Not Quite Enough (Not Quite series) (38 page)

He laughed. “Whatever the lady wants,” he promised. “Just get naked.”

She slid off the bed and pulled his pants with her until he was there in full naked mouthwatering glory. When she kicked the rest
of her clothes off, she reached for her bedside stand, found protection, and returned. She sheathed him slowly, running her hand up his length and back down. When his eyes glossed over and closed she did it again.

Trent reached for her hips and guided her close. With her spread over him, he rounded a hand in front and cupped her. Monica rode his hand for a moment until the rhythm carried her close to the breaking point.

When Trent lifted her up and onto him, he plunged and carried her weight. The angle brought depth and fired off explosions and heat. Monica wanted to think she had control over him, but he managed to take her over and over, guiding her hips and finding the perfect angle for her world to spiral and break free in a rush of pleasure.

He flipped her under him, so unexpected, and so damn hot, and pushed her into the soft bed.

“More,” he said in her ear as if a promise. “I want more from you.”

“I don’t know if I—” But he moved a little higher and—hell yeah—heat built again until she was moaning his name and her eyes went blind.

He pushed himself farther once, twice, until pleasure rippled over him with his release.

The world stopped spinning on its axis yet the two of them kept moving, hearts beating, heads spinning, until she heard Trent draw in a breath. “If… if you tell anyone I agreed to not do that with you, I’ll tell them you’re the liar. Fair warning.”

Her laughter filled the room. “Wanna do it again?”

The rumble of his chest against hers was quickly followed by him climbing off her and vaulting off the bed.

Stunned, she leaned up on her elbows and gaped. “Where are you going?”

“Coffee,” he said. “We’re going to need coffee to stay up
all
night. Make up for lost time.”

The man she loved glanced at the door, jumped back on the bed like a kid, and kissed her. “I love you,” he whispered. Then he made good on his threat and left to brew a pot of coffee.

Hours later they finally fell asleep, closed off from the world. The next day all Monica could think was the world might be embarking on a new day, but she was taking on a whole new life.

Epilogue

Two months later

“Do you love me?” Trent asked her as they stood in front of one of the company helicopters he’d had Glen fly in from the airport in Houston.

It was the week before Thanksgiving and the Morrisons had invited Trent and his brothers to join them for the holiday. Somewhere, someone heard Monica talk about Trent’s bucket list desire of doing the whole cattle run with his brothers. Funny how if you told a Texan you want to ride a horse and live on the range, they’d make it happen even if winter was fast approaching. Not that Monica worried about Trent having any issues with hypothermia. It was Texas, after all. The weather didn’t get that bad.

Trent, his brothers, Dean, Jack, even Gaylord were leaving in the morning for four days of camping, riding, and otherwise living off the land.

That was tomorrow. Today, Trent stood in front of a helicopter that represented one of her greatest fears, and if she was reading him right, she knew what he wanted them to do.

“You know I love you. I moved all the way across the country and now live in the snow a good four months of the year. Four months!” And she wouldn’t change it for anything. The suit against the hospital ended in her favor to the tune of many zeros. She enrolled
in an NP program close to the Fairchild home office and the two of them picked out a ranch-style home that sat on top of a hill facing east. They watched the sunrise together almost every day.

Ginger now had Gilligan, their new dog, to play with during the day when the two of them were gone. Poor Gilligan tried to be the man, but Ginger ran over him every chance she could.

Trent grasped her waist and teased her with a kiss. “Come with me.”

Although the thought of climbing in the chopper made her heart rate race, she knew she trusted Trent.

She twisted out of his arms and swung open the door of the helicopter before she lost her nerve. “Oh, OK, fine. Let’s go.”

Trent didn’t give her time to change her mind. He sat behind the controls in seconds and soon the now familiar headphones covered her ears, and the propeller started to spin.

“You do know that most women don’t have to prove their love by riding in one of these things?”

“Most women don’t sleep with the pilot.”

“Do we sleep?” she teased.

He winked at her before lowering the sunglasses on his nose.

The day was clear, the Texan sun was high above, giving the day a feel of spring.

Instead of focusing on the ground, or the sky, Monica watched the joy wash over Trent as he lifted the bird off the skids and into the sky. Once in the air, he pivoted the helicopter toward the direction he wanted to go.

“You really love it,” she said.

He glanced over at her, removed a hand from the controls, and squeezed her knee.

As much as Monica liked the gesture, she felt much better with both his hands on the “wheel.” She returned his hand and gave it a good pat. “You fly, I’ll try to keep my lunch in.”

Only when she removed her eyes from him, she didn’t feel the familiar twist in her gut as she had in the past. The ground was way the hell down there, but something about it had changed.

They moved over a hill and a herd of cattle started to run away from the noise. “Look,” she said pointing to the ground.

Trent’s voice sounded high-pitched through the intercom system muffling their ears.

“Up here, you can see them but not smell them.”

“Might wanna get used to it, cowboy.” They laughed, knowing full well that Trent wasn’t a hat-wearing cowboy. Though Monica did have a hat ready to give him when he left in the morning.

