The Everlasting Chapel (19 page)

Slowly, he releases me, takes my hand in
his, and leads me inside. We don’t say a word. We both know this is
coming to an end, but we’re both refusing to acknowledge it. This
feels exactly like the night before his mother died, the night I
gave him all of me, except for this time, I don’t feel calm and
ready to accept whatever happens. I can’t let this end. I won’t!
Maybe if we don’t speak it will all just go away, and we can
pretend things are different.

We walk up to his bedroom, and he locks the
door. He leads me to the sitting area and I sit down on the couch.
I am numb from head to toe.

He paces a couple of times back and forth,
and I watch as he wrestles with himself. Then he looks at me, his
eyes pleading.

He sits across from me, burying his face in
his steepled hands. Suddenly, he kneels at my feet, and grabs my
hands.

Looking up into my eyes, he says, “I didn’t
want anything to come between us, Scarlett. I finally found you,
and…shit. Now everything’s screwed up!”

The desperation in his eyes sends a jolt of
fear through me. He really has decided then.

“
First of all, you have to
believe me that I love you! I want you!” he says with so much
passion that goosebumps rise on my arms.

Oh, God, he’s breaking it off even though he
still wants me! That makes it so much worse. I feel it deep inside
that he loves me, but part of me also feels like I don’t deserve to
be this happy. To have a man like this adore me, and that something
has to go wrong. And this is it.

“
Tell me what it is you
need to tell me,” I say.

His jaw tenses before he says, “Alexa’s
pregnant.”

“
Are you the
father?”

“
That’s what she thinks,”
he whispers. “But she’s not sure.”

An ever so small bubble of hope rises inside
my chest. “Do you have reason to doubt her?”

He drags a hand across his face. “It’s
complicated.”

“
Are you fucking kidding
me? Just give it to me straight!” My voice is trembling just as
much as my hands.

“
Here’s the truth.” He
grabs my wrists and looks me in the eyes. “I really cared about
Alexa, but she cheated on me. I was the one who broke it off, but I
only did it in order to save her from public humiliation, which my
mother would surely provide if I gave her the real reason. So I
told my mother and everyone that Alexa dumped me. If
I
had dumped her, my
mother would have gone after her to find out exactly why, and
everyone would soon know the full story.”

I remember that’s what he told me when he
proposed that ridiculous deal at the Portland Grill, and in the
pool. “So you took the flack and spared her.”

“
Yes.”

“
Why?” I ask.

“
Nobody deserves to be
treated the way my mother treated them. And the time I was with
her, I cared about Alexa. Deeply.”

His words sting, and there’s a part of me
that hates that he ever dated that woman. “And now?”

“
Now…if the child is mine,
like she claims, I can’t just abandon them.”

“
So she wants to keep it?”
I ask, dreading the answer, the tears flowing down my cheeks as I
close my eyes.

“
Yes. She’s almost four
months along,” he says.

“
Well, at least that
explains why her boobs were so perfect,” I mutter.

He gets this puzzled look on his face, and
then lets out a chuckle. “Scarlett. I only want you.”

I feel my eyebrows crinkle, but I’m too
afraid to hope.

He sits next to me. “I am grateful to God
that it didn’t work out between Alexa and me because now I see how
wonderful a relationship can be. I never had the connection with
her like I have with you. I never knew I could feel like I’m in the
arms of an angel.” He just sits there and gazes at me. “I don’t
want to lose you. Please…please don’t leave me because of
this.”

My heart leaps in my chest. “Wait…you’re not
breaking up with me?” I ask.

“
Breaking up with you? Are
you crazy? I love you more than anything. More than anyone!” he
says.

I hadn’t noticed that I was holding my
breath until I am now finally able to exhale.

“
I have wanted to propose
to you ever since…we divorced, but I’m just waiting for you to
catch up with me, Scar. To be where I’m at.”

“
But if it turns out that
you’re the father…” I say.

