Loving Night: Dream Catcher Series ~ Book 2 (20 page)

Expectantly, the mothers complained
about not being entrusted with the secret. The fathers didn’t care. 
Stephanie’s brother and sister-in-law, along with Karen and Big Vic, were
amused. The three nieces were more interested in getting to the food. Phailin
flashed a knowing smile, and her husband, David, decided it was time to lead
everyone to the sun room where the buffet was spread.

Later that evening, with the dark
sky visible through the glass roof at the Atrium Hotel, and under an arch
draped with blue, purple, and green tulle and yellow lilies, Chaz and Stephanie
exchanged vows in front of a minister, their families, and about 150 guests.
The reception was held in a conference room similarly decorated and with
elaborate candle centerpieces, again representing the colors of their auras.
While Stephanie anticipated that some people would comment that the venue
wasn’t an upscale hotel downtown, she was extremely pleased with the atmosphere
the hotel staff had helped them to create. It was everything she could have
wanted.

“Have I told you today that you’re
amazing?” Chaz held his wife close as they swayed on the dance floor and he
softly kissed the side of her face.

“No.” Stephanie pretended to frown.
“Don’t think you can slack off now that we’re publicly a married couple.”

“I wouldn’t dream of it.” His arms
wrapped more tightly around her. “But, I’m a little tired of the public part of
the day. Let’s go upstairs.” He kissed her neck.

“Okay, you two; it’s time for me to
butt in so that you can stop making my wife jealous.” Logan laughed and held
his hand out for his sister to change partners. “You owe me a dance, Stephanie.”

“All right, if I must.” She sighed
dramatically and stole one last kiss from her husband.

“It’s nice to see you so happy,”
Logan commented as his brother-in-law moved off the dance floor.

“Thank you. Chaz is an incredible
man.”

“He must be; otherwise that psychic
gift you have would have scared him off by now.”

“You’re right.” Stephanie smiled up
into golden-brown eyes that matched hers. “Do you want to know when I knew he
was the perfect man for me? The day I told him that I have dreams that come
true, he didn’t even blink. He didn’t laugh. He didn’t look at me like I was
insane. It didn’t bother him at all. Five minutes after that, he asked whether
I was afraid to be with him because this was right after he’d been shot. Can
you imagine that—me being afraid of him?” She shook her head. “I knew then that
I didn’t want to be without him. Funny how that works, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, it is. You definitely seem
to be right about your destiny with him. You’re good for each other. I knew it,
but seeing the two of you together makes it even more real.” Stephanie laid her
head on her brother’s shoulder. “So, where are you going on your honeymoon?” he
asked.

“I have no idea. Chaz even packed
my suitcase last night so that I wouldn’t have any clues to help me figure it
out.”

Logan let out a loud laugh and held
his sister at arm’s length. “You’re kidding right? The woman who has visions
doesn’t know where her husband is taking her? You don’t have any
clues
?”
After a second of contemplation, Stephanie shook her head and joined in the
laughter. Pretty soon, Logan was recounting all of the surprises she’d ruined
throughout the years and the two of them were holding their sides from laughing
so hard.

“I see you two are cutting up,”
their mother remarked as they passed her on their way off the dance floor.

“He started it!” Stephanie pointed
at her brother. “He’s so juvenile!” Then, they both laughed some more.

From where Chaz stood at the cash
bar, he saw how happy his wife was. She was glowing. He’d have to make sure she
spent time with her family more frequently. But for tonight, he was done with
everyone. He kissed his mother goodnight and went to claim the only person he
wanted to spend any more time with. The woman he would spend the rest of his
life with.

Stephanie was shocked the next
morning when they checked out of the hotel and Chaz had arranged for a car to
take them to the airport. The shock intensified when he produced tickets to New
Orleans. It was someplace she’d always wanted to visit.

“How did you know?”

