Katie Ashley - Strings of the Heart

Rhys chuckled. “I love you, too, babe.” Taking the box from me, he took out the ring. “Give me your hand.”

When I happily obliged, he slid it onto my left hand. “This signifies that you belong to me and only to me.”

Cocking my brows at him, I couldn’t help but counter, “And what about you? Where’s my ring to bind you to me?”

He held up his left hand in front of me and wiggled his fingers for a second. I stared blankly at his palm before my eyes honed in on his ring finger. I gasped. “Oh. My. God.” On the back of his ring finger was my name. Tattooed permanently in black ink. “When did you…how did you?”

Rhys laughed. “Yesterday when you and Abby were off shopping with the twins, I snuck into a tattoo parlor. I thought it made sense to do the inside now. Then when we get married, I’ll do the outside.”

For the life of me, I couldn’t think of what to say. I guess Rhys noticed because he asked, “Don’t you like it?”

“I love it,” I blurted.

He grinned. “I sure as hell hope so.”

I shook my head. “I just can’t believe you did that. For me.”

“For us,” he corrected.

Leaning over, I brought my mouth to his. “I love you, Rhys,” I murmured against his lips.

“I love you, too.”

After we made out for a few minutes, I pulled away, breathless and flushed. “If we don’t stop, I don’t think I’ll be able to walk today.”

Rhys chuckled. “I’m sorry. It’s just I can’t seem to get enough of you. And I guess it’s the thought of your departure tomorrow that makes me fucking starved for every bit of you. I don’t want to be deprived of one minute of you.”

It was now or never time for me to take the white elephant by the trunk, so to speak. “I have a surprise for you, too,” I said.

“You do?” Rhys asked, his lips nuzzling my neck

My stomach turned a few nervous flip-flops as I braced myself to give him the news. “We're not going to be separated after all.”

Pulling back, Rhys stared questioningly at me. “What are you talking about?”

Over the last few weeks, I’d kept pretty silent about the plans I’d been making and the avenues I’d been exploring. I didn’t want to get Rhys’s hopes up before I knew with absolute certainty that things would work out. After exhaling a ragged breath, I said, “I'm not going back to Savannah. I'm going on the road with you.”

Several emotions ricocheted through Rhys's eyes before he started furiously shaking his head. “No, I'm not letting you do that.”

"Excuse me? Since when do I need your permission?”

“You can't just drop out of college, Allison. Not as hard as you have worked.”

“Oh really? I know someone else who did, and last time I checked, he's doing pretty well for himself.”

Rhys scowled at me. “My situation was totally different, and I did get my Bachelor’s degree in pre-law.”

“Actually, I think mine is a little better. I'll actually be working on my degree while doing more apprenticeship.”

His brows lined in confusion. “What do you mean?”

“I'm going to take some online classes. At the end of the day, I don't have to have a degree to launch my own clothing line. I need real world experience, and I'll be getting that with your stylist, Renee.”

“Do your parents know about this?” When I bobbed my head, Rhys groaned. “Great, just another fucking reason for them to hate me.”

“Actually, Mr. Negative, they thought it was a great idea.”

“You’re shitting me?”

“No, I’m not. I’m still fulfilling the requirements of my degree while getting on-the-job training. In another year or two, I may have to go back to Savannah for a semester to finish up, but I will finish. I promise.” When Rhys remained silent, my lips turned down in a determined pout. “Don’t you want me to stay with you?”

He rolled his dark eyes at me. “Of course, I want you with me. I can’t imagine anything better. But at the same time, I don’t want you doing anything that you’re going to regret later on down the road.”

As I ran my fingers through his hair, I shook my head. “I could never regret one single thing about you.”

Cocking his head, he asked, “So you’re really coming out on tour with me?”

I grinned. “Yep, I am.”

“Good. ‘Cause I think that’s a fucking amazing idea,” he replied, with a grin.

“I’m glad to hear you say that.” As Rhys pulled me back to lie down again, I peered up at him. “Now that we’ve got all that settled, I want you to buy me something.”

Rhys chuckled. “The ring wasn't enough for you?”

Gazing down at my left hand that glittered with his ring, I sighed with contentment. “It's more than enough.” I glanced up to stare pointedly at him. “Actually, what I want from you is more for the both of us.”

“Hmm, lingerie and sex toys?”

I smacked his arm. “Smart ass. That is NOT what I was talking about it.”

