Inner Diva (22 page)

He held up his hand. “It doesn’t matter.” He
looked over his shoulder. People jostled him, pushing behind and
around him.

“Yes, it does.” Her voice was firm. She had
to tell him. The noise level in the room rang so loud she had to
practically shout it. “I was wrong. I should have seen it for what
it was. I shouldn’t have been afraid just because you’re outside my
comfort zone.”

He reached out and took her hand.

“You protected us and I should have thanked
you. And yet, I let my fears blind me.”

He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it
tenderly.

Her heart melted, her knees were weak, but
she continued. “Can we forget what I wrote in my letter?”

He rubbed her hand against his cheek.
“Forgotten.”

“Really?”

He nodded. “You should be celebrating. Your
play was a hit and you were fantastic. You’re living your dream,
carina
.”

“I couldn’t have done it without you.”

He shook his head. “No, this was all you. I
had nothing to do with it. I’m just glad I was here to share it
with you.”

“No, no, you don’t understand.”

Carlos bumped into her then, jostled by the
mounds of people milling around them. She put her free arm around
him and he reached for Luisa and pulled her closer, too.

“Did you notice my performance in the second
half was much more heartfelt? That I wasn’t just going through the
motions?”

He shrugged and leaned in to kiss her.

But she had to let him know. “It was because
of you. You helped me tap into my true emotions and because of
that, I was able to really act. Get into the character of Victoria,
and not just recite lines.”

Someone thrust their hand into their
threesome for a shake, but Monica ignored it. She had to get this
message across, but with the chaos of the crowd around her, her
moment was drifting away.

“I was only able to live my dream because of
you, Carlos. I choose the full circle – all of it. The good and the
bad, I’ll take it all as long as I’m with you.”

He smiled. He was her hero – not just because
he had fearlessly protected her last night, not just because he
forgave her for her mistake, not just because he helped her achieve
her dream, something she couldn’t have done without him.

Because of all those things, and because of
how he made her feel when she was with him.

“How about we get out of here?”

He looked around. “Don’t you want to shake
everyone’s hands?”

She laughed. “I’ve shaken enough hands. And
there will be more tomorrow night. Right now, I want to be alone
with you.”

His eyebrows darted up and he gave her one of
his smoldering smiles that made her feel hot all over. “Let’s
go.”

During the ride to Carlos and Luisa’s house,
Luisa chattered about the play. Monica sat with a permanent smile,
scooted sideways in her seat so she could watch the man she loved
with all her heart.

“Carlos, can we come again tomorrow
night?”

Carlos nodded. “Sure.”

“Can we bring Mama?”

He nodded again. “Next time she has a night
off work, we’ll take her.”

When they arrived at the little house, Luisa
begged for Monica to come in, but Carlos insisted they had
somewhere else to go. He walked Luisa to the front door and
deposited her inside. The little girl waved frantically to Monica
from the doorway. Monica waved from the car, smiling.

Carlos returned to the car. He sank into his
seat and pulled her close. He kissed her slowly and thoroughly, and
Monica’s heart rate raced. “I have some news.”

“What?” she asked, her head practically
spinning.

“The police called me and asked me to testify
against those two guys. Turns out, they were able to tie them both
to a murder last summer. They have them in custody now because of
our fight last night, and they’re taking their time to build a
steel-tight case.”

“So that means…?”

“They’re off the streets for good. In jail,
where they belong.”

Just as she was where she belonged, in his
arms. “Which means they’ll never come after you again.”

“Looks like.”

She grinned at him. “You’re safe. We’re
safe.”

Instead of an answer, he leaned in again and
kissed her. The joy at his news made her heart go into
over-drive.

“Your place?”

His face was so close to hers, she pulled
back just a little to take in the whole handsome picture – his
cocoa-dark eyes, his beautiful skin and chiseled chin.
“Absolutely.”

He shifted the car in gear and pulled away
from the curb. Then, he braked and looked at her face, soaking it
in. “I love you, you know.”

A smile burst out. “
Te amo
,
Carlos.”

The car engine’s roar fed their urgency to
get to her place and demonstrate just how much.

###

Did you like Monica and Carlos’ love story?
Then you’d probably like Laurie Larsen’s other books. Did you know
Laurie is a multi-published, award-winning author? She’s got a lot
of other stories to offer you. Check them out today!

Check out her website
www.authorlaurielarsen.com
for information on her other books, news updates and contests!

Laurie Larsen lives with her husband and two
sons amidst the scenic cornfields of central Illinois. Her sons
being the athletic creatures they are, she can bet that she’s
dragged her lawn chair to every dusty baseball diamond within an
hour’s radius, shivered through more football games than she can
count, and cheered many a runner across the finish line across the
state. Along the way, she’s taste-tested every concession stand’s
offering of popcorn, hot dogs and an unusual concoction called
“Walking Taco.”

