Total pages in book: 18
Estimated words: 16362 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 82(@200wpm)___ 65(@250wpm)___ 55(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 16362 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 82(@200wpm)___ 65(@250wpm)___ 55(@300wpm)
Katherine pouts and slides onto my lap, looping her arms around my neck. “Dance with me.”
“No, cupcake.”
“You’re no fun.”
“That’s not what you said last night.”
I should’ve known better than to think I’d ever win against her. Sure, she doesn’t force me to dance, but as I sip some kind of disgusting concoction called a mocktail, Katherine raises her arms and grinds her ass against my cock.
Good thing no one can see the increasing bulge in my pants.
Someone taps my shoulder and tips a beer bottle to point at Katherine. The music is so loud it’s giving me a headache, so he moves closer to my ear to say, “Buddy, how can you just stand there? If I were you—”
He drops the bottle when I grab his collar and pull him to me. “Continue that sentence and the next drink you’ll be drinking is your own blood.”
He stumbles backward and raises both palms. “Sorry. Sorry.”
This is why I refuse to drink even an ounce of alcohol here. I need to keep my head with me all the time. I have to be on guard. I can’t have anything messing with me … well, except Katherine, who seems to enjoy throwing me off-guard.
On our way home—my home to be exact, the real one and not the rented apartment across from hers—we drive in comfortable silence. I steal glances whenever I can as she leans her folded arms over the open window and rests her cheek on them, closing her eyes and humming.
Her face is upturned to the sky, the wind tousling her hair, a contented smile on the corner of her lips.
As we near the cul-de-sac where my two-story mid-century modern home sits, Katherine extends her hand to feel the cool night breeze, her fingers trailing delicately through the air.
The car glides to a stop in front of the house, and I shut off the engine, hearing nothing but the sounds of nature. This is exactly why I chose this place. The serenity it offers is unmatched. I can stay at home and forget the world.
She turns to me with a grin. “What are we waiting for out here?”
With my heart going over a hundred beats per minute, I turn to face her, taking her hand and planting a kiss on it. “I need to ask you something, cupcake.”
She raises her eyebrows and tilts her head to the side. Man, she’s so unreal. I can’t even count the number of hours I spend in a day thinking about her, picturing her face in my head, and coming up with a brand new way of making her smile.
I cannot screw up this moment.
“I never believed in love until I saw you, cupcake. I thought it was for the weak, for those who aren’t strong enough to be independent. I was wrong, so damn wrong. When I laid my eyes on you, I was sure I found the one I wanted to grow old with. For a moment, I thought you felt the same. That was until I realized you couldn’t even see me clearly.”
Katherine chuckles and tucks a strand of hair behind her ear.
“Katherine, will you marry me? Will you give me a chance to make you happy?”
Tears spring to her eyes, and she blinks them back rapidly. Slowly, she nods and beams. “I’m already happy, but yes, Kieran. I’ll marry you.”
I take out the small box from my pocket and open it, showing her the diamond ring before slipping it onto her finger.
“I love you, cupcake.”
“I love you too, Kieran.”
Katherine Knight. It does have a nice ring to it.
EPILOGUE
KIERAN
“Goddamn, Kieran. If you told me years ago that you’d get married before me, I would’ve laughed my ass off.” Cade chuckles, and I have no idea what’s funny. He always does that. Laughs at things he says. I’d say he missed his calling as a comedian, but I’m no liar.
My best friend, Alvin, slaps my back before sitting beside Cade. “Right? Dude always looked constipated or like he could smell something awful. I told him chicks didn’t dig that.”
I’m standing in front of a full-body mirror, fixing my tie, while the two assholes are behind me, having a grand time at my expense. “Will you both shut up? Not at my wedding.”
Cade shakes his head. “I still can’t believe someone actually agreed to marry you, brother. You mean, Katherine is willing to spend the rest of her life with you? She’s the strongest, most patient woman I know.”
My gaze narrows at him, and I growl, “Do not call her Katherine. Only I can call her that.”
The two pieces of shit look at each other before they roar with laughter. Did I make a mistake inviting them here? Maybe Katherine and I should’ve just eloped.
Alvin stands and walks toward me, draping an arm over my shoulder and looking at our reflection in the mirror. “Look at you, being possessive and shit. Then again, you did stalk her and all. I shouldn’t be surprised.”