Maverick Stone: Winter Wishes by Stewart Dee

Author:Stewart, Dee [Stewart, Dee]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Romance
Publisher: Dee Stewart
Published: 2023-01-03T18:30:00+00:00

CHAPTER 8

Kamea’s family and Maverick’s friends gathered around him and offered their well-wishes on his new venture. They teased him about Lacey, and their joviality meant they viewed her as a member of their close-knit group. The grandchildren pulled Maverick and Lacey toward several picnic tables laden with flavorful local dishes and insisted on heaping their plates full of food.

Lacey indulged the grandchildren and gave each one individual attention, which only endeared her more to everyone, especially Maverick. One day she would make a wonderful mother, and the thought stunned him. He’d never entertained such a notion about any other woman he’d dated.

They ate until they thought their stomachs would burst. Afterward, the grandchildren organized lawn games, and Lacey was the undisputed star player, kicking a soccer ball and hitting a birdie over the badminton net. Not long after they enjoyed dessert, heavy thunderclouds rolled in off the ocean. Maverick and Lacey helped Kamea clear the backyard before they said their final goodbyes.

This time tears streamed down Kamea’s cheeks, and Maverick’s eyes filled up, too. For the past several years, nary a day passed that he hadn’t seen or visited with Kamea. She’d been a surrogate mother to him when his own was thousands of miles away in Denver, and he loved her.

Kamea gripped his shoulders and cried. “I know you have to leave us, but please, Maverick, don’t forget about us.”

“How could I? I promise, Kamea, I will call you every week.”

“I’ll make sure he does,” Lacey added.

“You’re the perfect woman for my one and only. You’ll take good care of him?”

Lacey wrapped her arm around Maverick’s waist and gazed up at him. “Yes, Kamea, I certainly will.”

Lightning struck nearby, and Lacey winced. Maverick grabbed her hand, and they hurried toward their car. Gales of wind battered them on the highway. The deluge began as soon as they unlocked Maverick’s front door.

The house lay in darkness. Maverick turned on a couple of lamps to dispel the gloom while Lacey went into the kitchen to get bottles of water. They cuddled on the couch and watched the first major tropical storm of the season rage outside. When they lost power, Maverick located his emergency flashlights.

Handing one to Lacey, he said, “We may as well go to bed. Our flight leaves early in the morning.”

“Do you think the storm will be over by then?”

“Oh, sure. This system is moving pretty quickly.” He escorted Lacey to her bedroom and kissed her good night. Thunder boomed. When he saw something flicker in her eyes, he asked, “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. Good night, Mav.”

The storm intensified. The wind howled and shook the trees outside his windows. The rain pounding on the roof made him drowsy, and he fell asleep within minutes.

At some point a soft cry and a knock on his bedroom door jerked him out of a pleasant dream. Before he realized Lacey needed him, she had already slipped into bed next to him. Her body trembled as she whispered, “Maverick, are you asleep?”

How could he be when she wore nothing more than bikini panties and a flimsy tank top? “Uh, no.

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