“I actually listen when my wife
talks to me. I think you mentioned it that time we went to Niagara Falls and
got a chance to act like normal tourists even though I was undercover and not
supposed to be with you.”

“That was over a year ago!”

“Uhm hmm.” He leaned over and
kissed her forehead.

“And, I wasn’t your wife.”

“You may as well have been.” He
tucked a curl behind her ear and looked directly into her eyes. “The connection
between us was so strong that I already knew I’d never let you go.” His lips
brushed hers very lightly. “I would be lost without you.”

The rented car arrived at the
departure terminal and pulled to a smooth stop. When the driver opened the
door, Chaz stepped out and offered his hand to help his wife. She knew that
people were watching and wondering whether they were anyone important, and that
made her smile. They were important, and there was no one in the world happier
than she was at that moment.

While in New Orleans, they only
spent about half of their time sampling the cuisine and visiting the tourist
sites. Much of the time was spent laying in each other’s arms talking about
nothing or speculating on how they would react once their daughter arrived—they’d
finally had the doctor confirm the baby was a girl.

“Karen thinks we should name her
Amanda.”

“Really?”

“Yep. It’s important to pick a good
name. I looked it up and it means ‘worthy of love.’ What do you think?”

“I don’t know.” He changed
positions on the bed so that he could put his hands on Stephanie’s stomach.
“What do you think, sweetheart? Do you like the name Amanda?” He put his ear at
her belly button. “Hmm? Really? I should tell her that’s fine? Oh—your middle
name should be Anne like your mommy’s? Okay, I’ll tell her.”

Chaz straddled Stephanie and,
hovering over her, kissed a path from her belly to her lips while she laughed
and ran her fingers across his unshaven face.

“Amanda Anne Lawson.” His lips
rested against hers. “She likes it. What do you think?”

After he released her lips from a
breathtaking kiss, Stephanie agreed on the name. To punctuate the decision,
Amanda stretched and the couple felt her move between their bodies.

Every day of their honeymoon was
relaxing like that. Slow. Easy. Low-key.

All too soon, it was over and the
plane was landing at the Greater Cincinnati Airport late on Saturday afternoon.
In what seemed like no time at all, a taxi was depositing them in front of
their house.

Phailin and Karen had made sure
that the wedding gifts and cards were stacked in the dining room and the top
layer of the cake was appropriately put away in the freezer to await the first
anniversary. Stephanie was sure that her mother had been the one to wash all of
the linens and restore each guest room. She’d even turned down the bedding in
the master bedroom and left a silk rose on each pillow.

“We’re home,” Stephanie sighed as
she sat at the foot of the bed and removed her shoes.

“Yeah, we’re home.” Chaz leaned
against the door frame of the walk-in closet and watched his wife. “I don’t
think I’ve said it recently, but thank you, sweetheart. Thank you for coming
into my life, not running when it was dangerous, taking a chance by relocating
to be with me, marrying me, and carrying my child. You’ve given me everything I
needed but didn’t even know I wanted.” He walked over and knelt at her feet.
“Whatever we face, we’ll always do it together; and I promise that nothing will
ever come between us.”

“I know.” She leaned forward and
placed her hands on either side of his face. “Do you know what I’m thinking?”
He shook his head. “I’m thinking that I really, really, really want to climb into
bed with a banana split with tons of whipped cream.” Her lips stretched in a
broad smile.

“I guess that means I need to go to
the store to buy bananas.”

“Do you mind?”

“For my pregnant wife? Not at all.”
He kissed her forehead and got to his feet. “But, you’re going to have to
share,” he said as he was walking towards the hallway.

“Then, it better be a very big
banana split.” She laughed. “While you’re gone, I’m going to take a shower.”

“Great. I’ll expect you naked and
under the covers when I return.” Stephanie could hear him chuckling as he
started down the stairs.

