Series: Shame On You Series by Willow Winters
Total pages in book: 55
Estimated words: 51495 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 257(@200wpm)___ 206(@250wpm)___ 172(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 51495 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 257(@200wpm)___ 206(@250wpm)___ 172(@300wpm)
My heart pounds as the pleasure intensifies with each stroke. With an arm bracing her, holding her close to me, I make love to her. Deeply and fully capturing her lips as she comes undone for me. Grateful that she’s here with me still and able to love.
Braelynn
I love Declan and he loves me. But Carter also made it clear that this is the way to keep the law from using me to get to Declan.
I never thought a man would one day propose to me by simply saying that he needed me to marry him. I never thought that the marriage would be for reasons other than love. Love has a lot to do with it, of course, but above all, Declan wants to protect me. Somehow, this is the best way to get the law on our side, at least a little.
It wasn’t just the wine that said yes last night. My damn heart refused to say no.
“This feels so strange,” I whisper to him in front of one of the glass cases in the jewelry store. The jeweler, an older man with a neat gray suit, hovers nearby, pretending to look through a catalog although he keeps glancing up and has asked me several times if I want him to take out a ring to look at. Nate stands outside the shop and I can just barely see his suit in the large bay window.
“It’s better this way.”
I can’t help but look around the store as the nerves flip in my stomach. “The whole store is closed for us, though, you don’t think—”
“I think it’s safer,” Declan says, with a finality to his tone. He’s the one who called ahead and had the store closed down. “Don’t worry about anyone else. Just focus on choosing a ring. More than one ring, if you want.”
My laugh feels too loud for an empty jewelry store. “What would I need more than one ring for?”
“I want to spoil you.” He kisses the back of my neck, his lips soft and warm. “If you want two rings, you’ll have two rings. I’m sure there are other things you’d like. Choose anything. This day is for you.”
The kiss makes me shiver. I love him, but I’m scared. It’s moving very quickly and I’m not so naive that the reality hasn’t dawned on me.
Once I marry Declan, I’m in this life. I can’t imagine they’d ever let me leave. And it’s all happened so fast that I have mixed feelings about whether this will work. Declan seems to believe that if we get married, I’ll be shielded from having to testify. He thinks it’ll save me from the worst of the fallout.
What if it can’t, though? What if a shotgun wedding won’t change anything?
I haven’t even told my mother. Real life as I know it is gone forever the moment I slip this ring on my finger. I know it. Sober, or rather hungover, me apparently has cold feet.
Declan puts his hand on my jaw and turns my face to the side so he can kiss me. With his body behind me and his hand at my waist, my worries are chased away…for the moment. Everything feels like it’s going to be all right when he kisses me.
My heart races and my body leans against his.
Declan breaks the kiss, his eyes lingering on mine for a few beats. “Look at the rings,” he says softly, and turns my head so I’m looking at the glass case again. “What about that one?”
He points to a pear-shaped diamond with a band of pink diamonds. It’s beyond pretty and delicate and looks way too expensive to be on my finger, but I can’t take my eyes off it. Declan clears his throat and the jeweler comes around to the case without a word spoken. The keys on his hips jingle unneeded as he unlocked all the cases when we first arrived. He offered us champagne, too, which I declined. I think last night did a bit of a number on me.
As we wait quietly, Declan’s hand on the small of my back, the man opens a panel in the back, takes out the ring, and shows it to the both of us, talking about the size of the diamond, the cut, and the artist.
I never knew there were so many ways to judge the worth of a diamond. In my wildest dreams I never thought I’d be shopping at a store like this, picking out a ring with a man like Declan Cross.
The jeweler hands the ring to Declan, who slips it on my finger. He holds my hand in both of his and turns the ring one way, then another, viewing it in the light. His dark eyes meet mine, “What do you think?”
“I love it,” I whisper without taking my eyes off his.