Page 62 of Beneath the Blue Moon

***Casey***

I’m not going anywhere. The words echo in my mind. I

don’t want him to go anywhere. I want him to stay right here… with me. Fun time

is over; this is serious business. I want him, and not just for the amazing

sex. I want him. I want this smart, kind, caring, jealous,

overprotective, domineering, beautiful man. He’s mine, and I’m not letting him

go. I tried to keep him at bay, from getting too close. Here I was trying to

prevent him from getting under my skin, not realizing he’s been there this entire

time.

“Oh, you two!” Clara shrieks as we walk through the door.

“Good morning, Clara.”

She comes rushing toward us, waving the newspaper, a huge

smile on her face.

“You made the society page! Named couple of the night!”

She shoves the paper at me, and I look down at my face

plastered across the page. A number also jumps out at me from the text below it.

I turn to him in utter shock.

“You paid $10,000 per plate?” I exclaim. He responds with a nonchalant

shrug. Yeah, it was no big deal. “We could have stayed home, and I would

have cooked for you… for free!”

“It was a fundraiser, sweetheart.”

Shaking my head, I continue reading. There’s a picture of us

on the front steps, another of us dancing, his forehead on mine, and one of us

kissing. I forget all about the ridiculous waste of money and smile as I tap

the kissing picture with my index finger.

“Number one.” Instead of being embarrassed, he smirks. I

smack his chest with the paper then turn back to Clara. “Where’s Daddy?”

“Out back having his coffee.”

“Okay. I’m gonna change. Stay for breakfast, Sheriff?”

“Okay.”

A change of clothes, a change of attitude, and I’m ready to

face the day. Laughter floats through the house as I make my way to the

kitchen. Clara, Daddy, and Ethan are sitting around the table, eating and

joking around.

“What’s so funny?”

“Your dad’s been telling us stories,” Ethan replies.

“Stories? Not about me, I hope.”

“Not all of them, moonbeam.”

“Daddy… No embarrassing stories.”

“They’ve been cute, not embarrassing at all,” Ethan says

with a playful smile.

“You just wait, Ethan. I’m sure I’ll get my share of stories

pretty soon.”

“I have no embarrassing stories, so you’ll be sorely

disappointed.”

“We’ll see.”

“You know what we should do?” Clara asks. We all turn to her

expectantly. “We should all go to church.”

“That’s a good idea, Clara. Some of us really need

Jesus.”

Ethan laughs as I shoot him a pointed look.

“It’s an excellent idea, Clara,” he says. “I’ll get ready

and then pick you all up.”

With a proud smile, Clara begins to clear the table. While

walking Ethan to his truck, he takes my hand. The contact sends my heart racing,

but not in a sexual way. It’s a first love, giddy, giggly sort of feeling… and

I like it. When he climbs into the truck, I stand on the step bar and kiss his

cheek.

“Are you buttering me up so I don’t ask your father for any

more stories?”

“What did he tell you?”

“Just about your obsession with the moon.”

“Oh, if you want stories, I’ve got a few that are way more

interesting.”

“Yeah?” He raises a brow. “Like what?”

I hop onto his lap and curl my arms around his neck. “Like this

one time, I made a girl eat me out.”

He gapes at me, his expression a mix of surprise and

interest.

“Seriously?”

“Seriously. It was kinda weird, though. I closed my eyes and

imagined it was… Never mind.”

“Who were you imagining?” he prods.

“It doesn’t matter.”

“As long as you don’t imagine him when we’re together.”

“Hell no! It’s all about you, baby. Especially when you do

that thing—”

“This is not an ideal pre-church conversation,” he cuts me

off.

“You’re right. I guess we both need Jesus.”

“I guess we do. I’ll be right back.”

“Hurry.”