Page 71 of I Want Crazy (Loco, Texas 3)

“You are being ridiculous,” Jessie said, laughing. ?

??I’ve seen your house.”

“Shut up and be patient,” Red said behind her. “We’re almost there.”

Red had picked her up from the bar and blindfolded her. His new house had been completed a few weeks ago, but he still hadn’t bought any furniture. So most nights he’d stayed in the trailer or at her apartment. She’d rented the one-room studio from Jake’s old landlady because she hadn’t found anything she liked enough to buy.

She nearly tripped and cried out as Red caught her. “Whoa, watch it.”

“Seriously, I am done with this,” she snapped. “I am tired and cranky, and I just want to—” He whipped off the blindfold, and her eyes adjusted to what was the master bedroom of his new three-bedroom house, only the room she’d been in had been empty. This one had a queen-size bed, two nightstands, and a large dresser. Across all the surfaces were candles.

“Oh…”

“Yeah, oh. You really know how to almost ruin a romantic surprise,” Red said, coming around in front of her. “Check out the dresser. I even saved you a drawer.”

She laughed as she crossed the room and asked, “Which one?”

“The top right.”

“Well, thanks, I think,” she teased as she opened the drawer. “It will be nice to not have to keep a bag in my car…car…”

In the drawer was a black velvet ring box. She stared down at it, her hands shaking as she picked it up.

“Is this—” She opened the box, but it was empty. He laughed behind her, and she whirled around, her temper flaring. “Is this a joke?”

“No, California, it’s no joke,” he said as he pulled something small from his pocket and came to stand before her. He knelt down and held up the ring. “I just wanted to see the look on your face when you opened the box.”

If she wasn’t fighting tears of joy as she stared down at Red holding a diamond ring, she would have said something snarky. “It’s…not funny.”

“No, you’re right. What I’m asking is very serious,” he said, taking a deep breath. “Jessie Jane you already know you have my heart. You already know that I think you’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.

“But you don’t know that sometimes I wake up and watch you sleep, because I can’t believe you’re real. When I’m having a shitty day, I think about your smile and immediately feel at peace. And that I think about a future with you a thousand times a day, to the point that I can’t stand to waste another minute without you.”

“You have me all the time,” she said.

“No, I want you here, in our house, sharing my life. I used to think I wanted simple. I wanted easy. But after falling in love with you, I realize that you’re what I was looking for all along.” He took her hand and slid the ring over her knuckle.

She couldn’t speak, so she just kept nodding until he stood up and kissed her, squeezing her tight.

When he finally broke the kiss and leaned his forehead against hers, she whispered, “So I guess you like all my craziness and bad temper, huh?”

“Well, I’d appreciate it if you didn’t throw any more dishes at my head,” he teased, earning a slap on his arm, “but if I had to choose, I’d want your crazy every time.”

She kissed him again, backing him toward the bed, and when she had him just where she wanted him, she pushed him down on their new mattress

“If you want crazy,” she said crawling onto the bed until she straddled him, “I’ll give you crazy.”

As her hands found the buckle of his belt, he grinned. “I want crazy.”

“Here I come.”

Discover More by Codi Gary

Rock Canyon, Idaho Series

The Trouble With Sexxy

Things Good Girls Don't Do

---