Storm Warning (22 page)

Tory handed him the frame but he pushed it back. “It’s yours. There’s one more thing I need to give you.” Before she could respond he pulled out
a small black box and se
t it on the table
in front of her
.
Her heart jerked roughly in her chest. Her knees went weak, but she forced herself to stay upright.

“Gabe—”

“Just listen. When I first met you, I hardly knew what to do with you.”

“As I recall, you tossed me over your shoulder and carrie
d me like a brute to my room,” s
he said dryly and crossed her arms.

He smiled.

“Yeah, anyway.” He waved his hand dismissively. “You became very special to me very quickly. I
’ve
never felt that way before toward a woman and it didn’t sit well at first.”

“I don’t want to he
ar this, Gabe. I don’t need
to
,
”
s
he said frantically. “You should go. I’m not mad at you anymore and I’m sorry for falling apart earlier
,
but you don’t need to do this.”

His eyes hardene
d.
“Tory. Please, listen to me. I’m trying to tell you that I’m in love with you. And I want you to marry me.” He pulled her into his arms again and crushed his mouth to
hers. She shook in his arms. Gabe pulled back until he could see her face.

She closed
her eyes,
her breaths coming out in jerks. She would cry in a minute,
she
knew.

“Tory, tell me what’s wrong.”

“This can’t be real,” s
he managed to say.

Gabe kissed her again. This time, Tory kissed him back. He broke off and twisted around to grab the little black box. He flipped it op
en and the diamond ring sparkled
.

Her breath caught again while she stared at it.

“Gabe,” s
he whispered.

“I fell in love with you when I was walking back to the hotel after that
car wash
we did in Nebraska. You were sitting by the window.”

“I remember. Oh, Gabe. That was it for me too.”

Gabe smiled and took the ring out
,
then tossed the box back on the table.

“I should have asked you sooner. I’m thinking it’s better late than never though. Marry me, Tory.”

She wanted to say yes. God, she wanted that more than anything.

“Gabe, there’s still things we need to discuss.”

He
sc
owled. “That doesn’t sound like
yes, Gabe
.
I’ll marry you.”

“No, it doesn’t. But w
here would we live? What about—”

“Where do you want to live?”

“I’m pretty comfortable here. And I would hate to uproot Chaos.” She bit her lower lip. “I want to keep chasing. But not for the same reasons I did.”

Gabe grinned. “Done. We’ll
live here. We’ll chase in the s
ummer. I’ll have to drag you around the world a couple times a year, but if you can tolerate L.A. and Paris, we’ll be okay.”

A watery laugh escaped. “There’s more to—”

“Whatever it is, we’ll work it out together. Now say yes, Gabe. I’ll marry you.
”

Tory looked away while her emotions were
warring so fiercely inside her
. “I think I’ll make you suffer for a little longer.” She waited about five seconds then smiled. “Yes, Gabe. I’ll marry you.” The last word ended in a squeal as he hauled her up and spun her around.

  
  
A
uthor, Kadi Dillon was born and raised in a small town in Oklahoma. She comes from a big family who made following her dream
easy. As a writer, Kadi creates romance and romantic suspense stories with real and inspiring characters.
She still lives close to home with her husband and two boys.

Novellas by Kadi Dillon

Storm Warning (2011)

Have a Little Faith (2011)

Excerpt from
Have a Little Faith
by

Kadi Dillon

“You may not be able to comprehend this, Mr. Tanner, but some people work for what they have. I’ve worked very hard to keep this ranch and I’m not letting you take it without a fight.”

“Oh, I can comprehend,” he said silkily. “What I don’t understand is why in the hell you’re blaming me.”

“You had to call her and put it in her head.” Alex’s fingers dug into her arms as she hugged them.

“It’s my job.”

“Nothing personal?”
With her tone abruptly lighter, she turned around and dropped her arms.

Lane ignored the punch in his gut that he knew to be pure lust. That was something he would have to think about later.

“No, it’s nothing personal.” He raised a brow at the flash in her eyes.

“You’re an imprudent fool,” she hissed. “And that
is
personal.”

Pleased with her retort, Alex spun around to leave the room only to find her arm gripped in a vice-like hold before she was whirled around. She sucked in a breath and looked straight into the furious eyes of Lane Tanner.

“Now,” he said in a low, snarling voice, “it’s my turn to get personal.”

Her eyes widened in shock seconds before his mouth covered hers. Shock kept her from reacting. His lips were hot and firm as they bruised over hers. His arms wound around her back,
keeping her arms prisoner in between their bodies.

By the time she thought to protest, protest became an afterthought. His tongue forced her lips apart so that he could deepen the kiss. New sensations exploded behind Alex’s closed
eyelids
.

An unfamiliar burning spread throughout her entire body all the way down to her toes. Her knee’s nearly buckled, but Lane held her up while he assaulted her senses with his mouth alone.

Oh no, she thought dizzily. This shouldn’t feel so wonderful. Not from a man she was supposed to hate. She shouldn’t be coming to life in his arms. She shouldn’t be praying this kiss would never end. It’d been so long since she’d been held, cherished, devoured.
And even then…

He pulled her away so quickly it ripped another gasp from her and she stared into eyes that were almost black. All too quickly the quivering feelings in her body faded and desire became anxiety when he only continued to stare at her.

Fighting to keep his own needs in perspective, Lane held her at arm’s length. What did she do to him? Her taste had hit him like a freight train; sweet and pure. The desire he was beginning to feel for her was both unexpected and lethal. The nebulous feeling began to recede slowly as he brought air into his tortured lungs. His grip tightened on her arms when he noticed her breaths were coming out in jerks. Her eyes were no longer clouded with passion but glassy with panic.

“Alex.”

She jerked like a spring when he said her name. Puzzled, and not a little annoyed, Lane brought her closer to him wanting to soothe her.

“No,” she said fiercely. She put such conviction in that one word as if her life had depended on it.

“No?”

“Let me go. Don’t do this.” She was trembling now and hated herself for it.

For a moment, she had forgotten what a man’s hands could do when he was consumed by temper. She had a feeling she knew just what a man like this was capable of. And her fear had nothing to do with the physical this time. In a moment, he had unearthed feelings that she had never had before—never wanted to have again.

“It’s already been done, Alex.”

She jerked away. “You’re wrong.”

It infuriated him how she had gone from innocence to passionate to afraid in the blink of an eye. “I don’t like games.” His voice was low and deliberate.

“Game over, then.” She backed toward the door slowly as if waiting for him to spring. She backed up until she felt the wall at her back, then she turned and fled.

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