Coming Home (28 page)

“Yeah.”

“And how did that go?”

“We’re batting five hundred,” she said, pained when one of her dad’s favorite phrases rolled off her tongue. “My mom was pretty cool, but my dad… Not so much.”

“I suppose that’s to be expected.”

“Yeah, I guess.”

“It hurt, huh?”

“Kind of. I invited him and his family to Nashville for Christmas, but I’m not sure he’ll come. My mom and her family are in, and my sister Maggie is coming.” She glanced up at him. “Do you think Ashton would come?”

“I can ask him, but it’s hard to say. He may have his own plans for all I know.”

“I hope he comes.”

“Do you? As I understand it, there’s no love lost between the two of you.”

“I’d like to put all of that in the past. We’re going to be family to each other, whether he likes it or not. I’d like for us to at least be sociable for your sake.”

“That’d be nice, darlin’. I got the sense from him the other day that he’s looking to mend fences, too. He said there’s something else going on in his life that he’s anxious to tell me about when he sees me. I wonder if he’s met someone.”

“How would you feel about that?”

“I’d be thrilled. I want him to know real love. There’s nothing quite like it.”

“No, there isn’t.” She punctuated her words with soft kisses to his chest.

“I bought you a present in Basseterre.”

“What kind of present?”

“The really good kind.”

“Where is it?”

“In my coat pocket, but you have to let me up so I can get it.”

Kate kissed him, lingering despite her excitement over the present. There was nothing he could give her that was better than his kisses, his love and the promise of forever together. “I still have the locket you gave me,” she said as she moved off him so he could get up. “I wear it all the time. Wearing it made me feel closer to you.”

“That’s very sweet.” He got back in bed.

“Where is it?”

“Where is what?”

“My present.”

“You have to find it,” he said with a delightfully playful smile.

Kate took great pleasure in frisking him, touching him everywhere until he was hard as a rock.

“How did this backfire on me?” he asked as she stroked him.

“I can’t find it anywhere.”

“You’re not looking in the right places. Close your eyes.”

Kate did as he asked but continued to caress his erection until she felt the slide of a ring on the third finger of her left hand. She gasped, and her eyes flew open. She raised her hand so she could see the simple, elegant ring set in white gold or platinum with one large square-cut diamond. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she stared at the ring her one true love had put on her finger, making her his forever. Finally.

“Is it okay?” he asked, sounding uncertain.

Kate couldn’t stop staring at it. “It’s… It’s perfect.” It was exactly what she told him she wanted—simple and real, but also glorious.

“Oh, good. I was worried for a minute there.”

Kate wrapped her arms around him. “Thank you so much. I absolutely love it.”

“I absolutely love you.”

With her hands on his face, she bestowed a kiss upon him that was filled with all the overwhelming emotions she was experiencing—joy, love, excitement, desire and, most of all, relief. To have what she’d wanted for so long, to know that wherever she went he’d go, too, to know that whatever life had in store for her, he’d be there with her…
 

Without breaking the kiss, he cupped her breasts, giving special attention to her nipples.

Kate raised herself up to take him in, and then held perfectly still, celebrating the joy of their joining.
 

His arms tightened around her, his kiss became hungrier.
 

She tore her lips free. “Reid…”

“What, honey?”

“We keep forgetting the condom.”

“I haven’t forgotten.”

Kate stared at him. “What’re you saying?”

“That I want what you want, no matter what it is.”

“Do you mean it? You want kids? With me?”

“I want you to have everything you’ve ever dreamed of, and for some reason you’ve staked your claim with me. I’d never deny you the chance to be a mother, as long as you know you may not have me around—”

She swooped down on him, kissing that thought right off his lips. “I’d rather have thirty amazing, magical years with you than fifty okay years with someone else.”

“Thank you, darlin’.” His fingers pressed into her hips, and his erection lengthened inside her. “Can we get back to what you started here?”
 

“Most definitely.”

They flew back to Nashville early the next morning. The storm was long gone, and the skies were clear and sunny, with puffy white clouds off in the distance. Sitting next to Reid in the cockpit reminded Kate of their trip to Memphis and the monumental event that had occurred there.

“What’re you smiling about, darlin’?”

“I’m thinking about the first time I ever flew with you.”

“Reluctantly, if I recall correctly.”

“You hadn’t told me you were a pilot, and then you pop it on me out of nowhere. What was I supposed to say?”

“You were supposed to say, ‘Reid, I trust you with my life, and if you tell me you’re a great pilot, I believe you.’” Hearing him imitate her tone had her staring at him, speechless.

“How’d you do that?”

“Do what?”

“Perfectly imitate me.”

He reached over to rest his hand on her leg. “I’ve heard your voice in my dreams for years. I know how you sound.”

Touched by his words, she said, “It’s a little unnerving how well you do it.”

“Now you do me.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Didn’t I already do you this morning?”

He tossed his head back and laughed. “I meant imitate me, though I do love how you think.”

Kate thought about his challenge for a moment. “Harder, darlin’,” she said in his accent. “Yeah, like that.” She glanced over to find him looking at her with eyes gone hot with desire. “How’d I do?”

“Pretty good. How about you say that to me when we get home and I can actually do something about it?”

“Sure,” she said, laughing. “You got it.” She watched the scenery go by in a sea of brilliant blue. “So pretty.”

