In the Crease (Assassins Book 11)

by Toni Aleo

  Her eyes widened before she nodded, his hand still holding her chin before he dropped his mouth to hers. He heard Brie gushing over them, but he didn’t care. All he cared about was his mouth on hers. As she held his arm, her lips moving with his, he was bewildered by the fact that, only weeks ago, he’d felt so alone. Now he felt complete. Pulling away, he kissed her nose as his hand dropped to her stomach. She looked down and then up, a small smile on her face as she held his gaze.

  “You sure?”

  He nodded. “Yes.”

  “Then this is yours.”

  “And you’re mine,” he whispered, and her smile fell as she gazed up at him.

  “Wow.”

  “Yeah,” he agreed, kissing her nose once more before taking her hand in his. Glancing back to Brie, he asked, “Get some good ones?”

  “Yes!” she gushed, coming over to him and handing him his phone before handing Wren hers. As he swiped through the pictures, he saw they were absolutely perfect, and he knew his mom would love them. He loved them.

  “Aw, I don’t look fat at all,” Wren admitted. “Probably because you’re so gorgeous.”

  He scoffed at that. “Or because you’re not fat.”

  She rolled her eyes as Vaughn came over with his phone held out for a selfie. “Smile for the group chat.” They all did as he asked, and then he was on his phone. When the photo came through in the group chat with Wells, Elaine, Wren, Brie, Vaughn, and him, Jensen opened it and smiled at Vaughn’s picture and caption.

  Vaughn: Crazy kids did it!

  It was followed by another picture, this time of them kissing with Jensen’s hands on her belly.

  Elaine: Oh my goodness, aren’t they beautiful! I love it! Congratulations.

  Jensen and then Wren both thanked her, and he glanced over at her. “Do you have to get back?”

  She shook her head. “I took the afternoon off, thought we could get moved in. Go to dinner, celebrate.” She shot him a smile, not a full one, but a small one as she shrugged. “Or not.”

  “No, I want to, just surprised,” he said before kissing her temple. “Let’s go. Are you two coming?”

  Brie shook her head. “No, we thought she had to go back to work, so we are going shopping. Go enjoy time alone.”

  “Yeah, we’re gonna go bang too,” Vaughn said, and Jensen rolled his eyes.

  “Overshare, buddy. Okay, thanks for coming.”

  “Wouldn’t miss it for the world,” Brie said as Jensen hugged them both, but he paused when his phone started to ring.

  “Okay, I’ll see y’all later. It’s my mom,” he said as he answered. “Mum, just a second. Wren, you wanna ride with me? I’ll bring you back to your car later.”

  She nodded as she hugged Brie. “Yeah.”

  “Cool. Hey, Mum, did you get the pictures?”

  But instead of being answered in English, he was answered in French, which meant his mom had a lot to say and fast. And boy, was she not happy. As Wren walked beside him, their fingers laced together, he tried to get in a word while they walked toward his car. Opening the door for her, he helped her in as he nodded. He almost didn’t want to get in the car, but he didn’t want Wren to know that his mom was complaining about her.

  Even though she was.

  Getting in, he nodded once more and then exhaled. “I understand. I’m sorry you feel that way. I know, Mum. Okay, yes. I love you too. Bye.”

  Hanging up, he laid his head back before looking over at his wife. Wow, he loved the sound of that. “Well, that was fun.”

  She met him with a concerned look. “That didn’t sound good. I think the last time I heard her like that, she was screaming at you when you guys got caught stealing that car.”

  Jensen laughed. “We didn’t steal the car, we were just sitting in it. Drinking.”

  “It wasn’t yours.”

  “This is true, but whatever, I was like seventeen. Stupid kid stuff.”

  “But this sounded like that time.”

  He nodded. “Yeah, she’s upset with me.”

  “Why? I thought she was good with this.”

  “She was, until she saw how far along you are. I guess I left that part out.”

  Her mouth made the shape of an O.

  “Yeah,” he said, shaking his head. “It’s fine.”

  “So, actually, she’s mad at me?”

  He bit the inside of his cheek. He didn’t want to lie to her, but she had already had it out with her brother. Meeting her gaze, he shrugged. “She feels you should have told me sooner so I could have been there for you. But obviously, she doesn’t know the whole story. So, really, it’s a moot point.” She nodded as she looked down at her belly. “I told her that you were spooked and that it’s you. You do that, you keep to yourself, and it’s fine. I understand that about you, but now I’m here, and I’ll be here for you and the baby.” Swallowing hard, she nodded as she picked at her nails. Silence stretched between them as he started the car. “It’s really okay,” he added when she still hadn’t said anything.

  She shook her head. “I’m sorry for all this.”

  His brows pulled together, his hand stalling on the gear shift. “Sorry for what?”

  “For asking you.”

  “Why? I’m glad you did.”

  Her face scrunched up as if she were thinking about something too hard. “No one wants this, Jensen.”

  He shrugged. “I’m not no one. I’m me.”

  She glanced up at him and let out a deep sigh. “Thank you.”

  “Anytime,” he said, leaning over and kissing her lips softly. But before he could pull away, she reached up, taking his face in her hands.

