Something Sparked-nook (22 page)

Diego rose and tossed the condom into a trashcan, before claiming his place next to Jeannette, who turned and kissed him.

“I want to do that every single day.”

He chuckled. “We’ll be dead within a week.”

“I don’t care.”

He could see she didn’t. Hell, he didn’t either. Diego placed a soft kiss on the tip of her nose. “Love you.”

Diego would give every last penny he had just to see the way her face lit up when he told her that.

Luc rolled to his side, his arm coming around Jeannette, sighing. Diego grinned at the exhaustion in the sound. “Are we going to sleep today away, too?”

“Sounds good to me,” Jeannette said, just as Penny jumped back onto the bed. The cat found her way between Diego and Jeannette. She began to purr. “I think Penny is on board for that, too.”

Diego ran his hand along the cat’s soft fur, which encouraged Penny to flip over onto her back. He rubbed her belly.

Luc reached over Jeannette to pet Penny as well. “I’m starting to think you guys are more into my cat than me.”

Luc chuckled. “She is a pretty soft pussy.”

Jeannette elbowed him, her expression going serious. “I’ll never be able to thank you guys enough for saving her. And more than that…for saving me.”

Luc pressed a kiss to her cheek. “You saved us. too, Jeannette. There’s a big difference between merely existing and living a life that’s exciting.”

Diego leaned as close as he could without disturbing Penny, who had already fallen asleep. “Happy ending?”

She nodded. “The happiest. We blew
Beauty and the Beast
out of the water.”

They settled into their places, Diego and Luc surrounding Jeannette and her sweet cat, Penny.

Diego’s last thought as he drifted to sleep was that they’d done it.

Created the perfect family.

Macie wiped up the counter. It was a Tuesday night and the dinner crowd had come and gone. Gia was bussing the last dirty table. She could hear Sydney and Jeannette closing down the kitchen for the evening. Her dad, TJ, had already gone home.

Luc and Diego were hanging out at the bar, while Chas was in a corner booth, chatting with Sydney’s dad, Uncle Lynn.

The guys were there to pick up their girlfriends…just like they did every night. Macie tried not to roll her eyes at how annoyingly in love her older cousins were. Lately, all Jeannette and Sydney did was walk around in a continual state of just-had-amazing-sex. It was enough to drive her batty. Mainly because, for the first time since she’d lost her virginity in the backseat of Hank Watson’s Buick back in tenth grade, Macie was suffering a dry spell.

She had decided early on that she didn’t agree with the double standards attached to sex. Guys could fuck with reckless abandon and walk around like studs. If a woman did the same thing, she was labeled a slut. The whole thing pissed her off. She was a woman. And she liked sex. A lot. Whether she had that sex with a long-term boyfriend or if she hooked up the hot guy she’d just met at Cruisers didn’t really matter to her.

However, lately, her attitude toward sex had changed. She suspected it was because of all the monogamous couples surrounding her. Macie had never had a problem separating sex and love. In her opinion, the two didn’t necessarily have to go hand in hand. Or at least, that was what she used to believe.

Now, she was coming to the conclusion that she wanted to get married. Desperately.

That idea wouldn’t have been quite so disturbing if it weren’t attached to the realization that her Mr. Right wasn’t in Maris.

Unfortunately, home is where the heart is, and her heart lived and breathed and flourished in this neck of the woods, and nowhere else.

“Earth to Macie. Hello?”

Macie blinked, then she realized Luc was talking to her. “Did you want something else?”

Luc tilted his head. “You okay, Mace? You’ve been quiet tonight. I’m not sure I’ve ever been in a room with you when your voice wasn’t the constant white noise in the background.”

“Asshole,” she said in response to his teasing. She pitched a peanut at him, just narrowly missing his head as he dodged.

“Hey, I just finished sweeping the floor,” Gia said, bending down to pick up the peanut.

“I asked what you thought was going on over there.” Luc pointed to Chas, who’d just risen from the table. He shook Lynn’s hand and they said good night as Lynn took his leave.

“No idea,” Macie muttered, though she actually had a pretty good idea.

Chas joined them all at the bar.

“Everything good?” Diego asked Chas, fishing.

Chas merely nodded, but from the smug expression on his face, it was clear he was happy.

Before they could question him further, Sydney and Jeannette walked out of the kitchen and joined them.

“All clear in there,” Jeannette said.

Sydney glanced around the room. “Did my dad leave?”

Chas nodded.

Macie tossed her dishcloth into the sink, her own cleaning finished as well. “Yeah, we were about to give Chas the third degree on the serious conversation they were having.”

Chas narrowed his eyes at Macie.

“Serious conversation?” Sydney asked.

“We were just talking,” Chas said. Then he looked around. Macie was surprised when he let loose a heavy sigh. “Dammit. I hate surprises. And waiting.”

Sydney laughed and shook her head. “I know all about your issues with both of those things.”

“You know I saw you for the very first time in this room. Gran had brought me here for lunch one day and you were sitting right there at the counter drinking a milkshake. You were giggling at something TJ said to you and I thought you looked really pretty. Isn’t it funny how vividly I can remember that? I mean, I was only five years old.”

Sydney blushed, and Macie could tell her cousin was touched by Chas’ sweet memory. “You never told me that.”

The room went completely silent when Chas dropped down to one knee in front of Sydney.

“I was going to do something romantic, take you out to eat, buy you flowers, but I can’t wait for you, for
this
anymore, Syd.”

Sydney’s mouth had fallen open. “Chas,” she whispered.

“I asked your dad if I could propose to you. He gave us his blessing.”

