3 Weeks 'Til Forever (12 page)

Janey
loved it when he kissed her there. Her mom used to do it every night as she
tucked her into bed when she was a child and it always made her feel so safe
and secure. It was like an assurance that she’d
be there in the
morning when Janey woke up.

When Redmond did it, it triggered the same emotional
safety net in her. She’d discussed this with a male friend years ago and he
said that it was a sign of sincerity because it’s non-sexual.

He said he did it to women he really liked because “
It
shows I’ll be there
.”

Janey glowed. It was as if the universe was
literally sealing their love with a kiss – a kiss Redmond had no idea meant so
much to her, which made it all the more special.

At that moment, she knew and trusted that he would
always be there for her – as she would for him.

“Redmond, do you remember that dream I had when we
were in the cabin in Hill Country?”

“Yeah, how could I forget after what it led to,” he
smiled, recalling the first time he’d made love to her.

“Remember I said that I was being chased and I was
terrified? Well I just figured it out.”

“I realized the next day on the drive back to hotel,
after you told me about running into Layla, that I was in love with you. So
those feelings were about to catch up to me; that’s what I was running from in
the dream.”

“And the fear was about losing you. I was so afraid
that I’d lost you when you told me that you’d run into your ex. I didn’t know
if y’all would get back together or what to expect.”

“Hmm, I never give that kind of psychological stuff
any thought, but that makes perfect sense.”

“That’s a nightmare that will never repeat itself,
Janey. Ever. As long as I’m alive, I’ll do my best to make sure that you never
regret falling in love with me. I promise you that,” he said, squeezing her
hand tightly.

As
they walked hand-in-hand to his van, Janey made another observation, “Do you
realize that we met exactly three weeks ago today?”

“Hmmmm
. . . you’re full of insight today,” he said. “Only three weeks, huh?”

“From
three weeks to forever, baby girl. Three weeks to forever," Redmond said,
smiling down at the woman who was now his for life.
###

Coming
in July 2013 . . .

A
PREVIEW

“Trapped
by Desire”

“It’s
just sex.” Karen said. “Will you stop trying to make a mountain out of a mole
hill!”

“I
would if you didn’t have that mountainous smile glued to your mug – which has been
there for the last week,” her best friend Angela shot back.

“I’ve
never known you to do ‘just sex.’ Be careful Kare,” Angela said, turning
serious as she used Karen’s nickname.
You
don’t do ‘to-go sex.’ Your
heart always gets involved and that’s what scares me about this. I don’t want
to see you hurt again.”

After
her last two serious relationships had ended in heartbreak, Karen had taken a
year’s sabbatical from dating and reassessed her priorities.

Her
professional life was budding, but she was lonely. So she decided to focus on
what she could control – her business – and not wait for a committed
relationship to blossom before she had some fun.

Meeting
Kamar seemed to solidify that she’d made the right decision. They hit it off
immediately and headed straight down the ‘bad girl’ path, forging a physical
connection before thought was given to any type of emotional bond.

Could
her bad girl behavior lead to a lasting relationship?

Could
the chemistry they shared in bed translate into a successful relationship out
of bed?

Or,
was she so
Trapped by Desire
that she was setting herself
up for heartbreak all over again?

 
Update:
March 2014 – Trapped by Desire can be found on Amazon at
http://amzn.to/1kP1nOo
.

NEW
RELEASE COMING APRIL 2014: The Courage to Love

PROLOGUE

The
cool sand between her toes eased the heat of the pain lodged in Kayla's chest.

"Tate,
oh Tate …" the wind whipped her deceased husband's name from her lips on a
roar.

It
had been almost two years since Kayla lost her beloved Tate to colon cancer.
Even though it had been way beyond a respectable time, she still felt guilty
about falling in love again. It was all so unexpected. She felt like she was
cheating on him.

No
Dreams Delayed

Kayla
and Tate had relocated from New York to Amerila, a small Caribbean island five
years ago. They'd both given up fast-paced careers to embrace a more meaningful
life – and had never regretted the move.

They'd
been happily married for eight years and longed for more time together. Both in
the prime of their high-powered careers, they never seemed to have enough time
together and had decided on a whim five years ago to chuck it all and start the
life they wanted now – not wait for the conventional "
when it's the
right time
" to come.

Tate
– known to all as simply "TW" from
TW Holdings
– had taken his
skills as a successful real estate developer of luxury properties all over the
U.S. and started a company building eco-friendly, affordable, "tiny houses"
in the Caribbean.

He'd
said that the world, especially developing countries, needed more affordable
housing – not more luxury condos. And he planned to give it to them.

Kayla,
a family law attorney who worked for the non-profit, Legal Aid Society, had put
her career skills to use in Amerila too – volunteering at women's shelters
helping abused women get protective orders, divorces, child support and any
other kind of legal assistance they needed.

She'd
also founded a charity, helping raise money for school books for children.

Their
lives in Amerila couldn't have been richer, fuller or more blissful.

Then
all of a sudden, Tate took ill. Kayla had practically had to feign an emotional
breakdown to get him to go to the doctor. By the time he did, it'd been too
late. The cancer had spread and a mere four months after his diagnosis, her
darling Tate died.

While
she knew the inner workings of Tate's business, Kayla knew squat about being an
architect. And in the short five years they'd been Amerila, he'd gotten quite a
few projects underway – all in various stages of completion.

It
was one of the things she loved about him – his ability to get things done.
Unfortunately, it meant a huge burden for her because of his untimely death.

"Oh
Tate, I miss you so," Kayla gulped. The grief of losing him came in waves.
Today was a bad day.

