- Steele Resolve
Date: Monday, November 27, 2006
- "screechmonkeys" <screechmonkeys@netzero.net>
-
- OK, I'm going to hurry
up and post this before I lose my nerve. (I'm more than a little
freaked out about doing this and I'm pretty sure I will regret
this right after I press the "Send" button!)
-
- I have to thank Zinger
and Nora Bolt for their wonderful input and help (not to mention
their beta reading). I also want to thank Lissa, Neeners and
Isabel for their encouragement as I jump off this cliff. (Someone
catch me, please!)
- So, here it is. I'd
appreciate feedback.
- Xenos
---------------------------
-
- Steele
Resolve
-
- Laura
blinked her eyes open and inhaled deeply. 5:43am.
Ugh. She rolled over, looked lovingly at her handsome husband
sleeping soundly next to her and smiled. Her mind reeled.
It had been about three-and-a-half months since that ill-fated
night at Ashford Castle. The night they were finally going
to consummate their marriage. Heaven knows they waited
long enough. Laura still remembers that night vividly,
as though it were just yesterday.
-
- They
had just finished watching Daniel Chalmers' funeral on the evening
news. To think that Daniel was Mr. Steele’s father.
After all that time, all the searching. And then to have
him taken so quickly – before he could tell her husband
his real name. It just wasn’t fair. But she
and Remington had other things on their mind that night.
After years of dancing around each other – of touching and
pulling back – they were finally both ready to overcome
their inhibitions and give in to their desires. He lifted
her into his arms and started up the long staircase to what was
supposed to be their honeymoon room. She felt so safe in
his embrace, so secure…so ready.
-
- And
then the phone rang. It was Tony Roselli. She shooed
Remington away and spoke with Tony briefly while Remington prepared
their bedroom. She hung up and met Remington half way up
the staircase. He kissed her with a promise of what was
to come and carried her effortlessly into the bedroom.
She slid down the length of his body until her feet reached the
floor. They stared a lifetime into each others’ eyes
before they shared a smoldering kiss and turned out the lights.
But then…then the phone rang…again. Laura winced
at the thought of what happened next. Remington ripped
the phone from the wall and threw it violently across the room.
That was it. The spell had been broken. All the anger
and frustration Mr. Steele had felt since Tony entered their
lives exploded out of him in a verbal tirade. He didn’t
trust her anymore.
-
- She
remembered the desperation she felt as she tried to explain her
actions and begged his forgiveness. It was all so surreal.
They came to an understanding that night – actually the
next morning. They were going to try to forget everything
that happened and give their relationship another shot.
-
- When
Tony showed up at their doorstep later that evening, she was
terrified at what Mr. Steele might do. To her surprise,
he was rather amicable…Too amicable for her liking.
He invited Tony in and then excused himself from their company…But
not before giving her a burning kiss that offset her equilibrium.
He had claimed her as his own on no uncertain terms, leaving
Tony more than slightly agitated. And Laura was determined
to set the record straight…Finally…Something she should
have done from the very start. She apologized to Tony for
leading him on and confessed her true feelings for Mr. Steele.
Her last words were, “We have no future together, Tony.
If you truly care about me, please don’t contact me again.”
To his credit, he hasn’t.
-
- Laura
and Remington agreed to “date” and let the chips fall
where they may. He spent hours showing her around Ireland
and mesmerizing her with delightful stories of his past.
She knew not all his memories of Ireland were fond ones, but
she was more than content to accept what he offered. They
were falling in love all over again.
-
- Each
night after an evening of wining and dining, dancing and romancing,
he walked her up to their bedroom, kissed her deeply and retreated
to another room to sleep. Laura was going out of her mind
with anticipation and yearning, but she knew she needed to earn
back his trust before he would make love to her. She grinned
at the thought that perhaps he had been punishing her for all
those times she made him “retract his periscope” over
the years.
-
- Alas,
their time in Ireland had come to an end. Remington signed
over ownership of the castle to the servants, and Mr. and Mrs.
Steele went back home to live at his place as husband and wife.
That evening, they were both quite exhausted from their travels.
They slept in Mr. Steele’s bed, but that was all they did.
She was beginning to wonder if they would ever cross that
line, turn that corner…
-
- But
the next night, after a wonderfully romantic evening, they made
love for the first time. It was warm and gentle and filled
with a passion Laura had never known before. She felt her
whole body flush as an uncontrollable shudder shot through her
at the very thought of it. It was that night – their
first time – that she knew Remington loved her…Really
loved her. Though she sometimes doubted it before, all
her fears were laid to rest. But why couldn’t he say
it? Laura sighed as she closed her eyes, hoping to catch
a few more Zs before their alarm went off.
