Stroke of Luck - Opal Carew Page 0,86

of tears that threatened. Tears that should be happy ones, since she’d dreamed of having this chance with him for so long. But these tears came from a desolation that was rooted deep inside her soul.

“I’ll do whatever I can to make it special,” he said. “Of course we can have a big, fairy-tale wedding. And if you want, we can even annul our current marriage and date for a while leading up to a romantic proposal. Anything you want, I’ll do it.”

She shook her head, desperately pushing back the bitter pain swelling through her.

“It won’t work.”

She pushed herself up and wiggled out from under the covers, then dodged off the end of the bed. As soon as her feet hit the floor, she hurried to the nearest shirt sprawled on the carpet and snatched it up as she strode from the room.

25

Quinn stared at the door April had just closed behind her. He wasn’t sure what had just happened. He’d anticipated she might want some time to think about it. It had been a whirlwind ride these past couple of days. But a flat-out rejection left him in shock.

“Go after her.”

Quinn’s gaze jerked to Austin, whose sleepy face was still resting on the pillow. Austin sat up and pushed his hair back.

“You need to talk her into it, because if you don’t, I will,” Austin said. “I don’t want us to lose her. And yes, I mean us, because whether you’re married to her or I am, we both know we’re going to share her, and I’m in love with her, too.”

Quinn nodded and got up, then pulled on his boxers and walked out the door. He glanced around the moonlit room and saw April standing at the window staring into the night.

He walked to her side and rested his hands on her shoulders. She stiffened a little but didn’t move away.

“April, I know I’ve been a jerk, but tell me what to do to make it up to you. I love you, and I want you to be a part of my life.”

She shook her head. “It just won’t work.” Her words were spoken so softly he could barely hear them, but the depth of sadness in her voice filled him with dread.

“Why, sweetheart? You’ve got to tell me why.”

She turned to him slowly, her eyes shimmering with unshed tears.

“Because…” She drew in a deep breath, clearly having trouble keeping her emotions in check. “A marriage won’t work without trust. And you don’t trust me. You never have.”

He cupped her face. “No, baby, that’s not true. I told you, that’s all changed.”

She jerked back and waved away his words.

“What about the prenup?” she asked, her expression taut.

“What prenup?”

“Things were pretty hazy when we got married, but when Austin asked me about the papers Maurice had me sign, I had a flashback. I remember a scrap of paper with Prenup hand printed on the top, and you insisting I sign it.”

Quinn shook his head, confused. “I don’t remember any of that. But I do know that I don’t care about a prenup. We can find it and tear it up.”

She sighed, then walked to the couch and sat down. He followed and settled beside her.

“The prenup itself doesn’t bother me. It’s not like I would ever take anything from you if we got divorced. But the fact that even when you were drunk, you thought about protecting yourself from me…” She shook her head. “That shows a deeply ingrained lack of trust.”

“Sweetheart, whatever I did that night”—he took her hand and cradled it between his—“please don’t let our relationship end because of it.”

The haunting sadness in her eyes tore at his heart. But at her hesitation, he cupped her face and kissed her.

* * *

April’s heart ached so intensely she thought she’d die. His tender kiss tore away her barriers.

She didn’t want to walk away from Quinn. She wanted to spend a lifetime with him. But no matter what he said, deep in his heart, he didn’t trust her.

He deepened the kiss, his firm lips lighting a fire inside her. Oh, God, she wanted to stay in his arms so badly.

She had to stay strong.

But that didn’t mean she couldn’t allow herself one more time with him. A memory to last a lifetime.

She melted against him, parting her lips to his coaxing tongue. It glided inside and stroked hers. She sighed, surrendering to him.

When she was totally breathless from his devastating kiss, his lips brushed across her cheek, then