Melissa Collins: Let Love Heal

Leaning into his kisses, I mumble, “hmmm.” We stand there with our arms wrapped tightly around one another swaying to music that’s not even playing. Nuzzling into his warm chest, I inhale the combination of woodsy cologne and pure Bryan that makes my heart skip a beat.

“I love you too, Bryan. So much.” I stretch up on my toes and kiss him fiercely. When I begin to feel the effects of my kiss pressing into my lower belly, I pull back and arch an eyebrow at him.

Bryan winks and smirks at me, saying “What? He loves you too.”

“Oh my God! I can’t believe you just said that.” I laugh at him while hugging him tightly. “You’re such a dork.”

Staring down at me with a look that’s a mixture of seriousness and playfulness, he says, “Yeah, but I’m your dork.”

“Yes, you are. All mine.” With that statement, he effortlessly lifts me up and carries me over to the bed – which is covered in a very old and ratty ‘boy’ comforter. This place is in some desperate need of purple.

Dropping me rather unceremoniously on the mattress, his lips curl into a seductive grin. “Wanna christen the bed?”

Propping myself up on my elbows, I watch as he pulls his shirt over his head. His abs and chest make me incapable of speaking, so I just nod dumbly and prepare myself for delicious torment of our lovemaking.

As he presses his body down onto mine, in between sweet kisses, he mutters, “I can’t believe this is really real. I can’t believe I’m lucky enough to have you in my life every single day.”

Focusing my stare directly into his caramel-colored irises, I let a lusty breath fill my lungs. “Bryan, I’m the lucky one. You loved me when I thought that love was the last thing I deserved. You loved me when I didn’t even love me. I can’t say that I’m prefect; God knows I’m far from it, but I’m finally okay with that. I’m so lucky to have you in my life because you taught me how to love myself.” I pull his face down to mine and kiss him with all of the love I feel. With a look that’s a mixture of light-heartedness and desire, I mutter against his soft lips, “So after we christen the bed, can we christen the couch?”

The rumbles of his deep laughter vibrate against our pressed-together chests. Smiling sexily, he says, “Oh, we’ll get the couch. And then the kitchen table, and then the laundry room. And don’t forget the shower, too.”

As his lips and tongue work their magic across my skin, I know that today will be a great day.

And tomorrow, well, tomorrow will kick today’s ass.

The End

When I wrote Let Love In and Let Love Stay , I had no idea that there would be other books for the other characters. But, when readers fell in love with the supporting cast, I knew I had to write about them – and I knew Melanie’s story had to be next. What I didn’t know is what the heck I would write! When I was in the early stages of thinking about what to write, I came across a blog post from Monica at If These Boobs Could Talk . Monica had a simple request in her post (which can be read here – http://siliconealley.blogspot.com/2013/07/hi.html): to read about an average size, not-so-stick-thin heroine. It was after that post that Melanie truly came to life for me. Never having been a size two in my life, I always struggled with my body image and feeling beautiful. Ashamed of what I looked like, or what I thought people saw when they looked at me, I felt undeserving of love for so long. So sadly, Melanie’s story is my story in a lot of ways and I have a feeling that hers is the story of all too many women. No matter your size, I hope you have one take-away from Let Love Heal – you deserve love.

I owe a huge debt of gratitude to so many people that it would be impossible to list them all. The community of indie authors is warm and inviting and so utterly helpful. Whether you answered a question for me or helped me develop a scene, I want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Carey Heywood, who has earned the affectionate title of my Book Wifey - I will forever be thankful for our friendship. Our late night and early morning chats about all things book related – and lots of things not-so-book related help to keep me grounded and focused. And they make me laugh, a lot!

I have a truly amazing group of beta readers who have helped so much. Thank you Susan Griffiths, Laurna Hamilton, Malinda Burchett, Jennifer Diaz, Jennifer Short (my ninja fairy God mother), Kristy Bruno, Chelsea Camaron (thank you so much for loving my characters as much as I do) and Pamela Schaeffer (I’m so sorry for making you cry – but I’m not, really). Without your feedback, I know that Let Love Heal wouldn’t be what it is today.

I know that I wouldn’t have nearly as many readers as I do if it weren’t for the fantastic bloggers out there who have reviewed and promoted for me. There are too many to name, but please know that, whether it was sharing a post, doing a cover reveal, taking part in a tour or running a spotlight on me, I am so grateful for each and every single one of you. Debra, at Book Enthusiast Promotions, you are a God send. Thank you for everything. I don’t know how you do it, but I’m so glad that you do.

Arijana Karčić at Cover It! Designs makes the most beautiful covers I’ve ever seen and I am so grateful for her skills. Thank you for helping me come up with a cover that is as strikingly beautiful as Melanie’s story.

Angela McLaurin at Fictional Formats is my knight in shining armor. I’ll never forget how you came to my rescue at the last minute right before I published Let Love Stay. You’re finishing touches truly bring my words to life on both their virtual and paper pages.

Before a good book can become an exceptional one, it needs a great editor. I am so thrilled that I’ve found one in Becky Johnson at Hot Tree Editing. Thank you for working over my manuscripts with scrutiny and precision. I don’t know how I found you, but I’m so glad I did.

I really don’t know where to begin with thanking my family. I have to admit that when my mom told me that she read Let Love In and she asked for a copy of Let Love Stay , I blushed quite a bit. But, just knowing that she has taken an interest in my writing has helped me feel more confident in sharing it with everyone else. So, thank you Mom for reading and supporting my work. Thank you for being the first person who ever made me feel like I deserved to be loved.

I might very well be the luckiest woman on the planet to have a husband who loves and supports her as much as mine does. So many of the words that Bryan tells Melanie are echoes of the words that he has told me more than once before. Forever my cheerleader and my number one tech-guy, I love you with all of my heart. Thank you so much for helping me see just how beautiful I am.

To my sons, I apologize in advance for any torment that my romance novels cause you when you’re teenagers. I have a good feeling that you might never read these words, but on the off chance that you do (sometime way down the road in the distant future) please know that every time you’ve held one of my books and said it was pretty, or pointed to the computer screen and said “That’s your book, Mommy.”, you’ve made my heart swell with pride.