Beautiful Dreams (The Beautiful Series) Page 13

  “How about August thirty-first?” I asked in a soft voice.

  Kyle carefully lifted his head to glance at me. He anchored most of his weight on his elbows, pressing them into the couch on either side of my waist. He delicately took my hand in his, caressing my knuckles with his fingertips.

  “That sounds like the perfect date.” He paused and searched my eyes, showing tenderness in his own. “I’m guessing by the look in your eyes that the date has a special meaning to you?” he asked gently.

  I moved my head with the slightest nod in acknowledgment. I swallowed and said, “It was my parents’ anniversary. This would be their thirtieth year of marriage.”

  He smiled lovingly at me. “I think that would be a great way to honor them.” He pondered for a split second. “Are you sure that’s what you want?”

  I heard the double meaning of his question. He was asking if it would brighten my spirits or sadden them to share such an important day with my mom and dad.

  “Yes,” I answered with absolute certainty. “You gave me a month, and that day just happens to be the last.” I held back tears. “I can’t help but feel like that is their way of being with me, of giving me their blessing.”

  Kyle’s eyes glowed with affection. “That is a beautiful way to look at it.” He came closer to me to capture my lips just once. “I’m sure on our wedding day, they’ll be looking down on you, at the woman you have become, with their hearts full of happiness.”

  I nodded again, blinking back tears threatening to fall, while feeling blessed that God had given me this beautiful man who would be my husband in one short month.

  “Thank you,” I breathed, meaning it more than he could ever know.

  Kyle was grilling barbeque chicken on his back patio. I steamed some fresh veggies, baked butter rolls, and then chopped large California strawberries. I loved cooking dinner side by side with him even though he was technically in and out the back patio door because he had to check on the grill. But every second he could spare, he would help me in the kitchen. After years of eating fast food or cooking by myself for one, it felt so domestic.

  As I placed the last warm dish on the center of the table, my cell phone rang from the counter.

  “No phone calls on Sundays,” Kyle teased as he emerged into the room with the cooked chicken on a tray.

  I scurried over to my phone while looking at him over my shoulder. “Answering one phone call won’t hurt,” I chortled. I picked up my cell on what was probably the last ring. “Hello?” I answered. From my caller ID, I knew that it was the realtor, Elena, who I had hired to sell my parents’ home in Colorado.

  “Hi, Lily! This is Elena. Is now a good time to talk?”

  “Hi, Elena. I’m just about to sit down for dinner. How can I help you?” I asked kindly while spinning around to walk back to the table.

  “I have great news, but I’ll be quick as I’m on my way out, too. I wanted to let you know right away that an offer was made on the house this morning,” she informed me.

  Stunned, I sat in my chair. I’d never expected for the house to sell so fast. “Wow…that is wonderful!” I exclaimed into the phone.

  “They are only asking you to lower the sale price by five thousand, and then it will be a done deal.”

  “Okay. I think that is more than fair, don’t you?” I asked, completely clueless about the market.

  “Yes, Lily. It is a spectacular offer in this economy,” she replied. “The only problem is that the couple needs to close on the house quickly because the husband is in the middle of a job transfer, which puts them in a bind. Is it possible for you to be here by Tuesday at the latest?” she asked with hope in her voice.

  My eyes widened at the abrupt dates. Whoa. “Uh…sure. I can check flights for both Monday and Tuesday morning, and I’ll get back with you soon.”

  Kyle raised his brow at hearing my side of the conversation, but he sat silently as he filled both of our plates with food.

  “Perfect!” Elena cheered loudly. “Thank you, Lily! Let me know as soon as you have your flight itinerary, and I will make all the arrangements. Talk with you soon!”

  “Thanks. Good-bye, Elena,” I replied before ending the call.

  “Get an offer on the house?” Kyle asked in between bites.

  “Yes, apparently this morning. A married couple needs the house right away.” I hesitated and then glanced over at him. “They asked me to lower the price by five thousand.”

