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Chapter Twenty-Three

Blaze

I refuse to ruin this shower, torturing myself over things I’m not smart enough to figure out. For example, why didn’t I press her more when she said she had feelings? Why didn’t I beg her to stay? Why the hell did I offer her the alternative of stupid, boring Nathan?

I should have been more honest about how much I love her. How long I’ve loved her for.

Would it have made a difference?

I never should have said goodbye. But that would have been selfish. Tearing her away from the classroom of kids she was so eager to advance with? Her best friend? The only city she’s ever known?

I squeeze a massive amount of slippery pearl-colored body wash into my palm and cup it around my cock. The only thing that’s going to clear my mind is a good, hard orgasm. As I stroke my shaft, all I can think of is her. Flashes of her breasts, her belly, her ass invade my mind. I hear the memory of her sighs, her pleading, begging me to make her come.

It's not working. I’m desperate for the real thing. I rinse off, dry, and dress, dragging myself through the motions.

I head to the café, hoping coffee will lift my desperate mood. I slept none, tossing and turning without her in my arms. I tried to watch a movie to cheer me up, but it only made me miss her more.

As I leave the house, I see that the guys are finishing up with a project in the yard that I previously commissioned. Seeing the final product makes a rock settle in my stomach and an emptiness burn in my chest. I was a fool.

I’ll have them take it down tomorrow.

A woman bumps hips with me at the counter. I glance over, unsure who she is. She smiles at me and says, “How about that coffee date? Is now a good time?”

“No.” I look away, grabbing my cup from the counter. “And I don’t think we’ll be having that coffee. Ever.”

She briefly hovers in shock before saying, “Oh. Um. Okay,” and scurries off.

Shit. I shouldn’t have passed my pain around like that. But maybe it’s a good thing. The sooner word gets out I’m an angry grump who despises women, the better. There’s only one girl in this world whose attention I crave.

And she’s gone.

I slouch down into a seat at an open table. I end up stirring the cream into the coffee for about five minutes before I realize what I’m doing. I sip the strongly caffeinated beverage, but it does nothing to help. I’ve lost Cleo, my drug of choice, and nothing can replace her.

A sweet voice interrupts my sadness. “Hey there.”

I look up.

Cleopatra stands in front of me, dressed in the same white lace dress she wore that day at my brother’s wedding. The light from the café window illuminates her like an angel.

I can’t believe it. It can’t be her…

I didn’t know depression could cause hallucinations, but here we are.

Then she speaks.

“Did you leave this for me?” She hands me a slip of paper.

I’m still in shock, unsure she’s really here in the flesh. Lack of sleep and too much caffeine aren’t helping, and I don’t say anything or even greet her. I take the note, opening it with shaky fingers.

I’m staring down at my own handwriting.

When I’m with you, I become the version of myself I never knew existed until you—the man I want to be.

When I’m with you, I’m home.

Please, come home.

It’s the note I left at the bottom of her suitcase. The one I almost didn’t write. I fold it in half, handing it back to her. “It felt…important to say. ”

“I know exactly what you mean, about being home.” Leaning down, she grabs my hands. Her knees brush mine. Her skin is warm. Her touch brings me out of my dazed state. She’s really here. And she says, “You’re my home, too.” Her words make everything suddenly right in the world. She tugs at me, gesturing for me to stand. “When I was here with you, I was happier than ever.”

“Same.” Tears fill my eyes as I rise from the chair. I wrap my arms around her, bringing her close and burying my face in her hair, inhaling her smell, her warmth. “God. I’ve missed you, Cleopatra.”

“I missed you, too,” she whispers against my chest. “We’re silly, though. It’s barely been a few days.”

“A few days of separation is a century when you love someone,” I say.

She stares up at me, beaming. “You love me?”

“Yeah. I do,” I confess. “Have for a while now.”

“For how long?” she demands. “Tell me.”

My stomach knots with nerves. Can I fess up to how long it’s been?

A fucking phone better not go off this time.

“I’ve loved you for a really, really long time.” Instantly, I feel like a burden has been lifted. It feels so good to tell her. I stare down at her, bringing my love into the open. “I was always attracted to you, but then we were apart. We grew up. Then, that day in the back of the church?—”

“Haze’s wedding. ”

“Yes,” I say. “Not a day went by after that wedding that I didn’t think about you.”

“There was this one time, I kinda knew there might be something between us.” She glances at the floor.

“When was that?”

“When you told me you hadn’t given anyone the tour of your house yet. That you were waiting…kinda felt like we were already family. But not the taboo kind. The good kind.”

She’s too shy to say it, so I cup her chin, tilt her gaze to meet mine, and say it again. “You. I love you.”

She gives a little shiver, “And I…well…getting to know you in Italy, seeing how you live your life, getting to know the man you’ve become, I kinda fell for you, too.” She holds my gaze. “I love you, Blaze.”

It feels so good to hear her say those words. I need to hear them again to be sure this is real, that she’s here, that she loves me. I brush my thumb over her chin as I cup her face. “Say it again.”

“I love you, too.” She beams that warms the center of my chest. “I was just too scared of getting hurt again.”

“Come here.” I guide her lips closer to mine and whisper my promise, “I’ll never hurt you.”

And I kiss her.

I want this embrace never to end, and I never want to let her go. But there’s something I need to ask and something she needs to see .

