Since I Fell For You Part 23

Of course, that was right when both her phone and her computer buzzed with incoming calls.

Lifting her into his arms, he headed for the stairs. She'd already fielded enough calls and meetings for one day. Soon enough there would be more, and she would continue to thrive working with technology. But for the rest of the day-and the night-Roman was determined to give Suzanne the break she so desperately needed.

Fortunately, his bed wasn't far away...and he was more than happy to keep her from work by any means necessary.

Only pausing long enough to strip away their clothes, Roman soon had Suzanne lying naked and warm and breathtakingly beautiful beneath him. "You went too easy on that sc.u.mbag today." He ran his hands from her hips, up over her waist and b.r.e.a.s.t.s, until he was cupping her face. "It's one of the millions of reasons I love you."

"Millions?" She turned to press a kiss to his palm before teasing, "And here I thought there couldn't be more than a dozen."

"I already loved you a dozen different ways by the time we left the gallery that first night your brothers introduced us. By the time you kicked me out of your apartment that night, we were up into the hundreds."

"Wow." She bit her lip, and he had to bend down to lick the wet spot left behind when her teeth lifted away. "That was the first thing I thought when I saw you for the first time. And then I wondered how my brothers could have hidden you from me for so long."

"Alec would have hidden me forever if he hadn't been so worried about you."

"I'll never admit it to my brother, but I'm so glad he went behind my back and hired you." She laughed softly at herself. "A part of me is even thankful that Patrick lost a screw. Because if he hadn't, I might never have found you."

"Yes, you would. And I would have found you. Because I was meant to fall for you." Roman let all his walls drop, removed every last barrier he used to have around his heart. "I was meant to love you, Suzanne."

"I was meant to love you too." Her eyes were full of unconditional love as she whispered, "Now and forever."

Her lips were soft and warm as they met in the middle for a sweet kiss. One that quickly turned sinful as their tongues slipped together and she wrapped her arms and legs around him. He loved hearing her whimper of pleasure as they sank deeper into the kiss and he ran his hands back down over her curves, then followed the heated trail with his mouth. Once, twice, three times, he let himself feast on the slippery flesh between her thighs, before quickly putting on protection and climbing back up over her so that the full length of her naked skin was pressed all along his.

Suzanne gasped as he filled her, her gasp turning to a moan as he rocked against her faster, harder, deeper, until her release crashed through them both and became his too.

"I love you," he whispered against her lips. He would never grow tired of saying it, would never get enough of loving her. And he would never stop being thankful that he'd signed on to protect Suzanne Sullivan.

She hadn't needed a bodyguard. But she had needed love.

His love.

Forever.

EPILOGUE.

Alec Sullivan barely held himself back as Suzanne gave Roman a seriously inappropriate thank-you kiss for the ruby earrings he'd given her to celebrate the huge success of her new digital security product.

"You're holding up like a champ," Calvin noted in a low voice beside him.

Alec reached for his bottle of beer, before realizing he'd already emptied it. "Just wait until your sister starts dating. You're going to be a freaking mess."

Calvin didn't argue with him as he looked over at Jordan, his ten-year-old sister he'd raised practically from birth. "Hopefully we're at least a decade away from that."

Alec decided the kindest thing would be to let that one go. Calvin would surely be put through the wringer of watching his sister fall in love and get her heart broken soon enough.

He turned to gaze out at Summer Lake through the Inn's large parlor window. His father was here, along with Drake and Rosa and Harry. They'd grown up coming to the lake, so plenty of locals had turned out too. Christie was supposed to be celebrating with them, but half the time she was running around supervising her staff. Denise and Olive from the knitting store were there, along with his father's business partners, Henry and Jean. Alec loved the fast pace of the city, but there was no question that Summer Lake was a great community. His father had been lucky to land here.

"You guys are pairing off so fast lately," Calvin said. "I was half expecting you or Harry to show up today with someone on your arm."

"There's no chance of that happening with me," Alec said with a firm shake of his head. "Although Harry's always been a quiet one, so he could surprise us one of these days. Or," Alec added with a grin, "maybe you'll be the next one to lose your mind over someone."

"I don't think so."

Alec didn't know the full story of what had happened between Calvin and Sarah, Calvin's high school sweetheart. Back when they were teenagers, everyone thought the two of them were going to be together forever. But that hadn't happened. Sarah had left Summer Lake in the dust, and Alec always had the sense that Calvin had never quite gotten over her.

Alec was happy Drake and Suzanne had found their happily-ever-afters. But Calvin's brutal lost-love story was yet another reminder that no matter how good Alec's siblings had it now, the rest of them should stay the h.e.l.l away from love.

Grabbing two beers from a pa.s.sing waiter, Alec handed one to his friend. "Here's to being mayor of a h.e.l.l of a great town with a new group of pretty tourists to choose from each week. What more could a guy need?"

As Calvin knocked his bottle against Alec's and drank, he pretended not to notice his friend's heart didn't seem to be in it. And if his own heart wasn't either, well, that was too d.a.m.ned bad.

Because Alec Sullivan was never going to fall in love.

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Alec Sullivan and Harry Sullivan's upcoming stories, the third and fourth New York Sullivan books, will be coming soon! Please be sure to sign up for my newsletter (BellaAndre.com/Newsletter) so that I can let you know as soon as I have the release dates for their books.

And don't miss two upcoming Summer Lake romances, coming this spring and summer! Calvin, the Mayor of Summer Lake, reconnects with a lost love in The Best Is Yet To Come. And Christie, who runs the Inn at Summer Lake, falls in love with the last man she ever thought possible in Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You.

The following books in Bella Andre's New York Times & USA Today bestselling series about The Sullivans are out now!.

THE LOOK OF LOVE.

