Authors: Delinda Jasper
A Reason to Stay (7 page)
Thwack!
Her hand sailed across his face so hard her palm stung. Fury contorted his features. "Damn it, Ellie."
Before she had a chance to register what was happening, Jake bent and grabbed her, throwing her over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry. Ellie screamed and beat his back with her fists, but he ignored her and headed for the house.
This was twice he’d carried her in as many days. If
she weren’t so pissed off she would have thought it to be sexy as hell. But she was pissed, and as he made his way inside with her and started up the stairs, she made her anger perfectly clear. She called him every dirty name she could think of, but Jake just ignored her.
When they reached his bedroom he went in, bumping her head on the doorframe. He turned and locked the door before dumping her, wet clothes and all, unceremoniously on the bed. As soon as she hit the bed Ellie turned to scramble of the other side, but Jake was too fast for her. He grabbed her leg and jerked her back, holding her still as he straddled her and held her arms down.
Something akin to fear crawled through Ellie. In her heart of hearts she knew Jake would never hurt her. But she’d never seen him this angry before. Well, it served him right. She was angry too. But more than that, she was hurt. The pain of his betrayal curdled in her stomach. She opened her mouth to tell him just how hurt she was, but one hand clapped over her mouth.
"Shut up, Ellie. Now, I’m gonna take my hand off your mouth and you’re gonna lay there and listen to me. Okay?"
Eyes wide, Ellie nodded under his hand and he moved it back to her wrist. "You idiotic little drama queen!"
"Oh, good way to endear yourself to me. Call me names! Now get off me, you big thug!" Ellie forgot her promise to be quiet and started struggling against him again. This time he silenced her with his mouth. Even as angry as she was, his taste had a drugging effect.
Satisfied she was sufficiently subdued; he raised his head back up.
“Would you just listen to me? That ring is for you, you little fool!"
Confused, Ellie stammered, "No, it wasn’t. I saw the note. It was addressed to you."
Jake laughed. "Oh, shit, Ellie. For such a smart woman, you can really be dense sometimes. I guess that’s why I love you so much, though. Grammy gave me the ring to give to you. There was no other woman that I was in love with. Only you."
Ellie couldn’t breathe, and she was sure it had nothing to do with Jake sitting on her chest. He loved her? Had he really said that?
Joy flooded her. But it met with resistance in the form of her anger. She was still mad.
"What? You love me? Then how come I had to accidentally find that damned ring?"
"Damn it, Ellie. Why can’t you just believe me when I tell you I love you? You always have to make things so difficult." His voice was taut with barely controlled rage. "I love you, but I don’t want to hold you back. I’ve been searching for a way to tell you for nearly a year. That’s how long I’ve had that ring. Grammy knew how I felt; she said you felt the same way, but I wasn’t sure she was right."
The anger fell from his voice, his face softening into the same emotion she’d seen on his face last night but couldn’t put a name to. "I went over it in my head a thousand times. How could I tell you I love you? If you didn’t feel the same it could ruin our friendship. But I wanted to. Then, when I’d made up my mind to do it, I couldn’t figure out how to do it. Do I just blurt it out? Damn it Ellie, I’ve never been any good at this kind of stuff."
Ellie was shell-shocked. She knew she should say something, but she couldn’t. Her mouth, for the first time in her life, wouldn’t work.
Jake went on. "We’ve never been on a date, so how can I ask you to marry me? But we’ve been together nearly every waking moment, and a lot of sleeping ones, since we were 14. We’ve even lived together. How can the lack of official dating stand in comparison to that? I want to spend the rest of my life with you."
Air rushed out of his lungs as if a great weight was lifted off his chest. "I’ve wanted to tell you that for so long. But first I didn’t know how, and then Grammy got sick. I couldn’t tell you while you were so worried about her. Then she died and you decided to go off to Chicago.
"Ellie, I’m not a city kind of guy. But, I don’t want to stand in your way. I want you to be happy, and up until last night I was sure that letting you go was the only thing I could do. But I can’t do that now. Not after holding you in my arms. Not after making love to you. And certainly not with the possibility of you being pregnant with my baby.
"If moving to Chicago is what will make you happy, then if you will let me, I’ll go with you. They need firefighters there too, and I guess I can get used to city life. What I can’t get used to is life without you."
Tears rolled down Ellie’s face. She must have misinterpreted what Grammy had been trying to tell her. She hadn’t meant she should stop hanging out with Jake. She’d meant Ellie should marry him.
Choking on her tears, Ellie smiled sweetly up at Jake. "But, Jake, I don’t want to move to Chicago."
"What?"
"I never did. I was only moving because I loved you so much. I didn’t figure you would ever settle down, and if you did, it wouldn’t be with me. I couldn’t stand to see you with other women anymore."
Jake let go of her wrists and rolled on to the bed next to her, pulling her with him.
"I never want to be with any other woman but you," he said softly, dropping a gentle kiss on the tip of her nose.
"Promise?"
"Promise."
"Well, I guess that means I better go call and cancel the moving truck."
Jake grinned. "Yep."
Ellie pushed up off the bed, then stopped just short of standing up as if she’d just remembered something. "But, Jake, I’ve already closed on the house. Where am I going to live?"
Jake’s face went white. "Um, here of course."
Ellie smiled sweetly. "With you? But, Jake, I couldn’t do that! We’re not married. We’re not even engaged." She held up her left hand. "I don’t even have a ring yet."
Jake tried to pretend to be exasperated as he slid off the bed and onto one knee. Looking up at Ellie he pulled the ring box she’d hurled at him just a few minutes before from his pocket and opened it, holding it up for her to see.
"Will this one do?" He grinned.
Ellie giggled. "Well, I guess if that’s all you got. I mean this is all last minute and everything."
But her laughter died as Jake took the ring from its spot on the black velvet and slid it up her ring finger.
"Ellie, you are the best friend I have in the world. You are my completion. Without you, I am just half. Will you please spend the rest of your life with me?"
The tears started again, full force this time. Her answer was watery, "Yes, Jake."
It was all she could say before he caught her to him in a soul-searing kiss.
"There you go again. Crying at happy endings." Jake laughed as he wiped her tears away with his thumb.
"Yeah, well, this time they are definitely happy tears." Ellie kissed him again.
Several minutes later, when she’d regained her composure, she said, "I guess I should go call those movers now."
Jake grinned and reached for the top button on her shirt. "That can wait. We need to get you out of those wet clothes first."
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About the Author
Ms. Jasper is a believer in true love and a true romantic. She enjoys mixing her sappy sweet romances with super spicy love scenes. After all, true love is always accompanied by awesome sex, and sex is at its best when it comes with true love.
For more information on other erotic romances by Delinda Jasper check out her website at
www.delindajasper.com
ROMANTIC TRYSTS
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NOW AVAILABLE ON KINDLE:
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ANSWER: Lorelei’s Dance
Lorelei hates camping and never has sex before the third date. But the moment she lays eyes on the sexy and mysterious Kaden McCallister all of her rules fly out the window.