried to bring assault charges of his own against Eli, but the judge had dismissed them immediately. The law defined self-defense not only as defense of one’s self but also as defense of another person. Since we’d had plenty of physical evidence of Brent’s attack this time, there was no question that the way Eli had stepped in had been justified.

  “Hey,” Eli crooned softly into my ear. “You all right?”

  “Yes,” I assured him, pushing the thoughts of Brent from my mind. “I was just thinking about how much has changed since I met you. It hasn’t even been a year since we met, and my life already looks completely different from anything I could’ve dreamed.”

  “Mine too, Angel. And there’s only more to come. By the end of the year, you’ll have your degree. Maybe getting ready to start law school…”

  “We’ll see,” I hedged, smiling.

  I’d been taking the remainder of my college courses online, but I hadn’t yet decided whether or not to continue on to law school. Of course, it seemed like madness now that we had a baby coming. I really wanted to give my child the attention he or she deserved, and that meant law school could wait. My family was more important.

  Besides, not having a degree hadn’t stopped me from doing well at RPC. I was still technically an assistant, but when my boss had been promoted to the head of the department, I’d moved up along with her. The bump in pay had been nice, but the pride I felt in my work meant so much more. I could very easily have been assigned to the person who’d taken over Samantha’s old job, but she’d insisted I continue to work directly under her.

  “You know I’ll support whatever decision you make,” Eli promised, reclaiming my attention. I smiled and hugged him a little closer as we swayed to the music.

  “I know you will. We have plenty of other things to think about for now, though.”

  “Like getting the hell out of here sooner rather than later?”

  “Yes. Did you tell your mom we were leaving?”

  “Was I supposed to?”

  I rolled my eyes but smiled as I tugged him off the dance floor and toward the table where most of his family were sitting. Virginia had gone to great lengths in her efforts to improve her relationship with her entire family, including me. She’d apologized profusely for what I’d overheard at the fundraiser, and I’d yet to hear an unkind word from her lips since. She’d gone out of her way to make me feel welcome as a member of the family, particularly when it came to organizing the wedding. She hadn’t overstepped or made a single rude comment about any of my choices.

  I knew we’d probably never be close, but I’d forgiven Virginia for the things she’d said about me. It wasn’t hard to recognize that her heart had been in the right place, and I knew she’d been in a difficult social position at the time. The fact that she’d later told off her horrible friends and stood up for me had gone a long way too, even if it had been a little late in coming.

  When Eli announced to the group that we’d be leaving a bit earlier than planned, we were met with predictable admonishments and good-natured teasing. The latter mostly came from Miranda, who I’d gotten to know pretty well over the past few months. I had a feeling she would be the next person Kennedy blabbed my secret to, but I couldn’t bring myself to mind. Miranda had a heart of gold, and I knew she’d be happy for us.

  As we made our last announcements and waved goodbye to our guests, a solitary suited figure caught my eye, standing apart from the crowd and smiling in his usual reserved manner. I threw him a smile and a wave as Eli all but dragged me toward the exit.

  “Why didn’t Hayden bring a date?” I asked once we were seated in the limo. My husband’s hands were already roaming my body, and I moaned as his lips found the pulse point beneath my jaw.

  “We’re really talking about Hayden right now?”

  “Yes…” Oh, fuck. His right hand had slipped beneath my dress and was gliding up my thigh. “It’ll keep you out of trouble. We can’t get naked in here.”

  “Who said anything about getting naked? I figure I can get at least one orgasm out of you before we get to the beach house. Two if you’re a very good girl.”

  Well, I’ve alw
ays been a pretty good girl… But after he teased and stroked me through the first orgasm, it was all I could do not to sink myself onto his cock and shout at the driver to take the long way. But no… We could wait just a little while longer.

  “Just a few more minutes,” I promised, mumbling the words against his lips. He groaned in reluctant agreement and sat back in his seat. Judging by the look on his face, I was pretty sure he was mentally talking his erection down. My mind grappled for something to distract him. “So, about Hayden?”

