Beyond Promise by Karice Bolton Read Free Book Online Page B

romantic.” I looked around
the room. The light was low with only the table lamp beside me
turned on so I could pretend to read the book I’d been holding all
night. “I’ll have to work on that.”
    “You don’t have to be romantic to get me to
fantasize about having sex with you.” He grinned. “But let’s get
those PJs off. I don’t want you to overheat.”
    “Yes, I’m sure that’s what you’re worried
about,” I teased.
    His fingers gripped the hem, and he gently
tugged it over my head and tossed it on the floor. His eyes fell to
my chest and he grinned.
    “What?” I grabbed a pillow and playfully
swatted his head.
    “The perks of this whole nine month process
are pretty appealing.” He flashed a wicked grin and moistened his
lips.
    I glanced down at my bra, which was
overflowing, and I whistled.
    “Guess it’s time to go up a size.”
    “Or three,” he murmured, lifting his gaze
back to mine. “Lily, I know I promised I wouldn’t bring up the
fight, but I need you to know I’d never put myself or our future in
jeopardy. I know I’ll pummel him. I’d never do anything to put our
dreams at risk. I promise you that. I promise you that more than
anything. I see our future together and it’s a happy one.”
    I nodded slowly as he touched my cheek
softly, and the heat that had been washing through my system turned
to chills. A wave of goose bumps ran across my flesh, and I
suddenly wished I had my flannel nightshirt back on. His words were
comforting, but they didn’t erase the fact that tomorrow he’d be
doing exactly what he said he wouldn’t do. He was putting our
future, our dreams, in jeopardy, and I couldn’t fathom how he
didn’t see that.
    I reached for a throw and wrapped it around
my shoulders, leaving enough of a glimpse so he didn’t forget about
the very future he was talking about.
    “Do you still want to wait until our
rehearsal to tell everyone?” he asked.
    “I think so. It might be kind of fun to see
everybody’s reactions at once. And I sent the little favors I made
that announce it. If we spill the beans sooner, it would lose
something.”
    “Good point. It will be pretty special.”
    “It will,” I agreed, but the emptiness
inside of me was growing. Every second closer to tomorrow made me
want to crawl under a rock and not come out until it was all
over.
    “I love you more than you’ll ever know,”
Ayden said quietly.
    Enough to not step into the ring? I
wondered, but I pushed the thought away as quickly as it came and
steadied my eyes on his.
    “I love you too.”
    “Have I ever told you I fell in love with
you the first time Brandy brought you around?” he asked.
    “You’ve mentioned it a time or two…” I
grinned.
    Ayden traced his finger along my leg, and I
felt the electricity run between us.
    “Well, it’s true. I knew one day I’d be with
you. I didn’t know how or when, but I was willing to wait.”
    Now was the time. If I was going to beg him
to stay home tomorrow, now was the time. Now was the moment to
confess that tomorrow scared me to death, and I wanted him to bow
out.
    Ayden’s hunger-filled gaze locked on mine,
and I took in a deep, shaky breath as he moved toward me. His hands
slid along my sides, and he pulled me onto his lap in one quick,
fluid motion. A quiet wall of hesitancy went up around me before
his mouth collided with mine, and I knew I wouldn’t be saying a
word.
    My arms wrapped around his neck, and my body
pressed against his, feeling the need in him demand something from
me.
    Understanding.
    And I gave it to him. I relinquished the
panic that had knotted itself up inside as my fingers tangled
through his hair. The coolness of his lips excited me as our kisses
intensified, hungrily searching for approval and strength to get
through the next twenty-four hours.
    Being denied the comfort of knowing Ayden
was going to come out okay thrust itself into a raw, almost
painful, desire to be with him. My kisses deepened as his