Prologue
Destin, FL…
Excerpt from Finding Our Way
“Again,” Bryce demands as he glides in and out of me. I feel every inch of him hitting my sensitive flesh since he just gave me an earth-shattering orgasm two minutes ago.
“Yours, forever,” I repeat for the hundredth time since he proposed.
He takes his time building me up and I allow myself to feel the beauty of him. We got rid of the condom on the first night in Destin. He knew I was on birth control, but still insisted on condoms for extra protection. Once we hit the door to our cottage, he took me hard and fast and we both never looked back.
He picks up speed, driving into me with purpose and we moan at the same time. His mouth claims mine as he swivels his hips until I turn my head away gasping. When our eyes meet I push up into him and he lets go, taking me with him as we both yell out. His sweaty, hot body falls on top of me and I hold him close.
The surf crashes against the sand in the background and I see the light starting to peek through the windows. Seagulls fly through the air squawking and the sea breeze flies in the open windows of our room.
The two days we have been in Destin have been spent mostly in bed, reconnecting and celebrating. We’ve only left the room for showers, food, or bathroom breaks. I’m not sure we’ll even make it to the beach today.
It was a whirlwind of activity after we got engaged. My mom arranged for food to be delivered to Bryce and Nate’s apartment, and we all celebrated the entire night. That evening, all the secrets came out. According to Bryce, once he knew I was truly back to myself and had let the darkness go from what happened, he started making plans. He talked to his parents first, then Nate. My brother told Quinn she needed to be at graduation but gave her little details until my parents knew what was going on. She suspected but promised to be quiet.
Bryce planned the elaborate proposal with the help of his ROTC class and then told my parents everything. My mom jumped for joy. My dad was harder to convince, but once Bryce promised to wait until I graduated, he relented.
Even though we are young, no one gave Bryce any flack because they all knew. We are perfect together. He makes me happy. Once we finally jumped our hurdles, he held my heart forever.
I also learned it wasn’t his ROTC speech he was nervous about our first night together after six long weeks. It was his proposal speech and the elaborate display by his classmates. Apparently, all the guys dropping to their knees was a sign of respect for him. This is not really a common practice, but one of the guys told him about it happening before in a similar situation, and they decided to copy it.
He and Nate’s actual graduation was boring, as suspected, but my mom and Sheila still cried. Quinn opted to skip it and stay locked away in a hotel with Dean, which I was jealous of. They came out to dinner to celebrate but didn’t hang out afterwards. Dean fit into our group well; he was hilarious. Maybe it was my euphoric endorphins, but I could see him and Quinn with a future.
I’m not going to lie; the highlight, for me, on Bryce’s actual graduation was when Holli showed her pathetic face. She zoned in on Sheila and Dave and hugged them tight. They hugged her back uncomfortably. When she saw me, I didn’t move. But when she saw the sparkling diamond, her face paled and she stuttered her congratulations. I didn’t flaunt it at all, but a sense of satisfaction overwhelmed me.
“Baby, if you’re thinking again, I obviously didn’t do that right,” Bryce interrupts my thoughts and I bite softly on his shoulder.
“I was thinking, but it was all good. You think we might actually see the beach today?”
“Yeah, babe. Let’s shower and eat. Then I’ll take my gorgeous fiancée to the beach.”
“I love the sound of that.”
He stays silent.
“Don’t you?”
“Yeah, but I’m pretty sure I’ll like the sound of ‘my gorgeous wife’ better.”