Letting out a soft curse, he said, “I’ve been informed she was arrested. Rest assured, she will never leave our home again.”
“That’s good for a start, but I think you can do better than that,” I replied. “If you truly want to make this right with Giorgio, you’re going to cover the donations he lost when your wife went off the rails.”
“Why should I?”
“Because you and your wife piss me off,” I snapped. “I’m loud and bitchy, and I really don’t give a single fuck who you are. I will take you down, and I’ll make sure you and your wife will never be able to show your faces in public again. Give me what I want, and I’ll consider not doing that.”
Tomas went silent for several seconds, then asked, “How much?”
“One moment, please.” I bit my lip and looked around. I had no idea what it would take to run this place. When I spotted Aubrey, I muted the call and hurried to her.
“How much will it cost to keep The Katie Project open for a year?”
She blinked, then named a figure. “That’s just a rough estimate based on what—”
“Close enough.” I returned to my corner and unmuted the call. “Sorry to keep you waiting. I think an anonymous donation of two million dollars ought to do the trick.”
“That’s quite a sum,” he murmured. “Are you feathering your own nest?”
“My nest is fine. Consider it a fair number. You get to support a very worthy cause, and maybe Giorgio won’t punch you in the face if he ever sees you again.”
“Does that mean you won’t punch me in the face if I do this?”
“No, but I’ll refrain from poisoning your food. All bets are off when it comes to your wife.”
Tomas let out a soft chuckle. “You drive a hard bargain, Ms. Pérez, but I agree to your terms. I’ll have the money wired tomorrow.”
“Thank you.” I breathed out a sigh of relief, then said, “It’s been a pleasure doing business with you.”
He barked out a surprisingly hearty laugh, considering I’d just extorted enough to run the charity for years from him, then said, “I share the sentiment, dear. Welcome to the family.”
Allowing myself a tiny smirk of satisfaction, I disconnected and erased every last one of his texts and all the entries in the call log. The matter was taken care of and Gio didn’t need the aggravation. I’d tell him about it some other time–like never.
Maybe this would make Tomas Acardi think twice before letting his wife fuck with Giorgio again, but I didn’t hold out much hope. I doubted he’d have lost any sleep if Giorgio had gone along with Proserpina’s plans.
Settling Gabriel more firmly in his carrier, I returned to him, then reached up for a kiss. “Excuse the interruption. I’m going to start cleaning up.”
He tugged me closer, then laid another kiss on me that made my toes curl. Man, his lips were dangerous. Stroking a thumb over my lower lip, he said, “Wait for me, and I’ll help.”
“No worries. Gabe and I will take care of everything.”
Nodding, he kissed me again and returned to his conversation. I got started on the leftovers, grimacing at the amount of food I’d have to throw out. Fortunately, most of the what Aubrey and Giorgio had ordered was still under refrigeration, so I’d only be tossing out what was on the tables. Seeing all that waste made me feel a lot less guilty about strong-arming Tomas into that huge donation.
Chance swiped the garbage bag from my hands and Aubrey got busy loosening the straps of the baby carrier. Gabriel’s diaper bag was already thrown over her shoulder.
“What are you two doing?” I asked, arching a brow.
“We’re taking Gabe home with us and cleaning up so you and Gio can get out of here and have a night to yourselves,” Aubrey replied. “We already got his car seat out of Giorgio’s car.”
“That’s right,” Chance said, sweeping trash into the bag. “But we’ll want to hear all the details when you come—”
“Chance!” Aubrey turned bright red and covered her face with her hands. “Every time you open your mouth, I swear you’re trying to give me a heart attack.”
He laughed and dropped an untouched deli tray into the bag. “As I was saying, when you come pick Gabe up, we want the whole story about why you asked how much it would cost to run The Katie Project, then five minutes later, you looked like Leonard after a good meal.”
Giving them a grin, I shook my head and said, “State secret, but The Katie Project won’t have to worry about funding for a very long time.”
Aubrey frowned, turning so I could do up the straps of Gabe’s carrier. “Is it illegal?”
“Nope.”
“Is it something I’ll have to claim plausible deniability for?”
“Probably not.”
She sighed and settled Gabe on her chest. “Okay, but I’m coming to you if something goes wrong.”
“It’ll be fine.” At least it better be, or Tomas was going to get another phone call. “Thank you for taking care of Gabe for us. I’m sure Giorgio will appreciate a full night’s sleep.”
Chance laughed and Aubrey slapped a hand over his mouth before he could reply. “Get out of here, girlfriend. We don’t want to see you until at least tomorrow afternoon.”
