Taming the Wolf (26 page)

Samara gasped when she saw the exquisite diamond ring inside. “Oh my God…”
Gazing deep into her eyes, Marcus said huskily, “Will you marry me, Samara?”
“Yes,” she answered breathlessly. “Yes, Marcus, I’ll marry you!”
Marcus removed the ring from the satin encasement and slowly, never taking his eyes from hers, slid it onto her finger. It was a perfect fit.
Samara’s eyes filled with fresh tears. “Oh, Marcus…”
He got to his feet and wrapped her tightly in his arms. Samara heard a low smattering of applause and turned her head to see the tourists watching them with pleased expressions. She and Marcus grinned and accepted the strangers’ hearty congratulations.
As the people moved off to give them privacy, Samara looked down at her finger and beamed. “It’s absolutely breathtaking, Marcus. I-I’m speechless.”
Smiling, he leaned down to nibble on her lips. Samara shivered at the delicious sensation and curved her arms around his neck, deepening the kiss. They held each other for several long moments, silhouetted against miles of gleaming white marble.
“I’m flying to Minnesota next weekend to see my mother,” Marcus said after a while. “Would you like to go with me? I know she’d love to meet you.”
Samara gazed up at him, understanding the full import of his decision to visit Celeste Rutherford. He was ready to bury the hatchet and forge new beginnings.
Her heart swelled with love and admiration. “As much as I want to meet your mother,” she told him, “I think it would be best if you went alone this time.”
His eyes softened. “Thank you for understanding.”
“You’re very welcome. Besides, I don’t think I’m ready to handle air travel just yet,” she added, watching his face carefully. “I would hate to compound motion sickness with morning sickness. Which is an oxymoron, considering that my nausea isn’t confined to morning—as you witnessed for yourself.”
Marcus’s brows furrowed in confusion. “Wait a minute. What’re you talking about? Morning sickness?” As comprehension dawned, he stared down at her in shock. “Are you…?”
Samara smiled into his eyes. “We’re going to have a baby, Marcus.”
He laughed, a full, triumphant bellow that filled her with joy. Overcome with emotion, he lifted her into his arms and swung her around, and she joined in his laughter, thrilled by his response.
He set her back down gingerly, looking concerned. “Should I have done that? I didn’t even think.”
“Don’t be silly. You can’t hurt the baby that way.”
Marcus grinned. “A baby,” he said in quiet wonder. “We’re going to have a baby, Samara. Can you believe it?”
She grimaced wryly. “My body sure does.”
His expression gentled with sympathy. “Come on, let’s get you home and off your feet.”
She grinned. “I’m pregnant, Marcus, not an invalid.”
He chuckled softly. “No wonder you were so sick. It never occurred to me that you might be pregnant.” He sobered after a moment. “Wait a minute. I was so busy celebrating that I didn’t even stop to ask how you felt about this.”
Samara was touched by his thoughtfulness. “I’ll admit that I never envisioned getting pregnant before marriage. I guess I’d always imagined having my husband all to myself before children entered the picture. But I’m truly happy, Marcus. I want our baby as much as you do. Nothing would please me more than to give you a child.”
He stroked her cheek, gazing at her with indescribable tenderness. “You’re the most incredible woman I’ve ever met. How can I ever repay Walter Floyd for inviting me to your mother’s fashion show and bringing us together?”
“I don’t know,” Samara said, sliding her hands up and down his muscled back, holding him so close that her nipples puckered against his chest. “We’ll have to think of something though.”
“Mmmm,” Marcus murmured, bending his head to lick the seam of her lips. “I’m thinking of something right now.”
Heat bloomed in Samara’s belly. She glanced around and saw that all of the tourists had left. She took Marcus by the hand and led him deeper into the shadows of the building. If they hurried, they should have time for a quickie.
Marcus gave a low, sexy chuckle as he pinned her against a cool marble column. “Seducing me in a national monument, Samara? How irreverent of you.”
She gave him a mildly reproving look as she unzipped his pants. “While we’re on the topic of seduction, Marcus Wolf, I just want to make one thing crystal clear. From now on, the only woman whose ass belongs on your desk is mine. Understood?”
“Yes, ma’am.” As Marcus lifted her in his arms, she wrapped her legs around his waist. His eyes glowed hot and intense as he added teasingly, “I’ll even carve your name into the wood to mark the territory as yours.”

Samara chuckled hoarsely, her skirt hiked up around her thighs as he palmed her buttocks. “Works for me. I’m a woman who believes in keeping what’s mine in check.”

His husky laugh was muffled against her throat. “Spoken like a true tiger tamer.”
“No, darling,” Samara breathed, closing her eyes as he impaled her with one long, mind-blowing stroke, “Taming wolves are much more fun.”

2. Do you think Marcus was wrong for shutting his mother out of his life for twenty-five years? Once you learned the whole story about their marriage, who did you feel the most sympathy for— Celeste Rutherford or Sterling Wolf?

3. Were you surprised by how easily Samara believed Marcus was cheating on her? Under the circumstances, would you have reacted the same way?

4. Although Samara was raised not to trust men, it was important to me that she maintain a healthy attitude toward sex. In other words, I didn’t want her emotional scars to carry over into her sex life, because I thought she deserved to be “liberated” in at least one area of her life. How important was this to you? Why?

Maureen Smith
has enjoyed writing for as long as she can remember, and secretly suspects she was born with a pen in her hand. She received a B.A. in English from the University of Maryland, College Park and worked as a freelance writer while she penned her first novel. To her delight, Ghosts of Fire was nominated for a Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award and an Emma Award for Favorite New Author, and won the Romance in Color Reviewers’ Choice Awards for New Author of the Year and Romantic Suspense of the Year. Maureen’s second novel, With Every Breath, was also nominated for a Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award, and garnered four Emma Award nominations in the categories of Favorite Hero, Favorite Romantic Suspense, Author of the Year and Book of the Year.

Maureen lives in San Antonio, TX with her husband, two children, a cat and a miniature schnauzer. She loves to hear from readers and can be reached at [email protected]. You may also visit her Web site at www.maureen-smith.com for news and updates on her upcoming releases.

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