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Two days later my mom and I sat in the attorney’s office and listened to him as he explained the contents of my dad’s will. Fortunately for my mom, she would be well taken care of as my dad had a lot of investments in other things besides real estate. Since the business had been incorporated, none of his personal assets had been impacted by the bankruptcy. Their home was paid for and he’d been well insured. His policy had been taken out years ago and paid no matter the cause of death. He also left me financially secure. There was a clause in the will regarding Preston. If Preston mended his ways and was clean for a period of five years, there was a trust fund set up for him. If he failed to clean his act up, everything diverted to me. It felt like Dad was telling me he loved me from the grave and making up for the errors he made with the business. I went home and cried.
CHAPTER TWENTY ONE
Justin
The girl knew how to dress. Her gown was a cobalt blue that made her eyes dance and my body sing. The back of it dropped sinfully low and it stopped right before that place that I loved to drag my tongue along until she moaned. It would be with great difficulty that I’d keep my hands off of her tonight. The front was a deep V and the only thing missing was a sapphire necklace. I would have to do something about that this week.
Her hair was twisted up into some kind of an intricate style that left her neck bare, although there were a few long tendrils that tantalized me. I played with them on and off all night. The great thing was that since her hair was up, I was able to brush my lips across her neck while we danced. I enjoyed her rosy blush my kissing would create, as her arousal increased with my persistence at us dancing to almost every song. My other reason was I wanted my hand on that place on her back. While we danced, I was able to slip my fingers beneath that satiny fabric and run my pinky dangerously close to places I shouldn’t be touching in public. Hearing her breathe and seeing her lips part caused me to stay constantly aroused. Her tongue would dart out and lick her lips and every now and again I would allow myself to kiss her. I didn’t give a damn how many looks we got. She was too damned gorgeous to ignore.
“Have I told you how perfectly beautiful you look tonight?”
“Mmm huh...about a dozen times.” She gave me one of her sexy smiles.
“Good. I plan to tell you a dozen more before the night’s over. But Terri, I have to tell you. I don’t know how much longer I can last here.”
“Who said we had to stay here all night. As I recall, last year Pearce and Lexi made a mysterious departure. Why can’t we do the same?”
I liked the way my girl was thinking.
“Give me a few more minutes and I think we may be doing the same thing.”
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That night, as I lay in bed with her tousled hair next to my cheek, I knew I had to be with her forever. Valentine’s Day was in two weeks and I decided I would pop the question then. The wheels were spinning now...this wouldn’t be just an ordinary proposal. It would be spectacular. The rest of the night was spent conjuring up ideas of what to do and where to take her.
In the morning, I slipped out of bed and made a few calls before she woke up. Middleton Enterprises, the family held corporation owned a private jet, so I reserved it for a four day trip. Then I checked the top ten romantic vacation destinations and decided on Amanyara on the island of Turks and Caicos. Luckily, Ocean Pavilion 115 was available as it had the best ratings of all the rooms there. It would be difficult to hide my excitement, but this would be the surprise of her life. Now, my next mission would be to get Lexi or Alana to secretly pack a small bag for her. She wouldn’t need much as my intentions were to spend most of our time in the privacy of our pavilion. On Monday, I would start my search for her engagement ring.
********
She suspected something was up. My behavior was like that of a little kid’s on the night before Christmas. It was a very good thing that I was on call this coming weekend. I’d found the perfect ring...or at least I hoped it was. If she didn’t like it, she could exchange it for one that she preferred. My heart did a loop-t-loop in my chest every time I thought about slipping it on her finger. I would imagine her eyes getting all soft and shimmery and then her lips would curve into that sexy smile I adored so much. The wait was gonna kill me.
When Monday morning hit, I left the hospital worn to a nub. The proverbial shit had hit the fan all weekend with all sorts of accidents pouring in. We couldn’t seem to catch a break at all. After texting Terri, I dragged my ass to bed not even spending the time to take a shower. It was late afternoon when I woke up, and I finally felt like a human being again.