Chasing Forevermore Read Online Free Page B

hands over his on my cheeks, praying I was making the right decision and wasn’t ruining his future.
    “Yes? Yes, you’ll marry me? Yes, what?”
    I hated that I had hurt him. “Yes, I’ll marry you, and I’m so sorry I didn’t say yes as soon as you asked.”
    Not saying anything, he stared at me for a brief second, doubt etching his face, before crashing our lips together, letting his tongue slide against mine. I could feel every emotion he was feeling—hurt, happiness, worry, pain, frustration. He let it all pour out in the kiss as he possessed my mouth.
    I pulled away. “Can I have my ring?”
    “What? Yes.” He grabbed my hand, but before the ring slipped completely onto my finger, he stopped. “You know once I put this on, you can’t change your mind. I won’t let you.”
    I smiled. “I know.”
    Hayes grinned—no, he beamed as he slid the ring onto my finger. It was a simple ring, a square diamond set on a platinum band. The diamond wasn’t huge, but it wasn’t small either. It was perfect. “I love it.”
    “I’m glad,” he said, holding me tight. “I seriously thought I was going to die for a second when you said no.”
    “Hayes, even if my answer had actually been no, we would’ve still been together, or at least in each other’s life. We have a daughter for God’s sake.”
    “I don’t want to just be in each other’s life.” He rested his forehead against mine and took a few deep breaths. “I know we have a daughter, but I don’t want Harley to be the reason we’re together. I want us together because we want to be.”
    “I want that, too. We have that.” I grinned and pushed all the doubt out of my mind, letting the moment, the proposal, seal into my veins. I’m engaged to Hayes!
    “Let’s just lay down and look at the stars,” Hayes suggested. I could tell he was still upset and I hated that I ruined the moment, but I was starting to feel ecstatic. The man I loved more than anything wanted to spend the rest of his life with plain ol’ trailer park me.
    The November night air was a bit chilly, and Hayes grabbed a blanket to lay over us. After he was completely settled, I lay my head on his chest and listened to his heart beat for a minute while gazing at the stars, and thinking about my life. “Hayes…”
    “Yeah?”
    “This is the best birthday of my life. Thank you.”
    “You’re welcome.” He placed a kiss on my head and let his fingers run through my hair. “But, really, the engagement is kind of a present for me. I’ve been wanting it since the day I found you at Connie’s house.”
    I smiled but didn’t say anything else, letting my heart and mind be content for a moment.
    “We should probably get back,” Hayes whispered after a long stretch of silence. “They are all waiting for us so they can see the ring.”
    “They all knew?” I asked, propping myself up on my elbow to see his face.
    “Uh huh,” he answered. “They’ve known for a couple weeks.”
    “I’m so sorry for thinking you were just doing this to make me happy. I just—”
    “Shh.” Then, his lips found mine for a toe curling kiss, causing a moan to push up from my chest. One hand rested on the back of my neck and pulled me in closer while the other kneaded my ass. My hands gripped his sexy brown hair, and I felt lost.
    “Hayes…”
    “I know.”
    “No,” I said, kissing him again, needing him. “I want you to make love to me.”
    “Fuck,” he growled, reaching for my jacket. “Are you sure you won’t be too cold?”
    “I think you can warm me up.”
    He yanked my coat off, followed by the rest of my clothes in a short minute, while I undressed him. Our lips collided again, and I felt like I couldn’t get close enough to him. His hands were all over my body as I pushed him back down and continued to kiss him.
    “I love you so much, Mac,” he whispered, and that was the last thing my mind was able to process until we were both crashing back down.
     
    “I lied,” I