Out of nowhere, the thought hit her
that being back home meant they were almost back to work. Chaz had never
mentioned the meeting he’d had with Roy and Steve about the promotion, but
Stephanie suspected that was because he hadn’t wanted to worry her before the
wedding or during their honeymoon.

She listened to the garage door
rise and Chaz’s SUV back out of the driveway as she headed to the bathroom to
take her shower. Phailin had told her many months ago that whenever Chaz had a
choice, he would always choose her. His words repeated in her mind:
Whatever
we face, we’ll always do it together; and I promise that nothing will ever come
between us.

This is the way things should be.
This was their destiny. She smiled and turned on the steamy water.

It was another déjà vu moment.

The
End

COMING
IN SEPTEMBER 2015

Heart
Shadows: Dream Catcher Series ~ Book 3

ALSO
BY THIS AUTHOR

Detour

Time
for Tenderness

Monica’s
Healing

Premonitions:
Dream Catcher Series ~ Book 1

If
you enjoyed this book, please take a moment to leave a review on Amazon and
Goodreads.

You
can also find out about current works, contests, and events by following
Brynette L. Turner on her blog at
www.brynetteturner.blogspot.com
,
on Twitter @btromancewriter, and on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/brynettelturnerauthor

ABOUT
THE OTHER BOOKS:

PREMONITIONS:
Dream Catcher Series - Book
1

Available
on Amazon at
http://bit.ly/btpremonitions

Stephanie
is drawn to Chaz in a way that she has never experienced—by a connection
through dreams that tell her things she isn’t supposed to know. While those
dreams expose Chaz’s secrets and pull Stephanie into his dangerous world, she’s
willing to follow the attraction to see where it might lead.

Chaz
knows better than to get emotionally attached, but he can’t resist seeing her
again. He can’t fight the spiritual force that binds them, and he doesn’t want
to. When his life is threatened, he must make difficult choices and find a way
to protect both of them as he handles his mysterious job.

DETOUR

Available
on Amazon at
http://bit.ly/btdetour

Jessica
is on a mission to purchase a company that she can run as part of her training
for an executive position in the family business. Everything will be set for
her successful career; and Marcus is waiting in the wings to be the man in her
new life.

However,
she veers off course when she stops at a small-town diner and finds Jake and a
healthy serving of instant attraction. As she revamps her career and life plans
to include this blossoming love, she must face her own ambition, conflicting
loyalties, and a new path that's different from the one she has always
traveled.

Determined
and organized, Jessica quickly compiles a new game plan; but the road to
fulfillment isn't as easy as she had always thought it would be.

TIME
FOR TENDERNESS

Available
on Amazon at
http://bit.ly/bttenderness

Valerie
loves Tony; but she has spent the past three years pretending otherwise because
she had serious doubts that their love could survive all of her flaws and
fears. Regardless, Tony knows Val is the only woman who could ever make him
happy. When she agrees to marry him, she believes they can build a life for
their young daughter that’s better than how Val was raised and more realistic
than what Tony has always expected. She trusts him to accept her and to always
be her partner.

Unfortunately,
the drama and destructiveness from her past inserts itself into their world in
a way that Tony can't accept. No matter how hard she tries, Valerie can't shake
the fear that maybe love does not conquer all; and the couple must discover
whether they are really able to survive through anything.

MONICA’S
HEALING

Available
on Amazon at
http://bit.ly/btmonica

The
Weston family has endured dishonesty, rejection, and humiliation; but no one
seems to have been as emotionally wrecked as Monica. She is damaged, hurting,
and alone—for the time being.

Patrick
wants to change that. He's spent the last two years trying to convince Monica
that what they share is special; and she has been running from him the entire
time. Now, as she is struggling to build a life after her mother's death, she
hopes that his love is as strong as he says. While Monica and Patrick try to
cope with their changing world, old hurts, stubborn habits, and family drama
threaten to destroy everything they are creating.

While
this novel can be enjoyed on its own, it is the sequel to Time for Tenderness.