-
- Remington
yawned and rubbed his eyes as he peered over the lovely brunette
who has shared his bed for the past few months. 6:24am.
Too damn early. He laid his head back down on the pillow
and sighed. Laura looked so beautiful lying there so peacefully.
It was hard to believe it had been four months since their fishing
boat wedding. It was hardly the ideal place to get married,
but he was sure that some day she would laugh about it.
Maybe. Perhaps. OK, probably not any time soon, but
certainly one day in the distant future. He smiled
at the notion. At least he finally convinced her that he
had no intention of marrying a “love broker” –
that it was all a big ruse so that she would marry him
to keep him in the country. He knew she wasn’t
thrilled about it, but she had forgiven him for his deception.
-
- Then,
Remington remembered the whole honeymoon debacle. It wiped
the smile right off his face. It was bad enough that the
INS was all over him and Laura, and that he was framed for murder.
But Anthony…Anthony blind-sided him and almost destroyed
the best thing in his life – his relationship with Laura.
He tried to trust her – he really did. But Anthony
kept showing up at the wrong place and the wrong time.
The worst part was that Laura didn’t seem to mind.
She seemed to welcome it, in fact. Remington felt his stomach
churn at the thought of it. The bloody bugger kept pursuing
Laura – even after he was hundreds of miles away in a different
country. He even called her right when they were finally
going to make love…TWICE!
-
- Remington
recalled all the angry words and accusations he hurled at Laura
and the terrified look on her face as she wept with remorse.
He remembered the tears he held back as she tried to explain
that her ever-present neuroses were to blame and that she didn’t
want Tony – she wanted him and only him. But it was
too late. His trust in her was shattered and he felt like
giving up. Laura, however – stubborn, bull-headed,
obstinate Laura – held on for dear life and somehow convinced
him to give “them” another chance. With that
thought, he offered a silent “thank you” to his lovely
bride lying beside him.
-
- And
then he thought about how they made love for the very first time
in this very bed…How she responded to his every touch, every
move…How she made him feel physically and emotionally…How
he had finally showed her how much he loved her even though he
hadn’t said it. Why couldn’t he say it?
-
- He
let out a long sigh, placed a light kiss on Laura’s cheek
and drifted back to sleep.
-
- *****
-
- The
music blared and an all too familiar voice clucked out, “You’re
wakin’ up with Tyler and Austin on 14-KROT. We’ve
got another – “ BAM! Laura smacked the
snooze button and groaned. Running her fingers through
her hair, she turned back over to see the most intoxicating blue
eyes staring back at her.
-
- “Good
morning, Mrs. Steele,” Remington greeted with a particularly
lustful sparkle in his eyes.
-
- “Good
morning, Mr. Steele,” she countered before engaging in a
most ravenous kiss. “Why, Mr. Steele,” she purred,
“To what do I owe this pleasure?”
-
- He
gently whisked back a stray strand of hair that had fallen into
her face and gazed wantonly into her cinnamon brown eyes.
“Oh, you know me, Laura…I just want to keep my staff
happy.” He trailed kisses along her jaw towards her
ear as his hand made its way up her thigh and under her shirt.
“A happy staff is an efficient staff,” he whispered
as he continued his onslaught of kisses and caresses.
-
- “I’m
sure Mildred will be thrilled to hear that, sir.”
-
- He
stopped dead in his tracks. “Really, Laura.
You certainly know how to kill the mood,” he huffed.
-
- “Come
on,” Laura chirped as she bound out of bed and turned off
the alarm clock. She was wearing one of his white silk
dress shirts with nothing underneath…which didn’t go
unnoticed or unappreciated.
-
- “Laura,
there is a reason for the snooze button, you know…so you
can snooze…or in our case, engage in more…stimulating
activities,” he suggested, thrusting his hips slightly to
get his point across. “And you can hit it multiple
times, too. Do you know what we could all do, what interesting
– “
-
- “Come
on, Remington,” she interrupted, interlocking her fingers
and stretching her arms up high, revealing a fair amount of thigh.
“Get up!!!”
-
- “I’m
already ‘up’, my dear,” he said lasciviously,
raising an eyebrow.