  “Wow. That is a great deal, Lily,” Kyle responded with a smile. “How soon do we need to fly out?”

  I loved that he wanted to go with me and be a part of it. My father had always said, A family who plays together, stays together. I felt the same applied to relationships, too.

  “Elena said by Tuesday at the latest,” I answered.

  Kyle’s eyes widened fractionally before he nodded. “I think I can work with that if I shift around a few things with Abbey. I’ll check flights after we eat.”

  “Okay,” I replied.

  Then, I started eating, so my chicken wouldn’t get cold. As I ate, the reality of selling the house began to slowly sink in. All my thoughts about my childhood home belonging to another family, so they could create their own memories was now coming to life. I felt lighter, free almost.

  Kyle rested his hand on my forearm, pulling me out of my reverie. I shifted my eyes to him.

  “You okay?” he asked with care, skimming his thumb along my forearm.

  I smiled at him, feeling like everything was falling into place perfectly. “More than okay,” I said with absolute certainty and a smile.

  After we finished dinner, I cleaned up the kitchen while Kyle grabbed his laptop out of his office.

  He started checking for flights. “Looks like we can either head out early tomorrow morning at seven, or we have to catch a red-eye tomorrow night,” he said, looking up at me.

  “They both sound terrible.” I laughed. I was not a morning person or a night owl.

  Kyle chuckled. “The morning one is a nonstop flight, so it would take us less time to get there.” The corner of his mouth twitched, and then he licked his bottom lip in the sexiest way. “What about if I wake you up with my tongue?”

  My mouth hit the floor at his frankness. I picked up the hand towel in front of me and chucked it at his head. “And here I thought you were a romantic!” I scolded playfully.

  Kyle pulled the towel off his face. He bit his lip while shaking his head as he rose from his chair, forgetting all about his computer. “Oh, beautiful, you are in for it now,” he said, his eyes never leaving mine.

  The dark predatory look in his stare had me taking a step back as he continued stalking closer. He looked downright sexy.

  “I think we need to back up a minute, so I can remind you of who’s the boss,” he purred with a combination of playfulness and challenge in his voice.

  “Maybe I want the upper hand in this relationship.” I smirked, taking another step backward.

  I only had about six feet to go until he reached me. My right side was blocked by the kitchen island and cabinets. My only option was to go left, but his large frame was taking up half of the path.

  Shit.

  “I thought you wanted a man…not a pussy,” he retorted with a raised brow.

  I could tell how hard he was trying not to laugh. While racking my brain for a sassy comeback, I stepped back once more and bumped into the counter. His eyes burned with victory.

  “Going somewhere, beautiful?” he asked in a low throaty tone while grinning.

  I slowly started skirting to my right, and he followed. On impulse, I ran to the left, hoping to throw him off his game, but he was too fast. He leaped for me and caught me around my waist. I squealed while laughing hysterically.

  After throwing me over his shoulder in one quick move, he slapped my behind. “I’ll never tire of carrying you, beautiful—especially if it is just to show you that I am the boss.”

  I rolled my eyes at the ever-p
resent dominant and sexy alpha before staring at his gorgeous ass in my face. I think it is time for some hefty payback. Grinning, I leaned forward and bit hard on his left cheek.

  “Lily!” he yelled out on a laugh. He jumped slightly, jolting me, as he made his way to the bedroom.

  He tossed me onto the bed, and I bounced slightly. He crawled over me with a heated stare, looking like he was ready to devour me, and my insides sizzled with lust and love for him.

  “Now, let me show you how much I like to be in charge,” he said in a raw voice filled with need.

  After round two of making passionate love, my face radiated with an afterglow. Kyle had left no surface of my body untouched.

  Kyle was booking our flights to Colorado while I started, once again, packing our bags for yet another trip. It seemed there was never a dull day. I called Elena to let her know our arrival time. She informed me the best time to close on the house would be Tuesday morning at nine. We agreed to meet at the buyers’ main bank on Charles Street for their convenience.

