Sweet Promise (The Grahams Book 1)

by Jennifer Woodhull

  I moved, so I was behind her, laying side-by-side on the bed, looking down at that beautiful, sweet face. I loved every freckle across her nose. I loved the way her nose turned up at the tip. I loved the little widow’s peak where her blonde hair dipped down on her forehead. She was everything I wanted, and I could hardly believe she was mine. “Whatever you want, baby,” I told her, “I’ll go slow – just tell me if you’re hurting, won’t you?” She nodded quickly, and crashed her mouth against mine, sucking my bottom lip before sliding her tongue against mine.

  She moved her right leg, careful not to put pressure on the injured left one. I positioned myself to enter her. I moved slowly, her warm readiness easing my access. “Are you alright, darling?” I asked.

  “Yes,” she said, sucking in a deep breath. “Yes, Luc…you feel so damn good!”

  She reached back and grabbed my hip with her good hand as I moved in and out, sliding slowly, deeply into her. I wanted the feeling of her, soft and warm around me to last forever. I loved her so damned much, I thought my heart might explode.

  “Georgia. I can never be without you again. I need you to be mine…only mine.” I whispered in her ear.

  “I am yours, all yours…always…,” she moaned as she laid back against me.

  I stroked her face with my fingers then stroked down her body.

  I moved faster, sliding in and out as the sounds escaping her lips grew louder. She dug her nails into my hip and moaned. “Luc…yes!”

  I could feel her body responding, her hips rocking to meet my thrusts, and I knew I wouldn’t last much longer. She whispered that she was coming. I felt her body tense and quake beneath me, and I was done, moving hard as I exploded inside of her.

  I stayed with her as her body shuddered around me and kissed her face. She looked at me under hooded eyes, her lips curling into a smirk. “That,” she said, “was perfection.” She stretched her arms out to her sides and gave a little yawn. “Just what I needed.” She grinned.

  “You tired now, darling?” I asked.

  She shook her head. “A little.”

  “Let’s get some rest,” I said, kissing the tip of her nose, then lightly grazing her lips.

  CHAPTER 23

  Georgia

  I wanted to see more of the area where Lucas had grown up. The weather was wonderful, sunny and warm but not too hot. Lucas showed me around the grounds of the house. He got a motorized cart from the gardener - it was something like the Gator and four-wheelers we had on the farm back home - so we could cover more ground without me getting so tired.

  The gardens were beautiful, and there were several outer buildings on the property as well, though he explained that many of them now went unused. Lucas told me about how there had been tenant farmers who paid a portion of their earnings to the family in exchange for the use of the land. The Lucas family had owned Severn House and Watling Park for over four hundred years. Many of the public buildings in the village had been donated or sponsored by members of his family, or other old families from the area, but there had been a time when almost the whole village had belonged to his family as well.

  We drove across a broad, open space, over a few small, rolling hills and Lucas headed toward an area that was surrounded by split-rail fencing. He pulled up near a small gate, and we got out of the cart. “Okay,” he said, putting an arm around me and pointing toward a gently sloping hillside, “see there? The tenant on this piece of property has sheep. That’s his flock, grazing on the hillside, just there.”

  “Oh my gosh! They’re so cute!” I exclaimed, seeing the lambs milling around among the others. I’d never seen sheep up close before.

  “They are sweet, but they also produce some of the finest wool in the world. This farmer has pigs as well. He supplies a lot of the top restaurants in this part of the country.” Luc said.

  “Wow. Maybe you could tell Daddy about that. Might be just the thing.” I replied.

  “Hmm,” he put a hand on the side of his neck, rubbing his palm up and down. “It might be at that. It’s a pretty expensive proposition to set up, but if you’re not farming the land anyway…it could be something to think about.” He was deep in thought for a moment, then put his hand on my shoulder. “Shall we go have some lunch? I’m starving!”

  Lucas took me down to a pub in the village for lunch. I had something called a plowman’s, which seemed something like a deconstructed chef’s salad to me. I didn’t want my stomach growling when we got to Lucas’ parents’ house, but I didn’t want to be stuffed either.

  By the time we got back to the house, the shop had delivered the clothes we had bought the night before, and they were all neatly pressed and hanging in the wardrobe of Lucas’ bedroom. I took a hot soak in the tub with the Epsom salt concoction that Marjorie had been making for me. It really did sooth my aching muscles, and the bruises were finally fading. After the bath, I put on my makeup and did my hair then went to go get dressed. Lucas had gotten showered and shaved while I soaked. He was wearing a pair of charcoal slacks, a gray, houndstooth sportcoat, and a white shirt. He looked amazing.

  “Damn, honey! You look fantastic! Very handsome.” I said, reaching up to kiss him on the cheek.

  “Thanks, beautiful! Shall I help you get dressed?” He replied.

  “I’m not sure…,” I said as I took the dress I intended to wear out and hung it on the outside of the wardrobe door.

  “Not sure about what?” Lucas asked.