“Come with me, I want to show you something.”

As we stroll on the path towards the house, I ask her, “What about work? You were so excited to go back.”

She shrugs. “We’ll figure it out. My kids made me happy, but not as happy as I was miserable without you.” She crinkles her nose up at me. “Does that make sense?”

“Perfect sense.”

We head directly to the house. Our house. The exterior is still messy, but a new, freshly painted white picket fence lines the front yard.

“I love it!” She stares over the yard, smiling. “When did you do this?”

“Recently. I just thought you were a white picket fence kinda girl.”

“So did I.” She turns to me, flinging her arms around my neck. She looks up at me, laughter twinkling in her pretty eyes. “But I’m not.”

I slip my arms around her waist, holding her against me as I stare down at her, memorizing that adorable face I’ve missed so much. “What are you then?”

“It turns out I crave the forbidden fruit. I’m a Blaze Bachman kinda girl.” She peers at me inquisitively. “The question is, are you a white picket fence kinda guy?”

“Hell yes. I’m a white picket fence. 2.0 kiddos running through the yard. And maybe even a dog. But not a Maltese.”

See yourself to the door, Nathan .

She eyes me. “Why not a Maltese?”

“No reason,” I say. “How about a lab. Or a hound.”

“Or a rescue?” she offers.

“Yeah.” I nod. “I like that.”

“We can have whatever dog you want.” She beams up at me, stroking the back of my neck with the tips of her fingers in a way that makes me feel it down in my stomach. “As long as we’re together.”

I stare down at her, happier than I’ve ever been. “You are my happily ever after.”

“Blaze.” She says my name with such emotion that I have to lean down and kiss her.

Again. And again.

A clearing of a throat, a loud whoop, and a ‘whoa there sonny,’ pierce the air simultaneously. The surprise sound interrupts my kiss, giving me a start. Pulling away, I peer down at her. “I thought we were alone.”

“I hope you don’t mind.” She giggles as she glances over her shoulder. “I brought a few friends. Well, family.”

I follow her gaze towards the overgrown bushes along the side of the house, seeing several half-hidden familiar faces. “So I’m guessing they know…we’ve been hooking up?”

“I kind of let it slip when I told them all I was coming back to Italy to tell you I couldn’t live without you.”

Her words fill my chest with a warm softness. “You couldn’t live without me? ”

“Nope.” She stares up at me, smiling, and the look in her eyes has me melting. “Not another day.”

Ma and Falcon are standing together, Falcon’s arm around Ma, and Haze. Silly lovestruck looks are plastered on their faces. Even Haze’s.

“They’ve got pretty good timing,” I say. “I’m glad they’re here for what comes next.”

She gives me a curious look. “Which is?”

I slip my hand into my pocket, pulling out a simple gold band holding a massive diamond. I hold it up to her. “Will you be my happily ever after, forever?”

She stares at the diamond in shock. It sparkles as the sunlight hits it. “Where did you get that?”

“My pocket.” It’s been in my pocket every day since she arrived. I don’t know why I slipped in there this morning, but I did. I don’t tell her I bought it the morning after my brother’s wedding, meandering down to the family's luxury jewelry store, where I picked out the perfect ring for her. That’s a secret I’ll keep to myself.

My heart pounds in my ears. I need her answer. Now. “Marry me?”

“Oh my…Oh…my!” She stares down at the ring, momentarily stunned before immediately holding out her left hand, offering me her ring finger. “Yes! Of course. Yes.”

I slip the ring on. “Perfect fit,” I say.

“Just like us.” She stares down at the diamond glittering from her hand, then glances back up at me. “Thank you. This is the most beautiful ring I’ve seen. Kiss me again. ”

This time, instead of hollering at us from behind the bushes as we embrace, the family joins us, pulling us into a tangle of arms and faces for a congratulatory group hug. After squeezing us tightly, they break away for individual hugs and well wishes.

“Celebratory drinks at the café?” I call to the group.

They agree, and my fiancée and I bring up the rear, following the cheerful group to the café with her hand in mine, the cool metal of her ring pressing against my skin, reminding me how lucky I am.

I squeeze her fingers and lean down. “The real reason for drinks at the café is that I want everyone here to know you are officially mine. Word spreads fast here on the Estate. And the bachelor brothers with the wandering eyes will know this little lady is officially taken.”

“You’re silly,” she blushes. “No one was ever looking at me.”

She still doesn’t know how beautiful she is but now I’ve got the rest of my life to show her.

She whispers back to me, “I was so worried, thinking everyone was going to be positively scandalized by our getting together.”

“What? You? Worried about what others might think?” I raise my brows in mock surprise.

“Ha. Ha. I had good reason. It’s not every day stepsiblings get together.”

“Let them talk because all of Italy is going to be watching these two siblings get married. ”

“Step-sibling—” she goes to correct me, but stops. “You know what,” she shakes her head, laughing lightly. “It doesn’t matter anymore. Let’s just say we’re fiancés from now on.”

“Husband and wife.”

Her adorable nose crinkles. “And when people ask who our in-laws are? We’ve only got my dad and your mom.”

“It doesn’t matter,” I say. “We’re family. And our family will be forever.”

The End

Don’t worry, you’ll be attending Blaze and Cleo’s wedding in the next book. Ready for your next taboo read… Vows in Sin