Giorgio
Hiding my sigh of relief, I escorted the reporter out, thanking him for his time. With luck, his article would undo some of the damage Proserpina had done. I didn’t hold out hope that the tabloids would do me any favors, but the LA Times might.
My phone had been blowing up with calls from my uncle, but I had no desire to talk to him. I wasn’t sure I could be civil. I reached into my back pocket for the device, meaning to read some of his texts, but found it gone.
“Looking for this?” Carli asked, holding it out to me. “It fell out of your pocket.”
“Thank you.” I took the phone, but kept hold of her hand and kissed her knuckles. “I saw Aubrey make off with our son. Will I have to worry about a kidnapping attempt?”
Carli turned pink and pinched her nose, but not before I saw her eyes glisten with moisture. “Our son?” she asked in a soft whisper.
“Ours.” I pulled her into my arms and lowered my face into her hair. She smelled like lemon and flowers, sweet and heady. God, I’d missed her. How had I gone so many weeks without her in my arms?
She coughed and swiped a finger under her eye. “Stupid mascara. I’ll look like a raccoon if I can’t control myself. Anyway, Aubrey and Chance are going to clean up for us, and they offered to take Gabriel for the night.”
I wasn’t sure how I felt about that. I didn’t like the idea of being separated from Gabe. He was too little to be away from his parents. Yet Chance and Aubrey had managed to raise CJ without letting him run into traffic or play with knives, so maybe they knew what they were doing.
I couldn’t deny the need for an uninterrupted night with Carli in my bed. Unfortunately, I wasn’t sure whether I wanted to sleep or fuck her blind. Antonio had been a huge help with Gabe, but I was exhausted.
“All right,” I finally said. “I’ll send Hunter to look after them.”
“Okay. Do you have a car here? I rode with Hunter and Jeremy.”
“Yes. I had Jeremy take Antonio and Leonard to my house. Do you want to go there or to your farm?”
Her eyes darkened and she reached around to fondle my ass. “Depends on how loud you make me scream when you fuck me.”
I coughed and closed my eyes, trying desperately to remind myself that making love in the public restroom of a charity was a bad idea. “You are so naughty.”
Giggling softly, she replied, “I guess you’ll have to spank me.”
Letting out a groan, I gathered the remaining threads of my self-control. “I need to check my messages and see what Tomas wants, then we’ll go.”
“You don’t need to do that,” she said much too quickly. “Let’s just get out of here.”
“I won’t be long” I said, waking the device. To my surprise, there were no message
s or missed calls. “Carli…”
She sniffed and lifted her chin. “Is it my fault you don’t have a password on your phone? I think not, Mr. Land Baron. You never know what nefarious person will erase all the messages she doesn’t want you to deal with.”
I couldn’t decide whether to spank her in the middle of my new building, or hug her until she couldn’t breathe. I settled for wrapping an arm around her waist and leading her toward the door. “I suppose Tomas can wait until tomorrow.”
“Don’t bother. I took care of him.”
Her flat voice stopped me in my tracks and I turned to look at her. “What did you do?”
“Nothing.” She grinned impishly and tugged my ponytail. “Don’t worry your pretty head about anything.”
Ignoring her squeal, I picked her up and tossed her over my shoulder. Swatting her backside, I said, “I have ways of making you talk.”
Her uncontrolled giggles made me smile. I’d missed her laughter so damned much. As much as I missed Gabriel already, I was looking forward to an uninterrupted night with Carli. We had so much to catch up on.
I broke every speed limit in California in my rush to get her home, and we didn’t make it to a bed. I wasn’t about to complain.
Birds chirped outside the open window and I stroked Carli’s cheek, marveling at her soft skin. Her quiet breathing soothed me. We hadn’t gotten to sleep until nearly dawn, and I hesitated to wake her, but I was pretty sure she needed to take care of her animals.
Hearing footsteps outside, I got up and went to the window, careful not to disturb her. To my surprise, I saw Clyde filling the food pans for the chickens. I reminded myself to give the man a fat raise and climbed back into bed, curling around Carli’s warm body. We’d have to get up soon, but for now, I was going back to sleep.
Eventually, my nose woke me up. Someone was cooking bacon. The bed next to me was empty and cold, telling me Carli had been up for awhile. After pulling on my jeans, I stood in front of the mirror over her dresser and ran my fingers through my hair, then scanned around for a hair tie. An antique jewelry box, still smelling faintly of smoke from the fire, rested to the left of the mirror.
