Caught by Brandy Walker Page B

intimately connected. It was when he started to soften that he pulled out, holding the base of the condom to keep anything from leaking out. He placed a kiss on her lips before making his way to the bathroom. A couple of minutes later, he was crawling back into bed with her. Turning her body so her back was to his chest, wrapping himself around her. She felt safe and protected in his arms. Like she was meant to be right where she was.
    Neither said a word as the world starting revolving again, too content to want to break the spell around them.
    Drifting in and out of sleep, Laurel jolted to awareness when her name escaped Quin’s lips as he dozed behind her.
    A glance at the clock and she about had a heart attack. She had forty minutes to get showered and dressed before she needed to meet her parents for brunch.
    “Quin!” He grumbled next to her but didn’t move. She glanced at him, at some point they had shifted apart. His tanned, defined chest was bare. Tempting her to trace the bumps and dips of his physique. She needed to snap out of it. “Quin! We have to get up.”
    “I don’t think I can go again honey, but thanks for the ego boost.” He rolled onto his side and pulled her against him.
    “Not that! I have to get cleaned up. I’m supposed to meet my parents for brunch, remember?”
    “Your parents? Oh yeah. That’s why we couldn’t get together Sunday.”
    “Today is Sunday. It’ll take me at least ten minutes to get to the other side of town where the restaurant is, so let’s go.” She peeled his arm away from her waist and shot out of bed, making a mad dash to the bathroom. Quin walked in a couple steps behind her chuckling.
    “Babe, you need to slow down.” He grabbed her by the shoulders and stopped her from moving. “Give me a second and I’ll get the shower going. Why don’t you grab us some towels.”
    “Us?”
    “Yes, us. I need a shower too. I don’t want your parents smelling sex on me when I meet them. What kind of first impression would that make?”
    “Meet them?” She sounded like a parrot, knew she was dumbly repeating him, but he had said it was too soon to meet her parents.
    Quin pressed a kiss to her lips. “Yes. I want to meet them. I hate to tell you but you aren’t getting rid of me that easily. Besides, I’d rather they know now that I plan on marrying you when you’re ready.”
    “Hold on there. Marry me? Isn’t it a bit soon to be talking about marriage?” She probed inward to see how she felt about that and decided she rather liked the idea. It was still too soon, but she felt lightness in her heart at the thought of being with him forever.
    Quin was her dream guy. Always had been. While teenage Quin was a sight to behold, she much preferred the grown up version. She wasn’t lying to him the night before when she said she liked the man he had turned into. Along with everything else she told him, there was a funny, quirky side she adored as well as a romantic, sweet side you wouldn’t guess was there. She never would have pictured Quin, the football stud, content with sitting around watching silly horror movies or trading stories about his family just to get to know a woman better.
    “Yeah, I know it’s soon but I feel it here.” He pulled her hand up to his bare chest, placing it over his heart. “I knew that first time I saw you, you were special.”
    “You mean out at the jump that first day?” Because he couldn’t mean back in high school.
    “No, I mean the first time I really saw you. That day out on the field.”
    Laurel was stunned into silence.
    “Honey, you okay?” She looked at Quin, startled to find him looking at her with concern. “You aren’t freaking out on me are you?”
    She couldn’t help but laugh or the prick of tears in her eyes. “I’m freaking out a little, but I’ll be fine. Let’s get cleaned up. I’d love for you to meet my parents.” Stepping into the shower she pulled Quin in behind her. Excitement coursed through