The Daring Doms Read online

  "Ah, you're not used to seeing me helping out. That's all going to change, sweet thing. You're going to see a whole new side of this boy from now on. I've been doing a lot of thinking lately."

  And later as they snuggled in her bed, he said, "Annie, marry me. I know you're not going to let up on this. One of us has to compromise. Since I know you're not going to back down, I realize if I want to keep you in my life, I need to change my ways, so let's do it."

  "Are you serious?" she asked.

  "As a heart attack," he replied, grinning. "And I can prove it." He picked his shirt up off the floor and took a small box out of the pocket. He handed it to her.

  When she opened it, she gasped. Inside the small velvet box, sat a small diamond solitaire in a rose-gold setting. She took it out of the box and put it on her finger.

  "Does it fit?" he asked.

  "Perfectly," she answered with tears in her eyes.

  "Don't I get a kiss for this?" he teased.

  She leaned up for the kiss to seal the deal. There was no more discussion that night about the wedding.

  In fact, there was no more discussion about the wedding for several weeks. It was almost as though Russ had bought the ring to appease her. Now, he could postpone the marriage a while longer. But Annie was too happy to care. She quickly dismissed that thought from her mind as she happily went about her daily routine, reserving her nights for her hot young fiancé.

  After a few months went by, Annie gingerly brought up the subject of setting a date. Russ didn't balk as she had feared he might. He said he'd go along with whatever she wanted. She could plan everything, and he would do his part. He would show up at the altar. And that was exactly what he did. He wasn't there for any of the planning or shopping. He planned to move into her apartment after the wedding. As far as she knew, he was still partying with his friends while she and her friends planned the big event.

  Let him have his fun, she told herself. He'll settle down after the wedding.

  The week before the wedding, he began slowly moving his things into her place. It didn't seem as if he was bringing much, but she assumed he'd gotten rid of some things while he was packing up his apartment for the move.

  Everything went as planned. The wedding was perfect and the honeymoon hot and steamy.

  When they settled into a routine afterward, things seemed fine. They worked during the day and made love at night. After a few months, though, Annie could tell Russ was feeling antsy, and she didn't raise a fuss when he told her he was going out with the guys for a drink and some pool after work one night. After all, she'd gotten him to the altar without much of a fuss; she couldn't keep him tied to her all the time. She believed if she gave him breathing room, he'd be a better husband, so she made plans of her own. She took in a movie with her friend, Angela.

  When he'd come home that night, he had rolled over and gone to sleep with nothing more than a goodnight kiss for the first time ever.

  Things were going along splendidly, as far as Annie could tell. Their first holiday season as a married couple had been spectacular. On New Year's Eve, at a local dance, Annie felt as if every female in the room wanted to trade places with her. He took her home in the wee hours of the morning and carried her to bed, as she was just a little tipsy from the champagne.

  Russ undressed her gently and tucked her in. He brought aspirin and water from the bathroom and made her take two of them. "So you don't get sick, babe."

  She obeyed and lay back on the pillows. Within minutes, she was passed out. When she woke up a few hours later, Russ was not in bed with her. She got up to find him. He was on the computer. When he heard her walk in, he quickly turned it off and turned to her. "Feeling better, sweet thing?"

  "Yes, come to bed, baby. We need to ring in the New Year right."

  "Now, that's an offer I can't refuse." He got up and followed her back to the bedroom.

  When he crawled in bed beside her, she quickly rolled on top of him and kissed him, scraping her tongue across his teeth, and he allowed access by opening his mouth. He devoured her with a passionate kiss as he began caressing her back. As she sat up and straddled him, his eyes widened. "You're really ready to go, aren't you, babe?"

