Three Marie Ferrarella Romances Box Set One (52 page)

“Here!” she cried, shoving the letter into O’Toole’s hand. “We’re still in business! Sam, we got a one-
day reprieve!” she exclaimed joyfully. “Fly, you won
derful bolt of cloth and glue, fly!” she instructed the plane, patting it fondly.

“I think it needs the pilot to do that,” Blaise said, taking Pat’s arm and pulling her back out of the way.

Pat laughed and cried as she watched the final test go off without a single hitch. The craft was approved and it was a toss-up as to who cheered the loudest, the crew, Blakely, or Pat. Only Blaise seemed to maintain his composure.

“Well, you got your wish,” he said almost calmly, smiling at Pat’s exuberance.

He was going to tell her good-bye right here and now, she thought suddenly, seeing his quiet mood. Was this how it was to end? On the field of victory? Somehow, the euphoria of that victory faded quickly. But she was damned if he was going to see her break down and cry.

“Yes, I got my wish,” she echoed. “At least part of it,” she could not help but add.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Blaise asked, leaning over toward her ear to make himself heard over the din of the engine and the shouting crew members who were still congratulating one another.

But Pat merely shook her head, refusing to elaborate.

“Are you going to play coy now, after all we’ve been through together?” he asked.

Still she could not bring herself to ask him to stay. It wasn’t right and it wasn’t the way she wanted him to remember her.

“C’mere,” he said, taking her elbow and pulling her away from the others.

“Oh, Mrs. Hamilton, it’s going to be absolutely wonderful!” Blakely enthused, grabbing her hand and shaking it heartily. Somehow, she managed to smile at him and answer back while retrieving her fingers. Nothing was going to be wonderful ever again.

Blaise led her back to the car, safely out of everyone’s way. Champagne was being uncorked right in the middle of the field and even the Eagle got a dose of it.

“Did you ever wonder why I didn’t get married?” Blaise asked quietly.

She did not understand why he was asking her this. He was probably going to follow it up by saying that he could not take long attachments. She looked down at the ground, willing herself not to cry or let him see the tears that were welling up inside. He raised her head to get her eyes level with his.

“Well?” he asked, still waiting.

She shrugged. “Why tie yourself down to one woman when the world is your playground?” she said bitterly.

“A grown man doesn’t want a playground,” he said, his voice serious. “But neither does he want to settle for second best.”

She looked up into his eyes. Something in his voice compelled her to take serious heed of his words. This wasn’t just a wonderful parting speech he was offering her—was it?

“You still don’t understand, do you?” he asked, and she shook her head, her honey-brown hair hitting both cheeks. “As unsophisticated as it sounds, I fell in love with you the first time I saw you, looking so young and beautiful on Roger’s arm. I hated him at that moment, I hated him for having seen you before I did. Yet, he was my cousin and I did truly care for him, so I did the only thing I could. I got out of the picture entirely. That was why I couldn’t bear to stay here. Seeing you and not having you was torture.”

“Well, you certainly didn’t pine away in a monastery,” she said with a small smile twisting at her lips.

“No, being a monk was not in my nature. But neither did I ever find a substitute for you—until now.”

“Now?” Was there some young, nubile girl waiting in the wings who reminded him of her twenty years ago? she wondered, the tears threatening to fall. Be strong, her heart urged, be strong!

“Who is she?” Pat asked, her throat dry.

“You.”

“What?”

“I was in love with the bloom on the rose, the hint of the woman to be. Now I’ve found that woman, and the promise did not even begin to reveal what you really are now. I can’t let you go again. I might not be able to gallop to your rescue in another twenty years.” He took her into his arms, holding her tightly, oblivious to the several pairs of eyes that turned to look their way. “This is not the most romantic place in the world, and if you prefer, I’ll fly you to the base of the Eiffel Tower, although this might be the site of a semi-historic event in its own time.”

“Are you saying what I think you’re saying?” Pat asked incredulously, her heart beating madly.

“I know five languages. I can ask you in each one, as long as you give me the right answer,” he said, his eyes smiling warmly at her.

“English will be fine,” she said, terribly hungry to hear the words she had dreamed about.

“Will you marry me?” he asked against her cheek. “Think how practical it’ll be. You won’t even have to change your stationery.”

She threw her arms around his neck. “I’d marry you if your name were Rumpelstiltskin!” she cried, the tears falling freely now.

“It would never fit on the business cards,” he said just before he kissed her, once more bringing back the world of passion and the promise of every day being a wondrous bonus, a December 32nd.

THE END

Marie Ferrarella

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The Women's Contemporary Originals from Marie Ferrarella--Read them all!

SAPPHIRE AND SHADOW

"A look at the grit beneath the glitz and one woman's triumph over both"--Nora Roberts

SAPPHIRE AND SHADOW is a vivid and compelling story of heart break and betrayal, of facing the death of dreams you've built your life on, of picking up the pieces and learning to live again. Johanna Whitney somehow draws from deep inside to find the strength to triumph in the end.
 

CHOICES

Shanna Brady has spent her whole life living in the shadow of her family, from her mother the socialite to her father the senator to her husband the aspiring politician. When she finds her husband in bed with his secretary, she vows to stand on her own. But a brilliant speech writer desperately wants to stand beside her. .

FLASH AND FIRE

She's smart, she's tough, she's beautiful.  But can she type?

Never mind.  Amanda knows what she's doing and she doesn't need the incredibly annoying Pierce Alexander, who thinks he's the world's gift to women, trying out his latest seduction techniques at every turn. But there he is, getting under her skin, being adorable with her baby, befriending her nanny, and ambushing her at the supermarket. She gives in--just a little--only to find him taking over her job when her main antagonist at the television station where she's an anchor sets her up for dismissal. Can she fight them all on her own?

Just watch her! 

Marie's Women’s Contemporary Originals

USA Today and Publisher's Weekly bestselling author Marie Ferrarella is releasing her three hard-to-find women's contemporary novels written in the tradition of Danielle Steel, Nora Roberts and Debbie Macomber.  Finally available again, these heart-tugging stories explore the tangled emotional lives of three women.
Buy them now
.

Marie’s Originals are reprints of romances published earlier by Bantam’s Loveswept line or Berkley/Jove made available again in e-book form. There are six romances currently being published in this format only.

Irresistible Forces

No Way to Treat A Lover

December 32….And Always

Smoldering Embers

Scenes From The Heart

Claimed by Rapture

We hope you will enjoy them all!

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https://marieferrarella.wordpress.com/

You’ll enjoy Book 2 of Marie’s Originals:

NO WAY TO TREAT A LOVER

Only a year before, they'd shared a wildly passionate affair that seemed to be the love a lifetime -- until the day when reckless and lovely Charley Tremayne vanished from Reese McDaniel's arms. Leaving with no explanation, no promise to return, Charley ran -- chasing a perilous dream in a world of intrigue -- a world with no room for her love for Reese.
 

But suddenly they were thrown together by work, on a project that neither could leave... and they discovered that the fury of their need for each other had only deepened with time.
 

How could Charley explain to Reese, the one man whose lips could possess her soul, that she'd chosen to make danger her lover instead of him? Reese felt her torment, and finally understood: only boldness could recapture what they’d had.