They circled the cattle again, then flew farther from Gaylord’s property and closer to Jack and Jessie’s ranch, which wasn’t far away. From their height, it looked much smaller than it was in person. “That’s Jack and Jessie’s place,” she said when it appeared Trent would fly past it.

“It is?”

She couldn’t imagine that Trent didn’t recognize it, even from the air. “Yeah, the red barn and corral beside the hill.”

“Oh, yeah.”

He twisted the helicopter around and flew over. Surprisingly, her stomach didn’t wobble with the helicopter movement. She removed her cell phone from her pocket to get a picture for Jessie.

Something on the hill beside the barn grabbed her attention. “What’s that?”

“Not sure,” Trent said as he moved closer. Long strips of yellow tarp flapped in the wind. It wasn’t natural, and it didn’t look like some kind of giant tent or anything. As they moved closer it appeared as if there were words written on the tarp.

“Something for Danny?”

Monica was peering at the ground, concentrating so hard on reading the words she’d all but forgotten she was staring at the ground from a hundred or more feet.

“Let’s get closer,” Trent said.

She squinted. Trent hovered over the tarp while she read aloud.

“Will you…” her jaw dropped. Her attention snapped to her pilot. “… marry me?” she whispered the last words.

Trent was smiling, waiting. “I love you, Monica. I want you forever.”

Even with headgear and a microphone covering his mouth, she couldn’t help but lean forward and find his lips. “You’re crazy,” she yelled, as she knocked the ear protection off of him.

“Is that a yes?”

She couldn’t think of a better way for him to ask. “Yes, Barefoot. I’ll marry you.”

He kissed her and still managed to keep the helicopter in the air.

He placed her hands on the controls. “Hold this.”

Some of the joy of the moment shifted to terror. “Trent! I can’t fly this thing.”

He reached into his pocket and removed a box and opened it. Inside, was a spectacular round diamond that rivaled her sister’s in a cluster of similar stones set in platinum. Monica let go of the controls and squealed.

Trent grabbed the controls and nearly dropped the ring.

“Ah!” Only instead of worry, excitement filled her. With one hand, Trent managed to get the ring on her finger, kiss her, and promise forever.

Feeling like a giddy teenage girl after her first kiss, the smile on her face actually hurt. She held her hand out and admired the ring he bought with her in mind. “You have class, Barefoot. Serious class.”

He was laughing.

Through her headset she heard Jason’s voice through the microphone. “Trent, your ground crew is dying here. Do we have a Yankee Echo Sierra or November Oscar?”

Living with a pilot, Monica had managed to look up some of their lingo and knew what Jason was asking.

They were back over Gaylord’s property and a crowd had gathered outside to watch them.

“Should you tell them or I?” Monica asked.

The cocky smile on his face never left. “I got it.” Trent pressed a button, and from the helicopter streamers fell in long sheets.

“What’s that?”

“Giant confetti with the word
yes
printed on it.”

Out the window, she noticed the pieces of paper hit the ground and the crowd pick them up. Jessie, with her hugely pregnant belly, and Katie hugged. The kids were running in circles with the excitement. Jason and Glen lifted their thumbs in the air.

Monica moved as close as she could to her future husband and kissed his cheek. “What would you have done if I said no?” Not that he could have had any doubt of her answer. Once she let herself believe in her love for him, there was no looking back.

“We are in a helicopter. I thought I’d keep you up here until you said yes.”

She gave him a playful punch to his arm. “You don’t scare me, Trent Fairchild.”

He leaned close and kissed her.

Acknowledgments

In my years as an ER nurse I’ve had the privilege to work beside, and with, some of the best doctors and nurses in the world. I wouldn’t take back my years of nursing for anything… the things I’ve learned, the things I’ve seen, are unsurpassed and not something many would believe.

I’ve often said that I can’t make up the shit I’ve seen in real life and make it believable in the pages of fiction.

Heroes come in many categories, but those who willingly walk into a war zone without the glory of a paycheck, or even assurance of their own safety… those are true heroes.

This book is dedicated to those who give of themselves daily for others.

Nurse Kimberly, Nurse Anna, Nurse Valerie, Nurse Ray, Nurse Tanya, Nurse Tatiana, Nurse Kathy, Dr. Schmit, Dr. Hook, Dr. Henry, Dr. Noll, Dr. Sam, Dr. Shultz, Dr. Ziemba…

I cannot list enough names.

Thank you!

About the Author

P
HOTOGRAPHY BY
L
INDSEY
M
EYER, 2012.

New York Times
best-selling author Catherine Bybee was raised in Washington State, but after graduating high school, she moved to Southern California in hopes of becoming a movie star. After growing bored with waiting tables, she returned to school and became a registered nurse, spending most of her career in urban emergency rooms. She now writes full-time and has penned the novels
Wife by Wednesday, Married by Monday
, and
Fiancé by Friday
in her Weekday Brides series and
Not Quite Dating
and
Not Quite Mine
in her Not Quite series. Bybee lives with her husband and two teenage sons in Southern California.