Mother, Please! (23 page)
Authors: Brenda Novak,Jill Shalvis,Alison Kent
“What do you mean?”
“You left your front door unlocked. I came back to bring you breakfast in bed.” She inclined her head, gesturing toward her truck. The smile on her face was as soft and gentle as any he’d ever seen. “I have coffee and hot croissants.”
He swallowed hard as he looked away, glancing toward the football field where he’d chased after her and made such a fool of himself. He was done with
that. His days of being a fool were over. “Why are you here, Avery?”
“Oh, David. I came here for you. To be with you. To love with you.” Her voice broke and, as he turned toward her, her eyes grew wet. He watched as her throat seemed to choke off her ability to breathe. “You’ve been a part of my life for so long. Even the years that I didn’t see you…you were still there. In my heart. I just never knew why.”
“And now you do?” he asked, his tone rough, harsh, as if he were bracing himself for a blow.
She delivered it softly. “I love you, David. The boy you used to be got under my skin. But the man you are now has shown me the beauty of being alive. I want to be with you as long as you’ll have me.”
God. Now he was the one unable to draw a single breath. He opened his arms, and then she was there, holding him, loving him. And he said the only words his heart allowed him to say.
“Forever, Avery. Forever.”
ISBN: 978-1-4268-7140-5
MOTHER, PLEASE!
Copyright © 2004 by Harlequin Books S.A.
The publisher acknowledges the copyright holders of the individual works as follows:
WHAT A GIRL WANTS
Copyright © 2004 by Brenda Novak
THE ROAD HOME
Copyright © 2004 by Jill Shalvis
UPSTAIRS, DOWNSTAIRS
Copyright © 2004 by Mica Stone
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