She couldn’t help but laugh at his question. “Of course you are keeping your jeans on. The calendar is not of nude doctors, just hot ones.”
Cade noticed the pictures of Tessa sitting on the counter right next to the loaf of bread and was a little taken back that she had them in there. He quickly picked them up and started walking back into the living room. Tessa followed right after him.
“Wait a minute, what are you doing with those?” she asked.
“Putting them back where they belong,” he said casually, as if they were talking about the weather.
“No. I mean, why do you have them?”
“Why wouldn’t I?”
“Cade, first of all, Rowan was supposed to throw them away and, secondly, they are the worst pictures I have ever taken.”
“These are not bad pictures at all. And Rowan had planned on throwing them away when I found them tucked inside one of his medical books I borrowed. I confiscated them before he could toss them. These pictures are the true Tessa Worth. Your personality is all throughout these five little pictures and I plan on keeping them right where I had them.”
“If you want a picture of me, Cade, I have better ones that I can give you. I look horrible in those.”
“No.” That was all he had to say about the matter. “We better get going if we are going to get this photo shoot done.”
“Cade, seriously.”
“I’m not talking about it anymore, Tess.” He pulled her into his arms and kissed her mouth, tracing the seam of her lips with his tongue until she opened up to him. He kissed his way from her mouth to her ear and whispered, “Now, let’s go, because I really do want to spend time with you today outside of you working on this shoot.”
He slowly released her, walked to the kitchen, grabbed the sandwiches Tessa made, and walked with her to her car. It fit her personality perfectly, a sporty, red Mazda 3. The little red car was fast and furious just like her. They talked the whole drive up the coast, to what she now considered their beach, about everything under the sun. She learned that Cade not only liked dance music, but also classical, which was a little hard for her to envision, but liked the idea of him sitting in a dimly lit room soaking up the sounds of Mozart. She’d told him about her fear of heights, which no one other than Rowan knew about. They also talked about Rowan and how she was concerned for him and she realized that Cade was also. What they were going to do about it, neither of them knew, but it was a topic best saved for a later time. It was a nice drive that seemed to end way too soon.
Once they reached their destination, Tessa went into photographer mode. She not only wanted to get the shoot done quickly, but she had promised herself that she wouldn’t treat Cade any different than the other doctors she had photographed. She was a professional and for the time set aside for work today, she would separate her work from her relationship with him. As soon as she was set up, she got to work. Cade stripped off his shirt and her whole “be a professional” attitude went to the sand beneath her feet, along with that black piece of material. No matter how many times she had seen his bare chest, she was still in awe of the beauty of it.
“Where do you want me?” he asked with a smile on his face. He knew exactly what the sight of his skin did to her and he was enjoying every minute of it.
“On top of me,” she said absently.
“What?” Cade was trying not to laugh, but found it hard to keep the soft chuckle from gliding past his lips.
“I mean on top of that boulder right there. The boulder, on top of the boulder,” she said shaking her head trying to get her control back. The sooner she got this shoot over with the better. If for nothing else, for her own sanity.
Cade was a natural in front of the camera and it made it easy for Tessa to get the shots she needed. This beach was the cleanest she’d seen in California and the ocean water was a crystal clear blue offset by the deep blue sky. Each time she glanced into the viewfinder, she was amazed at how well Cade contrasted with the setting. The boulder he sat upon was whitewashed from the elements and the denim Cade wore and his dark skin accentuated each other for some amazing pictures. When she snapped the last photo, though she was a little biased, she thought that Cade’s shoot had gone the best out of all of them. As Tessa started to pack up her equipment, Cade grabbed her camera and started snapping pictures of her.
“Cade, what are you doing?”
“Well, you said you wanted me to have a different picture of you and I’ve noticed that you are always the one taking the pictures, never having yours taken. So, therefore, in order for me to have one, I will have to be the one taking it.”
“There is a reason for that. I hate having my picture taken. Now give me the camera back.” She stood with one hand on her hip and the other stretched out while tapping her foot.
“Why do you hate having your picture taken? You are so beautiful.” All joking gone from his voice.
“Cade -” she started to protest his compliments.
“Don’t. I hate when you disagree with me on this subject. I’m an expert on the matter you know. What was it you called me? A man tramp? So, I should know a beautiful woman when I see one and there’s no one more beautiful than you in my eyes.”
Tessa quickly snatched the camera from his hands and tucked it away into her black camera bag. She really did hate having her picture taken and with Cade’s words, felt even more self-conscious. She didn’t think she would ever get used to hearing him talk about her that way.
“Are you ready to eat?” she asked trying to quickly change the subject.
“Sure. Let’s put your things in the car and we can get the basket I saw you brought.”
“You weren’t supposed to see that. It was going to be a surprise.”
“Well, I don’t know what’s in it, so it will be.” He winked at her as he grabbed the majority of the camera equipment and headed for the car.
