She grins. “I know, and I’m not going to start breaking old habits now.”
Grams grabs Christiana’s hand and pushes her down the hall. “We will see you both at the ceremony shortly?”
“We’ll be there,” I grit out and wave them away. Just go.
“But hurry up and kiss her though,” Grams says before shuffling down the hall taking my two giggling friends with her.
We both laugh and his forehead falls to mine. “I’m sorry about them.” He lifts my chin and looks me dead in the eyes.
“I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to let her down,” Leo gleams.
“No, and don’t let me down either?”
“Never.” He grabs my face with both hands and consumes my mouth. “I love you,” he whispers.
“I love you, too.”
The wedding is perfect. Two of my favorite people are now married and happy. And so am I. For once, I finally feel whole, like the universe is done playing games with me.
Leo takes me to the dance floor and sweeps me into his arms for the dance I owe him. His lips land on mine and the world around us fades away. It’s then I realize;
Sometimes you have to pay the price of love to learn the true value of it. With Leo, it’s rich, and his love is worth more than all the stars in the galaxy.
Epilogue
Leo - 2 Years Later
I'm shoving my stuff into my locker at the end of my shift, ready to go home. I pull out my cell and turn it on. The first text to appear is from Claire. As of a year ago tomorrow, I married Claire Malone. Only a year after we made things official. I couldn't wait to make her mine.
My stubborn, sometimes has her head in the clouds, always smiling, sweet Claire.
Claire: Hey babe! I can't wait to see you tonight ;)
Then there's another text from two hours ago.
Claire: Can you believe this horoscope Grams just sent me? What the hell do you think it means? It’s been driving me nuts all day. I even asked Christiana and Alison and they’re confused as I am and say it’s not some conspiracy. I swear Grams is set to get my hair to match hers before I’m thirty because I think she makes up these horoscopes sometimes to fit some code she can’t just come out and say!!. I should've never allowed these back in. If you have any guesses to this word problem, let me know.
Anyway, love you.
P.S. I’m not wearing any panties
Taurus:
Years ago, you paid the price on your heart, but then you were healed. Today Taurus, you are going to be given the biggest gift of all and it'll be Gemini who brings it to you. Though hold on because the gift they bring doesn’t come without a few bumps. Seek comfort in carbs and warm blankets and don't let stress boggle you down. Also, be patient because sometimes the best gifts are worth waiting for.
Yep, this horoscope has me scratching my head as well.
Leo: I’m as confused as you on the horoscope front.
But I can't wait to see you. Heading home now.
Also, you should just lose all your clothes,
you won’t be needing them. Love you.
I shove my phone back in my bag and think of how far Claire has come since we started dating. The scar that used to make her freeze whenever my hand would slightly touch it now has a beautiful tattoo over it of a starry night of the zodiac constellations; for her grandmother. She no longer flinches and covers the mark up in fear and shows it off with pride. She also just graduated from college and works as a freelance designer for a large advertisement company outside Franklin.
As for my brother, Tim, we no longer talk. He moved across the country shortly after Monica dumped him for cheating on her. We invited him to the wedding because no matter what he’s still my family, but as we figured, he didn’t attend. It was okay with both of us.
“Hey, Leo. You have a patient waiting for you in room 5607.” My friend Mitch, who is also a nurse on the floor, tells me as I close my locker and throw my bag over my shoulder.
“A patient?” I squint my eyes at him. “What are you talking about? There's nobody in that room. And I'm off the clock.”
“Will you just go,” he huffs. “It'll only take you five minutes.”
“I can't. I have plans.”
Plans of screwing my wife till her voice goes horse from screaming my name and making sure she can't walk straight for the next couple of days.
“It’s just one of your old patients that wants to say hi. To show you how well he's doing.”
“Oh.”
“Always spoiling everything.”
“Sorry. I just have big plans. That's all.”
“Oh yeah. Your anniversary.”
“Yeah.”
He nudges me, wiggling his eyebrows. “I get ya. But this should only take a few. He was excited about seeing you.”
“Who is it?”
“You'll see.” Mitch pats my back and turns the opposite way down the hall as I head for room 5607.
I knock, before cracking open the door. “Come in.” A sweet voice echoes through the heavy door. A voice I’d know anywhere.
I step into the room and close the door tightly behind me. And lock it. I find her perched on the bed, chewing on her lower lip, her dark chocolate hair braided to the side. “Claire? What are you doing here?”
“I’m in desperate need of a check up from my favorite nurse.” She smirks and undoes the top two buttons of her blouse, exposing the top of her breasts. Her skirt is hiked up to her waist, and I’m just remembering her text that she isn’t wearing any panties.
Fuck, she drives me insane. I can smell her arousal and I’m eager to dip my tongue between her legs.
“My heart has been racing all day thinking about you and now I'm feeling a little…faint.” She fans herself, and I go to stand in front of her between her legs. She slides her arms over my shoulders and rests her head on my chest.