-
- Laura
gave an exasperated sigh. She really, really wanted
to crawl on top of him and have her way with him…but duty
called. “You’ll just have to hold that feeling
until tonight. We have a new client coming in at 9:00 and
I have a 1:30 with Detective Jarvis.”
-
- “Can’t
we reschedule the new client?” he pleaded.
-
- “No…But
I’ll tell Mildred not to schedule anything important until
9:30 from now on, OK?”
-
- “Make
it 10:00,” he smirked.
-
- Laura
gave him a promising kiss and announced, “I’m jumping
in the shower.” He wiggled his eyebrows. “Don’t
even think about it, Mr. Steele.” He felt the wind
being taken out of his sails. “Why don’t you
make yourself some breakfast. I won’t be long.”
She sauntered over to the bathroom, turned back and blew her
gorgeous husband a kiss before disappearing into the shower.
-
- A
few minutes passed and she threatened, “REMINGTON?!”
-
- “I’m
up! I’m up!” he yelled back. He wasn’t
and she knew it. Funny how well they knew each other after
only a few months of marriage.
-
- As
the hot water beat down on her tired body, her thoughts drifted
to him and a grin appeared on her face that reached all the way
up to her eyes. God, how she wanted to pounce on him this
morning. Her libido was raging. Sex with Remington
was unlike anything she’d ever experienced before.
Sometimes it was deliciously slow and dreamy. Sometimes
it was teasing and playful. And sometimes…Sometimes
she thought they’d put porn stars to shame – though
she wasn’t really sure about that. She never was one
to watch porno movies. The closest she ever got was when
she and Remington had to spend the night in that god-awful theater
when they were temporarily homeless. Even then, she wouldn’t
look up from her lap. How Remington got any sleep that
night, she’ll never know.
-
- Remington
threw on his silk robe and padded over to the kitchen.
He opened the fridge and surveyed his options. But his
mind was on Laura…his Laura…Finally. He
was never one to compare his many conquests, but Laura was by
far the best he’d ever had. He surmised that love
really did change everything. Sure, he loved Anna…or
so he thought. But they were so young and it happened so
fast and it was all based on deception and lies. No, it
wasn’t love. He didn’t know what it was exactly,
but it wasn’t anything like his love for Laura.
Damn that 9am meeting, he thought. One cold shower
coming up.
-
- *****
-
- “Laura,
come on.” He gave a quick knock as he opened the door.
“I need to take a sho– “
-
- ”Oh
God, Remington,“ she gasped, jumping involuntarily.
The small round case in her hand went flying. “You
scared me,” she panted.
-
- “Sorry,
Love.” He picked up her birth control pills and handed
them to her. “Didn’t mean to…You alright?”
-
- “Yeah,
I’m fine. I was just deep in thought. I’ll
get out of your way.”
-
- Birth
control pills. Laura just started taking them about a month
ago after their second “oops”. The first time,
they were working late into the night at the office. One
thing lead to another and their passion erupted…right on
Mr. Steele’s desk. Good thing there was never anything
on it. A few weeks later, they took a detour through the
hills in the Auburn. They found themselves at Las Amantes
Lookout and, well, they tripped the light fantastic, so to speak.
That was the first and last time they tried that –
Remington pulled his sciatic nerve and walked funny for a week,
and Laura ended up with a baseball size bruise on her outer thigh.
It was immediately after that little misadventure that Laura
decided to take matters into her own hands and go on the pill.
-
- *****
-
- Laura
put the finishing touches on her make-up, slid her “Peppler”
wedding band on and sighed. Why was she wearing this stupid
ring? It was 14-carat gold-plated and was beginning to
turn her finger green. Why couldn’t she have just
accepted the matching bands he bought for them from Starbright
Jewelers? Why did she insist on returning them? She
knew why. Because as beautiful as they were – and
they were genuinely beautiful – they weren’t really
getting married. And she’d be damned if she was going
to wear a real wedding band without being truly married.
She now wished she hadn’t been so hasty.
-
- Laura
grabbed her briefcase and the keys to the Rabbit. “Remington,
we’re late,” she chastised.
-
- “Coming,
coming.”
-
- Remington.
She loved calling him that. Sure, Laura had used “Remington”
and “Remy” in public after their marriage to placate
the INS, but it was always “Mr. Steele” when they were
alone. She only started calling him “Remington”
in private after that name involuntarily escaped her lips in
little more than a whisper during their first night together.
