Silver Bracelets: A Loveswept Contemporary Classic Romance (17 page)

“Jeanie?”

“Yes, she called this morning. She and Mike are on their way to Arizona, where his family lives.”

“How is she?”

“She seems very happy. She’s going to have a baby.”

“Oh?” Sarah felt her breath quicken. Asa had been outspoken about not having children. He didn’t seem to want close friends, or family either. He was so afraid that something might come between the two of them. Sarah was worried. She’d suspected the truth for several weeks before she’d learned that in spite of their best efforts, she was pregnant.

“Mike is beside himself,” Asa was saying. “He’s even agreed to take a job with his father’s company, and Jeanie is going to retire for a while. I never thought any of that would happen.”

They dragged the tree to the barn and lowered the grate. Sarah ran upstairs to guide the tree into the loft as Asa operated the
pulley. After several false starts they changed positions. Finally the tree was inside the loft and Asa secured it to the floor with two-by-fours and guy wires.

“There,” he said. “But I don’t know how you expect to decorate it. We’ll have to use a stepladder.”

“Probably,” she agreed. “But after it’s done, we’ll open the doors and just think how beautiful it will look to anyone passing by. It fills the space as if it was meant to be here.”

“Just like me,” Asa said. “There was no room for me anywhere until you took me in.”

“Shall we decorate it tonight?”

“Later,” Asa said, in a low voice. “Right now I need you to love me, Sarah. I need to feel you around me, to be the other part of me.”

“Oh, Asa, I am. I’ll always be a part of you.”

Every time they’d made love in the three months they’d been married, Sarah had marveled at the wonder of Asa’s need for her. Instead of lessening, it grew. Instead of reaching a saturation point, it seemed that every glance, every look, every touch made them more aware of this wonderful thing that existed between them.

It was very late when they pulled on their robes and finally finished placing the last ornament on the tree. “All we need now,” Asa said with satisfaction, “is the star. Where is it, Sarah?”

Sarah glanced around and frowned. “I was sure that I put it with the other things when
I took the tree down last year. But it isn’t here, is it?”

After they turned the loft upside down they finally found it, in a shopping bag with wrapping paper and ribbons.

They added the star and placed the gifts beneath the tree. Like a child, Asa picked them up and shook them, guessing the contents of each one.

“Can’t we open one?”

“You already talked me into waiting until the day before Christmas to put up the tree,” Sarah admonished. “But there’ll be no peeking at the presents until tomorrow morning. What would Santa Claus think if there were no gifts under the tree?”

“Santa doesn’t need to come, Sarah. I already have everything I’ll ever want.”

He was so sweet that Sarah couldn’t resist. “All right. You can open this one very small package.” She pulled out a tiny box, wrapped in red paper and tied with gold ribbon.

“And you open this one.” Asa’s gift to her was wrapped in green paper with a silver ribbon.

“I want you to know,” Sarah said, “that this is the beginning of a tradition that I expect to last for fifty years.”

Asa heard a catch in Sarah’s voice, happiness welling inside him. He didn’t intend to disappoint her. He ripped the paper off and removed the top of the square white box. Inside was a small wooden Christmas ornament. He lifted it out. “A cradle?”

“Yes. Now let me open my gift.” Sarah hurriedly pulled the wrappings off and let out a cry of joy. “Bracelets. Silver bracelets.” She slid them on one wrist and pressed them against her face. “They’re lovely, Asa.”

“They’re much more than bracelets, Sarah. They’re a symbol of what we mean to each other. They’re meant to say that you’re a treasure more valuable than I can ever say.”

“Oh, Asa, that’s so lovely. My gift must seem plain in comparison, but it’s symbolic, too.”

“I don’t understand.”

“Asa, you’ve given me a child. I know that we didn’t plan to have children, and I know how you feel about sharing me. But nothing in this world will ever come between us. There’s enough love in my heart for you and our child. I am so happy. I hope that you’ll be happy, too.”