As much as I want to throw her down on this fucking bed and pound into her tight little…
Get it together, Price.
“If you’re thinking about us fucking here, we can’t.”
Her head pops up, and she laughs. “No. No. I'm not risking you getting fired. We’ve already pushed that boundary one too many times.” She brushes her finger through my hair. “I'm here because I figured out the horoscope mind game and I was eager to tell you.”
“It wasn't just a horoscope?”
“No. Um, she read my palm and my tarot a couple days ago, but when I was over she had noticed something different about me.”
“Different?”
“Yeah. It was something even my nurse husband missed, but I did too, and I live in my body.”
“Claire, spill it. Now you have me worried.”
“No, no worries. I just want you to think.” She taps my temple with her finger. “How far away is the Gemini sign.”
“I don’t know,” I answer honesty. Off the top of my head it isn’t coming to me.
“It’s about seven months away.”
“Okay?”
She grips my shoulders and shakes them, as a large smile spreads across her face. “Leo, Gemini is bringing us a baby. I’m pregnant.”
“You’re pregnant?” I say the words slowly, not sure if I heard them right.
“Yep!” she squeals.
“Holy fucking shit!” I lift her in my arms and spin her around.
Claire used to worry she might not be able to have children. After we got married, she went to have it checked out. One doctor told her it might be impossible, one told her she'd be okay. It wasn’t the answers we were hoping for, but no matter what, we always knew we could adopt. We still might, but fuck, we're having a baby.
I place her back down on the bed and shove myself between her legs. My lips crash to hers desperately needing to ravish her. My dick is rigid, tenting my scrubs, and I’d love nothing more than to push her down and fuck her within an inch of her life to tell her how happy I am, but I can’t.
“You really couldn’t w
ait till I got home to tell me so I could properly fuck you to celebrate?” I growl against her mouth, my hand curling in her hair.
“Sorry,” she mumbles, and her nails dig into my shoulders.
I nip at her lower lip and pull back from her before I lose all self-control. I instantly notice the mischief in her eyes. “Are you sorry, though?”
“I just wanted to tell you in the place our story officially started. This might not be the cafeteria, but close enough.” She shrugs and draws her finger down the curve of my neck and down my chest. “It seemed like a good idea at the time after I figured out the horoscope and saw the two pink lines on the three pregnancy tests I took.” Her cheeks heat, and I cup her chin in my hand.
“Oh, Mrs. Price, what am I going to do with you?”
“Hopefully, love me and my craziness forever.”
“As long as there are stars in the sky because you were always meant for me.”
THE END
Sneek Peek at Intrigued by Love
SNEEK PEEK A WRITTEN IN THE STARS #5
Intrigued by Love written by Sienna Snow
Kailani
“Want to hear your horoscope for the day?”
Raquel, my assistant manager, rushed through the open door of my office, holding a folder in one hand and her smartphone in the other.
“Not really,” I said, looking up from a stack of papers detailing the events planned for the upcoming month at Lykaios Bora Bora, the luxury resort where I was the general manager and a shareholder.
“Oh come on, Kailani. Humor me, for once.”
Raquel had an obsession with zodiac signs, numerology, and anything to do with predictions of the future. Most of the time, I half listened to her rattling on about what the sun, moon, and stars had in store for my future, but today wasn’t the day.
By midday, the property was going to be swarmed, and it wasn’t going to ease until the first week of the next month. My baby sister, Kalina, Lina Xander under her supermodel-movie-star persona, was marrying A-list Hollywood producer/director, Thaddeus Oliver.
Thad had decided a destination wedding was the least he could do for my sister and therefore decided to rent the entire resort for over a month. This also meant I had to do everything in my power to make sure my baby sister’s dream wedding became a reality.
Though I never thought I’d be trying to orchestrate a traditional Hawaiian wedding in French Polynesia. Yes, the two cultures had similarities, but there were many stark differences, mainly ceremonies and traditions passed down over centuries. My mother’s family could trace their Hawaiian roots for generations, and the customs were to be respected, no matter if any of my three siblings or I were in Europe or in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.
Good thing I had my mother and aunts and their almost daily check-in calls to help make it “just the way it’s supposed to be.”
“Pretty please.” Raquel gave me puppy-dog eyes.
“Unless you can predict that this celebrity-filled, month-long wedding extravaganza is going to go off without a hitch, I don’t want to hear it.”
“We’re in the hospitality industry—nothing ever goes off without a hitch. We deal with mercurial guests every day. What works for them in the morning could be a catastrophic disaster by lunchtime.”
I couldn’t argue with her assessment. The LB, as we called the resort, had a reputation for making everything perfect for its guests, which also meant dealing with moody clientele.
“Speaking of, did you explain to Mrs. Baker that it wasn’t possible to extend her stay?”
Raquel sighed dramatically. “I did. Saying she was upset was an understatement, and reminding her that she signed an agreement stating she understood the limited time for her reservation made no difference. She had an epic meltdown, worthy of your sister’s Oscar-nominated performance. But after I offered her a free four-night stay in the villas the next time she was in the area, she mellowed out.”