  “Well, I love the dress…thank you, by the way. I didn’t say that before, and I should’ve thanked you for buying them for me,” I smiled at him, and he bowed playfully. “Anyway, I’m not sure if flats will be okay with it, but I’m afraid I’m not ready for heels yet. I want it to look dressed up.” I crossed my arms, and put my hand to my face, bouncing my index finger off my lip.

  “Darling, it’s fine, I’m sure. I think they’re lucky to have you over so soon. I’m not so keen on it myself. I’m not sure you’re strong enough to be getting out, really.” He said, walking over to stand beside me at the wardrobe.

  “Honey, it’s dinner. I’ll be sitting. It’ll be fine. I just…I want to make a good impression. Your family is…fancy. I’m not fancy,” I said.

  “I don’t know…I fancy you.” He raised his eyebrows and smiled playfully. He wasn’t one to make corny jokes, so coming from him, it was funny. I smirked at him and dropped my robe. I stepped into the dress, and Lucas zipped and buttoned it for me. I put on the flats and looked in the full-length mirror that was in the corner of the room. I looked pretty good, but I still wished I had been able to get a little more done up to meet his father.

  “I have an idea,” he said, walking up behind me as I looked in the mirror. “What if you wear these with it?” He leaned forward and draped a beautiful, multi-tiered set of pearls around my neck.

  “What in the world? Where did they come from?” I asked, gingerly caressing the beautiful, iridescent orbs with my fingertips.

  “They had them at the shop - behind the counter. They’re antique, the woman told me. I thought they were lovely, and you might like them.” He smiled as he looked at my reflection standing in front of his.

  “They’re beautiful! Thank you so much!” I exclaimed. They were so classic and really set off the outfit, adding just the touch it needed.

  “I’m glad you like them,” he kissed me on top of the head. “Come on, we’d better go.”

  I had mentally prepared myself after seeing Lucas’ house, for what his parents’ house might look like. I hadn’t prepared myself enough. “Lucas! This is a castle!” I said when we were pulling up.

  “It’s not,” he laughed. “It’s nothing like a castle!”

  “Well, it sure ain’t a house!” I laughed. The estate, because that was the only word I could think of that came close to describing it, was made of large, stones that were a warm gray in color. Large double doors sat in a recessed entrance at the middle of the house, and a wing on each side of the building jutted forward
, giving the architecture a church-like quality. There were three visible stories, and so many windows facing the drive that I lost count at around a dozen.

  I sat upright as Lucas pulled the car up to a stop. “You alright, darling?” He asked, leaning over and patting my knee as he noticed my demeanor shift.

  “Yes. I’m just…nervous.” I looked back at him worriedly.

  “Don’t be. Mother likes you, you said so yourself. Besides, I’ve invited another friendly face to make you feel more at home. Come on, then!” He winked at me and got out of the car, walking around to open my door.

  When we got inside, the opulence from the exterior was only magnified by the posh interior. The foyer was twice the size of the one at Watling Park, with a large, ornate, round table in the center that was topped with a beautiful blue and white vase full of orange and white flowers. Lucas led me through the foyer to the right, into a large sitting room. The space had several smaller sitting areas within it, a pair of sofas facing each other near the fireplace, four chairs around a small table by the window, and a couple of large armchairs on the far side.

  I walked a step behind Lucas, slowed by trying to take in all the beautiful surroundings. “Hello darling,” I heard Margaret say to Lucas as we approached the group standing near the fireplace. As I scanned the faces, I realized what Lucas had meant about inviting a friendly face.

  “John! It’s so good to see you!” I said, stepping forward as John walked toward me.

  “Hello, Georgia. It’s wonderful to see you looking so well.” He patted my shoulder and grazed each cheek with a light kiss. “You had us very worried, you know.”

  “I’m just glad to be out of that hospital!” I said. “And I am feeling so much stronger every day, too.”

  “Stop flirting with my girlfriend so I can make introductions, will you?” Lucas smiled at his friend, slapping his shoulder playfully. They were warmer - friendlier than they had been before the accident, and I was grateful to see the old friends together again. “Come on darling, let me introduce you.”

  John winked at me, and I stepped forward with Lucas. Standing with Margaret was a dashing older gentleman with dark brown hair that had touches of gray at the temples. Lucas had his mother’s beautiful blue eyes, but the shape of his face and his build were all his father. “Dad,” Lucas said, “this is Georgia.”

  “Hello, Lord Hereford. It’s lovely to meet you.” I said shyly. In spite of Margaret’s warm smile, and being there with Lucas, I was still nervous.

  “Georgia, it’s so good to meet you. Margaret, she is even lovelier than you described,” Lucas’ father smiled at me as he shook my hand. “Please, my dear, call me Charles.”

  “Margaret, it’s so nice to see you again,” I said, standing beside Lucas’ mother.

  “You as well, dear. You look lovely. I just love your pearls!” She smiled warmly at me.

  “Thank you. They were a gift.” I could feel myself blushing.

  “My son has excellent taste,” she said, grinning coyly. “Come, dear. We’ll let the boys catch up. I’ll introduce you to our other guests.”

