Athena waved as he approached the garden. She held up a plump, purplish object he didn’t recognize until he moved closer. Even then, he had to guess. “Eggplant?”
She laughed. “Isn’t it beautiful?!” She raved.
“It is,” Liam wasn’t looking at the eggplant.
“Liam? Are you alright?”
He offered his hand. “Come with me.”
~~~
They had taken to enjoying a drive every night after dinner. Liam wasn’t surprised when his passenger developed such a liking for the treat that she begged him to teach her to drive. Soon, the outings had become lessons and Athena had been a quick study. That afternoon, she seemed happy enough to enjoy the ride.
“The garden is magnificent!” Liam spoke over the wind whipping through the truck’s open windows.
“Thank you for letting me take charge of it!” she proceeded to ramble off the list of vegetables already taking root there in addition to the eggplant. “The soil around the house is wondrous! I’m thinking of putting down some more herbs!”
“Glad to hear it!”
“Liam?” Something in his tone must have concerned her. “Are you alright?” she turned on the seat to face him.
Instead of an answer, Liam pulled off the road into a field. Athena gasped and seemed awed by the spot when he came around the truck to escort her out. He grinned, watching the amazement brighten her face.
“I drove by here one day. It reminded me of your eyes. Would you ever consider adding flowers to your garden?”
Athena responded with a seemingly dazed shake of her head. “Vegetables and herbs only. I could never create anything this beautiful.”
“I don’t believe that,” Liam took her arm.
The field was a sea of lilacs. They reached Athena’s hips and she was enchanted as the tips brushed her outstretched palms. She stopped, smiling in reaction to the petals on her skin. Then, she sensed him, the firm towering frame suddenly insistent against her.
Athena turned. “Liam-”
His name was swallowed by his mouth when it crushed hers. Heat, want and desperation all melded into the kiss. Athena didn’t realize her feet had left the ground until she felt it beneath her back where Liam had lowered her.
She had only gone out to the garden for a few herbs to add to the garlic and wine sauce she was planning for the night’s supper. She had run out in the airy, strapless sundress intending to spend only a short while outdoors.
Liam smiled, spotting the dirt on her knees. Gently, he used his thumb to brush away the soft, dark soil. “You should take better care of such nice skin,” he said.
“I thought I was doing well enough,” she said, sighed. “It’s not as if there’s anyone who truly cares.”
Liam propped her chin atop the side of his finger. “Someone truly cares.”
They were kissing again. The act was as fiery as before, but with an added sensuality that made Athena gasp and writhe sinfully. Liam took care not to smother her slight weight with his bulk. The consideration in no way diminished the heat of his embrace.
He broke the kiss to transfer it down the length of her neck, across her collarbone. He sucked at the spot, reveling in the feel of her fingers tunneling into his hair. When his mouth met the rise of her bosom, Athena arched into a perfect bow and pushed his head harder against her cleavage.
A single tug was all it took to bring down the sundress bodice and expose a plump breast. Liam descended, strong teeth grazing the distended nub, his tongue bathing it before his lips suckled at length.
Athena pulled her fingers from his hair and yanked the hem of her dress.
“No,” Liam murmured amid his fierce suckling when he realized what she was doing.
“Athena no,” he insisted and closed a hand over hers while she worked to tug down her underthings. “Not here,” he said. “Not now.”
“Why?” She shuddered, feverish and determined to have her way. Her kiss was hot, wet and persistent. Her words were the same. “It’s the perfect time, the perfect place...”
Liam couldn’t help but to indulge a while longer. He used his free hand to squeeze the breast his mouth wasn’t working on. Somehow, reason fought through the maddening haze of desire. “It is perfect, but for one thing. You aren’t truly mine.”
“I’m trying to be,” she gasped and started to undo his pants.
“I said I’d never share you.”
“You won’t have to,” she arched up to suck his earlobe.
Using his strength against her then, he held her back. “I won’t have you share me either. I want you to have my body and my name.”
The last quelled Athena’s advances. “Liam?”
“Marry me,” he said.
~15~
The mood taking hold of the moment following Liam’s proposal wasn’t exactly a joyous one. Liam must have sensed that he had thoroughly shocked the woman in his arms, for he soon relieved her of his weight and stood. Absently, Athena fixed her dress and underclothes. She took Liam’s hand when he offered to help her stand.
The ride home was silent with only the wind barreling through the truck’s cab providing the necessary noise. Athena’s thoughts weren’t the jumble she supposed they should have been. Instead, they fixed on a single word. Forever. She remembered Mariana asking how long she expected to remain with Liam and the word had risen like a chorus inside her mind.
Forever.
