A Very Dirty Wedding(75)

I laugh. “Nice try. You’ll know soon enough,” I tell her.

“How exactly do you think you’re going to get me through the airport without me knowing where we’re going?” she asks.

I raise my eyebrows. “Private plane,” I say. The plane is Ella’s doing. She might not be the most traditional -- or stable -- mother ever, but she knows how to come through in a pinch. And that does count for something.

“Ella gave you her plane?” she asks. Her hands run down my arms, and I pull her closer to me, inhaling deeply, my nose at the side of her neck. I love her smell; it’s like being home.

“She didn’t give it to me permanently,” I say. “But this is a special, special occasion.”

Kate laughs. “I didn’t win a Nobel Prize,” she says. “I just graduated from college.”

I kiss down the side of her neck, and she squirms, letting out a soft moan. I don’t tell her that this trip is not about her college graduation. “It is a big deal,” I say. “I didn’t go to college.”

“You could if you still want to,” she says.

I’m actually thinking about it. But not right now. Right now, I want to be with Kate. I want to start a life with her.

“Mhmm,” I murmur, pulling at the edges of her shirt.

“Is that plane going to wait?” she asks softly. But she arches her back, pushing against my hand as I cup her breasts under her shirt. Her nipple hardens, and she lets out a moan. I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of hearing that moan.

“We have a few minutes,” I say, as I lift her shirt over her head to expose her still-perfect breasts. Unbuttoning her pants and sliding her jeans down, I take a second to look at her.

“What?” she asks, swatting me. “You’re staring again.”

“I was just taking you in,” I tell her. “You’re breathtaking.”

“Okay, seriously,” she says. “Private plane, trip to somewhere exotic, and now you’re calling me breathtaking? Are you about to drop some really bad news on me?”

I slide my hand down her stomach and between her legs, and listen to her sharp inhale of breath. “Shut up and take your compliment,” I say softly as I run my finger in circles over her clit. “Hasn’t anyone taught you to be gracious, Princess?”

She laughs, but her head lolls back and her eyes half-close. “You wouldn’t like me if I were.”





CHAPTER THIRTY



Katherine



We’re in Bali.

Just when I think things can’t get any better, Caulter goes and does something like this. A surprise trip to Bali.

It’s crazy and wonderful. But so is my life now. I have a life that’s better than I could have ever dreamed. It turns out that the gallery exhibit three years ago was just the beginning. My sketches and paintings have been selling well. I’m not exactly making millions of dollars, but I’m making enough money to do art full-time now that I’ve graduated from college, and that makes me indescribably happy.

My father wasn’t thrilled about the whole art thing, but he’s come around. We’re cordial, and that’s good enough. He’s decided not to run for President, after all. He’s even been talking about retiring from politics altogether.

I guess sometimes people do change.

Caulter and I are both living proof of that. Caulter isn’t the person he was when we fell in love -- and hate -- that summer in New Hampshire. He’s grown up, into someone I’m proud to stand beside, and occasionally, still kick in the shin every so often. I’m not the same girl I was back then, either. I’d say that loving Caulter has made me less uptight, but it’s more than that. Caulter has taught me that it’s okay to take risks in love and in life. I love him fully and completely, without reservation. And that has changed everything.

“Come on, look outside.” Caulter grabs my hand and pulls me through the villa. The entire length of the wall is open onto a lush yard and palm trees, with a view of the ocean in the distance. The sun and the colors are so bright they’re practically blinding. We stand there for a minute, Caulter behind me, just taking everything in.

“Oh my God, Caulter,” I bring my hand to my mouth, and just shake my head. “It’s...it’s just breathtakingly beautiful. I can’t believe you brought me here.”

When I whirl around to kiss him, he’s down on one knee. My eyes go back and forth between his face and the ring he's holding. “Holy shit, yes. Of course. Yes.”

Caulter grins. “Geez, woman, you don’t even let me get the question out before you answer.”