LauraIt must have been loud enough for Ethan to hear because he leaned in as soon as she had finished speaking. His lips touched hers as he gently pressed toward her. A soft moan eased up and out of Laura’s throat while a fire ignited inside of her.It wasn't their first time kissing, but this was ten times better than the first. Something about it was more intense, more meaningful. There was more to it this time.The kiss started out beautiful and slow, with Ethan teasing his lips against hers. It was a perfect and meticulous dance. Laura would pull away just a bit, causing Ethan to lean into her. Then the roles would reverse, and he'd do the same to her. Soon, their tongues were darting in and out of each other's mouths, twisting and wrestling while their hands drifted all over one another.Laura couldn't get enough of him. Now that the ice had been broken, she wanted to dive in head first. Whatever had made them want each other a year and a half before was there again, and back in
Laura“Kids, the pizza's here!” Laura called out, heading to her front door. She grabbed the money she'd left on the counter to give the pizza guy and opened the door.Except, instead of a pizza delivery person on her front step, it was Ethan holding several boxes of pizza.“Pizza delivery, ma'am.”“What are you doing delivering pizzas?” she asked, hand on her hip and smiling. “The car business not paying you well enough?”He laughed. “This way I get to see the neighborhood,” he teased. “I intercepted your pizza coming up.”“I see that,” she said. She looked past him to see the delivery car drive off. “Did you pay him?”“Maybe,” he replied with a shrug. “Maybe I just stole them.”She smacked his shoulder and held the door open for him to come in.“I thought you were going to be late. I didn't order you a pizza,” she said. She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. The kids would be so excited to have a surprise visit from Ethan, but she felt bad she didn't order enough food for
LauraLaura stood in front of the bathroom mirror. She brought her hands down her sides, smoothing out the silky material of her white dress. She'd been standing there for at least ten minutes, just double checking that her hair and makeup was as flawless as possible. It was important to her that she look her absolute best. She was getting ready for a date with Ethan and had a feeling that wherever he took her, it was going to be pretty extravagant. Or at least a little more extravagant than horseback riding and lunch on hay bales.Butterflies continued to bounce around inside her belly as she stepped out of the bathroom. There was something special about Ethan. He wasn't like regular guys she'd dated, and she knew that it had nothing to do with his money. There was just something about him that got her excited. It made her light up inside and put a spring in her step that she didn't think still existed.After pacing the room a couple of times, she glanced down at her watch.“Oh, God,
LauraAs soon as Laura left her bedroom, the doorbell rang.“I got it!” Ivy and Dallas shouted in unison and then began running from the kitchen to the front door. It sounded like a herd of elephants stampeding across the floor.Laura exhaled a quick breath and ran her hands down the sides of her dress one last time to smooth it out. The butterflies continued to fly in her belly as she followed the elephant herd to the front of the house. By the time she got there, Dallas and Ivy were already clamoring for Ethan's attention.“Those are pretty flowers!” Ivy announced.“Yuck, flowers?” Dallas said. “You should have brought video games! Girls love that.”“Alright, alright,” Laura said, squeezing past the two kids so that she could stand in from of Ethan. “Thanks for answering the door, kids. Now can we let Ethan inside without pestering him to death?”Ethan smiled and handed Laura a bouquet of flowers. It was a dozen of the prettiest yellow roses she had ever seen.“They're beautiful,” s
LauraThe front door opened and an elegant man in a dark tux opened the door. Laura was sure this was what butlers must look like. “Good evening, sir. Ma'am.”He held the door open and then carefully closed it behind them before escorting them through the home. Laura glanced around, surprised by how beautiful the interior was. It was fully furnished, with beautiful and extravagant paintings covering every wall.“Whose house is this?” she whispered to Ethan.He just glanced over and smirked, without saying a word. She shook her head. Him and his secrets.“Right this way, sir,” The Butler said, approaching a door at the very back of the house.Ethan and Laura walked through and onto the screened porch. There were two heat lamps, one on each side of the deck, which made the area entirely comfortable despite the fresh mountain air outside. Situated in the center, was a small white table and two chairs. There was a beautiful flower bouquet in the center, surrounded by candles, which flicke
LauraThe main course turned out to be just as amazing as Laura thought it would be. She especially loved the rack of lamb and couldn't believe how tender the meat was. After they'd eaten, Daryl came out and cleared the dishes then went back inside to get dessert ready.“I'm stuffed,” Ethan said. “However, I'm going to eat dessert one way or the other. I can't resist his toffee pudding.”“I'm so full, too,” Laura said. “You're right, though. Dessert is going to happen one way or the other. I have an insatiable sweet tooth.”Ethan's eyes lit up, and he reached for his pocket.“Oh, I nearly forgot,” he said. “Your surprise.”She smiled. “You really didn't have to, Ethan.”“I know I didn't have to. I wanted to.” He slid the white envelope across the table.Laura opened it up and pulled out a blank piece of thick stationery. It was folded in half, and something was inside of it.“What is it?” she asked, carefully opening the stationery.Two plane tickets fell out onto the table. She didn'
LauraLaura and Ethan stepped off of the porch and into the house. She squeezed his hand as they made their way down the hall and into the large living room. When they'd first come in, she hadn't even noticed the little fireplace in the corner. Now, though, there was a warm fire burning inside, and its soft glow illuminated the entire room.“Was this on when we got here?” she asked.Ethan shook his head. “No, I told Craig to get that started after we'd sat out on the deck for dinner.”“Well, aren't you clever?” she said with a smile.Located directly in front of the fireplace was a sheep skin rug. They both kicked off their shoes and then walked over onto the rug. The warmth from the fire radiated outward against Laura's bare calves. It was so nice and cozy there, with her toes digging into the fur beneath her feet.She held both of Ethan's hands as they stood there for a moment, just enjoying the fire and each other's company.“Are you sure Craig is outside?” Laura said, glancing at
LauraLaura woke up to the morning sun shining in through the window of the cabin. She slowly opened her eyes and glanced around the room. It was the first time seeing it in the daylight. The fire had gone out, but it was still smoldering and putting out enough warmth to take the chill out of the air.Well, I'm awake and last night was most definitely not just a dream, she thought. That makes me happier than I've been in a long time.Ethan's arm was wrapped around her. She felt as he pulled her close him so that her back pressed against his chest. Then he kissed the top of her shoulder, sending a tingle through her.“You awake?” he whispered.Laura nodded. “Yeah, just woke up actually.”“What time is it?” he asked.“No clue,” she said. “I guess around eight.”“We should just lay here all day,” he said, chuckling.“God, I wish that I could.” Laura sighed and pressed her back against him, snuggling as close as possible. “I've got to get back to the kids, though. I told Elena that I woul