Page 100 of Homecoming

“Oh… yes ma’am, you got it,” he smiles.

Thehotelsuitehasfallen into darkness and Darius lays propped against the pillows, quietly stroking the length of Kat’s hair. He sniffs and closes his eyes as the trace of her perfume lingers in the air, the fresh smell of vanilla and forest dew mixed with awarm,sweet lust. It’s faint, but it's a smell he never wants to forget.

Next to him, Kat lays with one arm rested over his bare chest as she sleeps. Darius can feel the thudding beat of her heart against his skin.“Mm…” she softly moans as she stirs. Stretching her arms, she sighs as her eyes flit a gaze at him. “Are you okay?”

“Mm-hm, I’m fine. Did you manage to get any sleep?” His voice remains hushed and calm as he leans forward and brushes a gentle kiss on her mouth. Her lips tease his senses and as his tongue hungrily tastes her again, he feels like he could eat her alive.

“Some.” Kat yawns as she reaches across to the dresser next to the bed and switches the light on. Noticing the small black jewelry box next to the lamp, a huge smile fills her lips and as she opens it up, Kat swipes her finger gently over the large and sparkling diamond inside.Then,dropping back against the bed next to Darius, she examines it in more detail.

“What are you doing?” Darius watches the half-smile on her lips, her eyes alight with mischief and unspoken promise.

“Admiring my present. So tell me again how expensive it was?”

“I already told you—very.” He hitches his brow and watches as she takes the ring from the box and holds it to the light.

Sitting up, Kat turns to face him. “Put it on me.”

“What?” he questions with some hesitation. “You want me to put it on you? But Kat we…”

“We’re alone. We can pretend. Go on, ask me… Ask me to marry you, properly.”

“Are you feeling alright? How much of that champagne did you drink?” He laughs, stroking her blonde curls from her face. Her cheeks are flushed with a pink glow and the feel of her warm skin is inviting. “You’re serious? You want me to ask you to marry me?”

“Uh-huh. Go ahead ask me. Please. I want to know what it feels like.”

“Alright, if that’s what you want.”

He sits straight and still naked, kneels next to her, and taking a firm hold of her hand, he straightens her fingers as he slips the ring over the end of her third finger and twists it in place. “Katrina Morgan… will you do me the honor of being my wife?”

“Yes!” she snaps back quickly and smiles, kissing his lips. “Yes, I’ll be your wife. Now put it on me.”

“Alright,” he laughs as he pushes the ring all the way down and turns the large diamond around until it nestles perfectly in the middle of her finger.

The diamond is flawless, the white gold band set to perfection around the heavy stone and holding up her hand, Kat gasps in delight as the large ring sparkles like rain in the sunshine and sinking into the pillows behind her, she admires it.

“Mrs. Jackson. Mrs.… Katrina Jackson… Kat Jackson,” she repeats over and over.

“What the hell are you doing?” Darius’ brow crinkles as he studies her.

“I just wondered what it would sound like.” She looks up with a huge grin filling her face. Eyes wide, looking at the ring glistening in the light. Kat drops the small black box to the bed, leans forward, and locks her arms around Darius’ neck. Kissing him passionately, she strokes her hand against the deep, maroon mark from the bite of her teeth on his skin. “It hasn’t healed,” she crumbles her brow with concern. “The bite, it didn’t heal.”

“Well, it was pretty deep—certainly more than just a flesh wound by the feel of it.”

“I didn’t realize I’d bitten you that hard. Sorry. Does it hurt?”

“No, not hurt. It aches and feels a little hot to the touch. You know, actually it feels kinda weird—something like the ache in my shoulder when I got shot by Travis’s bullet.”

“But it will heal, right?”

“I’m sure it will, eventually. Maybe I should get it tattooed on before it fades.” He smiles, stroking her cheek and staring longingly into her eyes. “Anyway, I don’t care if it stays.”

“Well, my medical advice is don’t get it tattooed yet. You never know it might get infected.” She smiles as her hand caresses gently against the toned firmness of his chest, feeling the curves before Darius again suffocates her with his mouth.

His tongue circles hers and dragging her on top of him, Kat now sits across his lap and stares, watching as he teases a gently touch of her breasts. “What was she like? Isabella, tell me what was she like?”

“Kat, don’t do this again—not now.”

“Why not? We’re alone and we have plenty of time to talk. I want to know what she was like. Was she pretty?”

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