Macie had never thought herself a romantic fool or someone who was particularly held up on such old-fashioned traditions, but suddenly she wanted to meet someone just like Chas. Someone who would remember the first time he saw her, who would ask her dad for her hand in marriage. Someone so excited to propose, he couldn’t wait more than three minutes after getting the dad’s permission.

“I love you, Sydney. You’ve been my best friend since kindergarten. I can’t imagine how much my life would have sucked if you weren’t in it.”

Sydney laughed, though the sound came out half sob. There were happy tears in her eyes.

Chas reached into the pocket of his jeans and produced a beautiful ring. “Sydney Sparks, would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”

Sydney had begun to nod before Chas even got the question out. “Yes.”

Then Chas was up, hugging her.

Macie was relieved to realize she wasn’t the only person in the room crying when she spotted Gia and Jeannette reaching for napkins to wipe their eyes.

Luc and Diego were quick to shake Chas’ hand as Gia and Jeannette immediately started talking about dresses and summer weddings. Soon the guys were included in the conversation as they discussed honeymoon locations.

Macie, however, appeared to be the only person focused on the most important thing, the one thing that offered Macie an answer to her dilemma.

A change of scenery. A chance to break out of her damn rut.

Macie raised her hands, speaking above everyone. “I hate to interrupt all of you, but you’re jumping the gun.”

“How so?” Jeannette asked.

“There’s not going to be a wedding…” she paused for dramatic effect, just because it was fun, and then she added, “without a bachelorette party. Vegas, here we come!”

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Be sure to check out other books in the Sparks in Texas series.

Sparks in Texas
, Book 1

I Do
is the easy part.
Happily ever after
? Not so much.

Evan and Annie are deeply in love, but that hasn’t stopped tension from creating cracks in their relationship. Determined not to fail his wife, Evan takes action before those cracks become craters, damaging their marriage irreparably. Over the Fourth of July weekend, he’ll reignite Annie’s passion with his own brand of fireworks.

Stand back and watch the sparks fly.

Please enjoy this excerpt from Sparks Fly. Available now.

“Are you searching for something special, officer?”

The breathless quality of her voice let him know she’d finally caught up with him.

“I need to be sure you aren’t carrying any concealed weapons.”

She looked over her shoulder and gave him a flirty smile. “Oh, I’m packing heat. But you aren’t looking in the right place.”

He fought to restrain a groan. Annie was a master at dirty talk. Then it occurred to him that this fantasy—the cop and his criminal—was one they’d never played out. Which was strange considering his occupation and the fact he had all the right toys.

“Face forward, Ms. Iser. I don’t think you understand the seriousness of this situation.”

Annie held his gaze a few seconds longer before looking away. Her hips wiggled seductively as he moved his “search” lower. He didn’t take the bait. He had a definite strategy for how the night would unfold and it had everything to do with his pretty criminal submitting to his authority.

“Have you been drinking, Ms. Iser?”

She lifted her shoulders casually, unconcerned, unrepentant. “I may have had a glass of wine earlier. It is a holiday, you know.”

Annie wasn’t much of a drinker, even on the holidays, so he wondered about the wine. Was she feeling the same pressure he was? Had she been looking for a way to relax before seeing him again? That thought made his chest ache. He pushed it away. Hopefully, tonight would help them mend the rifts they’d unconsciously let grow.

He reached for her upper arm, dragging her upright and turning her until she faced him. “Drinking and driving?”

“You don’t really expect me to confess to that, do you, officer?”

“Lieutenant.” The mischief in her eyes told him she was purposely refusing to acknowledge his rank. “And I don’t need your confession. I have a breathalyzer.”

She didn’t pretend to be worried. He loved her spunk, the challenge in her posture. She crossed her arms, allowing them to push up her breasts. The move drew his attention to her hard nipples. His mouth watered for a taste of them, but it was far too early for that. If he started taking off her clothes, the game would end too fast.

For months, he’d viewed sex as a chore, the two of them going through the motions with very little passion or foreplay. As he looked at her flushed face, as he watched her chest rise and fall with breathless expectation, he wanted to kick his own ass for forgetting how good it could be between them.

“Don’t I have to consent to the breathalyzer?”

He shook his head. “I’m not giving you a choice.” He cupped her face in his hands, pulling her closer. “Are you ready?”

He didn’t give her a chance to respond before placing his lips on hers. He pressed them open, touching his tongue to hers. He couldn’t detect even the faintest hint of wine on her breath. Regardless, he kept kissing her, tasting and breathing her air. Evan didn’t need alcohol. He could get drunk on Annie.

Finally, after several minutes, he forced himself to release her, working overtime to maintain control, to stay in character. “You realize you’re in quite a bit of trouble, Ms. Iser.”

She feigned a contrite smile that didn’t fool him for a minute. “Maybe there’s some way I can convince you to forget all this and let me off with a warning?”

He narrowed his eyes. “Are you attempting to bribe a police officer?”

She reached out to run her hand along his chest, toying suggestively with his badge. “I didn’t say anything about a bribe.”

He moved so quickly she didn’t have time to counter or retreat. Evan turned her toward the car, grasping her wrists and tugging them behind her back. She had just begun to struggle when he slapped on the handcuffs. Then he bent over her, pressing her against the hood of the car, letting her helplessness sink in.

“What did you have in mind?” he murmured in her ear.

He’d taken her off-guard. It took her a few moments to regroup.

“I…” She swallowed heavily when he ground his cock more firmly against her ass. “I…” She paused again. Finally she said, “What do you want?”

Evan chuckled. Annie was rarely at a loss for words. It felt good to shake up the self-assured woman. “I want it all, Ms. Iser. Your total submission. For the entire night.”