From that moment on, Laura knew that he was Remington…Remington
Steele. Not the Remington Steele she invented. No,
he was better – despite his flaws…maybe even because
of his flaws.
-
- Remington.
It felt so good when she called him that. He remembered
how she once asked him at the castle if he preferred she call
him “Harry”. He thought about it but decided
against it since he really didn’t know if Harry was his
real name. Besides, “Harry” was something that
people from his past called him…a name he used before he
started living his life on the straight and narrow. No.
Not Harry, he decided. Daniel would understand. He
became lost in his reverie…
-
- “But
what do I call you when we’re alone?”
-
- “Whatever
you decide is fine by me, Laura.”
-
- And
then came the night when they first made love. Remington.
It was Remington.
-
- *****
-
- It
wasn’t all bliss for the couple, however. Their place
was rather small for the two of them. In fact, three-fourths
of Laura’s “things” were still in a storage facility.
He complained bitterly about how her toiletries were invading
his already over-stocked medicine cabinet. She resented
that he had more closet space than she. He railed against
work files being stacked on the dining room table. She
hated that his videotape collection was so extensive that there
was no room for her music cassettes.
-
- They
bickered endlessly as they had before they tied the knot, but
somehow it was different. Laura now came to view it as
a form of foreplay…and she was sure Remington did, too.
Work hard. Fight hard. Play hard.
-
- *****
-
- As
they drove from the Rossmore en route to the office, Laura broached
the subject of moving. “You know, the Dekkers are
leaving for Boston next month. Brian got transferred.”
-
- “Oh?”
Remington shifted uncomfortably as Laura continued driving.
-
- “You
know Brian and Jennifer Dekker? They’re the ones in
the penthouse. They have three bedrooms, a study, two full
baths complete with Jacuzzi…” Dead silence.
“I was thinking maybe we could move up there. We could
get that beautiful piano you bought for me out of storage and
convert one of the bedrooms into a music room. We could
put my bedroom set in the other room and I could finally have
some space for my things. The money that we’re saving
from not paying rent on the loft and on the storage facility
can be used to help pay the monthly mortgage.”
-
- “No.”
-
- “What?”
-
- “I
said, ‘no’,” he reiterated emphatically and clenched
his jaw.
-
- “Why?”
she asked incredulously, raising her voice in annoyance.
-
- “Too
expensive. No.”
-
- Laura
was dumbfounded and more than a little miffed. “I
though I was supposed to be the frugal one, remember?”
She bit her lip and fought back with everything in her power
to stifle what she really wanted to say when she thought about
all the money Daniel had left him.
-
- This
was shaping up to be a glorious argument.
-
- His
blue eyes were blazing. “Damn it, Laura, I said ‘no’.
End of discussion.”
-
- After
teaching the road a lesson it wouldn’t soon forget, Laura
brought the Rabbit to a screeching halt in the parking structure.
“This isn’t over,” she seethed and slammed the
door so hard that the car shook.
-
- They
both stormed in silence from the elevator up to the 11th floor
and through the doors of Suite 1157. “Morning, Mr.
and Mrs. Steele,” their ever-endearing secretary and detective-in-training
chirped out.
-
- “Morning,
Mildred,” he answered callously with a mock smile before
slamming his office door behind him.
-
- “Our
client?” Laura inquired.
-
- “Not
in yet, hon. What’s up with the boss?”
-
- “Don’t
ask. Let me know when Mr. Grant arrives, OK?”
-
- “Sure
thing, Mrs. Steele.”
-
- Judging
by the way Laura stomped into her office, Mildred figured they
had one doozy of a fight. Normally, this would have worried
her. Their marriage was so new and the circumstances surrounding
their union made their relationship that much more tenuous.
However, any fears she had all but dissipated about two weeks
ago when she saw them holding hands as they emerged from the
elevator and walked down the hall to the office. They were
holding hands…an act that most couples engage in without
a second thought. Then again, Miss Holt and Mr. Steele
had never been your average, ordinary couple…and
she doubted they ever would be. But this act – this
one simple act of holding hands – was so intimate for the
two of them and proved that it was more than just a marriage
of convenience. No, they’d be alright. She knew
it.
-
- By
the time Mr. Grant came and went, Laura and Remington were back
to normal. The argument was over…for now anyway.
They grabbed a quick bite to eat in the office before Laura’s
impending meeting with Detective Jarvis. As she was leaving,
the mailman arrived. They exchanged pleasantries before
she hastily rifled though the mail and opened the agency’s
credit card bill.
