grasped her shoulders, and he uttered a hearty chuckle.
“Arrrrr, Wench. I’m here to claim my booty.” His awful
cockney pirate snarl would have made him a shoe in for any
made for basic cable feature film. He grasped the ropes on both
sides of her head as his mouth passionately claimed hers.
After a long and fiery kiss, Steph reluctantly pushed on his
chest. His eyebrows rose in surprise. “Make me walk the plank if you must, but this booty’s been plundered enough for one day.”
He tried to situate himself, and she nearly fell off into the
sand again.
“Don’t move,” she ordered, and he held has hands up in
mock surrender as she positioned herself next to him. She sighed as she cuddled in close and breathed in his divine scent. She
stroked the hair of his chest which his cheesy seventies style
neckline exposed. The storm clouds had rapidly moved on, and
the clear night sky glittered with a million stars.
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TAMMY COONS & MICHELLE PACE
“I could just stay with you in this moment for the rest of my
days.” He sounded matter-of-fact, and Stephanie held her breath.
It was time for “the talk.” She’d known it was coming; it was
their last night before everyone flew back to their real lives. She took several slow breaths and began.
“Phillip…listen…” Steph began, nervous but excited at the
road she saw before them.
“No, you listen to me. Before you open that talented mouth
and say something we’ll both regret, I have a few counterpoints
I’d like to present.” Using only his thumb, he tilted her face up to meet his. He refused to let her eyes wander, and Steph bit the
inside of her lip to keep from snickering. “Steph, I love you. I don’t say that word flippantly. I mean love. Like “bleed to death on a battlefield” love. My worst day with you was a billion times better than my best day without you. I find spending another day away from you unthinkable, and refuse to go on waking up without you by my side. I know you don’t believe in marriage—and
after this week, I can see why—but I’m done being away from
you, so we’d better figure something out quick.”
Steph giggled, and Phillip looked like she’d stabbed him
with a butcher knife.
“You find that funny?” His bewilderment was darling.
She struggled to compose herself, but several additional
chuckles escaped. “Oh, Pip. Don’t be so dramatic. You had me
at ‘arrrrr.’”
She watched a myriad of emotions flicker across his face as
he realized she was in. For whatever lay ahead of them, Steph
was on board and ready for the journey. His eyes shone like glittering sapphires in the moonlight, overflowing with adoration.
But Phillip’s lips twisted in a wicked and naughty sneer.
“Dramatic? I’ll show you dramatic.” He was on his feet,
hoisting her over his shoulder in true conqueror fashion.
“Phillip, put me down.” She squealed with laughter. “Bad
pirate!”
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RAGE
He slapped her on the ass as he lumbered toward the path
leading to the bungalows.
“Naughty prisoners are taught their lessons in the captain’s
cabin. I think maybe I’ll tie you to the bed for a sound lashing.”
He flipped her off of his shoulder and held her in his arms like a princess.
“A tongue lashing?” she asked breathlessly, her lips curling
wryly.
When he spoke, it sounded like an animalistic growl. “Is
there any other kind?”
Saffron and Nathan watched as Phillip carried Stephanie to
the trail, and he vanished with her into the encroaching trees.
“Isn’t it romantic?” Saffron cooed ironically. Nathan smiled
at his beautiful lady as he lit a cigarette.
“I just love happy endings; really I do.” His tone was sardonic, but Nathan’s relief was genuine. He’d always felt Stepha-
nie and Phillip belonged together, and he had always been one of their biggest supporters. He glanced at Bret and Sarah on the
dance floor. They moved in slow circles, their foreheads touch-
ing as they gazed at one another.
David and Yara had left the party moments before, presum-
ably to consummate their union. Yara’s mood had greatly im-
proved the minute the ceremony ended. Though it was their par-
ty, the pair seemed oblivious to the world around them.
Cheyenne and Scot took turns twirling Liam around on the
dance floor. The toddler giggled hysterically and chanted
“again…again!” It seemed like everything was falling into place
for all the members of Fury, himself included.
“Don’t you mean ‘happy finishes’?” Saffron purred, her
hand sliding up dangerously high on his inner thigh.
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TAMMY COONS & MICHELLE PACE
Nathan felt his eyebrow twitch as she pressed herself
against him. He slid his palm down the bare skin exposed by
Saffron’s backless dress. “Is there a difference?”
She leaned in close, her face an inch from his. He could
barely see her dark-lined eyes through her veil of blonde bangs.
‘Take me back to our room, and you’ll find out.”
Luck had been on Nathan Clayton’s side since the day his
was born, but he felt like the luckiest move he ever made was
walking into the burlesque club where Saffron tended bar. She
was his perfect playmate, and though he was afraid he was fall-
ing in love with her, he smiled like a fool.
“As you wish, Mistress. Lead the way.”
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CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Stephanie snapped a photograph of a little girl in a red pea
coat through her telescopic lens and then erupted in a tired huff.
It was a crisp but clear September morning, and she was at the
very least grateful to be able to sit outside on the balcony.
Though she undoubtedly had the best view of any invalid in
London, she’d had it up to her eyeballs with bed-rest and wanted this baby out now. She stared out at the River Thames over the
plate of crackers and fruit she balanced on her swollen belly. She wondered how long Phillip would be in the studio today. After
sending him out at midnight on a hunt for Funyuns, a green ap-
ple and Strawberry Quick, she figured he’d knock off early and
come home for a nap. Steph smirked at the thought. If he knew
what was good for him, he’d just catch a quick one on a couch at Abbey Road Studios; if he came home, she’d put him to work