With his dark eyes twinkling with amusement, Rhys asked, “Then what is it?”

“A tour bus of our own.”

“So we can have privacy to defile every square inch?” he teased.

“Well, that will certainly be a plus, but I wasn’t exactly thinking on a sexual level.”

“Besides the privacy, what else would it be good for? A tax write-off?”

Brushing my hand across his cheek, I smiled. “I want to give you a home, Rhys.”

His expression momentarily darkened. I could tell from the emotions flickering in his eyes that he was reliving some of the painful aspects of his past. More than anything in the world, I wanted to help him move past all that—to give him a future filled with happy memories. “Let me give you a home, Rhys,” I repeated.

“You already have.” Covering my heart with his hand, he said, “Right here.”

Tears filled my eyes as I leaned over to kiss him. I let all the love I had for him pour out in those kisses. When I finally pulled away, Rhys smiled at me. Brushing his thumb across my cheek, he asked, “You won’t go crazy decorating it with frilly pillows and lace shit everywhere, will you?”

With a grin, I teased, “I can’t make any promises.”

He groaned. “Just don’t make it so over the top that my man card gets revoked by the guys.”

“I won’t. I like your man card, and your manhood, too much to do that.”

A devilish look twinkled in his eyes. “You do, huh?”

“Mmm, hmm.”

In a flash, Rhys rolled us over to where I was on my back. “I think I know how to solve that problem about you not being able to walk today after too much sex.”

“Oh, what’s that?” I questioned breathlessly, as he ground his growing erection against my core.

“I’ll just have to carry you,” he replied with a wink.

“My pervy, yet chivalrous, knight in shining armor. You’ve been looking out for me since I was just a kid.”

Rhys’s teasing expression turned serious. “And I’ll never stop. Ever.”

Deep down, I knew he never would. Although times might get tough and the path might be rough, we would somehow have our happily ever after. Our heartstrings were irrevocably intertwined.

First and foremost thanks goes to God for all of his amazing blessing in my life the past year.

To my readers: I cannot thank you enough for your support and your love of my books. You are the most amazing blessing I have had in this business. Big, big hugs and love from me!

To Cris Hadarly: Words can’t express my gratitude for all you do for me. You go above and beyond each and every day to promote my books and make my journey through the book world easier. I couldn’t make it in the business without your love, support, and prayers. Your friendship means the world for me, and I cherish the fact that I have someone as caring, compassionate, and loving in my corner. I’m truly blessed.

To Marion Archer—editor and plot magician extraordinaire—I couldn’t make it without you. You bring so much to my books and make me a better writer and story-teller. You push me to make my stories the best they could possibly be. But I also need to thank you for your friendship, support, and prayers. You may be an ocean away, but I feel your love right here with me.

To Marilyn Medina: Your “eagle eyes” know no bounds, and I’m so thankful for getting to work with you, as well as your friendship. Golden Girls 4-Ever! Thanks for burning the midnight oil for way too many days to make sure my procrastinating ass had edits!! Thanks for always being there to cheer me up, make me laugh, and give me some naughty inspiration. #bananahammocks

To Kim Bias: I can’t thank you enough for talking me down from the ledge as well as making my books the best they can be. Thanks for the plot/blurb sessions and for your wiliness to read in chunks and several times. Thank for making it feel like we’re in this together and checking in on my progress both book wise and emotionally!

To Shannon Fuhrman, Tamara Debbaut, Jen Gerchick, Jen Oreto, and Brandi Money: Thank you so much for being my “sluts” and working so hard to promote and support me. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it. Thanks also for your support in the difficult times as well as your prayers. They mean so much!

To my street team, Ashley’s Angels, thank you so much for your support of me and my books.

To Raine Miller and RK Lilley: SCOLS 4-EVER! Thanks for your unfailing love and support in all areas personally and professionally. I couldn’t ask for better friends and travel partners!

To the ladies of the Hot Ones: Karen Lawson, Amy Lineaweaver, Marion Archer, and Merci Arellano, thank you all for the laughter, the friendship, and the support. You’re all amazing!!

Katie Ashley is the New York Times, USA Today, and Amazon Best-Selling author of The Proposition. She lives outside of Atlanta, Georgia with her two very spoiled dogs and one outnumbered cat. She has a slight obsession with Pinterest, The Golden Girls, Harry Potter, Shakespeare, Supernatural, Designing Women, and Scooby-Doo.