She quickly showered and dressed in a light summer dress, thankful for a rare day of warmth in the unpredictable Washington weather. She didn’t bother with makeup or doing her hair, just threw it up in a messy bun and called herself good.
Her foul mood the last few days had chased Chad to the barn, and even caused her brothers to back off. She was tired of being treated like the princess Chad had called her. She was a woman, and it was time he knew it.
Chad hadn’t so much as kissed her all week, and she thought she may die of sexual frustration. She didn’t want to be the one to make the first move – that was his job. His idea that them being intimate clouded his ability to protect her was getting on her nerves.
Maybe if she agreed to marry Chad, he’d actually take her to bed again.
Bree reached the pond and sat down, grabbing a handful of rocks and tossing them in the water, one by one, watching the ripples as they floated further from her.
She leaned her head back and enjoyed the sounds around her. She could hear the cows in the pasture mooing, the horses neighing, and all kinds of woodland creatures playing in the nearby woods. It was peaceful, relaxing, and soon she found herself drifting to sleep.
Bree stirred restlessly on the ground, her nightmare causing her body to sweat and her muscles to tense. Chad was standing such a short distance away. He was yelling something at her, but she couldn’t hear him. She could see his mouth moving, but no sound was coming out.
Then, there was a man wearing a dark mask. He had a gun and it was pointed right at Chad. No! she screamed, but Chad wouldn’t face the man. All of a sudden a shot rang out and she watched as he collapsed to the ground.
Bree jerked awake, tears falling down her face. She turned her head, trying to get her bearings. Where was she? Where was Chad? He was hurt – she had to help.
Upon becoming fully awake, she realized she’d only been dreaming, and vivid details of her nightmare came flooding back to her, overwhelming her in their intensity. Suddenly the fog in her mind began to lift and color filled its place, bringing her lost memories to life.
She remembered everything. Chad getting shot, the men capturing her, Chad saving her, and the man facing them, firing his gun. She flinched, remembering the fear as she saw that small puff of smoke rising from his gun right before the bullet struck.
Bree sat by the water for another half hour, too shaken up to move. With her memories back, she couldn’t stop the overwhelming emotions that came with them.
After compiling all the pieces of the last several months together, she felt such relief at the picture of her life she was able to visualize again. She was one-hundred-percent in love with Chad. She’d started falling in love with him before she was hurt, but was even more in love now. He’d been by her side night and day – risked his own life for her. She couldn’t imagine being without him.
Her hand moved down to her still flat stomach as she fully comprehended she was having his child. They’d made a baby together. Their child was strong like its father. Her pregnancy survived Bree being shot, sitting in the hospital in a coma, and all the stress that was known to cause miscarriages.
Bree was filled with unbelievable joy at how her life had changed so much in only a few short months.
She had to find Chad. His quest of keeping them platonic was about to end because if he didn’t take her to bed soon, he may see a true tantrum from the princess. She laughed aloud at her own joke.
Ah, she missed Jennifer, her brother’s wife. They’d become so close since she’d married Trenton. Bree hurt thinking about how hard this must have been on her best friend. Jennifer hadn’t shown how hurt she must have felt at having Bree not remember her, but Bree knew if the situation was reversed and Jennifer didn’t know who she was, she’d be devastated.
She had to call her.
Well, after she spent alone time with Chad.
“Bree,” she heard Chad shout. She grinned in anticipation. His tone sounded furious, mixed with a twinge of worry. She’d broken his rule of never going anywhere alone. Bring it on, she thought. Their fights always ended most satisfyingly.
“Over here,” she called, then heard his footsteps racing toward her. She grinned more. She knew he could move silently through the woods. He wanted her to know he was coming. Her stomach tightened with raw need.
Chad came to a halt five feet in front of her. He quickly scanned the area before turning back to glare at her. She smiled sweetly at him. She wasn’t ready to tell him her memory was back. He’d played with her, now it was her turn to play with him.
“You aren’t supposed to go off by yourself,” he finally said between clenched teeth.
“I needed a walk,” she answered sweetly.
She watched as his forehead wrinkled. She could practically hear him counting in his head. Oh, how she loved pushing his buttons.
“It’s for your own safety,” he finally muttered.
“As you can see, I’m alive and well,” she answered in the same tone she knew was grating on his nerves. Her ni**les grew hard, and she felt heat building. She tried to tell herself anticipation was half the fun, but she was about out of patience. She was salivating at the thought of his thick erection plunging into her. She looked down his body and licked her lips when she saw him tense at her overly sexual glance.
“What are you… what’s going on?” he stammered.
“I’m hungry, Chad, simply famished.” She looked at his painted on jeans, open shirt, and sexy cowboy hat and she felt like flames were igniting all over her. Her skin burned and her core pulsed. She was about to go off without a single touch from him. He was all man – and he was hers.
She saw him shift, watched his jeans tighten as he became aware of her arousal. He shifted as he tried to maintain his anger, but she saw his eyes dilate. She knew she’d won. Bree reached up and undid the top button on her dress. Then she slowly moved down and released the next one.
She felt triumphant as his eyes practically jumped from their sockets as she moved down her dress, exposing her tempting cle**age to his view.
“Bree,” he groaned. He didn’t move, just watched as she performed her strip tease.
“Yes,” she panted as her dress fell open, exposing her lacy green bra to him. Her ni**les were beaded into hard buds and poking uncomfortably against the fabric, but even that was erotic.
She slipped her hands into the waistline of her dress and with a quick shimmy, it floated to the ground, leaving her standing before him in nothing but her lacy bra and matching panties, which barely covered her womanhood from his view.