  "Oh, yeah, hot stuff," she replied as she positioned herself for the ride. She put her hands on his chest and began masterfully caressing him. He was inside her, but she hadn't begun to move. She teased him by caressing him and leaning down to kiss him again. He reciprocated by tweaking her already-hard nipples before rubbing her bottom. When he playfully smacked her, she grinned devilishly and began the ride, slowly at first. While she built the momentum, she was in total control as he allowed her to freely abandon herself to him. And when the climax came, it was a combination of New Year's Eve and Fourth of July fireworks for both of them, the grand finale of sensation.

  Annie was in heaven that year, enjoying the sweetness of being a newlywed. Russ’s nights out with the guys became more frequent. Often, she found him on his phone or on the computer, but Annie blindly ignored the facts staring her boldly in the face.

  Occasionally, on the weekends, she found herself wishing they'd just stay in, but he was always ready to party. They were almost always at a club or a party with friends, on Friday and Saturday nights. Still, Annie didn't give a thought to the fact that Russ rarely spent time alone with her these days.

  Until one day, she was getting his clothes ready for the laundry. As she cleaned out the pockets of his jeans, she felt a piece of paper in one of them. As she took it out, she was going to pitch it in the trash but thought she'd better see if it was important first.

  When she read the words written on the paper, she shook her head to clear her thoughts. Surely, I'm reading this wrong.

  But deep in her heart of hearts, she knew it was no mistake. Russ had been having an affair with someone named Sheila since before they were married. Apparently, it was still going on. So, why had he married her? Why not break things off and go to this Sheila person? Or was he so devious, he wanted both of them and the only way to get that was to keep Annie happy by marrying her, while carrying on with Sheila on the side? True, he had the sexual appetite to keep two women happy, but what was the real story?

  And when she confronted him that night, it all became crystal-clear. Sheila was married. Marrying Annie had been no big deal to him. It was a way to have both his women, while Sheila had both her men. It all made sense, the nights out with the guys, when he'd come home and turned his back to her, the nights of passion, only when he was in the mood. She'd let him lead the way, never dreaming he was playing her for a fool all along. He never wanted to be home like a normal, young, married couple. He always wanted to be in a crowd of friends. The picture-perfect marriage she'd always wanted turned out to be nothing but a scam. If only I'd found a guy who loved me and only me, a husband who had eyes for only me and enjoyed an evening at home with his wife, relaxing, playing, loving, she thought to herself.

  And when Annie awoke and looked around, she was startled. It took a minute, but she finally realized it had all been a dream. Thank God that wasn't the way it had really happened. Her beloved Dane was asleep in bed beside her, the way it should be. She leaned over and kissed him as he slept. "I love you, baby," she whispered.

  She lay awake remembering the dream, piecing it all together. She was convinced the dream had been the result of the latest argument with Dane, and she knew it had been the universe's way of telling her she was right where she needed to be, with the man she was intended to be with.

  Dane, sweet, loving Dane, the husband who prefers staying home with me on the weekends to partying around town, she thought. So what if he forgets to take out the trash or leaves his socks on the bedroom floor? In the grand scheme of things, he's all I've ever wanted. From now on, I'm not going to worry about the little annoyances. He's mine, I love him and he loves me. He's faithful and devoted. I have everything I've ever wanted, and I was too stupid to see it.

  She snuggled closer to him a
nd drifted back to sleep, content and happy for the first time in months.

  Chapter 2

  Dane Daring raked his hand through his hair for the second time that night. He'd just had another awful fight with his little redheaded spitfire of a wife, Annie. He'd said some things in anger that he wished he could take back, but the damage had been done. As he rubbed his cheek, still stinging from her slap, he sighed. I've done it now. I've pretty much given her carte blanche to go after that asshole Russ Casey. I've lost her. If she finds him, she'll move heaven and earth to get him back in her life. I've always known she still carries a torch for the guy. Dane had hoped he could light a torch of his own to extinguish the one Russ left behind, but that night, he resigned himself to the fact that it wasn't to be.

  What is it they say? If you love someone, let them go. If it's real, they'll come back to you. I'll let her go and hope she'll come back to me, but I won't hold my breath.

