Her tattoo was on her ribs. It was an embroidered anatomical heart with roots growing marigolds, my birth month flower.
Our minds were aligned. My tattoo was a single chrysanthemum and a daisy, Catherine and Joey’s birth month flowers. There was room for the children we would have, but it was also complete as it was.
Just like me, complete with Catherine and Josephine, but eager to accept the bonus of everything else to come.
“Let’s go to bed, sweetheart.”
She blinked her sleepy eyes at me. “Mmm…okay.”
Like every night, I checked all the doors and set the security system. Catherine was waiting for me in bed. When I walked into the room, she pulled back the covers, welcoming me beside her. I slid in, pulling her against me, and clicked off the light.
“I might be grumpy again tomorrow,” she whispered in the dark.
I grinned. “If you are, I might have to give you the same treatment.”
She laughed and snuggled closer.
I shut my eyes and nuzzled her hair.
In less than a minute, her breathing deepened, sleep claiming her. Soon, I was drifting too, joining my wife and daughter in their dreams.
P.S. Thank you for making me feel…making me feel.
Not So Truly Yours
Did you think I'd leave out Miles? I could never!
Coming in Spring 2024…preorder Not So Truly Yours now!
https://mybook.to/NSTY
Miles Aldrich is a lot of things: golden retriever friend, troubled younger brother, successful business owner.
But to the grumpy girl with the cupcakes, he's something he's never been: fake boyfriend.
Playlist
“Your Heart is a Muscle the Size of a Fist” Ramshackle Glory “Be My Queen” Seafret “Idfc” blackbear
“Skyscraper” Demi Lovato “Wait” M83
“Sky’s Still Blue” Andrew Belle “Loving You” Seafret “Miracle” Foo Fighters “Down By The River” Milky Chance “Lova” Lucky Love
“Story of Love” Bon Jovi “Heading South” Zach Bryan “Youth” Daughter
“Wrecking Ball” Miley Cyrus “I Found” Amber Run
“Heal” Tom Odell
“Party in the USA” Miley Cyrus “we fell in love in october” girl in red “Fathers & Daughters” Boyce Avenue “My Girl” Joy Oladokun “Wild Horses” The Rolling Stones https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4lopy1CqJYv7LhYCoKD5aD?si=8db8fe6e105a4021
If you want more…
Is Elliot your jam? If yes, then might I recommend a few of my gruff, icy-hearted heroes who fall hard for their girl:
Falling in Reverse
It was supposed to go like this:
Meet cute at the dog park, have a hot and sexy hookup, never see each other again.
Things didn’t go quite like I was hoping. I met the fine Irishman in the park, but the rest of my plans were upended by an extremely inconvenient break-in.
My record label isn’t thrilled that the lead singer of their new, biggest band might have a crazed fan or angry ex out for revenge, so they hire a bodyguard to protect me.
That sexy Irishman from the dog park? His name is Ronan Walsh and he’s now my big, bossy bodyguard.
Stone Cold Notes
They called him Stone Cold.
Once upon a time, I called him my pen pal.
When I wrote to Callum Rose five years ago, I never expected a response. He was an up and coming rock star, afterall, and I was just a shy seventeen-year-old. He did write back though, and through hundreds of emails, we became best friends.
Until the day we unknowingly broke each other’s heart.
Built to Fall
Dominic Cantrell has been famous almost as long as I’ve been alive, but he remains a dark, volatile mystery.
I know why I was hired to handle Dominic’s PR while he’s on tour. It’s not because of my experience—I have next to none. It’s because I’m safe. Plain, quiet, shy, with more-than-ample curves, I won’t distract him.
What I didn’t count on was Dominic distracting me instead. I shouldn’t be so drawn to him. He’s too old for me, too closed-off, and definitely too angry, but I’ve been a good girl for far too long.
Why can’t I be just a little bit bad, especially when my rock star fantasy is so willing to corrupt me?
Author's Note
Awwww…am I right?
I love bringing an icy man to his knees, but I’ve uncovered my new favorite storyline: icy man melting over tiny baby.
I hope you loved seeing Elliot fall apart over Catherine and Joey. I had such a good time writing their story!
Maybe too much fun sometimes? When I was writing certain…messy scenes, I was copying and pasting like a crazy woman to my author chat group, asking what they thought. I should have known Laura Lee, Alley Ciz, and CoraLee June would be one board with every drop of it. （See what I did there?）