Christmas with Catherine & Dawson, Part 3. Come join us! #contest #give@way!

Welcome back for the FINAL Christmas with Catherine and Dawson Giveaway!

In Castaway Hearts, Christmas continues to play big role in bringing Catherine and Dawson together. Her heartache over the tragic death of Dawson's brother at sea submerges Catherine in grief and nearly costs her life. I'll share with you now, the scene after she awakens and the gift that Dawson gives her, which is quite intimate and personal.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Catherine glanced down at the blue paper around the box that sat across her legs. It wasn’t heavy and she felt very shy all of a sudden about a gift from him. She had never received a gift from any man.

This was a momentous occasion and she held her breath.

Slipping the ribbon away, she lifted the lid to discover soft pink fabric, decorated with magnificent floral embroidery across the front. Catherine lifted the clothing out so it revealed itself as a new nightgown. She felt heat rush her cheeks.

“Oh, Dawson.” She exhaled in a whisper. “This is too much. You shouldn’t have. What would people think if I told them you got me a nightgown?”

“You don’t have to tell them, you know.” Dawson scooted the tray of food and her other gift to the other side of the bed so he could sit down across from her. Catherine looked up at him and saw the glimmer in his eyes, the sparkle of humor and sincerity.

“I figured you might like a nightgown that was new and fresh.” Dawson admitted in a low voice.

Catherine tried to swallow the lump in her throat, uncertain what to say. She glanced down at the gown she wore. Now she was certain it was not hers.

The idea that she wore a dead woman’s nightgown bothered her, but not as much as gown that lay before her. No matter how practical, this was not the gift of a friend.

A man would give this to his wife in the privacy of their bedroom, without the inquisitive eyes of others. She wondered if he had done the same with Lucinda. Though she sat in the middle of his bed, dressed in naught but a flimsy nightgown anyway, Catherine was not his wife.

“You can’t expect me to accept this. It’s much too personal.” Catherine held the soft fabric in her hands. Silky, smooth, and near transparent, it was much more intimate than a simple nightgown and she wanted to wear it. Her heart thumped in her ears loud as a drum as she shook her head. “This is a gift you give a spouse.”

The last sentence slipped out in a hushed breath before Catherine could stop her erratic thoughts. They trailed off, in wicked daydream of what it would be like to wear the luxurious garment, to have Dawson lay her down on this bed and make love to her.

How remarkable his mouth would feel if it touched her all over, even in her most private of places. She felt the flash of heat across her skin when she looked away from him, embarrassed by her own wayward thoughts.

His hand came into her line of sight and caressed hers. “And what if I wanted that?”

Catherine shot him a look, finding tenderness filled the deep cobalt of his eyes.

“What?”

“What if I wanted you for my wife, Catherine?” Dawson put his hand into his pocket. He withdrew a small object, shiny and golden.

A ring.

 ~*~*~*~*~*~

This the final of 3 Christmas with Catherine and Dawson Giveaways. Each contest begins on Monday and end on Sunday between now and the holidays. I will contact the winner for address information, especially in regard to the gift card choices in this giveaway and I will ship the prize as soon as I'm able once the contest has ended.

Dawson's concern over Catherine having a gown of her own, inspired this giveaway to gift the winner with some "intimate apparel" of their own this holiday season. I hope you'll enjoy it and thanks for joining us!

Pictured above are the items included in this giveaway- 1 SIGNED print copy of Castaway Hearts, a bookmark and each of my 4 business cards (for you to keep or give away to others you think might be interested) and a pair of Blue Shell Tea Candle Holders (included are 6 Vanilla Caramel scented tea candles). I don't have a picture of it, but also included in this is your choice of a $25 Gift Card from either Frederick's of Hollywood or Victoria's Secret.

Please follow the instructions below on the Rafflecopter widget for your chances to win! There are several ways to play. We've enjoyed having you join us!

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#SCENTsational Saturdays- #Fave 4- #DreamAngels #Heavenly

There is irony in the fact that this SCENTsational Saturday's favorite is

Victoria Secret's Dream Angels Heavenly.

 Capture the radiance. Live the dream. Love the romance of Dream Angels® fragrance. Luminous and sensual, Dream Angels Heavenly® glows in luxurious warmth. White musk, sandalwood, vanilla and white peony.

Several years ago, when my marriage was much younger, I'd told my husband I'd like a bottle of Frederick's of Hollywood perfume for Christmas. It was pricy, but I loved the fragrance on the little sampler sheet that was in my catalogs. I knew there wasn't a store anywhere close to where we lived, so I kept dropping hints for him to order online or from the catalog. We didn't really know each other all that well at the time, had only been married maybe a year, together two, so he didn't know how to take the hint, at all.

Imagine my surprise when he made a trip to the mall without me and came home with "a little something you asked for." He was so proud that he "found the perfume I asked for," and it even came with a small clutch (that's a purse) but I was beyond crushed. He actually thought he'd went to the right store and got me the right perfume. I thought the smell was just too loud and it gave me a headache and I burst into tears.

Now, I can't remember exactly what was said, but at the time, I was still coming down from the hormones of having a baby and I was so completely taken aback by the fact that he'd gotten the wrong thing, I took the immature route and fussed at him about it. How could he have gotten it wrong? I'd hinted and blatantly told him which one I wanted, had in fact told him he'd have to order it, but instead, he did things his own way.

It turned into a fight, and not a pretty one- if a fight can ever be pretty, because at the time, our marriage was so new and we were learning about each other all the time, finding out things we hadn't been aware of when we first got together....it was like balancing on shifting plates, similar to the tectonic plates that shift and cause earthquakes. It was shaky and scary and uncertain what might set us off.

Of course, he felt awful that it wasn't, in fact, what I'd asked for and after I had my big baby cry, I tried to accept the gift anyway as something unique that he picked out just for me. His intentions were in the right place, but I was left feeling that he didn't know me at all.

The irony in that, is that after nearly 9 years or so, I actually LOVE this perfume because I think of him when I wear it- not the messy argument about it, but the sensual aroma of it and the fact that it was a signature fragrance that I've only ever worn since he and I have been together. It's a scent that I associate with my husband, so I guess that good intentions gone awry do sometimes have a lasting effect- in a good way!

Has a significant other ever given you a fragrance or cologne you just could not stand? Or perhaps, given you a new scent that now, years later, inspires lovely memories and happy thoughts?

 Share with me...

Have a SCENTsational Saturday!