Follow Me (Caged Hearts Book 3) (12 page)

Chapter 48

Kait looked at her reflection and wondered for the tenth time whether or not to get changed. She was wearing a bright blue halter neck dress which fell to her knees and showed off both her toned legs and her curves. She loved how she felt in the dress, but she feared she might not be dressed up enough for wherever they were going. Jasper had been strangely cryptic about their plans saying that he’d meet her on the beach, which made little sense to Kait as all the best restaurants were up in the main hotel complex set back from the beach.

She decided not to dwell on it. Spinning around, she gave her reflection one last check before leaving their plush cabin which stood on stilts over the water. At night, she could lie away and hear the waves rippling beneath it. It was the most calming thing she’d ever heard, and over the last few days she’d slept better than she had in her entire life. She was finally truly happy.

Tiki torches lit the route towards the beach, and beyond that up to the hotel. Kait walked briskly in her beige patent wedges, eager to catch up with Jasper. It had been several hours since she’d seen him. Where he’d got to she didn’t know. He’d been acting quite mysterious.

“Jasper!” Kait stopped dead in her tracks when she saw him on the path just ahead of her, patiently waiting. He was wearing a smart cream suit which made him look like a movie star. Kait suddenly felt undressed in her halter dress and also stunned by how amazing he looked.

“Oh my God, where the hell are we going?” She gasped. She didn’t even know that Jasper owned a suit. He was more of a smart jeans and suit jacket kind of guy.

“Do I scrub up okay?” Jasper wondered nervously. Kait stared at him in shock. How could he possibly be nervous? He looked amazing!

“I should say so,” Kait tentatively approached him. “Jasper, you look so handsome. But why the suit? Do I need to go back and change?” She glanced back towards the cabin in the distance, but Jasper reached for her hand and locked it in his, guiding her further down the path.

“You look beautiful,” he told her warmly. “Besides, we’re almost there.”

“But, Jasper, we’re on the beach and - ”

As they talked, they left the path and moved on to the beach. It was then that Kait spotted the private table over by the shoreline, surrounded by about fifty flickering candles. A smartly dressed waiter stood beside the table with a bottle of champagne ready to be poured and a lady in a long gown lingered beyond the candlelight, holding a violin.

“Oh my God!” Kait froze and took in the romantic scene. It felt like something out of a movie, but it was right in front of her and very much real.

“Jasper…this…”

“It’s all for you,” Jasper kissed her cheek and then led her over to the table. “I wanted to give you a magical night beneath the stars to thank you for everything you’ve done for me.”

“I don’t know what to say,” Kait admitted as she sat down at the table with the ocean stretching out dark and mysterious beside her.

By candlelight, they dined on exquisite food, drank champagne, and were serenaded by a solo violinist. It was the perfect evening.

Feeling full and content, Kait smiled across the table at Jasper.

“This evening,” she breathed, “It’s all just been so perfect, Jasper.”

“Wait!” He raised a hand at her. “I’ve got one surprise left.”

Kait laughed in shock. What more could he possibly have up his suit sleeve? He’d already whisked her away to paradise and given her the most romantic evening of her life. Surely there was no way he could top that.

Jasper nodded at the violinist and the waiter who respectfully took their cue to leave. Now the couple was completely alone.

“Kait,” Jasper was sweating on the other side of the table despite the cool evening air. He loosened the top button of his shirt and nervously cleared his throat multiple times.

“Jasper, are you okay?” Kait began to fear that he was having some sort of allergic reaction.

“Just let me talk, please,” Jasper pleaded.

Kait nodded silently and sunk back in to her chair as Jasper climbed out of his. He smoothed down his jacket and came around to her side of the table. In the flickering candlelight, he looked so handsome and strong. Kait remembered the first time she’d seen him, when he’d saved her. And now she’d finally been able to repay the debt and save him too; they were even.

“Kait, you stood by me when the whole world thought I was a loser,” Jasper told her, his voice shaking.

“I know,” Kait insisted, “and you’ve thanked me countless times, Jasper. We don’t need to keep reliving it.”

“But it’s more than that,” Jasper insisted. “You were always able to see in me my true self, even when I couldn’t see it. You’ve made me a better man. Every moment that I’m with you I’m so completely happy, and I never, ever thought I’d find someone who made me feel like that. So much of my life was spent alone, fighting to survive. But I don’t want it to always be like that. I want to share my life with you.”