  “You wanted to know why he didn’t bring a date?”

  “Yeah. I mean, he’s a young, good-looking guy, but I’ve never once heard him mention a woman.”

  Hayden had been around a lot more lately, especially since RPC had begun planning the construction of the newest Forrester Hotel. He’d soon be living in Tampa permanently, and I knew both Eli and Leona were looking forward to that.

  “He’s never really been one for serious relationships,” Eli shrugged, putting his arm around my shoulders and pulling me closer until I rested against his chest. “I think he just has a hard time trusting anyone enough to let them in.”

  “That’s sad.”

  “He has his reasons.” Eli tilted my chin upward to brush his lips over mine, and I kissed him back hungrily.

  “Maybe he just needs to meet the right person,” I smiled up at him.

  “Maybe. It certainly worked for us.”

  We lost ourselves in another long, perfect kiss, pulling apart only when we felt the limo come to a stop. Eli glanced out the window and grinned back at me with a sexy gleam in his eye.

  “We’re here. Ready for me, Mrs. Brighton?”

  “Always. And I think it’ll be a long night full of surprises.”

  He helped me out of the limo and swept me into his arms, carrying me to the front door of our beach house and over the threshold.

  “Angel, life with you always is.”

  Before You Go!

  If you enjoyed Fortune’s Angel, please help me reach other readers by reviewing on

  Amazon, Goodreads, or Bookbub!

  If you loved Hayden Forrester in Fortune’s Angel, don’t miss book three of the Fates Aligned series! Lucky Stars will be out this fall! To be notified when it becomes available, follow me on social media or sign up for my no-spam newsletter!

  Have you read Kennedy and Donovan’s story yet? Check out Chance Encounter!

  * * *

  There are currently more than half a million homeless Americans. They are veterans, children, mothers, fathers, the elderly, and the disabled. They are of every race, every religion, and every background. They are neither invisible nor forgotten.

  A portion of all sales for Fortune’s Angel is donated to the National Homeless Coalition. Visit their website to learn more about the organization!

  * * *

  One out of every six women in the United States has been a victim of sexual assault, and out of every one thousand cases, only five perpetrators will receive jail time.

  If you or a loved one has been a victim of sexual assault, please reach out to someone who can help. Call the 24-hour RAINN hotline at 800-656-4673 or visit www.rainn.org for live chat or local support resources.

  Lucky Stars

  A Fates Aligned Novel

  One

  Gemma

  The delicious scent of baked goods all but assaulted me as I trotted through the entrance of Sweet Dreams, my heels clicking on the polished tile floor. I was pretty sure a girl could gain five pounds just by breathing the air. It was that good. Just about everything on the menu was unhealthy, but the smell alone was enough to undermine anyone’s willpower. My stomach let out an audible growl. I hadn’t intended to buy anything for myself, but maybe I could scarf down a bagel or something on the way to my morning meeting.

  The euphoria of promised sweets faded when I saw the line of people at the counter. I checked the time on my phone and decided to go for it, joining the queue behind a tall man in a charcoal gray suit. He was facing away from me, and I didn’t give him much thought until another newcomer forced me closer to him and an altogether different aroma enveloped me.

  Damn. He smells even better than the food.

  I glanced up at the back of his head, wondering what kind of cologne he was wearing. He had dark, wavy hair, and I could see just enough of his face to note the shadow of a day’s growth. It seemed at odds with the tension in his frame and the firm set of his jaw. His posture radiated control and poise, but perhaps his usual morning routine had been cut short. At least he didn’t skip the shower, I thought, shamelessly inhaling his scent again as the line moved forward a few paces. Yum.

  Giving myself a mental shake, I forced my gaze away from the enigmatic stranger. The line was moving quickly enough, thank God. I really couldn’t afford to be late for this meeting. I was a senior project coordinator for Rowan Pierce Construction, and one of our biggest projects had recently been reassigned to me. Forrester Hotels was opening a new location at Indian Rocks Beach, and the stakes were high.

