Everything But Perfect (17 page)

“I did not break you,” she said,
touching his face.

When he trapped her fingers to
his cheek and gave her the sweetest smile ever, Cheyanne’s eyes spilled fresh
tears.

“I won’t be your trophy…put on a
shelf and forgotten unless it suits you to remember me,” she said quickly, the
words burning a hole through her tongue.

“And I won’t be your pawn used to
make other men jealous. Please, don’t ever do that to me again.”

“You never were a pawn, Mitch.”

His smile faltered only slightly.
“I know that…now. It took a bit of pride lowering to figure it out, but I now
know what we had wasn’t a game, but a test.”

The final call for Borneo came
over the loudspeaker. Cheyanne shut out the sounds in the airport,
concentrating only on the man holding her hand. “Why did you buy a ticket to
Borneo, Mitch?”

“I bought a ticket in case I had
to follow you to the other side of the world to convince you that I love you.”

She glanced at the carryon near
his foot. “And a change of clothes, just in case?”

Mitch looked at the bag then
smiled. “Only silk boxers and a smile, sweetheart. It’s all I’ll ever need.”

“That certain of this, Mr.
Lavede?”

He gathered her into his arms,
his mouth finding hers. “That certain, Mrs. Lavede,” he promised against her lips.

She gently pushed him back. Love
did not just fall out of the sky. You had to earn it. Even though her heart was
bursting, she had to make sure he wasn’t just saying he loved her because of
the baby.

“What about the baby?”

“What about it?” he asked, brows
arched.

“It’s not my fault, you know,”
she said quickly.

“I know. It’s all mine.”

“You’re the one who did not use
protection.”

“I know.”

“I didn’t know what…”

Mocha eyes turned smoky black,
staring at her face. “Cheyanne, just shut up and kiss me, then tell me you’ll
marry me.”

She clamped her lips shut,
smiled, and then leaned toward him. “Telling me what to do, Mr. Lavede?”

Mitch laughed. “Never, Mrs. Lavede.
I’ve learned my lesson. A vixen can’t be tamed.”

“What made you think one could?”

His laugh grew louder. “I have no
idea, but you definitely are a feisty one.”

“I’m not feisty,” she balked.

All he had to do was raise his
brow to correct this lie.

“You are so damn feisty, you’re
going to be good for my soul.”

“Well, if that’s the case…”

“Yes, or no, Mrs. Lavede?”

She gave him a soft smile. “It’s
a yes, Mr. Lavede. I will marry you for real.”

The
End