Page 17 of The Mayor's Surrender

“You’re not ready to marry me, are you?”

“It’s not that. You haven’t asked me, and we’ve gone from zero to full throttle in seconds.”

“Maybe it feels that way because I haven’t been straightforward with my admiration for you, but I swear it’s always been there. From the moment you stepped into my life. I have always had you work late on meaningless tasks to keep men off your calendar, even when I thought you had every right to date.”

“I thought you were just being a jerk on some nights when it could have waited until the next morning.”

“My emotions couldn’t. Especially at the Harvest festival when Jaime Torres tried to buy you funnel cake.”

“It wasn’t that serious.”

“Only I buy you funnel cake, Taylor. I’m kind of crazy about you like that.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. Marry me. Make me the luckiest old man around here.”

“You’re not even old.” He’s almost ten years older than me. He turned thirty, and I’m twenty-one now. My birthday was just last month, and he bought me a beautiful, expensive messenger bag. It’s one I would never have bought myself because it was out of my budget. I use it every day for work.

“Yeah, but I’m too old for you.” I roll my eyes at him just as my phone rings. The same phone I dug out of his empty trash yesterday. “It better not be that piece of shit.”

“It’s my father,” I answered, voice just barely above a whisper. He hasn’t called me in a long time.

“Hello?” I say when I pick up.

“You disappoint me, Taylor. I thought you’d learn from your mother’s mistakes, but you’re no better than her.”

“What?”

“Screwing your boss. The fucker who forced me to leave town.” I’d heard rumors about it, but I never asked because I was glad that my father was leaving Sweet Temptation. Frankly, I didn’t want to look a gift horse in the mouth.

“Well, I could be like you and get drunk, nearly kill someone and then abandon the only family that cared while you piss away your money. For some damn reason, I thought you called because you cared about my safety. Do me a favor and lose my number.” I ended the call, unable to fight back the rush of tears that washed over me like the tidal waves that struck the beach last night.

Brooks wraps me up in his strong embrace. “I’m sorry, babe. I won’t let anyone come between us. That I can promise you.”

“Did you really kick him out of town?” I questioned, wanting to verify the rumors.

He has the decency to look ashamed. “Yes. Your father spoke of you and me just like he had that night, and then he attempted to attack me. Are you angry with me?”

“No. You’ve always been my hero. Make love to me, Brooks.” He caresses my cheek and then scoops me up into his sturdy frame. Brooks carries me to his bedroom, and we spend the night with our bodies gliding together, grinding as we lose all ability to speak.

Chapter Nine

Brooks

Over the next week, our relationship had been the talk of Sweet Temptation Bay, and all eyes were on us. Although they had always been on us. However, this time, the tongues were wagging.

“About damn time,” Mrs. Reynolds said with her ladies who were playing bridge at the local tea shop.

“What do you mean, ma’am?” I ask, wanting to get some more of the local gossip to hopefully ease some of Taylor’s concerns.

“Come on and take a seat.” I pull up a chair from the empty table next to them and sit. She pats my forearm and says, “You have been hovering over Taylor like a lovesick puppy.”

“Mr. Thomas over at the delicatessen won the bet. He’s gonna be gloating for a good dang bit.”

“Oh, Mary. You know that man will never let it go.”

“Well, I knew I shouldn’t have bet on it, but then again, I didn’t bet on that handsome seaman coming to shore. Yummy. I remember when my late husband wore a uniform. Bless that handsome man.” I grumbled, thinking about Fields winking at my woman.

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