Forcing
herself to refocus, Kayla knew she needed to find someone who could step in
where her dead husband had left off as soon as possible.

Architect
for Hire

Shaw
"Rifle" Jackson was finishing up his last project for the latest firm
he'd contracted with – and he couldn't wait. Another monstrosity of an office
building, another dollar.

"
The
life is being sucked right out of me,
" he thought as he looked out
over the Chicago skyline from his office.

Shaw
moved fluidly from one project to the next, always having more work than he
could handle. That's because he usually served as the project architect as well
as the project manager, something that wasn't very common when working with/for
large firms.

But,
he'd built a reputation for bringing large-scale commercial projects – like
office buildings – in on time and under budget. Because of this, over the last
decade, he'd become somewhat of a go-to hired gun for this type of work (hence
the nickname, Rifle).

In
the beginning, the work was exciting – mainly because the money was so good, at
least to him – who came from nothing. But the last couple of years, he'd
started to feel empty.

So
when he heard from a friend about the death of the infamous TW of TW Holdings
and that his widow was looking for an architect, he was immediately intrigued.
For some reason though, he didn't move on it.

.
. .

"Yes,
this is Shaw Jackson. May I ask who's calling?"

"Kayla
Williams. I’m TW's wife … I mean, ah widow." She still had a hard time referring
to herself as a widow. It was too final; it meant her Tate was never coming
home.

Plunging
on, Kayla said, "We have a mutual friend – Chase Turner. He said he told
you about the job I'm looking to fill. I don’t mean to be so forward, but it's been
a couple of weeks and I haven't heard from you and I really need someone
quickly, so I thought I'd give you a call. Chase gave me your number. I hope
it's ok."

.
. .

           
Two days later, Kayla waited on the hot tarmac for the lone passenger on the
plane to disembark. She'd chartered a private jet to fly Mr. Jackson from
Chicago to Amerila.

She
was that desperate to get someone in place continue her husband's work.
Projects had been stalled for four months while she tied up some loose ends of
her Tate's affairs -- and got her grieving somewhat in check.

The
tall stranger took her hand in a firm grip. He was several inches over six
feet, and broad. Kayla would bet dollars to doughnuts that he still did a great
deal of construction work. That physique was nothing something that came from a
gym.

"I'm
Shaw Jackson Mrs. Williams. It's nice to finally meet you, although I'm
regretful it's under these circumstances. I'm so sorry for your loss."

           
She liked the firmness of his greeting. Some men tended to have what Kayla
thought of as an insipid handshake when it came to women. She hated that.
Although she didn't want her hand crushed, she did appreciate a strong grip,
which is just what Mr. Jackson gave her.  

"Thank
you. I appreciate that."

"Evan
will see to your bags, Mr. Jackson. I'll take you to where you'll be staying
and see that you get all settled in. Then I figured we could grab some dinner
and discuss the business at hand if that's ok?"

"You're
the boss," Shaw replied. "And please, call me Rifle. Everyone
does."

"Very
well," Kayla responded. "And you must call me Kayla. None of this
boss or Mrs. stuff, ok?"

"As
you wish … Kayla." Her name had a musical quality to it; he loved the way
it rolled off his tongue.

Rifle
knew it was totally inappropriate, but he couldn't help being taken aback by
Mrs.
Williams'
– that title he
had
to keep in mind -- beauty.

Big,
coffee-brown eyes a man could lose himself in.

Shoulder
length, wavy, brown hair with sun-streaked reddish highlights that framed a
stunning face, which bore practically no makeup. A button-like nose stood
between prominent cheekbones that made a perfect frame for lush lips, which
revealed almost too-white teeth when she spoke.

From
what he'd read, she was in her mid-30s, but could easily pass for a woman in
her early twenties.

Her
lithe frame wasn't short, but she wasn't tall either. At 6'3", he surmised
that he wasn't quite a foot taller than her, but she was a tiny little thing –
one who would fit perfectly against his broad frame. In his estimation, she was
no more than 5'5" and 110 pounds.

All
of this he took in as she maneuvered the yellow, soft-topped Jeep Wrangler
through the bumpy roads of this tiny island. With her cowboy hat perched atop
her head to shield her from the burning Caribbean rays, he thought what a fly
in the ointment her smoldering beauty could be.

Even
though she had recently lost her husband and was his boss – and hence
definitely off limits -- he knew her looks and his visceral attraction to her
was something he definitely was unprepared for.

And
this job was supposed to be a kind of respite for him. Oh boy. There went that
theory!

.
. .

Kayla
remembered that initial meeting two years ago as she stumbled back from Rifle's
onslaught. "I've been wanting to do that since the first day we met,"
he declared.

           
Shaking fingers desperately tried to adjust her thin, cotton blouse through
which his lips had devoured one nipple mere seconds ago. She could still feel
his hands between her legs, moving her panties aside to deftly stroke the inner
most part of her – where no man had been since her husband had died.

"I
know you want me just as much as I want you Kayla. I have proof in the form of
your woman's scent on my hand right here."

Kayla
swiped at her kiss-swollen lips. If Rifle hadn't pulled away, she would have
let him take her right there on the oversized drafting table. He knew it and
she did too.

While
she stood and stared at him speechless, he continued, "I don't want the
first time I take you to be where anyone can walk in and interrupt."

"But
just know … I will have you Kayla. It's inevitable. I know it and you know it
too."

Kayla
stumbled out of the office, burning with desire … and something else she
couldn't put her finger on.

Rifle
had let her go this time.

But
not for long,
a little voice whispered … not for long.