Daphne Baker was a country music diva who came with an entourage of twenty and spent more time on vacation than on her music. In the two years since the resort opened, she’d visited the island four times. I knew as soon as I saw her on the reservation list two months ago that we’d have trouble with her, and arranging to give her a free stay was worth the cost of her leaving the island without an international incident.
“So that means we’ll have an empty property for an hour or two before bedlam ensues.”
“Why are you so worried? It’s your family who’s coming. I’ve met them. They’re very relaxed people.”
“It’s not my parents or sisters or my brother I’m worried about. Even Thad is someone I love seeing. It’s everyone else. My extended family and all the A-listers who’ll show up expecting to have everything handed to them.”
Even though Thad had explicitly limited who his wedding invitees could bring, going as far as having security and background checks done on them, I knew some would bring people who weren’t approved. This would result in a lot of handholding and headaches.
“At least most of the non-family and friends won’t arrive until the week of the wedding.”
“True. I just want everything to be perfect for Lina.”
“It will be.” Raquel handed me the folder she was holding. “Here’s the list of room, villa, and bungalow assignments.”
I smiled. This was one less thing for me to oversee. “Thank you.”
“So want to hear your horoscope now that I’ve added back a few hours to your life today?”
“You’re like a dog with a bone.” I shook my head and then nodded. “Go ahead.”
She beamed at me, taking the seat across from my desk, and scrolled on her phone.
“Ready to listen? It looks very important.”
“Yes, just tell me so I can get back to work.”
Ignoring my annoyance, she started.
“Dear Gemini,
“A blast from the past will force you to confront your dual nature.
“Love is in the air, but only if you are open to it.
“Remember, your heart can't heal if you don't examine the wounds.”
The second Raquel said “a blast from the past,” a vision of gray eyes flashed in my head. Eyes that belonged to a man I’d done everything not to think of ever since Lina had called me about having her wedding on the island. Eyes of the man I couldn’t seem to forget or get over.
An ache burned in my chest, opening a wound that never truly healed.
“Shit. Kailani, what did I say? You’ve gone pale. Are you okay?”
Raquel’s concerned words snapped me out of my panic.
“Yes. Yes, I’m okay.”
“Was it the horoscope?” She tapped her lips with a finger before her eyes grew big. “Is one of the wedding guests an ex?”
I rarely, if ever, discussed my personal life with anyone on the island. It was easier to pretend I was all business instead of a hopeless romantic who was nursing a broken heart.
“Don’t you have a banquet to oversee?”
“I get the hint.” Raquel moved to the door.
“I know you did. I’m going to take the first transport to the airport so I can meet my family. You know how they’ll never let me hear the end of it if I’m even a few seconds late.” I glanced at my watch and winced. “Shit, I’m in trouble. Their plane from Honolulu lands in less than an hour.”
“Don’t worry about anything. I’ll hold down the fort. Take care of your family. You’re technically a guest for the wedding too.”
I rolled my eyes. “If only that were possible.”
“I’m going to make it my mission for you to have fun, even if it means that I have to call in backup. Meaning your mom and aunts.”
Thinking of my mom and her sisters made me smile. They had this way of getting people to do what they wanted without anyone being the wiser. Just like how they’d inserted themselves into helping me with all the wedding details when I could have managed everything without them.
; On their last visit, Raquel had been “officially” adopted into the family. Which meant if Raquel told them I was overworked, they would close ranks and keep me from doing any of my hotel duties.
“Warning heard. I’m still going to make sure this wedding happens without a hitch. However, I promise to enjoy time with everyone here.”
“Maybe someone in the wedding party will tickle your fancy.”
I pushed down the dread her words brought forth and said, “Nope. Not interested.”
She shrugged. “It was worth a try.”
Pre-Order Intrigued By Love for only $0.99.
Written in the Stars Series
12 Authors. 12 Months. 12 Signs of the Zodiac.
Aquarius –
Rebecca Gallo Reluctant in Love
Pieces-
Q.B. Tyler Bittersweet Love
Aires –
Karen Ferry- Daring to Love
Taurus –
Erica Marselas Price of Love
Gemini –
Sienna Snow Intrigued by Love
Cancer –
Kelsie Rae Drowning in Love
Leo –
Harlow Layne Fearless to love
Virgo –
Alexander Jaded by Love
Libra –
C.M. Seabrook Measure of Love
Scorpio –
C.M. Albert Consumed by Love
Sagittarius –
Andi Jaxon Wandering into Love
Capricorn –
Hollis Wynn Crashing into Love
About the Author
Erica is a wife, a mother of four, and a tequila drinking smart mouth. When she’s not wrangling her children and trying to keep them alive, she’s writing. She’ll write anything from steamy erotica, to HEA romance novels because not all love stories are created equal. As long as she can dream it, she'll write it.:)
Price Of Love (Written In the Stars Book 4) Page 15