  Since Kyle said we would fly back home on Wednesday, I filled our bags with two days of clothes and our toiletries. Kyle entered the bedroom as I zipped my bag closed. He tucked his cell phone in his front pocket.

  “Abbey is going to take Harley again for the next couple of days. I talked with Jason, and he said Lucie is very excited to see us again. She wanted to know if we’d stay with her and Dan,” he said while walking over to sit on the bed.

  “I’d love to stay with her, so we can get some extra visiting time in, too,” I said as I strode over to him. I bent forward to kiss him sweetly. “Thank you for making all of the arrangements.”

  Kyle grinned. “No problem.” His eyes shifted to our bags. “You packed for me?” he asked in wonder.

  “Yes,” I answered. “You are all set. Hopefully, you like what I picked.” I laughed, feeling suddenly nervous. I had never packed for a man before.

  “Undies, too?” He smirked.

  “Yep. Can’t forget those!” I chuckled.

  Kyle tugged my hand to pull me closer. “I knew there was a reason I wanted to keep you,” he said jokingly. Then, he placed a smacking kiss on my lips with a popping noise.

  “You seem to have a never-ending list of reasons why you want to keep me,” I responded playfully.

  “I do”—he grinned—“and it grows longer…every single day,” he breathed against my mouth, placing kisses in between each word.

  I shook my head as I pulled back. “Oh no, we’ve already had two rounds today,” I chided, pointing my finger at him. “I’ll be walking through the airport with bowed legs if you keep kissing me like that.”

  Kyle let out a panty-melting grin as he lay down on the bed, tucking his hands behind his head. “Can’t blame a man for trying.” He laughed.

  I joined in with his laughter while I set each of our bags on the floor. I climbed onto the bed as he patted the spot next to him.

  “Come snuggle, beautiful. We have an early flight,” he said tenderly.

  I crawled up next to him. He turned on his side and tucked me into my little nook.

  “Good night,” he murmured before kissing the top of my head.

  “Good night,” I replied.

  With the excitement of knowing I would see my family tomorrow, it took me almost an hour to fall asleep. I could not wait to see everyone again so soon. I was not sure how I had survived so long without them and their constant love.

  As we took our seats on the plane, my paranoid mind kicked into gear. Luckily, it was just the two of us in our row. I had never been nervous to fly when I was a kid, yet in my adult years, I found myself running statistics of crashes through my head. I really needed to stop watching the news. It was far beyond depressing. However, not knowing what was going on in the world was just as bad.

  Worse yet, we were in the back of the plane because first class had been sold out. I could not get over how much louder it was in the rear of the plane, and we had not even taken off yet.

  Kyle looked at me with amusement. “Every time we fly, you turn pale, but today, you look whiter than a ghost. What’s wrong?”

  “I can’t shake this aversion to flying…and the thought of crashing,” I admitted while tightening my seat belt. “And if we crash today while sitting next to these enormous engines, we’re definitely toast,” I huffed, exasperated.

  Kyle chuckled, and I glared at him. His hand sought out mine, and he squeezed it reassuringly.

  “Sorry, beautiful, but flying is kinda second nature to me now.”

  The pilot came over the intercom and announced our immediate departure and estimated arrival time. The sounds of the turbines filled the cabin. I gripped Kyle’s hand harder as the plane backed away from the terminal.

  “Did you fly a lot as a child?” I asked, redirecting my attention to him once again.

  “I never flew much as a kid. So, when I joined the Army, I was quite intimidated to be surrounded by huge planes, jets, and helicopters, but it got me over my fears of flying pretty quickly.”

  My pulse sped up as I blinked at him. I was not sure if it was from the plane heading in the direction of the runway or because he was sharing on his own. I settled on a combination of both.

  “Where did you fly to first?” I asked, wanting to know more.

