Page 17 of Words of Love
“That’s a classic.” Brooke had opened her eyes and was watching him.
“With throbbing loins, it had better be.”
“Well, it was written back in the day when romance authors used a lot of flowery prose. The story is fantastic, though. It’s about a medieval knight who goes on a crusade to win the hand of his lady love.”
“Considering she has lush mounds and quivering thighs,” he scanned the page, “I can’t say I blame him.”
She chuckled, and the musical sound lodged somewhere inside him. “Keep in mind that romance novels are one of the reasons you have a bookstore. They’re one of the reasons there are publishing houses and readers. Have you ever read one?”
“No.” He closed the book and picked up another with a guy in a business suit on the cover. “What’s the research?”
Her cheeks grew pink, but she smiled. “Okay,obviouslyI bought the books for myself. I read romance novels all the time. I love them.”
“But you know what happens at the end, right?” He rifled through the second book. “With that kind of predictability, what’s the appeal?”
“Thejourneyto the end.” She lifted her arms above her head for a stretch. Her breasts pressed against her shirt. “The messages, too. Love conquers all. Everyone deserves a happy ending. We should all be so lucky to find our One True Love.”
“Our what?”
“It’s the one person on earth who’s perfect for you, and you for them.” She pressed her palms together and drew her shoulders back. “It’s not necessarily a once-in-a-lifetime thing, but it’s when you discover the partner with whom you can be totally yourself without any fear. It’s the person you want. The one you choose who chooses you back unconditionally.”
“No wonder it’s fiction.” He tossed the book back onto the table.
“Let me guess.” Her voice was dry. “You don’t believe One True Loves exist.”
“That’s the point of fiction. Some of it, at least. To tell stories about implausible events.”
“And to tell the truth about life.” She pulled one foot up to rest alongside her inner thigh. “Love is one of the world’s greatest truths.”
“And the biggest lie. What are you doing?”
“Tree pose. It brings clarity and focus, except when the practitioner is talking toyouat the same time.” She lowered her foot to the floor. “Do you really believe love is a lie?”
Was thatdisappointmentin her expression?
Shame flicked through him like the strike of a whip. “Yeah, because when it gets tough, people walk away. That’s why the divorce rate is so high and why most marriages are unhappy. People fall in love and get married believing the lie, and then they discover they made a huge mistake. But sometimes they can’t walk away…in which case, they just stay miserable.”
“Wow.” She shook her head slowly, her eyes darkening. “And I thought I had a bad breakup.”
If only he could blame “a bad breakup.”
“I’m not sayingallrelationships or marriages are unhappy,” he amended. “I just don’t know of any happy ones.”
“Then you haven’t been looking.” She lowered her hands to the floor, braced her feet, and pushed her rear up into the air.
His blood stirred. Actually, it went into a tornado. His fingers ached to squeeze her soft, round ass. He’d come dangerously close to doing exactly that when she’d been bent over peering into the fridge yesterday.
“I can tell you wonderful love stories about plenty of couples in Bliss Cove alone.” Brooke rose to her tiptoes. Her hair fell in a shiny curtain on either side of her face. “My parents, for one. They became high-school sweethearts when my mom asked my dad to the junior prom. Forty years later, they’re still together. My grandpa Charlie met my grandma Ruth a month before he went to Vietnam. They were married the day before he left, and they wrote letters every day until they were reunited again. She was the one who encouraged him to become a journalist to tell people’s stories. There’s no question they had a bond oftruelove.”
“Not surprised that you believe in it, then.”
“Most people do.” She walked her hands backward and straightened. “That’s just one of the reasons romance novels are so popular. A lot of women believe in finding the man who is perfect for them, whatever characteristics he might have.”
“As long as he’s a billionaire who looks like Chris Hemsworth.” Sam tossed the novel back onto the table.
“What, you don’t imagine Angelina Jolie when you fantasize?” Brooke rested her hands on her hips and tossed her hair back.
Actually, he didn’t…but he wasn’t about to confess whohadappeared in his more explicit fantasies.