  Margaret introduced me to Lucas’ cousin Sarah, and her parents, Philip and Natasha. Philip was tall and strikingly handsome like Charles, who I learned was his first cousin. Natasha was tall and elegant, like Margaret, but her hair was blonde like mine, while Margaret’s was coppery-brown, like Lucas’. Sarah, Lucas’ cousin, was a few inches taller than me, with a slim build. She had a square-ish jaw, like her father’s, but her features were very feminine. She was perhaps twenty-four or twenty-five and could easily have been a model. All of them were going out of their way to be warm and friendly to me, and I was incredibly grateful.

  A gentleman in black slacks and a white shirt appeared at the door and caught Margaret’s attention. “Shall we go through?” Margaret said to the assembled group.

  We walked into the vast, formal dining room. The table looked as though the leaves had been removed to make the seating arrangements more intimate. Lucas and John flanked me on either side, protectively. Charles sat at the head of the table next to Lucas, and Margaret sat at his right. Natasha sat next to Margaret, across from me, and Sarah beside her, across from John. Phillip was at the end across from Charles. For a table of eight in a massive, elegant dining room, it felt cozy.

  The food was exquisite, and I felt more and more calm with each course. Lucas’ family was friendly and inclusive. They asked about my experiences filming, and which locations I was looking forward to visiting. Philip and Natasha had spent time in Chicago, and we talked about the city and their experiences there. Halfway through the main course, John leaned in and whispered, “You’re doing great. They love you.” I smiled and leaned in, gently patting his arm in thanks.

  Lucas cast a playful scowl at John, then leaned in and said, “He’s right you know,” and winked.

  By the time we all retired to the sitting room, my nerves about the evening had all disappeared. I sat on the sofa, surrounded by Lucas’ family. The surroundings were formal - more formal than anything I had ever experienced, but the people were kind and warm.

  Any fears I’d had that his family would shun a country girl like me were assuaged. My bruises were healing, and I’d be able to get back to work soon. I’d fallen in love with an amazing man and loved his family. Daddy’s financial worries were over, and the farm was out of danger. Looking across the room to where Lucas and his father stood, talking, I felt like the luckiest girl in the world.

  CHAPTER 24

  Lucas

  “Dad, can we step into the office and chat? There’s a couple of things I want to talk to you about,” I said. As we walked out of the sitting room and toward my father’s library, I looked over my shoulder and gave Georgia a wink. John was with her - he would keep everyone from giving her the third degree. She looked beautiful - happy - and I was thankful.

  “I knew something was on your mind,” he said as he sat down behind his massive desk. I remembered playing under it when I was a child. I would hide under there with a couple of toys while he was working just so I could be close to him.

  I was thankful that we had put all arguments over Simone behind us. We’d always been close, but he had abhorred her and wasn’t afraid to let me know I was making a huge mistake. I wish I had listened to him then. When the story of her infidelity blew up, I came here. He didn’t say I told you so or chastise me. He just leaped into action, putting the lawyers on the case and protecting me and my interests. He always let me be my own person, but he was there for me when I needed him. He always had been.

  “So…Georgia,” I looked at him as I sat in the brown leather club chair across from his desk. “What do you think?”

  He smirked, and put his elbows on the desk, tenting his fingers. “She’s something, alright. Did she know about…,” He waved his finger in a circle. He was asking if she knew about the titles…the estate…the money.

  “Not a clue. She heard a rumor right before the accident, and I didn’t confirm it until we got to Watling Park. She’s pretty great, yeah?” I didn’t pretend to control the stupid smile that was creeping across my face.

  “That’s good to hear. She’s certainly not like other women you’ve dated. She seems…I don’t know quite what. Genuine, maybe. Guileless, but not naive. She’s an impressive young woman.” Dad sat back in his chair. “But son, do be careful. I don’t want to see you hurt again. You haven’t been together very long.”

  “No, you’re right, of course. But when she was in hospital…seeing her lying there, looking so small and broken…I knew, right then. I’m going to meet her family when she goes home for her birthday next week. We can plan things out, take it slower, but…,” I looked at him from under my brows.

  “There’s nothing I can do to persuade you to wait?” He raised an eyebrow, but he knew I was resigned.

  “We can take more time to plan if that’s what she wants, but I’m going to talk to her dad when I’m in Nashville. My feelings wo
n’t change.” He nodded.

  “You want mother’s ring, I take it?” He asked.

  “I do. If you’ll give me your blessing. You were right not to let me have it before.” I shook my head. “My judgement was clouded. I wasn’t thinking clearly. Now…I’ve never been more certain about anything.”

  “I’ll take it to Jenkins’ and have them clean it. Do you know her size?” He asked.

  “Here,” I pulled a costume cocktail ring out of my pocket that I had nicked from Georgia’s jewelry case and dropped it on his desk. “I’ve seen her wear this one on her ring finger.” I stood and walked around the desk and hugged my father as he stood. “Thanks, Dad. This means more to me than you know.”

  “I’ll always be here for you, son, you know that. I’m glad to see you happy and positive for the first time in so long,” he said as he embraced me.