“
That doesn’t change how I
feel about you. I love you! But will you…still want to be with me?”
he asks.

Unable to contain all the myriad of emotions
that are storing inside, I start to sob. “I thought…I thought you
were going to break it off with me because…I was at the restaurant
earlier today and I overheard you and Alexa talking.”

“
Oh, God. So all this time
you’ve been thinking I would choose her over you?” he
asks.

I nod.

He takes my face between his hands. “Nothing
will change my mind, do you hear? Michael loves Scarlett. End of
story.”

“
And I love you, too,” I
say. “I only want to be with you, no matter what.”

Relief washes over his face. “So you’re okay
with it?”

“
Well, I’m still in shock,
but all I know is I want you.”

A crying, laughing noise rises out of his
mouth. “God dammit. I’ve been carrying your ring around ever since
the day after my mother’s funeral. I went out and bought it right
then.”

My jaw opens.

“
I just wanted to wait for
the right moment.” His eyes shine with pure joy. He gets down on
one knee, reaches into his pocket, and produces a stunning diamond
ring. “Scarlett Hansen. All I see is you. All I can think about is
you. When we’re apart, the only thing I can think of is when we’ll
be together again. God, you make me scared, and reckless, and wild.
I want to give you everything, be your everything. But at the same
time, just us two together—is everything. Will you do me the honor
of becoming my wife?”

I sink to my knees and throw my arms around
his neck. Unable to keep our balance, we tumble to the floor, me
landing on top of him. I kiss him with everything I have, tasting
my tears, which now have turned to tears of joy.

“
Does that mean your answer
is yes?” he asks.

I realize I didn’t actually say the words
yet. “Yes! Yes!” I say, smiling. I press my lips to his, kissing
him again, all the while laughing, smiling, and crying.

He caresses my face and slips his tongue
into my mouth, immediately awakening the desire in me.

“
I love you so much,” I
say. “I was so scared you would choose her.”

He grips my face and looks me intently in
the eyes. “I would never ever choose her. I love you. Only you. But
are you sure? Because I might become a father in a few months, and
things will definitely become more challenging. You could be a step
mother right away,” he says.

“
All I want is to be with
you, and if that means we’ll have some challenges, that’s fine,” I
say.

His eyes light up. “I am going to make you
the happiest woman in the world.”

My chest feels like it’s about to explode,
it’s so full. “As long as I’m with you, I already am, Michael.”

He takes my hand and slips the ring on my
finger. It fits perfectly.

“
It’s beautiful,” I say,
studying it. The heavy white gold ring has a huge princess cut
diamond in the center, with baguettes on the side and it sparkles
like a thousand stars. “It’s perfect.”

“
Like you,” he
says.

I glance at him. “Oh,
please. I am
so
not perfect and you know it.”

“
You’re perfect for
me.”

“
And you’re perfect for me,
too.” I dip my head, and press my lips to his, feeling all the
anxiety of the day melt away. He weaves his fingers into my hair,
and pulls me closer, his firm body fusing with mine. When his
tongue delves into my mouth, I start to grow heavy between my legs,
and when he starts to unbutton my top, I immediately reach for his
belt. I straddle him, and undo the buckle.

“
God, I love you so much,”
he says, watching me as I slowly pull the belt out of its
loops.

“
I love you,” I say,
unbuttoning his pants. I reach down into his briefs and pull his
cock out. When I feel the firmness between my fingers, heat pools
where I want him. With his pants still on, I scoot back, and press
my lips to his tip. He moans the second I bring him all the way in,
and when I suck hard, he pulls in a sharp breath.

“
Easy,” he says.

I drag my tongue down his shaft, all the way
down to the base, and gently suck on one of his balls.

Air hisses between his teeth as he rests his
hands on my head, and then he lets out a low, guttural grunt. I
wrap my hand around his erection, and start to stroke up and down.
Holy hell, it is such a turn on feeling how goddamn hard he is for
me.

