“Oh, my dear girl, you did the right thing getting rid of him,” Josie said to Magan later that afternoon when we were discussing the fact Magan had ditched her boyfriend.
Magan nodded. “I know.”
“I know it’s a cliché, but there really are plenty of other fish in the sea. Sometimes you just need to fish for longer or you need to change your fishing locations.” She eyed Griff, and added, “Or you need to let someone else do the fishing for you.”
I laughed while he shook his head and muttered something under his breath.
Holding up the plate with scones on it, I asked, “Josie, would you like another scone?”
Her face lit up and she nodded with a smile. “Your scones are the bomb, Sophia. I would love another one, thank you.”
Magan burst out laughing and slapped her hand over her mouth. “Did you just say her scones are the bomb, Josie?”
“Yes, because they are,” Josie said, looking confused.
“Oh, my God, I’ve never heard anyone over the age of, like, thirty say that word,” Magan said, clearly finding this funny.
“Josie’s been spending too much time with Sophia,” Griff threw in, and although he said it like he rued the day, I knew he loved how close we were becoming.
Josie raised her brows. “Magan, you don’t reach an age in life where you stop living and stop learning new things. I might be old to you, but in my mind, I’m still somewhere between thirty and forty.”
Griff suddenly stood and headed inside without a word. When Josie and Magan gave me a querying look, I shrugged and said, “I don’t know where he’s going.”
Josie ate her scone while Magan and I finished off our cake, and then she said, “I’m going to go home before it gets dark. Thank you for a wonderful afternoon, Sophia.”
We all stood, but before we could go inside, Griff came back out, holding something in his hand. As he got closer, I could see it was something small wrapped in Christmas paper.
Josie eyed it and her face lit up with a smile, but she didn’t say anything.
He moved to where she stood, and pulled a necklace from the wrapping. Looking at her, he said, “I found this the other day…had forgotten you’d given me a Christmas present until then.”
Josie nodded, and I realised this was a significant moment for them because the mood had turned serious. “It was your mother’s, and her mother’s before that, Michael.”
“I remember her wearing it.”
Josie reached out, and placed her hand over his, squeezing it gently. “She wanted you to have that. Her first-born son was always to have that necklace to give to the woman he loved.”
Griff nodded. “She told me that,” he said gruffly.
Josie’s eyes were full of so much love for her nephew. “I am glad you found it,” she said as she moved towards me. Putting her arms around me, she whispered, “Thank you, beautiful girl. I’m going to die a happy woman one day.”
I wasn’t sure what she meant, but I smiled and hugged her back. “Thank you for coming. We’ll do this again soon.”
As Josie said her goodbyes to Magan, she also said, “Help an old lady home, will you, dear girl?”
Magan hooked her arm through Josie’s and said, “Sure.”
I watched them go until Griff’s arms came around my waist, and he spun me to face him. I sucked in a breath at what I found there. He stared at me with an intense gaze that shot straight to my core. His lips landed on mine and he kissed me, and it had to be said, that kiss was one of the most intense, passionate kisses I’d ever experienced. It was as if he put all the want and need he had for me into that one kiss. When he ended it, he said, “I love you, Sophia.”
He was full of surprises today. First the moving in, now this declaration.
I loved every single second of today.
And I loved everything about this man standing in front of me.
Smiling, I said, “I love you, too, Griff.”
He took his mother’s necklace and placed it around my neck. It was a beautiful antique gold necklace with a diamond pendant.
My hand moved to hold it in place for a moment as I fought back tears. He would never know just what this gesture meant to me.
Not only did it show me his love, but it was a symbol of family to me.
My first tear fell, and I gave up trying to hold them back. They needed to be shed.
They also symbolised something for me – a new beginning, and a new chance at building a family for myself.
I smiled up at him through them. “A bit of both, handsome, but mostly, I’m just regrouping.”
Watching his face was like watching a switch being flipped. Something I’d said caused him to switch to bossy Griff. He bent his face to mine, and growled, “You’ve got till Magan goes home to regroup and then I’m going to have you naked and under me for the rest of the night, doing whatever I tell you to do.”
My heart beat faster at the thought of what was to come. “That’s why you love me, isn’t it?” I teased. “Because I let you boss me around.”
He stared at me for a long moment before giving me something I would cherish forever. “I love you for your smart-ass mouth, and your purity, and your kindness, and your rambling, and your love of family, and for the way you care about those you love. But most of all, I love you because you’re you, and you accept me for who I am.”
I would always accept him for who he was, just as he had accepted me.
Griff had shown me that some of the beliefs we have about ourselves are illusive, and that we need to leave the pain and hurt behind, and step into our new skin. The past is part of us, part of our story, but it doesn’t have to be who we are today, and it doesn’t mean our story won’t get better.
Together, Griff and I would write a new story – a better story.
THE END
Pre-Order Command - the next book in the Storm MC Series.
Releases on the 19th October 2015
Scott & Harlow’s Continuing Story
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PS If you loved King in this book and want to read more of him, you’ll find him in my book, Relent, which is the first book in my Storm MC spin-off series - The Sydney Storm MC Series.
