Veiled Passages Read Free Page B

across her chest. “Oh, really?” she snapped. “What’s so important?”
    “Mary O’Reilly, marry me,” he said.
    Rolling her eyes and sighing, she shook her head. “You already asked me that question,” she replied. “Remember?”
    Grinning down at her, he leaned forward and kissed her nose once again. “Yeah, I remember,” he said. “But, I want to make a slight adjustment to our agreement.”
    “An adjustment?” she repeated slowly.
    He leaned down again and placed his forehead against hers. “I want us to get married sooner,” he said softly. “I want us to be a family. I don’t want to wait.”
    “A family?”
    “You and me and Clarissa,” he said. “The sooner we get married, the sooner all of our lives can assume some normalcy.”
    Her lips quirked. “You really think your life is going to assume some normalcy being married to me?”
    He pondered her comment for a moment and then kissed the tip of her nose again. “It will be the best kind of para-normalcy anyone could ask for.”
    Laughing, she nodded.  “Okay, how much sooner?”
    He touched her lips with his. “Tomorrow,” he whispered.
    She snorted. “No, that’s not going to work.”
    “When?” he asked.
    Sighing, she did a quick mental list of everything she’d have to complete for the wedding. There was so much more that still needed to be done.  She looked up at him and met his eyes. He was right, it would do Clarissa a world of good to be part of a real family, instead of getting to know her father only during the daytime hours.  What could she promise that wouldn’t totally drive her insane?  Finally, she answered. “Two weeks.”
    His eyebrows lifted. “Really? Two weeks? We could get married in two weeks?” his smile widening.
    “You mean I could have asked for more time?” she questioned.
    “Nope, not now,” he said, taking her hand and bringing it to his lips. “In two weeks you’ll be walking down the aisle to make me the happiest man in the world.”
    Nodding, she leaned up and kissed him. “Yes. Well, if I can walk after this experience,” she commented drily.
    He lowered his head once more and teased her lips with his, exploring and tasting, the heat slowly building for both of them.  Finally, he lifted his head and met her eyes. “I love you,” he whispered. “Thank you.”
    Smiling, she slipped her arms around his neck. “Don’t thank me yet,” she said. “You’re going to have to put up with a frantic fiancée for two weeks.”
    He kissed the underside of her jaw and Mary shivered when the stubble from his jaw slid against her skin. “Yeah, but then I get to enjoy a wedding night with my sexy bride,” he whispered, “A very long wedding night.”
     
     
     
     
     
     

Chapter Three
    Mary slipped through the front doorway and leaned against it, closing it tightly behind her.  She covered her face with her hands and took deep calming breaths. “I will not panic. I will not panic. I will not panic,” she repeated firmly.
    “Go ahead and panic,” Mike suggested from a few feet away.
    “Aye, never waste a good opportunity to go stark-raving mad,” Ian added from the kitchen. “And why are we panicking this fine morning?”
    Mary slipped her hands down and placed them on her knees.  She took a deep breath and then looked up at her roommates.
    “What happened to you?” Mike asked, his face suddenly awash with concern.
    “Do you need me to call an ambulance?” Ian added, hurrying from the kitchen with a dish towel.
    “I’m getting married,” she said breathlessly.
    Mike and Ian looked at Mary, and then at each other, confusion evident in their faces.
    “Aye,” Ian said slowly. “I’m thinking we knew that…right?”
    Mike hovered closer to Mary and held up his hand. “Mary, how many fingers am I holding up?” he asked, displaying three fingers.
    She sighed and shook her head. “Yes, we knew that. But Bradley just asked me to move up the wedding,” she replied.
    “And