  “I don’t think I really thanked you.”

  He smiled, pressing his nose into hers. “You don’t have to.”

  “No, I do. You really saved me with this.”

  His grin grew. “And you saved me.”

  He pressed his lips to her nose and then pulled away. Her hands fell into her lap. Her eyes were wanting, needing, and he almost said the words. But he knew in his heart she wasn’t ready for them.

  And in a way, he wasn’t ready to say them.

  When he did say them, he wanted them to rattle her the way she rattled him.

  Not a moment sooner or a moment later.

  So with a contented and utterly blissful smile on his face, he pushed aside his mother’s angry rant and asked, “Now, where do you and baby boy wanna eat?”

  Looking around the apartment at where the movers had put all the boxes from Wren’s place, Jensen felt a little overwhelmed. Thankfully, they’d had all the furniture sent to storage since she claimed she didn’t need it, but he had no clue what was in these boxes. Her apartment always seemed so damn empty, so he wasn’t sure what the hell she could have in there. It didn’t matter, though. She was there. Reluctantly…but she was there.

  That was the first step to his forever. With her.

  “Hey, Wren.”

  “Hold on, I’m trying to get out of this dress.”

  He looked over his shoulder toward his room, or better yet, their room. He’d be sharing a bed with her tonight, and that alone had his whole body catching on fire. Though, he knew nothing would happen. “Do you need help?”

  “Yes, please,” she called, but then she was walking over to him. “I can’t get the damn zipper down.”

  She turned her back to him, and he inhaled as he stepped toward her, reaching out to run his fingers along her shoulder. Taking ahold of the zipper, he leaned down, kissing her shoulder as the parting fabric exposed her back and her hands came up to hold the front of the dress. Turning, she smiled up at him, a little wariness in her eyes. “Thanks.”

  “Of course.”

  “What did you need?”

  Shaking his head to rid himself of the thoughts of stripping her down and taking her against the wall, he pointed to all the boxes. “Why is there only one box for the baby? I told them to bring everything here that was for the baby.”

 
She shrugged. “That’s all there is.”

  He blinked in shock before looking back at her. “One box? Where is his crib? And all that stuff?”

  She bit her lip, nervousness filling her features. “I haven’t gotten it yet. He doesn’t need it yet.”

  He held his hands out. “Don’t you want to get his room ready?”

  She seemed a little freaked out by his question. “I mean, yeah, I guess. I’ve been busy.”

  “Or you’ve been in denial that it’s happening?”

  She gave him a quirky smile. “That too.”

  Rolling his eyes, he bent down to pick up the only box. “What’s in here?”

  “A blanket that I saw at Walmart, and a few little onesies.”

  “That’s it?”

  Embarrassed, she smiled. “Hey, upside to this, we get to go shopping.”

  He gave her a dry look. “That isn’t an upside. I hate shopping.”

  “Oh my God, so do I! What are we going to do?”

  “Go shopping,” he said simply before passing by her to head to the bedroom that used to be his old room. Setting the lone box in the middle of the floor, he rolled his eyes. How the hell had she been pregnant for six months and not bought a single thing? Crazy.

  “What’s that?”

  Looking to the doorway where she was standing, he found she was pointing to the bag beside the box he had just put down. A smile tugged at his mouth as he bent down, picking it up and then opening it. Holding up the little Monroe jersey, he smiled at her. “I got this for him yesterday.”

  She cooed as she walked over, still holding her dress up but then grasping the jersey. “That is the sweetest thing. It’s so small!”

  “It is. I’m sort of worried I’ll break him.”

  She gushed, “Me too! Like, it freaks me out, but hopefully he’s squishy. I was squishy.”

  “Yeah, have some girth to him. He’ll need it to play hockey.”

  “Totally.” She beamed up at him. “I love it.”

  “Me too,” he breathed as he laid it back down. “Guess we can go shopping tomorrow. When do you get off?”

  “I have a full morning, but I can get off after lunch.”

  “Cool. I have to get a baby gift for Lucy and Benji’s baby shower this weekend.”

  She threw her hands up. “Fuck, I forgot all about that.” She bit her lip and then looked up at him. “Will we go together?”

  He gave her a level look. “Well, considering we’re married, I’d say so.”

  Panic filled her gaze as she looked away. “So, we’d come out to everyone there.”

  “Yes.”

  “To our boss, ’cause you know Elli will be there.”

  “I guess so.”

  “Okay, wow, okay,” she said before turning and heading back into their room. Shaking his head, he turned the light off. She was skittish as shit, and it only came out when things like that were brought up. When it was just them, it was good. No nerves. Just her and him. It was nice.

  After a great dinner, they went to make sure her apartment was completely cleared out. Then they dropped off a payment at the storage facility before getting her car. She had to run back to her office for some things, so he went to the apartment where he waited for her. It was late, though. He was worn out, ready for bed, and he knew she had to get up early to head to the office.

  Taking off his coat, he walked toward the closet and undressed since Wren had the bathroom. Once he was in his boxers, he climbed into bed, plugging in his phone as he used his legs to cover himself. Lying back, he cuddled into the pillows as he held his phone up, swiping through Facebook. His mom had posted the pictures of Wren and him on her page, so he started reading all the comments from her friends. Everyone was sweet and it was nice, but when he saw a comment from Ophelia’s mom, he glared a bit.

