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“I thought you were against marriage,” Teddy said. “You told me that the first night we met. Then there’s Veronica and Chloe, women who broke your heart and made you mistrustful of women.”
“I know.” He remembered their conversations, yet his voice held a bit of humor. “They tainted my views for a while, but there comes a time when you have to take a chance. Risk whatever is necessary for the promise of happiness.”
“You’re willing to do that for me?”
“That and more,” he said, dropping a kiss on her nose.
“I don’t think there will be much risk,” Teddy assured him. “I love you and nothing will change that.”
“There’s only one thing missing,” Adam said.
“What?”
He released her for a moment and went to the table in the living room. Retrieving a small box from the drawer, he brought it back to her. Adam lifted the black velvet cover. The Varrick name was emblazoned on the inside lid.
“My ring,” she said.
He removed it. “You will marry me.” He stated it as a foregone conclusion.
“I will,” Teddy said.
He slipped the heavy stone on her finger. This time it meant more to both of them than it had in the past. When they chose it, Teddy had protested. But this time their engagement was real and the ring was real.
They sealed the engagement with a kiss.
* * *
The bed wasn’t just in disarray. It had been destroyed. The sheets were hanging off the sides or completely removed from the mattress.
Adam caught one of the linens and covered them with it. Teddy’s heart was beating double time, her body was bathed in a sheen of sweat, but she was happier than she’d ever been.
Adam lay beside her, cradling her in his arms, one hand on her breast. She’d asked herself if their lovemaking would equal the first time. Then the second. Would it always be this intense, this thoroughly satisfying? She couldn’t answer that, but she hoped it would.
“You know no one is going to believe us when we tell them we’re engaged,” she told him. Her voice was deep with sexual satisfaction.
He nodded against her hair. “They’ll think it’s another trick.”
Teddy stretched her hand out admiring the ring. “We can’t even show them a different ring.” She laughed. “Maybe they’ll believe us on our tenth anniversary.”
“Do you want a different ring?”
He pushed back and looked over her shoulder. “Absolutely not.”
“Whether they believe it or not, we’ll know,” Adam said and pulled her back closer to his naked body. Teddy felt the rise in heat, the familiar burn that accompanied arousal.
She turned over. He brushed her hair from her face and gazed at her. She could see the need in his eyes, feel the desire in the strength of his body.
“Your hair is a complete mess,” he whispered as he threaded his fingers through it. Over and over, he combed the strands as if they were gold. His mouth kissed her face, skipping from place to place.
“I have you to thank for my messy hair,” Teddy said. “Thank you.” Her murmur was low and sexy, conveying everything she felt, everything that he brought out in her.
Adam took a moment to stare at her. Tension built within her as he watched, held her with only his eyes for a thousand years. Teddy’s mouth went dry. She licked her lips to wet them. He lowered his mouth, replacing her tongue. Their lips mated and clung. Arms and legs circled and entwined, bringing their bodies into alignment. Teddy ran her legs up and down against him, touching in the most intimate way. Fire sprang up like meteors hitting the ground. She ached for him, to have him close, inside her, to feel the presence of his body joined with hers. She wanted the unbottled elixir they created. It was around them, holding them together. It was not for sale and had a shelf life of less than an hour, but it generated feelings so strong and so passionate that Teddy could die from continued exposure. Yet she wanted the elixir, wanted to open it, relive its effect at any moment of the day or night.
She felt the joy of penetration when they joined, the beginning of a dance that would take her to places never before found by anyone except the two of them.