“A child? You’re going to have our child?” The thought took Asa’s breath away. He could only stare at her in wonder. She was right. He’d been afraid to think about bringing a new life into the world. He hadn’t been certain that he could stand up to the responsibility. But now that it was happening, he realized it was wonderful.

A child. His and Sarah’s child, born of their love. There was a lump in his throat as he tried to speak. “It’s fine, Sarah. It will be a new beginning.”

He took her arm and touched the bracelets. “Our child will link us forever. And these silver
bracelets are a promise to you that my love will never end.”

Asa stood up and pulled Sarah to her feet. He added the cradle to the tree, just below the star. Sarah turned off the lights in the room as Asa opened the loft doors wide. Together they watched the beauty of their first Christmas tree send its magic across the barnyard and the pasture beyond.

A church bell pealed.

“It’s Christmas Day,” Sarah said.

Asa slipped his arms around her, pulling her back against his chest while his hands cupped her stomach. “Merry Christmas, dear Sarah.”

The silver bracelets clinked, sending out a soft melody as she placed her hands on his. “Oh, yes,” she whispered. “Oh yes.”

THE EDITOR’S CORNER

Welcome to Loveswept!

I truly believe that one of the best things in life is spending long, leisurely days curled up with a book. Whether it’s a novel of erotic discovery and hidden desire like Stacey Kane’s scorching e-original
CLAIMED
, a sizzling small town romance like Elisabeth Barrett’s fourth e-original Star Harbor book,
SLOW SUMMER BURN
, or an electrifying story featuring hockey hunks like Toni Aleo’s contemporary e-original
BLUE LINES
 … it’s a wonderful feeling to be transported to a new and exciting world … especially one filled with sexy heroes and vibrant heroines. Pick up these reads and lose yourself in romance and love.

And for more wonderful reads, don’t miss:

Sandra Chastain’s
SURRENDER THE SHADOW —
an enthralling classic of secrets and suspense; Katie Rose’s charming historical romance,
COURTING TROUBLE
— where an attorney and a determined suffragette butt heads; Adrienne Staff and Sally Goldbaum’s
CRESCENDO
— a sparkling story about a princely society man and his everyday princess; Iris Johansen’s blazing
YORK, THE RENEGADE —
where passion takes a man and woman on a wild ride in a rough-and-tumble mining town; and Ruth Owen’s
BODY HEAT
— an alluring tale of love, betrayal and murder.

If you love romance … then you’re ready to be
Loveswept
!

Gina Wachtel
Associate Publisher

P.S. Watch for these terrific Loveswept titles coming soon: September arrives with more timeless stories for you — Three enticing stories from Sandra Chastain,
THE JUDGE AND THE GYPSY
,
FIREBRAND
, and
THE LAST DANCE
, beloved author Iris Johansen’s
THE DELANEY’S OF KILLAROO
, Fran Baker’s enchanting
SEEING STARS
, Julie Ortolon’s irresistible
DRIVE ME WILD
as well as three original stories: another fantastic installment from Ruthie Knox’s
ROMAN HOLIDAY
serialized novel, Lauren Layne’s seductive
AFTER THE KISS
, and Mira Lyn Kelly’s sexy and sweet
TRUTH OR DARE
. October has more e-originals in store: Maggie McGinnis’s brilliant
THE ACCIDENTAL COWGIRL
, Megan Frampton’s sweltering
WHAT NOT TO BARE
, and Katie Rose’s delightful
MISTLETOE AND MAGIC
, as well as some wonderful reissues: Connie Brockway’s dazzling stories,
DANGEROUS MAN
and
MY DEAREST ENERMY
, Ellen Fisher’s memorable
THE LIGHT IN THE DARKNESS
, Ruth Owen’s riveting works,
SMOOTH OPERATOR
and
SOMEONE TO WATCH OVER ME
, Iris Johansen’s delicious
ACROSS THE RIVER OF YESTERDAY
, and three breathtaking books from Sandra Chastain,
THE MORNING AFTER
,
FOR LOVE OF LACEY
, and
GABRIEL’S OUTLAW
. Don’t miss any of these extraordinary reads. I promise that you’ll fall in love and treasure these stories for years to come.…

Read on for excerpts from more
Loveswept
titles …

Read on for an excerpt from Toni Aleo’s

Trying to Score

Prologue

Fallon Parker had done it.

