Page 79 of Power and Possession

“I love you,” I blurted out, the tears moistening my eyes as the words finally came forth.

Steele’s eyes widened. I thought that he was naturally intense, but it was nothing like the way he looked at me now.

He gulped, opened his mouth, and then shut it again, as if his voice would scare away the words I left hanging in the air.

Instead, he wrapped his arms around my entire body and then reversed our positions, resting my naked body on top of his as he squeezed me possessively.

“I’ve known it all along, my love. But thanks for saying it. Now hold on to me tightly, because I intend to claim every single part of your body and make it mine.”

If it hadn’t been for Cooper’s health, we wouldn’t have left the bedroom. But after another two rounds, we grudgingly pulledourselves away from the bed. Steele wanted to check on him again, and then he promised me a huge American breakfast, which I wasn’t going to let him forget.

“Should we shower together?” Steele asked, winking as I watched him move towards the bathroom.

“It saves time,” I answered, following him. I loved watching him move, his strong muscles supporting his large frame. He started the shower, getting the temperature just right, and then fixed his eyes upon me.

“I’ll never forget the first time I saw you naked.”

My mind flashed back, remembering how I’d let him stare at my naked body when I was showering. So much had changed since then.

“I let you watch. I was planning on seducing you to earn my freedom.” I stepped into the shower, the warm water easing the soreness from my body. Steele had made good on his word to claim every inch of me, and I could feel the result in my muscles from their constant tightening.

Steele moved into the shower with me, his eyes captivated by the way the water dripped down my body. “And now?”

“I’ll never be free of you,” I whispered against the dripping water, turning to cup his cheek.

“Good girl,” he said, and then I watched with wide eyes as he got down on one knee, the water running down his face and dripping in his hair. “I told you if I ever proposed, I was going to do it naked. Ashlynn, will you marry me?”

I looked into his eyes, and a peace came over me as the warm water enveloped both of us. He bit his bottom lip nervously, and my heart melted.

“Yes.”

Epilogue

Ashlynn

The second I gasped aloud, Steele ran into the bathroom. Hiseyes went wide as soon as he saw the pregnancy test in my hands.

“Are you serious?” he asked, coming up behind me to peak over my shoulder. My nerves were all over the place, and I tossed the pregnancy test on the counter and threw up in the toilet.

“That answers that,” he said, looking from the counter to where I collapsed on the bathroom floor. “You’re carrying my baby. We’re getting married tomorrow.”

If I hadn’t been feeling so crappy I would have slugged him. “I might not have a family, but I want a wedding.” My father was locked away in federal prison for a variety of charges, some true, some not. He wouldn’t be getting out anytime soon.

“I’m your family. And now we’re going to have a baby. That’s all we need.”

I looked up at him, his height even greater now that I was on the floor. “I want to have a wedding. I want a white dress. Even if we don’t have any guests, I want it to be something special. Even if it’s just us.”

His eyes quickly shifted from wide-eyed excitement to tender softness. Before I could protest, he swept me up in his strong arms and carried me back to our bed. The sheets were now pink satin, and my mother’s afghan was draped over a chair. Steele didn’t care what I did with the room, as long as I slept in it every night. He placed me on the bed gently, and then started to remove my shoes.

“What are you doing?”

He went to the closet, ignoring my question. He came back quickly with a nightgown. “I’m putting you to bed.”

“It’s only eight o’clock!”

“I don’t care. My babies are going to get some rest.” He tried to hand me the nightgown, but I refused.

“This is not how the next nine months are going to go, Daniel.” As usual, my use of his first name weakened his resolve.

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