  Sadly, he waited until he was sure she was asleep before going to bed. He had intended to have one last night with her before going through with his plan to give her some space. But when he'd gone to bed, she was tossing about in the bed, apparently dreaming. And when she'd said Russ's name, he knew whom she was dreaming about. It wasn't her husband. It was the one who had gotten away, the one he'd told her to go find. He loved Annie with all his heart, but he couldn't make her happy. He guessed his brother and his friends had been right after all.

  He'd rolled over and feigned sleep, since real sleep was out of the question. And when she'd thrown her arms around him later and said the words, "I love you, baby," he nearly lost it completely, knowing she thought she was talking to Russ, not him.

  He lay there until the wee morning hours, when he crept quietly out of bed, so as not to wake her. He packed a bag and wrote a note, leaving it on the bathroom counter, where she'd be sure to see it when she got up. As he started to leave, he stopped, walked back to the bed, leaned down and gently kissed her on the forehead. He smoothed the hair on her brow and whispered in her ear, "I love you more than you will ever know, baby."

  He drove to the apartment he and his younger brother had shared in his single days, letting himself in with the key he'd kept when he married Annie. He collapsed on the couch, waiting for his brother to get up so he could ask him if he could crash there until further notice. He hated the fact that Dax would undoubtedly say, "I told you so," but right now he just needed a roof over his head, a place he could lay his head and lick his wounds.

  Annie sat up and looked around. When she glanced at the clock on the nightstand beside the bed, she saw that it was nine o'clock already. When she had finally fallen asleep, it had been a good, refreshing sleep. It was Saturday, and she was ready to start the first day of the rest of her life, showing her wonderful, sexy husband how much she loved their life together. He was already up, apparently, so she padded into the bathroom to wash her face and brush her teeth before going to find him. When she located him, she intended to give him a kiss filled with passion and promise and lure him back into bed with her, where she would, hopefully, spend the next few hours making up with him.

  She saw the note on the counter and smiled. He must have gone out this morning and left me a note to let me know where he is. He's so thoughtful. Why haven't I realized it before now?

  But when she opened the note and read the words scrawled on the paper, her smile quickly turned to tears. She read the words three times, before their meaning finally soaked in.

  "No!" she said aloud as sat down on the edge of the bathtub with her head in her hands. "What have I done?" The note fell out of her hand and drifted to the floor, but the words he'd written kept running through her mind over and over.

  Baby,

  After last night, I think we both know we can't go on like this. It's tearing us both apart, little by little. We need a break from each other and from all the tension. You need to figure out what or whom you want, once and for all. I love you, but I can't hold you back if you don't really want to be with me. So, I want you to do whatever you need to do. I won't stand in your way. If you find your way back to me, my prayers will be answered. But if you decide you need to move on, I'll give you your freedom without a fight. We've done enough fighting to last a lifetime. I'll be at Dax's, but don't try to call or come by. Take this time to think about everything, and I'll do the same. We'll talk about where we go from here when the time is right.

  Until then, be safe, my love.

  Dane

  Her first instinct was to call him and tell him to get his ass back home where he belonged. But she stopped herself before she finished dialing his number. She went to the kitchen, instead, and made a pot of strong black coffee. While she sat on the couch with her first mug of the steaming brew, she thought about her next move.

  Finally, she called her friend Angela and asked her to come over. She told her she needed a friend, and that's all it took for Angela to drop what she was doing and head her way.

  When her long time Italian friend showed up at the front door, Annie met her with a tear-stained face. "Thanks for coming."

  "What's happened, Annie? I haven't seen you this upset since jerk-boy ran out on you. Oh, no, don't tell me you and Dane are fighting again? What about, this time?"

  Annie nodded sadly. "I'm afraid we've had the fight to end all fights this time. A real knock-down, drag-out, so bad that he packed his bags and went to crash at Dax's place."

  "Not Dane? I can't believe he'd do that. Dane is crazy in love with you. Why would he walk out like that?"