(Chase & Chloe) FROM THIS MOMENT ON.

(Marcus & Nicola).

CAN'T HELP FALLING IN LOVE (Gabe & Megan).

I ONLY HAVE EYES FOR YOU.

(Sophie & Jake) IF YOU WERE MINE.

(Zach & Heather).

LET ME BE THE ONE.

(Ryan & Vicki).

COME A LITTLE BIT CLOSER.

(Smith & Valentina) ALWAYS ON MY MIND.

(Lori & Grayson).

KISSING UNDER THE MISTLETOE.

(Mary & Jack Sullivan) ONE PERFECT NIGHT.

(A novella guest starring Mia Sullivan and Rafe Sullivan).

THE WAY YOU LOOK TONIGHT.

(Rafe & Brooke, The Seattle Sullivans).

IT MUST BE YOUR LOVE.

(Mia & Ford, The Seattle Sullivans) JUST TO BE WITH YOU.

(Ian & Tatiana, The Seattle Sullivans).

I LOVE HOW YOU LOVE ME.

(Dylan's story, The Seattle Sullivans) ALL I EVER NEED IS YOU.

(Adam & Kerry, The Seattle Sullivans).

NOW THAT I'VE FOUND YOU (Drake & Rosa, The New York Sullivans) SINCE I FELL FOR YOU.

(Suzanne & Roman, The New York Sullivans).

THE BEST IS YET TO COME.

(New York Sullivans spinoff, Summer Lake #1) CAN'T TAKE MY EYES OFF OF YOU (New York Sullivans spinoff, Summer Lake #2).

Click here to download a Sullivan Family Tree!.

Please enjoy the following excerpt from THE WAY YOU LOOK TONIGHT (Rafe Sullivan's story), the first Seattle Sullivan book...

As a very successful private investigator who has caught most of the cheaters in Seattle with their pants down, Rafe Sullivan believes true, lasting love only happens once in a blue moon. Needing to get away from the city to clear his head, he finds the lake house where he spent the best summers of his life is now a wreck...but the sweet girl next door is all grown up and prettier than anything he's ever seen.

While Brooke Jansen is happy making and selling chocolate truffles in her small Pacific Northwest lake town, she secretly longs to experience something wild. So when her favorite "Wild Sullivan" moves in again next door after more than a decade away, and sparks fly between them, she can't stop wondering if being bad is really as good as it always seemed...and just how long it will be before she can find out.

But when their summer fling quickly spirals into deeper emotions than either of them were expecting, can they survive the heat between them? Or will Rafe make the biggest mistake of his life and end up losing the best thing that's ever happened to him?

Enjoy the following excerpt from THE WAY YOU LOOK TONIGHT...

A lone man had just ridden up on his motorcycle, the ends of his dark hair whipping out from beneath his helmet.

Now that, thought Brooke with immediate female appreciation, is what wild and free looks like.

Her parents had taught her it wasn't polite to stare, but she couldn't remember why that admonition mattered as she watched the man pull off his helmet and run a large hand through his hair. She couldn't see his face yet, but she didn't need to see his features to know just how good-looking he was. His shoulders were incredibly broad, and even from a distance she could see how big-and how capable-his hands were where he gripped the handlebars.

She was so busy reeling from a blast of pure l.u.s.t for the stranger as he stepped away from his motorcycle that it took her a moment longer than it should have to realize that he wasn't a stranger after all.

"Rafe?" His name came out as little more than a stunned whisper. "Is that really you?"

Her question was loud enough that he finally turned to face her. Only, instead of responding, he didn't say a word, didn't even move.

All he did was stare, but it was okay, because she was busy staring right back.

People often said memories made things sweeter than they actually were. But Brooke now knew that wasn't true at all. Not only had she not embellished how good-looking Rafe Sullivan was over the years that they'd been apart but, if anything, her recollections had sorely underplayed just how gorgeous he truly was.

His hair was dark and just a little too long, his skin was tanned, his jaw was dark with stubble, and he was so big and tall that she knew she'd have to stand on her tippy-toes and wrap her arms around his neck to kiss him.

The thought of doing something like that had her body instantly going warm all over despite the cool breeze. She'd been little more than a baby the first time she remembered setting eyes on Rafe, but even then, he'd stood out from the rest of his siblings as more fun. More daring. And infinitely more beautiful.

When he still didn't say anything, she took a step in his direction. "It's me, Rafe. Brooke Jansen. Remember?"

Finally, the intensity of his dark gaze shifted into one of recognition. "Little Brooke," he said in a low voice that rippled over her, "how could I forget you?"

She had spent far too many years squashing her wild impulses. But following a wild impulse wasn't what sent her straight into the arms of her favorite Sullivan without a second thought. It was pure happiness at finally seeing him again.

He caught her against his chest as she hugged him tight. He smelled so good, and the bare patch of skin above his T-shirt was so warm despite the cool evening air that she couldn't resist burying her face against him. As she held on tight, she felt safer than she had in years. She'd lost too many of her favorite people from childhood, and was infinitely grateful to be given the precious gift of one of them back in her life.

She might have held on to him like that forever if it hadn't been for her sudden realization of just how good his hard, heated muscles felt against her cold, wet, nearly bare skin.

The little girl inside her had thrown herself into his arms...but it was the woman she'd become who wanted to move even closer.

When she was eight years old, the crush she'd had on Rafe was sweet. Innocent. But what she was feeling now was decidedly not sweet.

Nor was it anywhere close to innocent.

Wild. The thought-no, it was more desire and pure need than it was a cognizant thought-came at her in an instant: I want to be wild with Rafe Sullivan.

Excerpt from THE WAY YOU LOOK TONIGHT by Bella Andre 2015.

Buy THE WAY YOU LOOK TONIGHT.