Icing on the Cake Read online

  Jason was in the elevator within two strides. Dropping the phone, his fingers wound in her hair, tilting her head back, he met her mouth in a ravenous kiss. And then, tearing himself away, he looked into her eyes.

  “Laine, it’s been hell these last seven days. I love you. I don’t want to live without you.”

  She wove her fingers into his hair and pulled him close to her face. “Then don’t.”

  Jason was solid, warm. Real. Not the dream that had left Laine frustrated and confused every night for the past week. Gripping fistfuls of his shirt, she clung to him, desperate to feel him, to know that he wanted her as much as she wanted him.

  She’d been going through the motions of moving on with her life, but none of it felt real. None of it felt right. Deciding to start her own bridal consultant business should have been a thrill; it had been her dream for so long. But not having Jason to tell about it, to celebrate with her, left a drab sheen over the entire event. She missed him at every critical moment, expected to see him every time she turned around. For two years he’d been there whenever she’d needed him—as if he sensed her every emotion and need. He was there to bolster her when she felt doubt, to argue with her when she needed to get back on track. To hold her when she couldn’t stand to be alone anymore.

  It had been crazy not to run back to him and explain, beg him to understand. She’d been hurt, and her ego had gone into a full on temper tantrum when he’d walked through the lobby with that disappointed look plastered across his face. She’d been furious and brokenhearted.

  But then she’d thought about it. They believed in the same thing passionately enough that both were willing to take a stand in the name of love and honesty. Both willing to sacrifice something they loved to do the right thing. She couldn’t work for Connie anymore because Connie didn’t care about the outcome of a marriage past the last dance of the wedding day. Laine cared about the outcome of the couple’s life together.

  Jason believed in love and honesty so much that he was ready to walk away from her when he thought she didn’t respect it. And he loved her enough to come after her, even before he understood, because he had faith in her. He was the man who made her believe in fairytale romance, the magic of weddings, and the lives she touched when she made them happen.

  “Jason, I love you. I need you too.”

  He pulled her tightly into his arms and tilted her head up to look at him. She could feel his heart beating against her chest. Then just as quickly he pushed her back and grabbed her hands, searching them for something.

  “Did your assistant give you the cake?”

  She blinked, looking up at him. He seemed tense.

  “Yes.” She leaned down and brushed her discarded clothes off the box. Lifting it by the tie, she held it up for him. “I brought it, you bad boy.”

  The corner of his mouth ticked up. “So you haven’t opened it yet?”

  “No. I wasn’t going to start without you.”

  “Good, open the box. But you’re wearing too many clothes.” He traced a line with his pinky from her bra down to her panties. “The shoes you can keep, but I’ll have to help you out of the rest.”

  Laine untied the string, chills racing across her skin. “Naked right? Something about a cottage, a bunch of promises of pleasure I recall. Maybe you could give me a taste of that right now.”

  She felt like she would melt from the heat in his eyes. “A taste would never be enough. If you let me, I’m going to give you everything, and I’m going to do it forever.” He took the box and knelt down in front of her, holding it up as she lifted the pink cardboard lid off the cake box and gasped.

  Embedded in the center of the ten-inch round, buttercream frosted cake was the most breathtaking ring she’d ever seen.

  “Will you give me forever, Laine?”

  She dropped to her knees, pulling the frosting coated ring free. Jason set the cake aside and took the ring from her shaking grasp. He slid it over the third finger on her left hand, leaving a smeared sweet trail of frosting in its path.

  “Yes, forever,” she sighed, feeling the word fill her heart as the soft glide of his lips against hers made the world go away.

  The End

  Author Bio

  Moira McTark lives with her husband and four young children in a small town in Minnesota. She can most often be found enjoying a spot of imaginary tea, crashing Hot Wheels, and building elaborate railways over the Island of Sodor.

  When Moira needs a sanity break, she slinks off to her office and writes. Visit her website at www.moiramctark.com or at www.moiramctark.blogspot.com. She loves to hear from her readers.