-
- “That
tears it,” she yelled as she blasted into Mr. Steele’s
office and slammed the door.
-
- Look
out, thought Mildred.
Here comes Hurricane Laura. Maybe it’s that time
of the month.
-
- “Why?
Why do you do this?” She ranted, waving the bill furiously.
Remington came around to the front of his desk and leaned against
it with a look of trepidation on his face. All hope of
having a civilized conversation was thrown out the window.
She was pissed and there was no calming her down. “We’ve
been together for almost five years – five years!
You’d think by now – “ Her mouth went on
autopilot. Her mind, however, was someplace else.
All she could think about was him…naked…on top of her…then
underneath her…then – DAMN! Damn him for being
so irresistible! When did I lose control? DAMN!
Focus, Laura, focus.
-
- “We’ve
been together for almost five blah, blah, blah – “
She’s very sexy when she’s angry. I wonder
what bra she’s wearing. I hope it’s the little
black lacy number that opens in the front. I always like
taking that one off of her. Mmmmm. And those freckles.
I can’t wait to connect every last one of them with my tongue.
I wonder which route I’ll take tonight… Maybe I’ll
– Ooooh! Pants getting tight. Focus, old chap,
focus.
-
- “
– be so irresponsible!”
-
- Oh,
shhh-ugar! She stopped talking. Don’t let her
know you weren’t listening. Punt, mate! With as much consternation and indignation
that he could muster, he bellowed, “What?!?!”
-
- Oh
God, Laura. What did you say? Think…fast!
“Men!” she railed.
Their eyes locked, neither one backing down. A moment later,
she turned on her heel. “FINE!!!” she fumed and
marched out.
-
- “FINE!!!”
he roared back before she slammed his door.
-
- “Mildred,”
she barked, “Tell Mr. Steele to take the Rabbit home without
me. Good-bye!” Laura careened through the swinging
doors, took a few steps down the hall and stopped dead in her
tracks. “What the hell just happened?”
-
- Remington
was still leaning on his desk. He was bewildered.
But at least his pants were a little less tight now. “What
the hell just happened?” he asked himself out loud.
-
- Mildred
knocked twice on his door and then poked her head in. “What
the hell just happened, boss?”
-
- “Mildred,
I have no idea.” Then he broke into one of his million
dollar smiles. “Get the florist on the line, would
you?”
-
- “Will
do, Chief. But why are you so happy?”
-
- “Mildred…Has
it really been that long for you?”
-
- She
broke out into a wide grin and gave him a couple of winks.
Make-up sex, she thought. “Right away, Mr.
Steele.”
-
- *****
-
- Back
at home, Remington was planning a romantic “I’m sorry”
evening. The duck was in the oven, the flowers were
in a crystal vase, Tony Bennett was crooning in the background…If
everything went as planned, they should be done with dinner by
8:30 and he should be connecting her dots in bed by 9:00.
There was just one thing missing – Laura. He finally
heard the key in the door. Laura walked in with her briefcase
in one hand and a small brown paper bag in the other. She
set them both down by the door and threw her keys on the glass
table.
-
- “Hi.
Sorry I’m late,” she announced noticing the dim lights,
enticing aroma coming from the kitchen and the beautiful bouquet
of flowers. ‘While We’re Young’ was playing
on the stereo. That was one of their favorites.
-
- The
next few hours were spent talking about everything and nothing.
Laura was distracted and barely touched her canard au vin rouge.
After dinner, Remington refilled his glass of wine and handed
Laura her still full glass.
-
- “No
thanks.”
”Laura, what’s gotten into you?” he inquired,
sensing that something was amiss.
-
- “I
think I might be pregnant,” she blurted out. That
was tactful, she thought and winced.
-
- Remington
stopped breathing and all the color drained from his face.
The silence was deafening. He made his way over to the
couch and flopped down. He was stunned. “I don’t
deserve this,” he stated.
-
- “Oh,
God,” Laura whispered as she wiped away a flood of tears
streaming down her face and went out on the balcony. I
don’t deserve this. It echoed in her head.
Her mind raced a mile a minute. What if he thinks I
did this on purpose? What if he hates me? What if
he leaves me? What if –
-
- “Laura?”
She brushed away all the tears as quickly as she could.
He grasped her shoulders and turned her around to face him.
“I meant what I said – I don’t deserve this.”