  “After boot camp, I went to an Army base in Hawaii. My first sergeant took note of my ability to hit long-range targets with high accuracy. He said it was a gift not to be ignored, and he enrolled me into sharpshooter training where I scored at the top of my class,” he said while stroking his thumb back and forth over the top of my hand.

  “Did you like it?” I was completely consumed with learning more about that part of his life because he was usually so reserved about it.

  “I did,” he said with a short nod.

  The longing in his voice made me wonder if he missed it.

  “It was my calling, and to this day, I’m still grateful that my sergeant noticed my talent well before I figured it out.”

  “So, was that your main career in the service? Or did you have multiple jobs?”

  “I was part of a special ops group. My team and I were all highly trained in combat, but we specialized in night raids.”

  “Night raids?” I asked quietly, feeling uneasy. It sounded dangerous and…bad.

  “Yes.” He hesitated as if choosing his words carefully. “Putting it lightly, we would go out at night by helicopter in hopes of catching our enemies off guard. My men and I would drop down by rope or parachute, and then I would lead them as we followed through on our mission—whether it was rescuing a captive or taking out the bad guys.”

  “What would happen once you were on the ground?” I asked.

  “We were basically the frontline. The tactic was to increase the success of our mission by attacking the heart of the problem. Our backup men would travel on the ground in Humvees. Sometimes, we would have to call in an air strike if we needed it. No one left until we all walked out side by side as a team,” he said with an expressive smile. “We honored the creed, Leave no man behind.”

  My heart seized, thinking of all that he must have endured as a soldier. His dedication to the men and women he had served with was apparent through his words. I could hear how much he loved those who had fought by his side.

  If I was on edge from hearing his stories while he was sitting in front of me, I could only imagine how wives, children, and family felt while their loved ones were serving our country. I had always respected military men and women for their service and sacrifice, but those feelings were intensified now.

  I rotated slightly to caress his cheek with the back of my hand. “You sound very fond of them,” I said softly.

  “I am,” he said, drawing his brows in. His eyes displayed powerful emotions. “They were my brothers and sisters.”

  “Do you still talk to any of your former team members?” I could not help but ask even though I feared I might be pushing him too far.


  Pain filled his eyes. “The ones I can,” he said with a low voice.

  He blinked rapidly as he shifted to look out the window, and my hand fell from his face. I could have sworn I’d seen tears in his eyes, but I didn’t want to make him feel uncomfortable. He had his pride, and he needed it.

  In that moment, I knew not to ask him any more today. I was thankful he had opened up another part of his heart to me, but I could see the anguish it had invoked in him to relive his past. My heart ached for all he must have experienced.

  Kyle pivoted to face me once again, and his expression was now void of the emotions I had observed just moments before.

  “Look, beautiful.” He bent forward to kiss my temple before showing me the blue sky outside the tiny box window. “You made it through takeoff.”

  I did.

  But at what cost?

  Overwhelmed with sadness and compassion, I reached up to kiss him on the cheek. “Thank you,” I whispered while gazing into his eyes, “for sharing a part of yourself with me and for the distraction.”

  “You’re welcome,” he replied, matching my tone.

  He smiled with such love in his eyes, and my heart felt like it might splinter. I lowered my head, resting it on his shoulder, and I embraced Kyle’s warmth as I let the roar of the engines take over my mind.

  Kyle remained pretty quiet for the rest of the flight, except to buy us each a bottle of water and a bag of pretzels for an outrageous price.

  I gave my best efforts to snuggle with him, offering quiet reassurances and tender touches, whenever I found the opportunity. With the confinement of our seats, I was restrained to stay mostly on my own side when all I wanted to do was climb in his lap to hug and comfort him.

  The time on the plane passed by fairly quickly since it was a nonstop flight. Thank goodness we had not gone with the red-eye that had a layover.

  When the plane finally landed, we were able to avoid the crowded luggage claim area since we only had carry-on bags. We headed straight for the car rental place where Kyle had reserved a vehicle for us. After we filled out the paperwork and were given the keys, I laughed out loud when we walked up to a Camaro.