Rapture and Lace(10)

He answered the phone in a clipped voice.

I fingered through some of the paperwork on his desk absentmindedly as he stroked up and down my back softly. A framed picture sat on his desk and I picked it up to inspect it.

It was Carter and I assumed his parents and siblings outside the Aspen house. An attractive older woman that I assumed was his mom was strikingly beautiful with a warm smile on her face. His father was handsome with salt-and-pepper hair and a charming grin. Carter had one arm wrapped around his mom, and another wrapped around what I figured was his younger sister, who was petite with the same dark hair and bright smile as her mom. Next to her was who I assumed was his brother; a guy who looked similar to Carter, except taller and with the same dark hair as his mom and sister. He had a free-spirited grin spread across his face.

The warmth and happiness on Carter's face warmed my heart. He wasn't a controlling CEO, or businessman, or playboy, he was at home with his family, carefree and loved. Maybe the only place he felt happy and comfortable. They were clearly his soft place to fall. I hoped that I would be that for Carter someday. Our relationship had been so tumultuous, a thought dashed through my brain that maybe we would only ever cause each other pain.

I set the picture down and took a deep breath, never averting my eyes from the beautiful smile on Carter's face that was frozen in time.

Carter and I had the spectacular moments too; we just had to find a way to work through the rough ones. Carter must have sensed my unease because he slid his hand up underneath my shirt to make contact with my skin. His fingers slid past the delicate straps of my bra and up to the back of my neck where he ghosted his fingertips and then began to rub in small circles. I sighed deep and closed my eyes. There was nowhere I’d rather be in that moment than perched right on this beautiful man's lap.

I turned to face him and snaked both of my arms around his waist and slid my hands beneath his shirt to touch his velvety soft skin. I laid my head on his shoulder and snuggled into his neck while he continued to talk on the phone. His other hand tightened around my waist and dipped underneath the waistband of my jeans to tease the flesh.

Carter finished his phone call abruptly and then placed his other hand on my thigh.

"Are you okay, beautiful girl?" He slid an arm around my body and rubbed my back.

"Yes," I whispered. He brought one palm up to stroke down my long hair lovingly.

"Promise?"

"Yes. I love you." I pulled back to look in his eyes. "I just want to make sure we're right doing this. That you're not having second thoughts. We've fought so much…" I trailed off, worried that he would change his mind.

"I’m right here with you. There's nowhere else I would rather be but here, marrying you tomorrow. If you're still with me." He tilted my chin up with his hand. "Are you with me?" he whispered.

I nodded as tears sprang to my eyes.

"No tears." He smoothed one away with the pad of his thumb. "We're going to be so great, Eva. I promise. There's no one else for me but you." He kissed me reassuringly and his hand snaked around my neck to hold me gently against him.

"I love you." He pulled away.

"I love you, too." I rested my forehead on his with a smile.

"Good. Now let's go eat." He gave me that sexy, crooked grin and stood, grasping me firmly to him. I wrapped my legs around his waist and clung to him as he carried me out of the office and into the kitchen, teasing my lips with his own the entire way.





Later that night we sat in the hot tub on the terrace off the master bedroom. The air was chilly but the water was warm and soothing and just what my body needed. We had a sweeping view of the valley with the city lights of Aspen nestled in the center and the mountains in the distance. We'd had pizza delivered for dinner and now Carter poured us wine and insisted we needed to relax before the big event tomorrow.

He'd spent the afternoon making calls and coordinating a venue and photographer for tomorrow. I'm sure he was paying out the ear for the last minute arrangements, but he was adamant that we would have the perfect day. I tried to tell him it would be perfect no matter what, but he wasn't hearing any of it.

He'd also teased me incessantly about seeing my dress. While we may not be having a traditional wedding, I wanted to keep a few of the traditions intact, and that was one of them. I knew he would love the lacy dress, so I wanted the first time he saw it to be when I was walking down the aisle to marry him.

Something had been nagging at me all day, but I didn't want to ruin Carter's good mood. It had been a sore spot for us, and maybe still was for him, but I couldn't get the thought out of my head.

"Can I ask you something?"