Suddenly, he grabs my shoulders and pulls me
to the floor so I end up lying on my back. I laugh. He unbuttons my
shirt, and I peel out of it. Once he has managed to get me out of
my pants, he presses three fingers to my navel and slowly slides
them southward until they disappears down the front of my panties.
Oh…

Waiting for him to touch me, I feel as if
I’ll lose my mind, and I spasm beneath him, my entire body
electrified from his touch. I moan when his fingers finally find my
clitoris and as he begins to circle around it—feather light
touches—I let out a breathy high-pitched moan.

“
Scarlett, you’re so
swollen, baby,” he says, massaging a little harder, bringing me
even more pleasure.

He dips his fingers into the entrance of my
pussy, and strokes upward, the evidence of my arousal coating his
fingers and my folds.

“
I love how wet you are.”
he says, his fingers dipping into me again. In and out. In and
out.

“
Please,” I beg, biting my
lip. “I need you inside.”

“
First, I want to taste
your sweetness. You would like that, wouldn’t you?” he
asks.

“
Yes. I would like that
very much.”

My skin sizzles and my heart wants to fight
its way out of my chest. Every word out of his mouth makes me go
mad with lust. Every touch hypnotizes my mind so I can think of
nothing but him.

Sucking on him is such a high. Having him
suck on me…it turns me into a woman in heat. A woman who would do
anything for him in return. A woman who loses all control and all
shame.

He pulls my panties off, and flings them
across the room. I bend my knees, and he lowers himself between my
legs. At first, he starts to lick me. Slowly. The way his tongue
seems to melt with the slick skin between my folds, it drives me to
heaven’s door. It’s like ice melting on a scorching day. He twirls
the tip of his tongue around and around, right there…right…oh
shit.

I can’t help but let out another moan.

He sits back, and the way his thick erection
sticks out of his boxer briefs and presses against his abdomen, is
so fucking sexy. God, the things he can do with that amazing thing.
He slips two fingers inside of me, and props his knee against the
back of his hand, adding even more pressure to my clitoris.

Arching my back, a girly cry rises out of my
throat.

“
I love being the one who
brings you such much pleasure,” he says.

“
Only you, Michael,” I say.
“Only you have ever brought me so much…pleasure. No one
else.”

“
Good,” he says. While his
fingers are still inside of me, he tugs at his tie, loosening it
from around his neck. “I want to fuck this sweet pussy on the bed,
Scar.”

My body is screaming at me, saying I have to
have him right now, but somehow I manage to nod. He draws his
fingers out of me, lifts me up, and carries me over to the bed. He
tosses me on the bed as if he’s in a hurry and can’t wait to get
inside me, and in seconds, he’s kneeling between my legs, holding
his cock in his hands. I reach for his erection and slide him into
my opening as I raise my knees and clamp them tightly on his
hips.

Yes.

He lowers himself over me on elbows and
knees, imprisoning me with his body, and starts to move, an all-too
slow, lingering pace, a sensual rhythm that flares the embers of a
low-glowing burn.

I bring my hands to his chiseled face, the
face I have come to love so much, and trace my fingers along his
jawline.

“
Michael,” I say, a
barely-there whisper. “Oh…”

“
Mrs. Scarlett Manning,” he
says with so much affection, his words shoot straight to my heart.
“You are mine.” He tugs at my hair and thrusts himself inside of
me—hard.

I shove my fingers through his hair and tug
as I feel myself rising higher and higher, as I ride the rushing
wave toward my climax.

“
Oh God,” I moan, unable to
concentrate on anything other than just letting the pleasure
possess me, letting it thunder through me like a storm from the
sky, letting the shudders of my inner muscles spasm in decadent
agony.

“
I love watching your face
when you come around me,” he grunts, still pumping me full of him,
slow and deep. Without sliding out of me, he lifts my right leg and
hoists it onto his shoulder. He takes my hands in his, interlacing
our fingers, and starts slamming into me at a fierce
pace.