Chapter 23
After packing away her equipment and grabbing the basket, Cade led them to the alcove they had spent time in the first night he brought her up to this beach. This was absolutely his favorite place to be. It’s so peaceful and free from the hustle and bustle of the beaches in the heart of California. Here, he knew he would be able to spend time with Tessa without any interruptions or the worry of others overhearing him. He had been going over in his head all day how he wanted to express his feeling to her. He was as nervous as a teenage boy on his first date. He wanted it to be perfect for her. He was going to tell her he loved her and she deserved only perfection. After laying out a teal blanket she brought, Tessa pulled out the bottle of champagne that was tucked in the basket. Cade was relieved. A little something to calm his nerves was just what he needed. Some liquid courage to help him say what he needed to say the way she deserved for it to be said.
Grabbing the bottle from her hand, he said, “Here, let me open that for you. What else did you bring?”
“Not much else. Cheese, crackers, and strawberries.”
“Why, Tessa Worth. If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were trying to seduce me on this secluded beach.”
“You would be right then,” she said as she held the glasses for him while he poured the bubbly.
Cade quickly downed the champagne not certain how to start out the conversation.
“Cade are you okay? I’m not a big champagne drinker, but I’m pretty sure you aren’t supposed to guzzle it.”
“Yeah, I’m good. I just wanted to talk to you about something,” he stumbled. “Something pretty important to me.” His voice shook as his nerves overtook his whole body.
Cade’s whole demeanor changed and that made Tessa just a little bit nervous. Everything had been going perfect for them and now a million things were running through her mind and none of them positive. She feared that Cade had grown tired of her and that he was finally going to end their relationship. Tessa braced herself for the worst. The air around her seemed to have grown thick with dread and she found it hard to breathe. She felt like she was going to start hyperventilating at any moment. She identified that a panic attack must feel exactly like this did. Suddenly, the salty air blowing gently didn’t bring the peace it normally did and she felt choked by the taste lingering on her tongue as it swept around her. She sat and stared at him with her champagne glass in hand, ready to start guzzling herself once he said what he had to say.
“I’m not even sure where to start. I’ve been trying to think of a way to say this without freaking you out, but I’m not sure if that’s possible.”
“Cade, just get it over with.”
“I’m trying, Tess. It’s just -”
“Damn it, Cade. You’ve ended a dozen or more relationships. It seriously can’t be that hard for you by now. Just do it, so we can get out of here.”
Cade sat motionless like the boulders that stood silently around them. Tessa’s words slammed into his heart like the ocean waves slamming against the rocks. He sat in that spot and let his mind register what she was saying. Suddenly, he felt an overwhelming sense of relief exhaling the breath he’d been holding since her words slipped from beyond her lips. It never even crossed his mind that Tessa would think for one second that he was going to end their relationship. The mixture of sadness and anger in her eyes and the way her lower lip puffed out in a pout made his heart turn over in his chest. She honestly thought he brought her here to break up with her. He couldn’t stop the laugh that escaped his lips. He was relieved that she was actually upset that he was going to break up with her, or so she thought. It eased his mind for what he was about to tell her.
“I’m glad you still have your sense of humor.”
Cade grabbed her hand as she rose to her feet, obviously intent on walking away.
“Let go of me, Cade.” She tried to pry her hand from his but his grip was solid like a pair of vise grips.
“No.” He rose to his knees and pulled her close to him placing a kiss on her abdomen as he wrapped his free hand around her waist. “You silly girl. I didn’t bring you here to dump you. I brought you here to tell you how much I love you.” There, he said it. Not quite the way he had planned but it was finally done.
“What?” She realized she was standing there with her mouth hanging open when her tongue became dry from the salty air.
“I love you, Tessa Worth. I never thought it was possible, that I would fall in love with anyone, but I have and I want you and the world to know how much I love you. Since I’ve met you, my life has exceeded my dreams because of you.”
“Cade…” She leaned down and kissed him with everything she had within her.
Pouring all her emotions and love and relief into the kiss, she pushed Cade to his back. Their legs intertwined as they lay there on the beach. The breeze, that just minutes ago had choked the very breath from her, now gently floated across their bodies, embracing them and pulling them closer to each other.
Tessa pulled away from him slowly, keeping her gaze locked onto his. “I thought you were going to dump me. I thought you’d had enough of me.”
Cade let out a laugh and pulled her to his chest. “I will never get enough of you, Tess.”
He rolled her gently so that he was now on top of her, kissing her until neither of them could breathe. Tessa wrapped her arms around Cade’s neck, placing kisses along his jaw until she reached his most sensitive spot, his ear.
She nibbled along his lobe then softly whispered, “I love you Cade.”
He pulled back from her ever so slightly. “Tessa Worth, marry me.”
“Cade, what?”
“I’m serious, Tess. I don’t want another day to pass without you in my life. I desire nothing more than to have you as my partner, my lover, my wife. Say you will marry me.”