Even with all the negativity from her parents and sister about leaving Nashville to go to school out west, she had done it. Fallon had completed her first year at Stanford University. Yeah, she had gained the dreaded freshmen fifteen, but it didn’t matter.

She had done it.

Without anyone’s help—not her parents, her sister, her friends—she had kept her 4.0 grade point average.

On cloud nine, Fallon jumped into her Charger and drove down to San Jose to meet her friends. They were all going out to celebrate and she couldn’t be more excited about the fake ID in her purse. Fallon had been such a good girl her freshman year, but now she was a sophomore and she was gonna live this summer. Fallon was on a mission.

Get drunk, find a guy, and hook up. Maybe not sex, but at least make out some. It was simple really, and Allison, her roommate, had said that the Trails Pub was the place to do all three.

After parking her car beside Allison’s, Fallon headed inside.

“ID please,” said a big black man standing as high as a giant who, according to his nametag, was Pinky. Fallon had no clue what was so pinky about him, but she had learned quickly that in California, ya kinda just go with it. Fallon smiled nervously as she opened her clutch and pulled out the ID she had made. “Thanks Amanda, have a nice night,” Pinky said with a grin as he handed her the ID.

Fallon looked confused but then remembered her name was Amanda on the ID. “Why thank you so much, have a nice night yourself.”

Pinky smiled again as Fallon made her way into the bar. She spotted Allison with Hannah and Kristin, the girls from the dorm room across the hall from hers, at a corner booth by the bar and she made her way to them with a big grin on her face.

The Trails Pub was packed wall to wall with every type of person imaginable. As Fallon made her way toward her friends, she noticed guys glancing her way with appreciative looks on their faces. She smiled confidently, knowing the short jean skirt and dark red tank that matched her boots was a great combination for man-catching.

“Damn Fal, looking good!” Allison said when Fallon reached their table. Hannah and Kristin smiled and waved as Fallon sat down. They weren’t used to sexy Fallon. The Fallon they knew walked around campus in sweats all of the time.

That was freshmen Fallon, sophomore Fallon was sexy.

“Thank you, thank you,” Fallon gushed as she looked around the bar.

“A round of tequila, Teagan!”

The bartender smiled over at the girls before very efficiently pouring four shots and handing the drinks to a waitress. As the waitress set each shot on the table, the girls picked them up, bringing the glasses to the middle for a toast.

“Here’s to the first of four years done!” Allison exclaimed as all three girls joined in with her, clanking their glasses together and taking the shot quickly.

It burned down Fallon’s throat. She wasn’t sure what the awful liquid was, but Lord it was
disgusting.
Fallon looked off to the side, seeing that there were some good looking men in the bar that night. Fallon was giddy with excitement at trying to pick one up she was so used to keeping to herself over the past year and was ready to branch out.

As Fallon’s eyes skimmed the bar, they met with a pair of smoking gray ones. Fallon blinked twice as her eyes were held hostage by his. He was gorgeous. Shaggy dark brown hair framed his face, and his nose was wide but fit his face perfectly. His lips were thin, she noticed as he brought his bottom lip in between his teeth. He had a very ‘boy next door’ kind of look to him but with an edge. A dangerous edge, Fallon decided as he slowly stood. He was tall with big arms, one covered in tribal tattoos, the other bare. His eyes never left hers as he went around the bar, away from the table of equally huge guys, to lean against the bar as he watched her.

He was just staring at her like he didn’t care who noticed or if it was rude. It was as if he saw what he wanted and he was waiting to pounce. It was the craziest thing ever!

“Jeez, that dude is staring at you hard Fal,” Hannah said.

“Like really hard,” Kristin said.