I’d never seen her wear jewelry, except to the Chamber of Commerce ball. Curious, I opened it and my heart jumped and stalled in my chest. The engagement ring I’d given her after the fire was the only thing inside. Clenching it in my fist, I closed the box and shoved the ring in my pocket.
I padded down the stairs and into the kitchen. Carli was in front of the stove, wearing my t-shirt and an apron.
Aside from the bacon, there was a casserole in the oven, and I smelled something fruity and spicy wafting from a saucepan on the back of the stove.
“Good morning,” I murmured, putting my hands around her waist. “What’s for breakfast?”
“It’s actually almost four, so an early supper.” She grabbed a potholder and a spoon, then stirred the mixture in the saucepan. “Antonio and Leonard will be over in about half an hour with Hunter and Jeremy. I also invited Chance and Aubrey. They’re bringing Gabriel back, so I thought it would be nice to feed them.”
“Smells delicious. Why didn’t you wake me?”
“I tried a few hours ago, but you were out cold. I figured you might as well sleep while you had the chance.”
“Thanks.” I stole a piece of bacon from the platter, laughing when she slapped my hand with a wooden spoon. “What are we having?”
“Baked French toast with raspberry compote, Cuban frittata with tomatoes, onions, and bacon if I can keep you out of it, and fresh cut fruit. I didn’t have time to go to the store for anything fancier.”
“Mmm.” I stroked her thigh, sneaking my hand under the shirt to fondle her ass. “I think I missed your food almost as much as I missed you. Are you at a stopping point?”
She shut off the gas under the saucepan, then turned in my arms and rubbed against me. My cock thickened and I bit back a groan. Even after making love most of the night, I still wanted her.
“Maybe.” She nibbled on my chest, swiping her tongue over my nipple. “What do you have in mind?”
“We could—” A horn blared outside, cutting off my filthy suggestion. “Get dressed and invite our guests in,” I finished, lowering my head to hers. Hand in hand, we raced upstairs to change.
After supper, we sat around Carli’s magnificent antique oak table, picking at the relish tray she’d produced. The kitchen was clean, and Carli hummed softly while she fed Gabe his bottle.
I rubbed my hand against the object in my pocket. She looked like a disheveled angel. Her hair was up in a messy bun and she had a streak of formula on her shirt. Although she still had dark circles under her eyes, she radiated contentment.
I wanted to do this in front of my family and friends. My real family–both the ones by blood and the ones I’d chosen. Legs shaking, I stood and walked around the table, then got on my knees. Chairs skidded across the tile floor, making Carli look up in surprise.
“Carlina Pérez, I want to ask you something.”
“Huh? What?” Gabriel fussed and she resettled him against her chest, then patted his back.
I held up the ring, ignoring Hunter and Jeremy snapping pictures with their phones. “Will you do me the honor of—”
She blinked at me and Gabe let out a belch, depositing part of his formula on her shoulder. “Are you asking me to marry you? Now?”
“Is it working?” God, if she said no… I prayed for the third time in my life.
She cupped my face, then leaned down to kiss me. “Yeah, it is.”
Carli’s eyes sparkled with tears when I took her hand and slid the ring over her finger. Her lips met mine and cheers erupted.
“You both owe me twenty dollars,” Jeremy said, still taking pictures. “I told you both you’d be married before the end of the year.”
“Bill me for it,” I muttered, kissing my wife-to-be.
“He bet you too?” Carli asked.
We both glared at Jeremy, and he smirked.
“I knew I’d get my sister sooner or later,” Antonio muttered, scratching Leonard’s jaw. “Sure did take you long enough.”
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About Raisa Greywood
Author of filthy smut, empty nester, and cat snuggler.
She’s worked as a teacher, an actuary (her husband called her a bookie–which isn’t too far from the truth), mother, scout leader, and is now enjoying semi-retirement writing the books she’s always wanted to read.
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Also by Raisa Greywood
Happily Never After (written with Sinistre Ange)
Demon Lust
Blood Lust
Holiday Daddies
Jennifer’s Christmas Daddy
A Valentine for Chelsea
Shifter’s Mates
The Tiger Queen
The Tiger King
The Leopard Mage
The Leopard Prince
The Jaguar Rogue
The Jaguar Knight
Standalone Titles & Anthologies
Longing and Lust & Other Short Stories
Bastard’s New Baby
Ladder 54: Five Firefighter Romances
Masters of the Castle: Witness Protection Program
Dangerous Curves Ahead: An Anthology
Wicked Magic Trilogy
Wicked Deception
Wicked Truth
<
br /> Wicked Fire
Sexy Scoundrel: A Cocky Hero Club Novel Page 27