Kait was about to speak when Jasper knelt down in the sand on one knee. A hand fluttered up to her chest as her heart began to patter manically in her chest. Everything felt like it was happening in slow motion, and she was suddenly acutely aware of all the scents and sounds of the evening. She could taste the salt from the sea and could hear the distant humming of a busy evening up at the hotel complex. She could even hear the frantic beat of her own heart in her ear drums.

“I’ve loved you since the moment I saw you,” Jasper told her as he reached in to his jacket pocket and pulled out a small black velvet box. “And I want to spend the rest of my life loving you. Kait, will you marry me?” He opened the box and raised it to her. Kait gasped as she looked down on a stunning ring boasting one large diamond which glittered like the stars dotted in the night sky above them, flanked by two smaller sapphires. It was the most beautiful ring Kait had ever seen.

“Yes!” The word gushed from her like an eager fountain. “Yes, yes yes! A thousand times yes!”

Grinning, Jasper leaned forward and kissed her. His lips had never tasted so good. And then he leaned back and removed the ring from its velvet box and slipped it onto Kait’s extended finger. It fit perfectly.

“Oh, Jasper!” She held her hand up to admire the ring in the candlelight. She couldn’t believe what she was seeing. She was now actually engaged to Jasper Duboix, to the man who had previously saved her in a car park. It was like a modern day fairy tale.

Jasper kissed her, and it was tender, sealing the promise they had just made to one another.

“So?” He asked as he broke the kiss. “Are you ready to become Mrs. Jasper Duboix?”

“Absolutely,” Kait gushed without hesitation. “I think Kait Duboix has a real ring to it, don’t you?”

Epilogue

Jasper was smiling as he walked out of the orphanage. His talk had gone exceedingly well. He’d told them his story to help inspire them with going after their own dreams. It was what he’d always wanted to do – to help others achieve their goals. Since retiring from professional fighting, he’d published his memoirs and become something of a celebrity. But he could never have done it without Kait’s help. He found her over by their parked car; she was radiant. One hand smoothed over the swell of her belly while the other gripped their adopted son, Tai, by the hand.

“Look,” Kait pointed at Jasper as he walked over, “Daddy’s all finished with his talk.” She released Tai from her grip, and the little boy hurriedly ran over to his father. Jasper scooped him up in his arms and rested him atop his shoulders.

“So?” Kait asked with a smile as Jasper and Tai approached the car. “How did it go?”

“Really well,” Jasper grinned. “I’m going to come back again, and I’ve already made a donation.”

“Great,” Kait stood up to get in the car and suddenly paused, wincing slightly.

“What is it?” Jasper asked, tense with concern.

“Nothing,” Kait breathed deeply and waved a dismissive hand in her husband’s direction. “It’s just the baby kicking.”

“Really?” Jasper relaxed and smiled warmly at her.

“Kicking?” Tai uttered from atop his Dad’s shoulders. “Is the baby going to be a fighter like Daddy?”

This made both Kait and Jasper laugh.

“Maybe,” Kait replied, “who knows? Both you and your little brother or sister can grow up to be whatever you want.”

“I want to be a fighter like Daddy!” Tai insisted, excitedly squirming.

“Okay, well until then how about we go home and have pizza?” Jasper suggested, pulling Tai from his shoulders and placing the little boy inside the car.

“Yay!” Tai called merrily. “Pizza!”

Both Jasper and Kait were smiling as the family pulled out of the car park and drove off together.

The End

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***

BOOK 1 of the Werebear Shifter Romance trilogy

Tawny Reynolds loves the great outdoors

Any opportunity to go camping with her college friends is never passed up, especially when Kyle Bennett is there. Tawny is enjoying herself until a bear disrupts the weekend. In the chaos, Tawny is separated from her friends and finds herself lost. But the gorgeous man who finds her has her feeling like she has been lost her whole life.

Matt Darlin feels like he is losing everything.

Quiet and brooding most of the time, Matt Darlin is tired of life throwing curve balls at him. With the passing of his father, the bear that always kept him grounded, Matt struggles with his place in the Cold Foot clan. Matt takes to the woods to hunt and find clarity, until his distractions lead him to a woman that drives all other thoughts from his mind.

Two people thrust together by circumstance and everyone wants to tear them apart.

Matt has never given much thought to finding a mate, and he especially didn't think he'd be so drawn to a human. Tawny has gotten herself lost and Matt sets out to help. Meanwhile, desperate to find Tawny, Kyle turns to a group of survivalists, known as The Path, for help; a group that knows Matt's clan very well and desire nothing more than to rid the world of his kind.