Free Forever My Angel by Kelly Walker

better. When I took over the bar from my old man, one of the first things I did was remodel, add the second bar, and start booking more entertainment, making it a more relevant spot for the younger college crowd. I was desperate to prove that I was competent and capable in my own right, that I wasn’t simply my father’s son. Angel wants to be my wife, but she wants to be respected for her own talents too, not just the family we’re both expecting her to marry into.
    “You know,” I say as I sit the box of trash bags on the counter, looking around. She’s already made a big dent in the mess while I’ve been gone. “Enrollment for the spring semester at the university opens this week. We could register you for classes. If you want to, that is.”
    She stares at me silently, her hand frozen midair, still clutching a book she was about to put back on a nearby shelf.
    “...Or not,” I offer meekly. “It’s whatever you want, Angel.”
    She lowers her arm to her side, still holding the book as she sucks her lip in between her teeth. “Do you think they’d even accept me after I dropped out of ASU?”
    I know I’m treading on dangerous ground here, but I don’t want to give her anything other than complete honesty. “Most likely. And my checkbook tends to open doors that are otherwise closed.”
    When she frowns, I’m not surprised. “That’s exactly what I want to avoid. I want to stand on my own merits.”
    “But?” I prompt.
    The left half of her mouth curves into a tentative smile. “I do like the idea of finishing my degree.”
    “I think you can do most of the application online, but I’ll pick you up some brochures when I head over to the bar tomorrow afternoon.”
    I cross the room to pull her against me, relishing in the feel of her breathing warmly against my chest. There are times when I just have to touch her, to remind myself physically that she’s here, and alive. She wasn’t the only one who was damaged by Nick attacking her. That day...my heart was ripped right out of my chest and smashed into the ground. Some days I can’t close my eyes, unable to get the images of her at his mercy out of my head. I press a kiss to the top of her head, determined not to let today be one of those days.
    The therapist she sees said something at one of our joint sessions that's stuck with me. He said that ‘okay’ will mean a different thing to each individual person. Angel says her definition of okay is that she can recognize her urge to look over her shoulder for what it is, a remnant of her past, rather than part of her present. She says that accepting her fears as part of her makes her feel like she's in control of them, rather than them controlling her. That's her okay. My okay? It's doing everything in my power to keep her safe and happy. It's replacing the memory of her at his mercy with as many as we can make of her giving herself to me completely. As long as she's mine, she'll never be his again. He can't have a single moment of her future, because I claim it all.
    Her arms find their way around my waist. I wonder what sort of chance I have of convincing her to abandon the cleaning and go back to bed? That reminds again me of what she said yesterday, coming back from the farm. “For the record, while I will always support you in your dreams, no matter what they are, I kind of like the idea of you waiting at home for me, barefoot and pregnant, your waist swelling with our child.”
    I hear the sharp intake of her breath. “Not anytime soon.” She shoves playfully against my chest.
    “No,” I concede. “Probably not anytime soon.”
    She lifts ornery eyes up to mine. “ Definitely not anytime soon.”
    I just smile, skimming my hands up her waist, rubbing the little spot at the small of her back that she likes.
    Angel licks her lips. “I suppose it might not hurt to practice now.”
    Hells yeah. Back to bed it is.

Chapter Ten
    —-♥—-
    D espite the blissful way I spent last night, I