Sweet Alibi (49 page)

“My plans are working, then.”

“They always do.”

“Not as often as I’d like.” He smacked my ass.
 

“Twice a day not enough for you?” I rolled my eyes.
 

“Don’t get smart with me.” He grabbed my chin and pulled my lips to his, capturing me in a rough kiss. He was taking possession, proving my body was his, but he didn’t need to, because I already knew it and was a willing participant. I’d always been unable to resist his charms, and he used that against me on a daily basis.
 

I crawled up his body and straddled his hips, my hands cupping his face, my dark hair curtaining around us as we devoured each other. Tasting and licking, moaning and sucking.
 

“Christ, you’re going to kill me.” He dashed forward and snagged my bottom lip between his teeth and bit almost painfully. I giggled and fell back on the bed. His strong arms caged me in as his eyes sparkled with mischief and desire.
 

He was beautiful.
 

And always so playful.
 

It was what had me falling so hard from the beginning, the piece of him that had brought the light back to my life. He was my light in the darkness.
 

“Death by sex; you’d love it.” I indulged in one long kiss before pushing him off me.
 

“I can think of no better time to die, than buried deep inside you.” His lips turned up in a cocky smirk.
 

“Tristan.” My mouth dropped open in shock. “You can’t say stuff like that.” I turned and headed for the en suite bathroom.
 

“Why? Does it make you wet?” His eyes were still doing that delicious sparkling thing I loved so much.
 

“Oh my God.” I rolled my eyes. “I’m taking a shower.”

“Can I come too?” He looked at me with the most endearing puppy dog eyes.
 

“You’re ridiculous.” I grinned. “No funny stuff.” I pointed at him. His eyes lit up as he darted off the bed and lunged for me. I shrieked and made it into the bathroom before his arms locked around my waist.
 

“A shower without funny stuff doesn’t sound like fun.” He nipped at my earlobe.
 

“I mean it. The caterer’s going to be here in an hour to set up. Hopefully it’s not too windy out there today. If we fuck this up because of your overactive libido, Silas will kill both of us.”

“My overactive libido? I’d argue that it’s both of us.” His lips were still attached to my earlobe as his hands were skimming across my body.

“Whatever, you horn dog. Shower?” I pushed him off me.
 

His eyes twinkled and a flirty grin lifted his lips. “Shower.” He nodded, then stepped into the shower and began adjusting the water temperature. Not only did he have the body of a Greek fucking god, but his smile, his eyes, and his laugh lit my life. I’d made some poor decisions last summer, but I was just thankful I’d ended up on the right path, the path that had brought me right here, with him.
 

* * *

We sat at a round white linen-covered table on the beach, nestled in a nook among the sloping dunes between my rental house and Tristan’s. Silas and Justin faced the roaring ocean waves, and we sat around them, celebrating their union. After Silas and Justin had gotten married this spring, I’d begged them to let me throw a reception. Silas had refused at every point, but I’d finally worn him down.
 

The early May temperatures were ideal; the slightest breeze blew and rustled the dune grass. The weather wasn’t too hot or humid, and everything was perfect for our small gathering. Drew sat beside me, beautiful and glowing in a plum maternity dress. She was as big as a house and never stopped complaining about it, but Gavin doted on her, and took her bitchy attitude with a grain of salt. In fact, he was looking at her with as much love in his eyes as he’d had when they’d broken the news to us eight months ago. She was due at the end of this month, just over three weeks to go, and while she wasn’t supposed to be traveling so far from home and her doctor, she’d refused to miss this. Deep down she loved Silas; she just didn’t like to admit it.
 

Gavin sat next to her, a heavy arm wrapped around her shoulders, caressing the bare skin of her arm. She turned and laughed at something he said and then pecked him on the lips. I could see happiness dancing in their eyes, and the only thing that made me sad was that they lived so far away.
 

Justin’s parents sat beside Justin. They looked just like him and were so sweet and supportive. Silas had married into a loving family and I couldn’t have been happier. He’d never had that; I’d been his only family for so long. He deserved to know what love and acceptance felt like. Justin’s parents were also happy because Silas and Justin had set up their permanent residence near them. I was overjoyed that Silas would be less than a half hour from me. Life was finally falling into place.

“A toast to the beautiful couple.” Tristan raised his glass and everyone followed suit. “I would, without a doubt, be wildly jealous of another man cuddling with my girl on the couch watching sappy chick flicks, but thankfully, Silas likes boys, so as long as I don't have to watch those movies with her . . .” I trailed off as I winked at Georgia. She rolled her eyes back at me. “In all seriousness, Justin and Silas, you both deserve all the happiness in the world. Everyone deserves to find their other half, and I know both of you will cherish the love you've found for a lifetime.” I paused as soft clapping sounded around the table. “And a toast to the beautiful hostess. The last year has been the best of my life because you’ve been in it, Georgia. We didn’t always do things in a conventional way, and our love didn’t take a natural path, but it took the one it needed to take, and I’m just glad that my path led me here with you.” He stood and I raised my eyes at him in question. He pulled my chair out to face him before he dropped down on one knee and reached into the pocket of his dress pants.
 

“The last year you’ve made me so much happier than I could have ever imagined being. You bring light to my life in a way I never thought possible. I want to spend my life with you, wake up to you, fall asleep with you, fall asleep
in
you,” he murmured the last part under his breath. My cheeks flushed as a smile tugged at my lips. “I want to give you everything, experience everything with you. I want babies and minivans and family vacations and Christmases. I want to spend my life giving you everything you deserve. Will you spend yours with me?” Emotion swirled in his deep green orbs and I forgot to breathe. Once again, he took my breath away. He kept me on my toes and had me smiling and laughing more than anyone ever had. I loved every minute of it and I loved my life with him.

