Authors: Jerri Drennen
Dark Moon Magic (21 page)
He shifted again. He was clearly as nervous as she was. “Were you planning to stay in Groves?”
Regina shrugged. What did he want her to say? She wished she could read his mind right now.
“Look, I know the people here haven’t been all that hospitable but …”
Regina started to laugh. That was a total understatement. The good citizens of the quaint, little town tried to burn her at the stake for a murder she didn’t commit. That was a far cry from hospitable.
He rubbed at his chin. “Right, well, I’m sorry things didn’t work out.”
Regina forced a smile. Was she going to let him walk away without telling him how much she loved him? “Did you get Rod off to Little Rock?”
“Yeah.” There was a slight hitch in his voice.
“How much time do you think he’ll get?”
“That’s hard to say. I’ve seen something like this go both ways. Either a few months to a few years.”
She braved a glance up at his eyes, and what she saw just about sent her to her knees. Was it what she’d hoped for—did he love her? If he did, then why hadn’t he told her?
“You could go back to Little Rock and be safe, Regina, but I don’t want you to.”
“Why?” She wasn’t taking anything for granted. She needed to hear him say the words.
He cleared his throat. “I …”
“You what, Trace?”
“I can’t live without you, Regina. You have to stay and make me believe in love and trust again. Please, stay here in Groves and become the sheriff’s wife.” The words came rushing out so fast, Regina wasn’t sure she’d heard him right.
“Did you just ask me to marry you?”
“I believe I did, so please, don’t leave me hanging here, looking like a total dork.”
Regina smiled at his reply. He’d asked her to marry him, but at no time had he mentioned he loved her.
“I need to know why you want to marry me, Trace. I mean, if you just want a woman to trust, Becky would jump at the change to be Mrs. Langston.”
“What? I don’t love Becky. I love you.”
Regina raced to him and flung herself into his arms. “Yes. Yes. Yes. One hundred times, yes. I’ll marry you.”
He leaned down and kissed her hard on the lips.
She wrapped her arms around him tightly until the bell jingled again.
A man cleared his throat behind them. Regina turned to see Nathan standing at the door, a wry smile on his lips.
“I just came by to say goodbye. I got a call an hour ago, and I have another case I have to fly back to Chicago for.”
“Does Tiah know you’re leaving?” Regina had managed to get little information out of her friend about what was going on between the two, and she knew Tiah would be hurt if he didn’t at least say goodbye.
“No, but I don’t have time right now to tell her. My flight is at two, and it’ll take over an hour to get to the airport. Tell her bye for me.”
Regina didn’t want to do that, but what other choice did she have? “All right. But then, you could call her while you’re waiting for your flight.”
“If I have time. It was nice working with you, Trace. Take care and call me if you ever need another ritual expert.”
“I hope I won’t need to, but thanks, Nathan. You were a big help.”
“Right. You two have a nice day.”
He left, and Regina knew Tiah would be upset. No goodbye. No see you around. That would crush her friend, and that hampered her joy at Trace asking her to be his wife.
“I wish he’d have at least told her goodbye,” Regina said to Trace. “Did he say anything about Tiah to you?”
“Like what?”
“I’m not sure, but I think something happened between them that night at the station.”
“Seriously? I don’t know when. He was with me most of the time.”
“Maybe I’m wrong. I got the feeling those two shared a moment together.”
“Nathan was pretty adamant about not thinking much about your friend. I don’t know how that could have changed.”
“You don’t know Tiah and her art of persuasion.”
“True, but could we talk about
us
? I’m in a hurry to get our life started together. What do you think about this weekend?”
“I think that’s only three days away.”
“Yes, it is, but I don’t want to waste any more time on doubts. I want you to be my wife, and I want it to happen right away. What do you say?”
“What would I wear?”
He laughed. “If all you’re worried about is what you’re going to wear, Reggie, I’ll have anything you want flown in.”
He was serious, and that made her love him even more. If he was willing to do whatever she wanted to ensure they married in a few days, then she’d find something local to wear. They had to think of their future now, and she didn’t care about anything else—not as long as Trace was by her side.
* * *
Trace stood next to his beautiful bride, squeezing her small hand in his, anticipating their night as husband and wife. All the years he’d held his heart in check in anticipation of Regina coming along. Destiny. Karma. Or whatever you wanted to call it. He couldn’t wait to start his life with her. To have children.
What if she didn’t want kids?
Damn
. Maybe he’d jumped into this marriage without thinking everything through.
He turned to her. “I want us to have children. Do you have a problem with that?”
She smiled. “I’d have a problem if you didn’t want them.”
Relief washed over him. That would have been their biggest hurdle had she not. He was glad they were on the same page with kids.
“What about religion?” Regina eyes scrunched at the corners. “Do you have a problem with me teaching them my Wiccan beliefs?”
“Only if you teach me first,” he said, grinning.
She threw her arms around him and squeezed him tight. “I’ll look forward to every minute of every day with you, Trace. For the rest of our lives.”
Trace leaned down and kissed her hard on the lips, then whispered in her ear. “I look forward to spending the night alone with you, without Tiah hanging around, trying to start a fight.”
Regina pulled back. The smile on her face slipped away. “Look at how miserable she is. Something had to have happened between her and Nathan. Otherwise, why would she be acting like this?”
Trace shrugged. “That’s for her and Nathan to work out. It’s really none of our business.”
She sighed. “I know, but I just want to see her as happy as I am.”
Trace pulled her back into his arms and held her tight. “It’s all predestined in the moon and stars in the sky, like you and I. It’s magic. She’ll find
the one
when the time is right.”
The End
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jerri Drennen was raised on a farm in a tiny town in Minnesota where the winters were long and being stuck inside afforded her the opportunity to read and tell stories. Years later, after moving away from family to Missouri, marrying her husband of now twenty-five years and having their four children, she started writing. Eleven years and many manuscripts later, she has a number book available in various media outlets. You can find her at
jerridrennen.com/
. If you enjoyed the book, please consider letting her know. She loves hearing from readers.
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