Joy's Valentine Read Online Free Page A

even after ten at night.
    “This way,” he said setting her down and taking her hand. He led her to the blanket and waited until she’d sat down to do the same. He poured their champagne and the two of them watched the waves lull onto the shore.
    “The sky here is so beautiful,” Joy mused after a long, companionable silence.
    “I know,” said Eli, “there are no neon lights to compete with the stars. It’s like you can see every star in the sky.”
    “Twice,” Joy said, “They’re reflected in the water.”
    Eli was suddenly struck by the fact that while he’d fully intended on taking his girl away on a romantic weekend, he hadn’t really expected it to go this well. Somewhere in the back of his mind, his logic had been telling him that this relationship was just too good. There had to be a flaw somewhere.
    They’d both been caught up in the romance they’d shared over Christmas, so it wasn’t surprising that they’d gotten along so well in Europe. However, when he agreed they should stay together a while longer, he assumed they would soon tire of each other and with the romance gone, the everyday mundane would take the polish off their relationship. It didn’t happen. Whether they were at a fancy dinner out or in sweats on the couch, the two of them got along wonderfully.
    That’s why he’d jumped at the opportunity to take a quick trip to Florida.
    It had actually been a sort of test. He wanted to see if Joy would react as his past girlfriends had. After being flown to the resort town and taken to an upscale shopping center, the others had practically led him around by his credit cards. Joy, however, had simply wanted to replace the panties he couldn’t seem to stop tearing off her. Then, she wanted to leave. She didn’t visit Anne Klein or Saks or Vivian Lee. She’d only stopped in a small boutique store on the way back to the car in order to buy some pants that weren’t as heavy as the jeans she’d brought with her. Eli had slipped the sales girl his credit card while Joy wasn’t looking to prevent her from paying for anything herself.
    She’d even given him an exasperated look when the girl refused her card and informed her everything had already been paid for.
    “Let me have that,” he whispered taking her champagne and placing the flute in the ice bucket.
    She seemed not to notice, just continued staring up at the sky.
    “Joy?”
    She startled out of her stargazing by Eli’s deep voice. “Huh?”
    “I have something for you.”
    “You shouldn’t have!” Joy said automatically, “you’ve already spent so much money on me. It’s…”
    “Completely worth it,” Eli said cutting her off. He slid the long slender box into her hand and she gasped.
    “Jewelry?” she asked staring at the blue box.
    “I intentionally set the bar high,” he teased.
    “I doubt anyone could top this Valentine’s Day,” muttered Joy.
    He tucked a finger under her chin and lifted her gaze to his own. “No one will ever get a chance to try,” he vowed.
    Joy’s eyes widened and she pulled back. “You can’t mean…”
    “Marriage is exactly what I mean.”
    She shook her head wildly. “It’s way too soon to talk about something like that,” Joy said dropping her gaze again.
    “I know,” said Eli deftly undoing the bow around her gift as it sat in her hands. “I haven’t met your family yet. I just want you to know my intentions and that you can be sure I am in love with you.”
    “I’m in love with you, too!” Joy exclaimed then clapped a hand over her mouth as if she hadn’t meant to say it.
    Eli grinned. “Are you sure you want to say that before you see your present?”
    Joy’s laugh turned into a gasp when Eli pulled the top off the box. “Oh…my.”
    He pulled the tennis bracelet from its nest and secured it around her wrist. Joy twisted her hand, watching the way the emeralds and diamonds glinted in the moonlight. “It’s beautiful,” she confessed as tears formed.
    “No,