I nodded and sucked in a sharp breath. Mist fogged my vision. I laughed nervously, trying to hold back the tears.

“Will you marry me, Georgia?”

“Yes.” I nodded and lunged into his arms. He locked me in his embrace and held me so tightly I could barely breathe. He consumed me. I inhaled his scent and my eyes fluttered closed. I was as happy as I’d ever been.
 

“Let me get this ring on your finger.” Tristan pulled away and slipped a large cushion-cut diamond with pave diamonds surrounding the center and the sides on my finger. It was stunning. He’d chosen a ring that left me breathless, just like he did, every day.

Cheers and claps from our little group erupted.
 

“A toast for the newly engaged couple,” Justin sang as he lifted his glass. Everyone toasted around us. Tristan stood and lifted me with him. I was too scared to let go of him. Too scared that this couldn’t be real, couldn’t be my life.
 

“I’m so happy for you, love.” Silas leaned over and planted a kiss on my cheek when I sat down.

“Did you know?” My teary eyes searched my best friend’s.
 

He nodded with a small smile. “He asked me.”
 

My heart cracked and love filled it even further. Tristan had asked Silas if he could marry me. I couldn’t even put into words how much that meant to me. My parents had been stolen from me and Silas was the only family I’d had for a long time. Tristan knew and respected that. The gesture alone clearly showed the love he had for me. How much he
got
me.
 

“You deserve beautiful, love.” Silas pulled my head into him, our foreheads pressed together and tears falling down my cheeks.
 

“You do too,” I murmured.
 

“I’ve got it,” he whispered and pecked me on the lips.
 

“I love you, Silas.”

“I love you too.” He kissed me on the tip of the nose before pulling away. I swallowed the lump in my throat and then turned back to Tristan. The love pooling in his eyes made me smile. He rested a warm hand on my thigh and squeezed. A little gesture to let me know he knew and understood. A sign that the love he had for me was even more than I had imagined. From the moment we’d met, our paths had been leading us here, regardless of what we'd wanted. It’d been inevitable.
 

“I love you,” I whispered.
 

“I love you so much more.” He snagged my chin and planted a kiss on my lips. A grin broke out across my face as I shut my eyes.
 

“Thank you.” I meant for everything. For putting up with all we’d been through last summer and the indecision that had me torn every which way. For taking me back, for loving me, for asking me to marry him, for accepting me, for accepting my friends. For all of it.
 

“No problem,” he whispered as his lips lifted in a breathtaking smile.

Fifty-Five

Georgia

“I’ve got an appointment. Do you want me to pick anything up for dinner?”

“What kind of appointment?” Tristan’s eyebrows knit together. He sat in his office chair, laptop open before him, fingers hovering over the keys.
 

“Therapy.”

“Yeah?” He pushed the chair away from his desk and held his arms open. “Come here.”

I stepped up to him and he wrapped his arms around my waist, fingers tracing small circles at the base of my spine. I threaded my fingers through his tousled hair; I think it soothed me as much as it helped to soothe him. “I did some research into alternative therapies. I’ve seen a therapist before, but it never really seemed to help much. There’s a guy at the University of North Carolina who practices a new type of therapy, focusing less on feelings and more on happy memories, accepting the past to live in the present. My appointment’s at one,” I finished softly.
 

“That’s great, baby,” he murmured before he lifted the hem of my shirt and placed a soft kiss on my belly.
 

“I’m excited. I just . . . need to do something. After last summer, I . . . I need to stop being tied to the past. I need to find a better way to live,” I murmured.
 

“Anything I can do?” His beautiful green eyes turned up to me.
 

“Whatever you’ve been doing is perfect.” I leaned down and pressed my lips to his in a kiss. He groaned and pulled me into his lap, my legs dangling over his knees. He traced his hands up under the hem of my shirt and up the length of my spine.
 

“Sure you don’t have five minutes?” he murmured before swiping one palm around the front of my ribcage and palming my breast through my bra.
 

“You’re a five-minute man now?” I teased while nipping his bottom lip.
 

“I can make it work,” he growled and tugged the cup of my bra down to take my nipple between his thumb and finger. He pulled and I arched into his body with a moan.
 

“Have to go,” I breathed as my eyes fluttered closed.
 

“Five minutes.” He lifted my shirt and dipped his head under the thin cotton to attach his lips to my nipple. He sucked and pulled on the pebbled peak until my blood was rushing through my veins and my core was wet with desire.
 

“Mmm, Tristan,” I moaned as his other hand popped the button of my jeans and snaked inside my panties.
 

“You’re so fucking wet, baby,” he murmured before his lips attached to my other nipple and his long fingers caressed my aching center. He ran a finger between my lips and stroked between my thighs slowly, driving me to the brink of frustration. My heart thudded as I rocked my hips into him.
 

“I have to go,” I moaned with no meaning whatsoever.
 

“Let me get you off.”

“Tristan,” I whimpered.

“I’m doing my part to relax you,” he said before two fingers plunged into me. I sucked in a sharp breath and bit my lip between my teeth. “Let me hear you.” He pumped his fingers in and out, hooking them to reach that delicious spot just inside.
 

“Fuck . . .” I moaned as he thrust and my hips worked back and forth on his palm.
 

“Love that dirty mouth, beautiful.” He added a third finger and his thumb worked deliciously slow circles over my clit. Pleasure built between my thighs and my mind swam in a haze of lust-filled confusion. I rocked my hips into him, grinding my pelvis, seeking more. More everything. More friction. More pleasure. More him. My brain was chasing the orgasm that loomed seconds away.