Truce or Dare (Sweet Fortuity Book 1) (24 page)

Then he knelt down, and it was a wonder I still stood there steady as he said the words. My heart felt like it would leap out of my chest.

“Marry me?”

I knew that as he gave me this, he put himself in a position where he would be willing to give me everything, but content for things to remain unchanged if I wasn’t ready.

I held that power in my hands, and he gave it to me. There was something selfless about that, and as he said those two words, I found that I wanted to be selfless too.

There was no uncertainty. There were definitely nerves, but it wasn’t enough to deter me. What I felt for him trumped any fear, and I found a freedom in not holding back.

“Yes.”

Surprise hit him and the next thing I knew, his lips crushed against mine.

“Say it again.”

“I already said y–”

Then he lowered his head and kissed me, and I kissed him back, and then I wasn’t able to talk anymore. Not for a while.

O
ne year
later

C
hase

I
wasn’t supposed
to know.

I didn’t even mean to know, but two weeks ago when I called my mom, she let it slip that my wife was pregnant.

I didn’t want to mess it up yet, but something told me that saying that I was looking forward to it was the wrong move when I had her on the counter, her legs wrapped around me.

Fuck.

She now stood at the kitchen, wearing my tee, both hands planted on her hips, her cheeks tinged a slight shade of red. She was stunning even pissed off, and what made it even sweeter was that she wasn’t even aware of it.

“Chase!” she cried out, visibly upset. “You’re not listening.”

My eyes were drawn to her lips, still swollen from our kiss.

“I’m listening,” I murmured.

“You weren’t supposed to know yet. Now it’s not a surprise anymore.”

Her shoulders were slumped, her head down. I took her hands, and she closed hers against mine. I pulled her in between my arms. She looked up at me hesitantly.

“It’s still a surprise,” I tried to say.

She let out an outraged gasp. “No, it’s not! You didn’t even say anything, or…” she bit her lip. “You knew all this time.”

“I was waiting for you to tell me.”

“You should’ve told me,” she mumbled against my chest.

“I’m sorry,” I told her, my hand drifting up and down her back soothingly. She melted in my arms, right where I wanted her. I pressed my lips against her hair, needing that contact. Needing her. I heard a sigh escape her lips, and it filled me with satisfaction. And it did it again, that fast, steady lurching in my chest, the one she’d had in her hands when she’d met me again a little over a year ago, and hasn’t let go since.

“I want a girl,” she suddenly said.

She couldn’t possibly control that, but then she gave me a look, daring me to argue. I stifled the urge to laugh at the display of her fiery temper. Rather than make me fight back, it only made me want to taste her again.

I did a half-shrug, because I’d meant it when I told her everything I had was hers, but what I hadn’t said was that I wanted to give her the world.

I pulled her even closer and whispered back, “Whatever you want, baby.”

T
hank
you Chris and B. When things were hard, you guys helped me pick myself right back up.

And to G– you’ll probably never read this, but this was because of you, this tiny shadow of an idea that snowballed into something else.

And of course, thank you reader, for picking this book up.

If you’ve enjoyed reading Sherry and Chase’s story, please consider leaving a review. As a debut author, your feedback is greatly appreciated.

Sierra and Luke are next, I hope I get to share it with you all soon. :-) Subscribe to my mailing list at
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R
ica Grayson is an avid reader
, dreamer, and hopeless romantic.

She loves a good HEA, sassy heroines, and a hero who loves the heroine more than anything.

When she isn’t buried in writing and plotting relationships, she’s reading Urban Fantasy, Paranormal Romance or Contemporary romance books, watching TV, or gaming.

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