Relent (Book 1)
Also by Nina Levine
Storm MC Series
In Order:
Storm (Storm MC #1)
Fierce (Storm MC #2)
Blaze (Storm MC #3)
Revive (Storm MC #4)
Slay (Storm MC #5)
Illusive (Storm MC #6) – COMING 25TH AUGUST 2015 – ORDER NOW
Command (Storm MC #7) – COMING 19TH OCTOBER - PREORDER NOW
Havoc Series
Destined Havoc (Havoc #1)
Inevitable Havoc (Havoc #2) – COMING 2015 – ADD TO TBR
Sydney Storm MC Series
Relent (Book 1)
Nitro’s Torment (Book 2) – COMING 2015 – ADD TO TBR
Devil’s Vengeance (Book 3) – COMING 2016 – ADD TO TBR
Hyde’s Absolution (Book 4) – COMING 2016 – ADD TO TBR
King’s Wrath (Book 5) – COMING 2016 – ADD TO TBR
All Your Reasons (Book 1)
Be The One (Book 2)
Untitled – Van’s Story (Book 3) – COMING 2016
Keep up to date with my books at my website
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Acknowledgments
To Jodie – Thank you for beta reading this book; for loving my characters enough and for believing in my story and my writing enough to offer me honest feedback even when I know this is so very hard for you to do. You do it with such kindness and wisdom, and it means the world to me that I have you in my corner. Your ideas make my stories so much better.
To Karen – Again, you put up with me while editing my book, and I will always be grateful to you f
or working with me the way you do. You always make my words and sentences better while allowing me the space to be me. Thank you so much for all your hard work on Illusive.
To Letitia – Jodie and I thought you would quit on me… we truly did. Thank you so much for all your hard work on my Storm MC covers. Thank you for putting up with my constant back and forth asking for so many changes. I am in love with all my new covers in a way I have never loved any of my covers. Authors keep asking me who my new designer is and while I do tell them, I don’t want to, but that’s just because I want to keep you all to myself.
To E – Thank you for putting up with my crazy. I love you, baby.
To Team Levine – Thank you for your tireless sharing and promoting of my books and me. Thank you for believing in me like you do, and thank you for your friendships. You girls are amazing and I love you to the moon and back.
To My Bloggers – Thank you for all your hard work promoting books every day. I know the hours you put in, and I know it’s all for love, and I adore you for that. I try to say it often, but in case you’ve missed it, if there is ever anything I can do to help you, please send me an email to authorninalevine@gmail.com
To My Stormchasers – Thank you for your amazing support and friendships. I love our group. I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again – it’s my favourite place on the internet. And the really special thing? I’ve had the honour of meeting some of you ladies, and am looking forward to meeting more of you soon. I love that!!
To My Readers – Thank you for buying my books and loving my characters as much as I do. Actually, some days, I think many of you may love my characters more than I do! Without you, I wouldn’t get to do what I love to do day in and day out. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
To My Girls – Jodie, Jani, Nat, Chelle, River, Max, Lyra, Nadine, Melanie, Becca, Christina, Rachel – I love you ladies. Thank you for being my friends.
Illusive Playlist
I listen to music while writing and have a playlist for each book.
Illusive was heavily influenced by Kid Rock’s song. “Johnny Cash”. One line in particular spoke deeply to me for this book, and always made me think of Griff.
I walk that line because you love me
Other songs on the Illusive Playlist are:
Pleasure and Pain by the Divinyls
Come As You Are by Nirvana
Take It Out On Me by Florida Georgia Line
She Will Be Loved by Maroon 5
Shame by Keith Urban
No Lies by Jason Reeves
Rolling In The Deep by Adele
Piece by Piece by Kelly Clarkson
See You Again by Wiz Khalifa
Beneath Your Beautiful by Labrinth & Emeli Sande
Smoke by A Thousand Horses
Collide by Kid Rock & Sheryl Crow
Free Fallin’ by Tom Petty
Alone by Heart
I Want To Know What Love Is by Foreigner
Photograph by Ed Sheeran
If Ever I Could Love by Keith Urban
Gold by Jessie J
Whatever She’s Got by David Nail
Invincible by Kelly Clarkson
Run, Run, Run by Kelly Clarkson & John Legend
I’m A Fire by David Nail
Dark Side by Kelly Clarkson
About the Author
Dreamer.
Coffee Lover.
Gypsy at heart.
Bad boy addict.
USA Today Bestselling Aussie author who writes about alpha men & the women they love.
When I'm not creating with words you will find me either creating with paper or curled up with a good book and chocolate.
I love Keith Urban, Maroon 5, Pink, Florida Georgia Line, Bon Jovi, Matchbox 20, Lady Antebellum and pretty much any singer/band that is country or rock.
I’m addicted to Nashville, The Good Wife & wish that they would create a never-ending season of Sons of Anarchy.
Contact Me Here
@NinaLWriter
AuthorNinaLevine
www.ninalevinebooks.com
authorninalevine@gmail.com
Copyright © 2015 Nina Levine
Published by Nina Levine
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form, including electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental. Nina Levine is in no way affiliated with any brands, songs, musicians or artists mentioned in this book. This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return it to the seller and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the author’s work.
Editing by Karen Louise Rohde Faergemann at The Word Wench Editing Services
Cover Design by Romantic Book Affair Designs