  No matter how much prep work I’d done, I was still a bit nervous about the meeting. I preferred to spearhead a project from start to finish, but this one had fallen into my lap in the middle of the execution phase. The previous coordinator had been fired due to some rather unprofessional behavior, and I’d walked into a bit of a mess.

  Though I was confident enough in my skills that I didn’t mind stepping in so late in the game, I was counting on Charlotte Brighton, a good friend and even better colleague, to help me navigate the issues our coworker had left unresolved. She worked in the legal department and had been on the project from the very beginning, and I was grateful she would be at the meeting this morning. A change in leadership didn’t exactly give the client a good impression of RPC, and I’d never met this Hayden Forrester before.

  Charlotte had an ‘in’ with him, whereas I did not. Forrester was a close friend of our boss, who happened to be Charlotte’s husband. I hadn’t heard much about Forrester, other than that he was a thirty-year-old guy who owned a multi-million-dollar chain of hotels. And that he was known to be a bit of a control freak. Although tourism was a diverse industry in Florida, his youth did make him stand out a little amongst his contemporaries. Perhaps it made him feel like he had something to prove? So far, I'd only communicated with Forrester via e-mail. He'd seemed polite enough, but I was still a bit wary. 'Control freak' could mean a lot of things, and this project really didn't need any further disruption.

  Under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t have taken time to stop for food right before such an important meeting. But I’d made a promise, and I intended to keep it. The line inched forward again, allowing me to see more of the menu on the wall behind the counter. Most of it was written in various pastel shades of chalk, since the items offered changed with the seasons. Luckily, my daughter’s favorite starberry lemon muffin was a permanent fixture.

  I’d actually promised her one yesterday, but the extra office hours I’d needed to prep for today’s meeting had kept me from delivering. I’d kicked myself for it, since I knew better than to make a promise like that in the first place. Where most kids could be distracted or pacified with something different, my Hallie was set in her ways. She had a tendency to fixate on small worries until they caused her real stress. Sure enough, my promise of her favorite treat was the last thing she’d talked about at bedtime last night and the first thing she’d mentioned when she woke up this morning.

  All in all, Hallie had handled the unexpected change pretty well, though, and I wanted to reward her for it by following through on my promise, even if it was a day late. It would help teach her patience and challenge her rigidity in a manageable way. Small measures like that were essential when dealing with an autistic child. In the long run, gently introducing small challenges was far more effective than forcing large ones. And hopefully, if she could learn to deal with minor disruptions and upsets, she would be just a little more capable of adapting
when life threw things at us that were beyond our control.

  A cool, deep voice pulled me out of my wandering thoughts, and I belatedly realized the yummy smelling stranger ahead of me had reached the front of the line. The young, redheaded cashier was batting her eyes at him.

  “I need to pick up an order, please. Should be under Cantwell.”

  “Of course, sir. I think they’re packing up the last of it now. I’ll be right back.” But she didn’t move away from the counter. Instead, she seemed frozen in place, staring at the man with something like starstruck wonder.

  I followed her gaze up to his face and felt my mouth go dry. No wonder she was gawking. But he wasn’t even looking at her. He was looking at me. The tense, shadowed jaw I’d glimpsed a few moments ago complemented a set of chiseled cheekbones and a straight nose. His eyes were dark and striking, but I couldn’t quite tell what color they were. Just that they were focused on me.

  For an endless moment, I couldn’t seem to look away from him, and my own eyes dropped to his lips without my permission. The border of his top lip dipped inward a little in the center, making his mouth appear a bit fuller than that of most men. As I watched, those perfect lips twitched into a crooked smile that I felt myself mirroring involuntarily.

  “Ma’am?” another voice from behind the counter spoke up loudly enough to get my attention. I was jolted back to reality by a freckle-faced teenage boy whose eyes were darting curiously back and forth between me and the sexy stranger. The redhead must’ve stepped away at some point. “Can I help you?”

  “Yes,” I replied quickly, my cheeks flushing in embarrassment. I could still feel the man’s gaze on me even as he shifted out of the way so I could place my order. “I need one of the Starberry Lemon muffins, please.”