Forever in Love by W. Lynn Chantale Read Free Book Online Page A

had done that.
    ***
    Bonnie was so easy to talk to and dance with. Buck slipped his hand a little lower on her back and buried his nose in her hair, taking her scent of peaches and cloves, deep into his lungs. “Do you always smell like peach cobbler?”
    She chuckled. “I did make one of those today.”
    “You always did love to cook.”
    “Yes..” She angled back to meet his gaze. “Why does that surprise you?”
    “Most young women your age only know how to press buttons on a microwave.”
    “You make a habit of dating younger women?”
    “Only when one truly piques my interest.”
    She ducked her head, a lock of hair falling across her forehead. “What makes me so special?”
    He maneuvered them deeper into the throng of dancers. What better way to seduce a woman than with a dance. She followed his steps with ease and he wondered if she made love the same way. “You have my attention.”
    “C’mon. You’re a handsome virile man I’m sure you have dozens of women falling over themselves to impress you.”
    “And they get upset when I don’t pay them attention.”
    “So I shouldn’t be concerned about the few females shooting me daggers since we’ve been out here.”
    He chuckled. “I only have eyes for you sassy.”
    She lowered her gaze again, resting her head against his chest. The smooth jazz bled into a faded love song from his youth.
    “I love this song,” she murmured.
    “Really? It’s always been one of my favorites.”
    “You’re just full of surprises.”
    “Why do you say that?”
    “No tie, but you wear a suit with cowboy boots.”
    “That bothers you?”
    She shook her head. “I find it very sexy.”
    “That’s good to know.” She found him sexy that warmed him.
    She ran her fingers through the hair at the nape of his neck. He closed his eyes savoring her caress. “You’ve got this whole bad boy, knight in shining armor thing going on. Why me and after all this time?”
    “Come back to my place and I’ll tell you everything you need to know.”
    “Right.”
    He grinned. “And we can have dessert and a nightcap.”
     
    ***
     
    Bonnie accepted the slice of cheesecake and cup of coffee before Buck settled on the sofa next to her. She placed both on the low coffee table in front of her.
    “Cream and sugar?”
    She shook her head. “No thank you.” She picked up the dessert and a fork. “So why this need to make me your wife and you haven’t seen me in years?”
    “Did you ever experience a moment in life when you knew you were meant to be with someone, but the time wasn’t right?”
    She’d felt like that every moment since he appeared on her front stoop. Slowly she nodded, not quite sure where he was going with this.
    “I had that moment when I saw you, but you were way too young.”
    “Eighteen was too young?” She ventured.
    He flashed a smirk. “Still adding a few years to your age?”
    She coughed. Goodness what didn’t this man remember?
    “I couldn’t bring the two of you to live with me, so I did the next best thing.” He ran his fingers through her hair.
    “Gave me a job as a runner then fired me,” she supplied. She brought a forkful of cheesecake to her lips. “You could’ve said something.”
    “I had enemies. Still do for that matter.”
    “After all this time?”
    He nodded. “I seldom go back to the old neighborhood.” He stretched his arm along the back of the sofa. “Although if you were still there, I’d brave a firing squad, but this is much nicer, don’t you think?”
    “Much nicer.”
    “Indeed.”
    His arm brushed her shoulders, before his fingers swept over her skin. A sigh parted her lips at his caress. He massaged the muscles in her neck and she bit back a sigh.
    “You have a lot of tension back here.”
    “It’s from staring at invoices and a computer all day.”
    He removed the plate from her hand and placed it on the table. “Turn around.”
    She studied him for a moment before complying. He brushed her hair for