His eyes avoided hers as he confessed quietly, “Bloody hell,
Laura, I don’t even deserve you.” He dropped
to his knees, placed his cheek to her belly and hugged her tight.
“A baby.”
-
- “You’re
not mad?” she choked out.
-
- “Mad?”
He was taken aback. “Stunned…Shocked…Scared
– yes. But not mad. This is just happening a
little sooner than I expected.”
-
- “Sooner
than you expected?” Now it was her turn to be stunned.
That louse! Was that his plan all the time – to
marry me and get me pregnant? That no-good, conniving…
wonderful… incredible louse!
-
- “Laura.”
He backed away from her but still stayed on his knees.
“I wish I had…Oh, wait.” He unfastened the
clasp from his ID bracelet and held it out to her. “I
know this isn’t exactly a ring, but…Will you marry
me? For real this time?”
-
- Tears
welled up in her eyes again and spilled over uncontrollably.
“No.”
-
- “No?”
He jumped to his feet.
-
- “No.
I won’t marry you just because I’m pregnant.”
-
- “Laura,
I didn’t – “
-
- “Look,
I don’t even know if I am for sure. I bought a home
pregnancy test today, but I haven’t done it yet.”
Then the words flew out of her mouth as if the more she talked
the better things would be. “There are so many variables
involved. I started taking the pill mid way through my
cycle, but I started at the beginning of the wheel which I don’t
think I was supposed to do. And it’s only been one
day since I’ve been on the placebo…” Remington
was trying to follow her, he really was. “…Plus,
I’ve been under a lot of stress lately with the Stephens
case and all those late night stakeouts. My diet has been
sorely lacking as of late despite your wonderful gourmet creations.
And heaven knows my cycle hasn’t exactly been – “
-
- “Laura,
Laura, Laura. Slow down a minute.” She stopped
and took a much needed deep breath. “Forget all that.
I’ll ask again.” He took her left hand in his
and presented his bracelet in the other. “Laura Holt…Will
you marry me? Not because of immigration or because you
might be pregnant…Marry me because we can’t live without
each other and we want to grow old together. Marry me because…”
He swallowed hard. “…Marry me because we love
each other.”
-
- “What?”
she asked almost inaudibly. She couldn’t have heard
him right, could she? Her heart began to pound in her ears.
Breathe, Laura…In and out…In and out…
-
- He
looked into her eyes until his gaze penetrated to her very soul.
“I love you, Laura Holt. Always have, always will.”
He felt naked and exposed and incredibly vulnerable. In
all of his years, he had never – ever – said those
three words to anyone. He had been too afraid to think
it let alone say it. And yet, for the first time, he wasn’t
afraid anymore.
-
- Her
tears started all over again, only this time they were tears
of joy. “I love you too, Remington. Yes…Yes…Of
course I’ll marry you.”
-
- He
quickly clasped his bracelet to her wrist. Their bodies
seemed to meld into one as they held each other closely and kissed
for what seemed like an eternity. When they finally came
up for air, Remington broke the silence. “Now, we
have a few things to take care of, eh? First, let’s
get the ball rolling on the Dekker’s penthouse.”
-
- “What?
I thought you said we couldn’t afford it?”
-
- “Really,
Laura. You know we can.” It was truth time.
“I was worried about the whole three bedroom thing.
I rather enjoy having you share my bed – our bed.
I’ve grown accustomed to holding you in my arms until we
fall asleep after a night of lovemaking. I love waking
up with you in the morning and seeing you lying beside me.
I love the scent of your hair on the pillowcases.”
Remington sighed and tugged on his ear. “With the
extra bedroom, I was afraid you’d want to sleep in your
own bed in your own room.”
-
- “Not
a chance.”
-
- “Really?”
he asked with the most perfectly lopsided grin.
-
- “Really,”
she stated emphatically, smiling and revealing her irresistible
dimple. “Now, what else?”
-
- “Beg
your pardon?”
-
- “You
said there were a few things we needed to take care of.”
-
- “Ah,
yes.” Remington cleared his throat. “After
we take care of the penthouse, what say you and I go shopping
for a real engagement ring, eh?”
-
- “Oh,
no! You don’t think I’m gonna give your bracelet
back for some stupid engagement ring, do you? No way.
This is mine now and I’m not giving it back. Uh-uh.
We can shop for new wedding bands, but that’s all.”
He cradled her head in his hands and they kissed again with unrestrained
passion.
-