  "He has this crazy notion I'm still pining away for Russ. He told me to go after the 'one who got away'. He said he wouldn't stand in my way any longer. I have to admit, there've been times I've wondered what might have been if Russ had reacted differently to my ultimatum that night, but I honestly love Dane. I guess I haven't shown him that recently. Now it may be too late."

  "Give him some time to get over the fight. Maybe Dax can talk some sense into him. But, Annie, you really won't try to find Russ, will you?"

  "Oh, God, no, Angela, I can't even believe you asked me that. Actually, I had a dream last night that pretty well showed me what my life would have been like if I'd married Russ. I have to say that it was a real wake-up call for me. Everything I've been griping about with Dane, all the little things, were exactly what was missing with Russ. And they're the things I've realized I want… with Dane. I want the life we have, not some idealistic dream life with Russ. If I'd married Russ, I have the feeling it would have been a less-than-perfect union, to say the least. But as far as Dax is concerned, he won't try to talk Dane into coming back. Remember, he was against our marriage. He thought it was too soon. He kept telling Dane he was my rebound guy."

  "Maybe Dax has seen things in a different light since then. And, as for realizing you like your life now, you would have told Dane that, this morning, if he'd been here when you woke up," Angela said, finishing Annie's thoughts.

  "Yes, exactly, I would have, and I thought about calling him and telling him to come home so we could talk, but it's too soon. I've hurt him terribly, and I've got to give him some time. I won't hold my breath that Dax has had a change of heart, either. I imagine he is doing the 'I told you so' spiel as we speak."

  "Hmm, don't wait too long, or Dane may think you really do want your freedom," Angela advised.

  "I know, but I've got to tread on eggshells right now," Annie replied sadly. "That's my own fault, I know, but I can't do anything to upset Dane even more. I've got to be very careful until I can convince him to listen to what I have to say."

  "Well, girlfriend, I'm here anytime you need to vent. I'm sure Dax is getting an earful from Dane right about now, too."

  "I'm sure he is, and he's probably telling Dane he was right about me all along, just like I said."

  "Are you sure he still doesn't like you?"

  "It isn't that he doesn't like me. He thinks Dane and I rushed into marriage. He was expecting us to fail. Now, he'll think he was
right. Maybe he was."

  "I've always liked Dax. But I don't believe for one minute that you and Dane made a mistake. You're just going through a rough patch. Every married couple has them, or so I've heard."

  "I know you like Dax. At one point, Dane and I thought about setting you guys up, but it just never happened."

  "Hmm… maybe I can use my friendship with Dax to your advantage, as well as my own."

  "What are you hatching in that conniving little brain of yours?"

  "Dax and I flirt with each other; that's no secret. Maybe I can accidentally, on purpose, run into him, say, at the gym. I can steer the conversation to the two of you and see what he has to say on the matter."

  "He might not say much, but I guess it's worth a try."

  "Annie, I'm going to ask you one more time, and I want you to be completely honest with me. Are you sure you love Dane, not Russ?"

  "I love Dane with all my heart. I know now, Russ was not the man I was supposed to spend my life with. Dane is, and I have to make him see that, somehow."

  "There's something you need to know, and it might make things more difficult."

  "How could they get any more difficult, Angela?" Annie asked as she poured a fresh cup of coffee for both of them.

  "Thanks," Angela said as she accepted the mug. "Annie, you should know, Russ is back in town. I ran into him yesterday at the mall."

  "What? After all this time, he's come back to town? And why now, of all times?" she asked.

  "I know. It sucks for you, because if Dane finds out, he may think Russ is back for you. It's really bad timing."

  "I'll say. I need to have that talk with Dane real soon, hopefully before he finds out Russ is here. He may think I asked him to come home."

  "Yes, let's just hope Dane doesn't run into Russ before you can talk to him. There may be some fireworks, and not the good kind," Angela replied.