Angela Claire Heart of Stone (pdf)

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Yes, he said I should stay there where he could keep an eye on
me.
His hands on you more likely. Melinda, he used this ruse more
than once with one of our unsuspecting girls. It was only when one of
them, after years, came forward and told me that I realized what was
going on under our very noses. He was preying on girls, only a few,
only the ones he wanted, and filling them with this horrible dread so
that they would become dependent on him and, well, I m sure you can
guess the rest.
She remembered his leers and clammy hands on her shoulders,
and she didn t doubt that was what he meant to do to her. But thanks
to Lil, she unwittingly escaped him.
Is& was, any of it true? What he said about my mother?
Dr. Scott came forward, digging a file out of the side pocket of the
suitcase he carried. He handed it to her. Your mother died in
childbirth, Miss O Chauncey. Unfortunately a common occurrence,
especially when a woman has a doctor as incompetent as the one who
attended your mother. Dr. Rathbone, as I m sure you guessed. A
pathetic doctor, but rather a good record keeper, unfortunately for
him. It s all here. Your mother was Brigid O Chauncey, and she
wasn t sixteen as he had told you. She was twenty-two, and she was
married.
I have a father?
Sadly, no, she was widowed during the pregnancy, which likely
increased her stress and made her more vulnerable to Dr. Rathbone s
crackpot medical malfeasance. There were no neighbors. She was all
alone having come with her husband from Ireland, and Rathbone
98 Angela Claire
merely took the child, you, to the orphanage and concocted the rest
for you years later.
Melinda felt strangely detached, having this weight lifted off her
shoulders. She turned to Jake and said matter-of-factly, Yes.
Yes?
Yes, I love you. Yes, I ll marry you. Yes, I ll try to be the best
wife to you and mother to Ginny and any other children we have that
I can be. Yes. Yes. Yes.
Jake gathered her up in a whoop and spun her around before
settling into a long, thorough kiss.
Lil watched with a smile. That had worked rather nicely, if she did
say so herself. Now, was there a preacher in this backwater town?
Heart of Stone 99
Epilogue
So this is what Sally s looks like upstairs. I ve always
wondered. Melinda giggled as she caught sight over Jake s shoulder
of the frolicking cupids painted on the ceiling. She lay back on the red
satin sheets of the four poster bed, her arms wrapped around Jake s
neck as he leaned over her, their legs intertwined under the covers. It
felt so wonderful to be naked with him again, skin to skin. The last
time they had been in bed together seemed like a century ago,
although in fact it had only been this morning.
All of Sally s doesn t look like this, my sweet wife. We have the
very best accommodations for our wedding night.
Oh, is this the bridal suite?
Jake laughed. On the contrary, we ll probably be the first and
only couple ever to make love in this establishment who are actually
married to each other.
She liked the sound of that and smiled. We were married so fast
that I can still hardly believe it. Mrs. Jake Stone.
Not quite. First, you have to perform your wifely duties, at least
once, for it to stick.
His lips hovered so close to her own, she could feel his warm
breath on her face. His green eyes shone with humor. She leaned up a
little and flicked her tongue across his lower lip, not quite a kiss, but a
promise, grazing her hands lightly along his muscular back to close
over his hard buttocks. She felt him shudder.
Didn t I take care of that before the wedding? she teased.
Oh, no, my love, that doesn t count. Timing is everything. Why
do you think I couldn t even wait to get you back to the ranch and
100 Angela Claire
insisted on booking a room at Sally s for the wedding night? We have
to get going on this right away, just to make sure all the formalities
are observed.
She reached a hand around to the front of his body and brushed it
against his very stiff cock. You seem up to the formalities.
I ll always be up to the formalities with you around, my sweet.
He kissed her neck and then made his way down to her breasts.
And these, he ran his tongue over one nipple, have really not
gotten the attention they deserve from me as yet. He set about to
rectify the error, and she arched her back at the pleasure as he licked
and pulled and teased until she was panting with her need for him.
Yes, my sweet wife, just like that, he encouraged as she writhed
beneath him, feeling as if she couldn t get close enough to him.
Show me how you want me.
He slid his engorged cock into her and lifted her legs to wrap
around his lean hips, forcing her to take him deeper into her body. She
felt him fill her with a sense of wonder at the significance of it, the
permanence of it. He was making her his wife with this very act. Out
of pure instinct, she squeezed her inner muscles tighter around him
and tilted her hips up higher, causing him to thrust wildly.
Oh, my God, he groaned and came up on his knees swiftly.
Slipping both hands under to cup her bottom to him as he thrust, he
moved her up and down his cock, furiously, with purpose. The hard
strokes pushed her even higher. She felt herself explode in ecstasy
just as he came, arching his back and pouring his release into her,
crying out her name.
When he collapsed next to her, breathing hard, and gathered her
into his arms, he murmured, Now it s official Mrs. Stone. Now we re
married.
She eyed his tousled black hair and sexy smile, and then climbed
on top of him. I don t know, Mr. Stone. I think we need to be sure.
Let s try one more time.
His hands slid up to her hips. Well, we should be sure.
Heart of Stone 101
* * * *
The sheriff had left not long ago. Sure enough, the cowboy who
had conspired with Winthrop, or the one they knew about anyway,
was long gone. Regina stood with her back to him, facing the
darkening window. All that gal had been through, and she still stood
ramrod straight.
Jesse figured he better get going. She had a funeral to plan after
all.
He approached her, tempted to put a reassuring hand on her
shoulder, but then thought better of it and turned away.
Are you going, Jesse?
Her voice was quiet, and he still couldn t see her face, but he
didn t detect any tears or trembling.
I was, honey. The endearment came out naturally. It seemed
downright ornery to be at each other s throats now. Unless you need
me for something.
I do need you for something. She turned around. I need you to
make love to me&
THE END
www.angelaclaireromance.com
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Angela Claire s first love was romance novels, but she resolved to
give them up temporarily for law books (which were considerably
less fun). In a quest for a responsible career, she headed off to
Harvard law school, obtained her diploma and settled into a corporate
law practice in New York City - which she hated! After staying in the
rat race long enough to pay back her massive student loans, Angela
returned to her roots in the Midwest and is now raising two active
boys and working as a lawyer at a more leisurely pace than big city
law firm life would allow. She writes in her spare time and finds
romance in real life with her husband of 24 years. If you would like to
contact Angela at angelaclaire5162@yahoo.com or
www.angelaclaireromance.com, she would love to hear from you.
Also by Angela Claire
Saving McCade
Available at
BOOKSTRAND.COM
Siren Publishing, Inc.
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