Read Love at First Flight for Free Online Page A

window.
    “Jer?”
    Turning to her, his face a picture of
devastation, he said, “I'm sorry, Juliana. I'm so sorry.” She held out her arms
to him.
    He sat on the edge of the bed and leaned
into her embrace. “I don't know how to fix this.”
    Touched by his raw despair, she brought
him down for a soft kiss.
    He wrapped his arms around her and
shifted her under him in the middle of the big bed. “Jule,” he whispered
against her lips, “I love you so much. Let me show you.”
    She arched into him, her arms tightening
around him in surrender to the familiar dance.
    He pulled back to gaze down at her
before he tugged the shirt over her head. Capturing her hands, he left a
lingering kiss on each palm and put them on the pillows.
    “Leave them there,” he whispered,
running his index finger straight down the middle of her, between her breasts
and over her belly.
    She trembled and fought the urge to
reach for him.
    Unbuttoning her shorts, he slid them and
her panties over her hips and tossed them aside, all the while keeping his eyes
fixed on hers.
    He gave her ear his full attention then
left wet, hot kisses on her forehead, her cheeks, and the end of her nose.
    She tried to capture his lips, but he
shifted to focus on her neck.
    She moaned.
    With the flip of two fingers over the
front clasp of her bra, he freed her breasts and kissed her everywhere but
where she craved him most. When he finally rolled her nipple between his teeth,
she lifted off into a soaring climax that shook them both to the core. In all
their years together, it had never happened like that for her.
    He rested against her until she caught
her breath and then devoured her mouth in a series of kisses that left her weak
with desire. Cupping her, his fingers coasted through her slickness. As another
orgasm rolled through her in soft waves, he raised himself to enter her. He
gave her everything he had, as if it was their first time—or maybe their last.
    And when it was over, he lay gasping on
top of her, his eyes bright with emotion. “I love you, Juliana. I'll love you
forever.”
    She closed her eyes tight against the
burn of tears and held him close to her as the sun set over the beach.

CHAPTER
7
     
    THE AMELIA ISLAND COUNTRY CLUB SPARKLED
WITH white lights, crystal champagne glasses, chandeliers, and candles floating
in elaborate floral centerpieces. A small orchestra provided background music
while the Simpson's guests mingled over cocktails.
    When Michael was introduced to the
governor of Florida, the attorney general, and the state's senior senator, he
realized the Admiral was killing several birds with this party. A staunch
Republican, he was considering a run for the House of Representatives from
Florida's fourth district.
    “Meet my future son-in-law, Michael
Maguire,” the Admiral said to the governor and the attorney general as he
slapped Michael on the back. “He's a prosecutor on Tom Houlihan's team up in
Baltimore. Michael's first chair on a murder trial that starts next week.”
    The attorney general, Derek Gantley,
clasped Michael's hand. “Gang shooting?”
    “Yes, sir,” Michael said.
    “I've read about that case. Looks good for
conviction.”
    “We like our odds.”
    “Best of luck,” Gantley said.
    The Admiral whisked him and the governor
away to meet other guests.
    Michael grabbed a glass of champagne off
a passing tray and had downed half of it when he located Paige across the room surrounded
by her high school friends. Before the Admiral transferred to the Pentagon and
then the Naval Academy, she attended the exclusive Bolles School in
Jacksonville while her father served as the commanding officer of Naval Air
Station Jacksonville. Many of her friends still lived in the area, which was
one of the reasons she had been so anxious to move back to Florida when her
father retired from the Navy.
    Michael was working on a third glass of
champagne when Paige came to find him.
    “Having a good time?”
    “Yes,” she