His Forever Family(38)

"Sienna?"

Moments later she turned back around to face Dane, knowing he was  waiting on her response. "What do you want me to say, Dane? Trust me,  you don't want to get me started since you've always known how your  family felt about me."

His brow furrowed sharply as he moved from the table to join her at the  window, coming to stand directly in front of her. "And you've known it  didn't matter one damn iota. Why would you let it continue to matter to  you?"

She shook her head, tempted to bare her soul but fighting not to. "But  you don't understand how important it was for your family to accept me,  to love me."

Dane stepped closer, looked into eyes that were fighting to keep tears at bay.

"Wasn't my love enough, Sienna? I'd told you countless time that you  didn't marry my family, you married me. I'm not proud of the fact that  my parents think too highly of themselves and our family name at times,  but I've constantly told you it didn't matter. Why can't you believe  me?"

When she didn't say anything, he sighed deeply. "You've been around  people with money before. Do all of them act like my parents?"

She thought of her best friend's family. The Steeles. "No."

"Then what should that tell you? They're my parents. I know that they aren't close to being perfect, but I love them."

"And I never wanted to do anything to make you stop loving them."

He reached up and touched her chin. "And that's what this is about,  isn't it? Why you filed for a divorce. You thought that you could."

Sienna angrily wiped at a tear she couldn't contain any longer. "I didn't ever want you to have to choose."

Dane's heart ached. Evidently she didn't know just how much he loved  her. "There wouldn't have been a choice to make. You're my wife. I love  you. I will always love you. When we married, we became one."

He leaned down and brushed a kiss on her cheek, then several. He wanted  to devour her mouth, deepen the kiss and escalate it to a level he  needed it to be, but he couldn't. He wouldn't. What they needed was to  talk, to communicate to try and fix whatever was wrong with their  marriage. He pulled back. It was hard when he heard her soft sigh, her  heated moan.

He gave in briefly to temptation and tipped her chin up, and placed a  kiss on her lips. "There's plenty of hot water still left in the tank,"  he said softly, stroking her chin. "Go ahead and take a shower before it  gets completely dark, and then I'll take one."

He continued to stroke her chin when he added, "Then what I want is for  us to do something we should have done months ago, Sienna. I want us to  sit down and talk. And I mean to really talk. Regain that level of  communication we once had. And what I need to know more than anything is  whether my love will ever be just enough for you."





Chapter 12

You're my wife. I love you. I will always love you. When we married, we became one.                       
       
           



       

Dane's words flowed through Sienna's mind as she stepped into the  shower, causing a warm, fuzzy, glowing feeling to seep through her  pores. Hope flared within her although she didn't want it to. She hadn't  wanted to end her marriage, but when things had begun to get worse  between her and Dane, she'd finally decided to take her in-laws'  suggestion and get out of their son's life.

Even after three years of seeing how happy she and Dane were together,  they still couldn't look beyond her past. They saw her as a nobody, a  person who had married their son for his money. She had offered to sign a  prenuptial before the wedding and Dane had scoffed at the suggestion,  refusing to even draw one up. But still, his parents had made it known  each time they saw her just how much they resented the marriage.

And no matter how many times Dane had stood up to them and had put them  in their place regarding her, it would only be a matter of time before  they resorted to their old ways again, though never in the presence of  their son. Maybe Dane was right, and all she'd had to do was tell his  parents off once and for all and that would be the end of it, but she  never could find the courage to do it.

And what was so hilarious with the entire situation was that she had  basically become a workaholic to become successful in her own right so  they could see her as their son's equal in every way; and in trying to  impress them she had alienated Dane to the point that eventually he  would have gotten fed up and asked her for a divorce if she hadn't done  so first.

After spending time under the spray of water, she stepped out of the  shower, intent on making sure there was enough hot water left for Dane.  She tried to put out of her mind the last time she had taken a shower in  this stall, and how Dane had joined her in it.

Toweling off, she was grateful she still had some of her belongings at  the cabin to sleep in. The last thing she needed was to parade around  Dane half naked. Then they would never get any talking done.

She slipped into a T-shirt and a pair of sweatpants she found in one of  the drawers. Dane wanted to talk. How could they have honest  communication without getting into a discussion about his parents again?  She crossed her arms, trying to ignore the chill she was beginning to  feel in the air. In order to stay warm they would probably both have to  sleep in front of the fireplace tonight. She didn't want to think about  what the possibility of doing something like that meant.

While her cell phone still had life, she decided to let her best  friend, Vanessa Steele, know that she wouldn't be returning to Charlotte  tonight. Dane was right. Not everyone with money acted like his  parents. The Steeles, owners of a huge manufacturing company in  Charlotte, were just as wealthy as the Bradfords. But they were as  down-to-earth as people could get, which proved that not everyone with a  lot of money were snobs.

"Hello?"

"Van, it's Sienna."

"Sienna, I was just thinking about you. Did you make it back before that snowstorm hit?"

"No, I'm in the mountains, stranded."

"What! Do you want me to send my cousins to rescue you?"

Sienna smiled. Vanessa was talking about her four single male cousins,  Chance, Sebastian, Morgan and Donovan Steele. Sienna had to admit that  besides being handsome as sin, they were dependable to a fault. And of  all people, she, Vanessa and Vanessa's two younger sisters, Taylor and  Cheyenne, should know more than anyone since they had been notorious for  getting into trouble while growing up and the brothers four had always  been there to bail them out.

"No, I don't need your cousins to come and rescue me."

"What about Dane? You know how I feel about you divorcing him, Sienna.  He's still legally your husband and I think I should let him know where  you are and let him decide if he should-"

"Vanessa," Sienna interrupted. "You don't have to let Dane know anything. He's here, stranded with me."





Chapter 13

"How was your shower?" Dane asked Sienna when she returned to the living room a short while later.

"Great. Now it's your turn to indulge."

"Okay." Dane tried not to notice how the candlelight was flickering  over Sienna's features, giving them an ethereal glow. He shoved his  hands into the pockets of his jeans and for a long moment he stood there  staring at her.

She lifted a brow. "What's wrong?"

"I was just thinking how incredibly beautiful you are."

Sienna breathed in deeply, trying to ignore the rush of sensations she  felt from his words. "Thank you." Dane had always been a man who'd been  free with his compliments. Being apart from him made her realize that  was one of the things she missed, among many others.                       
       
           



       

"I'll be back in a little while," he said before leaving the room.

When he was gone, Sienna remembered the conversation she'd had with  Vanessa earlier. Her best friend saw her and Dane being stranded  together on the mountain as a twist of fate that Sienna should use to  her advantage. Vanessa further thought that for once, Sienna should  stand up to the elder Bradfords and not struggle to prove herself to  them. Dane had accepted her as she was and now it was time for her to be  satisfied and happy with that; after all, she wasn't married to his  parents.

A part of Sienna knew that Vanessa was right, but she had been seeking  love from others for so long that she hadn't been able to accept that  Dane's love was all the love she needed. Before her shower he had asked  if his love was enough and now she knew that it was. It was past time  for her to acknowledge that fact and to let him know it.

Dane stepped out the shower and began toweling off. The bathroom  carried Sienna's scent and the honeysuckle fragrance of the shower gel  she enjoyed using.