As if life in Illinois isn’t exciting enough,
Laurie spends her evenings in front of the computer, writing novels
about love, families and relationships – everyday situations, with
just a twist of worst-case scenario. Laurie’s current release,
Inner Diva, is her sixth published book. Her fourth book, Preacher
Man, gave her the esteemed title of Award Winning author when it
won the 2010 EPIC Award for inspirational romance. For more
information on her other books, as well as a journal, photo album
and contest offerings, visit Laurie online at
www.authorlaurielarsen.com
.

And now, an excerpt from Laurie’s newest
book, Keeper by Surprise:

The drone of a lawn mower floated on the hot
summer evening. Lisa glanced towards the house and her breath
caught in her throat. Oh. My. God.

The most gorgeous man in the world was over
there, mowing the lawn.

Lisa paused in reaching for the door handle
and slipped lower in her seat so she could spy on the hunk for a
moment without being noticed. Was this the right house? She grabbed
the paper and double-checked the address. Yes! It was.

Lisa took a deep breath to get her heart
rate under control. Boy, it was beating up a storm! Like she had
never seen a gorgeous guy before. Well, it had been a while.

His hair, a light chestnut brown, sported
hints of blond highlights. But not intentional highlights. No way
was this the type of male to sit in a salon seat, paying big bucks
to get highlights chemically applied. He was clean-shaven and
glistening from the heat of the evening. He wore only a pair of
shorts, his chest bare as he pushed the mower back and forth across
the lawn.

And wow, what a magnificent chest. Hair-free
and muscular, he practically shone with physical fitness. Lisa
squinted for a better view. This was a guy familiar with the inside
of a gym. What kind of athlete was he? Not a body builder. He
didn’t sport those obnoxious over-done muscles. His sport subtly
sculpted his body. A swimmer, maybe? A gymnast? Who knew, but the
guy had a perfect build. Not too scrawny, but without an ounce of
fat on him; that was clear.

And his face. Straight out of GQ magazine,
he had classic good looks. She imagined running her fingers along
his chiseled jawline, then feathering across those luscious lips.
They looked a tad bit full for a male –
all the better to kiss
you with, my dear!

She was too far away to see his eyes. She
wondered with glee what color they were. It wouldn’t really matter.
Whether they were crystal blue or smoldering brown, they would do
nothing but enhance that strong, handsome face.

Feeling hot suddenly.
God, it’s been way too
long.
Seeing a good-looking guy was making her hot.
Pathetic.

Lisa straightened in her seat. She’d had her
fun, now it was time to work. She needed to find this young rebel
who thought with his fists instead of his brain and get him
straightened out. Maybe she could flirt with the lawn crew guy
afterwards.

As she prepared to exit, the lawn-mowing
Adonis stopped his progress. Oh God, he was looking in her
direction. He had noticed her car and it distracted him. Oh well,
he had distracted her from her work. Guess she was repaying the
favor. Lisa got out of the car and walked casually across the
street, hoping beyond hope her knees wouldn’t weaken in front of
this stud and make her do something stupid like trip and fall.

Her game plan was to walk right on by him
without even a glance, step up to the door and ring the bell. If
this delinquent Keith kid was home she would complete her
professional visit, and on the way out, if the Greek god was still
there, she’d strike up a casual conversation, as if she had just
noticed him for the first time. She certainly couldn’t let him know
she’d spent the last five minutes drooling over him from afar. She
sauntered right on past him, not even deigning a glance his way,
and would’ve made it to the front porch, too, if he hadn’t cut the
engine on the lawn mower and spoken to her.

“Hi, is there something I could do for
you?”

Boy, was that a loaded question.
To
Lisa’s dismay, the mere sound of his voice caused a double-shot of
female hormones to take a dive into her groin. It was deep and
gravely, but polite. A touch innocent. She’d love to let his voice
lap over her like ocean waves for hours at a time. She cleared her
throat and attempted, probably failing miserably, a cool
nonchalance. “Oh, don’t let me interrupt you. I’m here on
business.” She commenced her determined trek to the front door.

He took a few steps toward her, then
stopped. “I’m sorry? Who is it exactly that you’re looking
for?”

She looked at him over her shoulder. He was
gazing intently at her, his head cocked slightly to one side. “Uh,”
she started, forgetting her name for a moment under the intense
stare of those gorgeous … green! … eyes. Who would’ve figured him
for green eyes?

He tore his gaze away from her and started
looking around. He backed up a few steps to a piece of white fabric
lying nearby in the lawn. He picked it up and Lisa saw it was a
shirt. He slipped it on effortlessly, while she mourned the sudden
and quite unexpected loss of her view of that spectacular
chest.

He approached her then and continued his
curious inspection of her. Lisa cleared her throat. God, she had to
pull it together here. She was working, and she needed to continue
to function, even in the presence of this hunk. “I’m here to see
Keith. Keith Hanson.”

To her surprise, he smiled, his face
lighting for a moment, like a lamp would brighten a dark room. “I’m
Keith Hanson.”

Available in e-book and paperback in all
online bookstores, starting fall of 2012!