“Yes, it is.”

“Last night was fun, huh?” Bertha’s family had arrived en masse with pots of chili, cornbread, salad and brownies. Kate had sung with the kids, autographed CD cases and posed for pictures with each of them.

“Sure was. Those kids will never forget their night with you.”

She rested her hand over the one he had on her leg. “I’ll never forget the night we officially got engaged.”

“Neither will I.” He squeezed her thigh. “So when do you want to tie the knot?”

“I’ve been thinking about that. What would you say to doing it over the holidays when my family is in Nashville?”

“That soon? You don’t want to plan a big shindig?”

She shook her head. “You’re the one telling me there’s no time to waste, and besides, everyone I’d want there will be in town. Maybe if he knows we’re getting married, my dad will come.”

“And if he doesn’t?”

Kate didn’t want to think about the possibility of getting married without him there to give her away, but she refused to put a damper on their celebratory mood. She shrugged. “Then I guess we’ll do it without him.”

“I sure hope it doesn’t come to that.”

“So do I. He left me a message last night that he wants to talk some more, but I’m not really ready to talk to him after what he said yesterday.” She glanced over at him. “Anyway, how about we get married on your birthday?”

“You remember my birthday?”

“Sure, I do. I remember that I couldn’t wait to get back to Nashville the day after Christmas to help you celebrate.”

“Sounds good to me.”

“We can do it at my house with a JP, some food, music. Nice and simple. That’d be just what I want—if it’s okay with you.”

“I told you—whatever you want is okay with me.”

“Are you always going to be so easy to get along with?”

“Making you happy makes me happy.”

She looked down at her gorgeous ring, which sparkled in the bright sunlight. “I feel very happy today, as well as lucky and hopeful.”

“I’m glad.”

“And also a little scared.”

“Of what, darlin’?”

“Of what’ll happen when we step out of the bubble we’ve been in. The last time we did that, it didn’t go so well.”

“As long as we stay focused on our relationship and honest with each other about everything, we’ll be fine.”

“You make it sound so simple.”

“It is simple.”

Kate hoped he was right, but she couldn’t help but worry about what might be waiting for them at home.

Ashton woke with a sense of dread, knowing he had to leave Jill and get back to work. He’d already been gone a day longer than planned, and there was no postponing the inevitable. In the faint early morning light coming in through the blinds, he could see her gorgeous face and her dark hair on the pillow.

He’d never get tired of looking at that face. He ran a finger over her cheek, reluctant to disturb her but wanting her to know he was leaving.

Her eyes fluttered open, blinking several times. “You’re awake early.”

“I have to go to work.”

“Oh.”

“The party had to end sometime.”

“I suppose so.”

He wondered if she knew that the knitting of her brows gave away her worries. “Just because the vacation is over doesn’t mean this is.” With an arm around her, he brought her in snug against him, loving the feel of her skin pressed against his. “This,” he said, kissing her neck and then her lips, “is just getting started.”

She put her arm around him and caressed his back, sending shivers of sensation skittering over his skin. She stirred him like no other woman ever had, like no other woman ever would.

He held her for a long time, hating that he had to leave her even for a few hours. “See you for dinner tonight?”

“That sounds good.”

“What do you have on for today?”

“I’m not sure, exactly. I guess I’ll wait for Kate to get home so she can tell me this big plan of hers.”

“Whatever it is, you can handle it. I know you can.”

“I guess we’ll see.”

He drew back so he could look into her eyes. “Last night was amazing.”

She nodded. “Very much so.”

“I don’t want to go.”

Her fingers skimmed over his chest and down to encircle his straining erection. “I can tell,” she said with a small shy smile. As she stroked him, Ashton forgot all about work and about the nine o’clock meeting with Buddy that had been on the calendar for weeks. His world was reduced to her soft hand on his hard shaft.

“Jill…”

She tightened her grip, stroked him harder. “Hmm?”

He shuddered. “
God
.”

Her soft laughter filled his heart to overflowing. She knew exactly what she was doing to him, and she loved it.

“You’d better stop,” he said, though that was the last thing in the universe he wanted.

Apparently, she knew that because she added her other hand, working him over until he filled her hands with his release.

“There,” she said, kissing his chest and then his lips. “Now you can go to work without that pesky thing bothering you all day.”

He released an unsteady laugh. “That
pesky
thing, as you call it, will bother me all day because I’ll be thinking about that. And you.”

With one last kiss, he reluctantly got out of bed and headed for her shower, where he was unable to find soap that didn’t smell like her. Oh well, he thought, as he rubbed it all over his skin, smelling like her wouldn’t be any more torturous than thinking about her all day.

He emerged dressed and ready to go to find she’d fallen back to sleep. Leaning over the bed, he kissed her cheek and smiled when she murmured in her sleep.
 

“I love you,” he whispered in her ear.
 

Driving away from her was one of the hardest things he’d ever done. “You’re being totally ridiculous,” he said to himself as he drove down the long lane that led to the main road. As he drew closer to the gate that kept Kate’s property sealed off from the rest of the world, he stopped when he saw the road lined with satellite trucks and a horde of reporters.

“Shit.” He banged a U-turn and returned to Jill’s place. When he got to the door, he realized he’d locked it on the way out and uttered a curse. He pulled out his cell phone and called her, hoping the ringing phone would wake her.