  How nice for him.

  Rolling his eyes, he continued scrolling just as a text came through.

  Wells: SMH

  His brows drew in as he clicked it and saw that it was in the group chat with everyone, right below Winston and Elaine’s congratulations.

  Before he could write anything, Elaine was on there.

  Elaine: Stop it, Wells.

  Wells: No, you know what? This is your and Dad’s fault.

  Elaine: How in the world is this our fault? How is anyone at fault here?

  Wells: If you didn’t push that stupid inheritance stipulation on her, she wouldn’t have done this.

  Rolling his eyes, Jensen bit his lip just as he heard Wren’s phone going off. Great, now she knew about it. All he could hear was her voice when he had called her earlier. He didn’t like that voice, the one that had a sob in it. He wanted her happy. That was his job. Annoyed, Jensen hit Wells’s name and then his number to call him.

  “Hey. What’s up?”

  Getting out of bed, he walked out of the bedroom. “Cut it out.”

  “What?”

  “You heard me. Stop this. I won’t have you treating her like this.”

  “She’s going to fucking hurt you, dude—”

  “That’s my problem, not yours.”

  “But it will be mine because she’s my sister.”

  Shaking his head, Jensen leaned into the bar. “And I respect that, but we are good. I can promise you that.”

  “She’s using you.”

  “She isn’t, okay? We made a baby—”

  “Dude, I know the baby isn’t yours. Stop with that.”

  Exhaling hard, Jensen counted to ten before he opened his eyes. He thought it would be harder for him emotionally to claim Wren’s child, but it wasn’t. In his mind, the kid was his, and that’s the way it was. He really didn’t like how Wells was acting, and he’d be damned if he was going to allow Wren’s brother to treat his wife like shit. “Let me ask you something.”

  “What?”

  “Do you truly love and care for me?”

  “You know I do. That’s why I—”

  “Then let it go.”

  “But—”

  “Wells, really, let it go. This is between me and Wren. This isn’t your business, and if you want us at your wedding, you’ll stop this right now. We’ll come, but I swear I’ll give you a black eye if you keep going at her like this.”

  “You have to understand why I’m so upset. She’s going to break your heart, man.”

  “Again, that’s my problem, not yours. I know who I married. I know Wren, okay? Let me do this. Let us do this. Okay? It’s none of your concern.”

  “Yes, it is, because I love you both.”

  “Then, dude, just love us. Don’t put stress on her, on us. Just let us be.”

  Wells exhaled hard as the silence stretched between them. “I can’t sit back and let this happen. It’s gonna end badly, and then the baby will be lost in the mix.”

  “Don’t you worry about my son in that context, brother. No matter what happens between Wren and me, our son will always be loved by both of us, and we will always get along for him.”

  “She’s spiteful—”

  “She’s perfect. You’re too hard on her, and don’t talk about her like that,” he said firmly, his heart pounding in his throat. He wasn’t sure if he was overstepping. Wren was Wells’s sister, but he’d be damned if he was going to allow Wells to stress her out.

  “Dude, you’re already so far gone, you don’t see the end.”

  “You’re right. I only see the rest of my life with her.”

  “Damn it, Jensen. Come on.”

  “Wells, really. We’re happy.”

  “It’s a sham.”

  “It’s not. We are really doing this, and we’d like your support.”

  “Damn it,” he moaned, and Jensen knew he was pacing around his house. He always paced when he got mad or annoyed. “You’re killing me.”

  “Regardless, will you support us?”

  He hesitated, but he blew out a frustrated breath. “Fine.”

  “Thank you.”

  “Yeah,”
was all he said before he hung up, and Jensen wanted to scream. He respected Wells, loved him, but there were enough variables, all a result of Wren Lemiere, that were against them. He didn’t need Wells, or anyone else, messing with them. Her hesitation, her insecurities could end them. He knew that, but he was going to do everything to help her through that. He had her now; he couldn’t lose her. He loved her too much to allow that to happen. He knew he may very well be out of his mind, but if God had given him this golden opportunity, he did it for a reason.

  And that reason was that Jensen had an abundance of love to give.

  For Wren and the unnamed child she was carrying.

  Even if she didn’t want his love.

  Pushing off the bar, he headed toward the bedroom, but when he turned the corner, Wren was standing there.

  Surprised, he glared playfully. “Stalker.”

  She smiled. “Guilty as charged.”

  He moved past her toward the bed, plugging his phone in again before getting in as she slowly approached the bed. She was wearing a pair of sweat pants and a tee that barely covered her belly. He did his best not to drink in her thick thighs or even her thick ass even though they both were covered, but he failed miserably as she got into the bed, exhaling softly.

  “Thanks for that. I know it’s hard lying to him.”

  He shrugged. “It’s fine. He won’t talk to you like that.”

  Leaning back into the pillows, she looked over at him. “He’s usually not that bad. But when it comes to you and Vaughn, I don’t matter.”

  Jensen shook his head as a rebuff. “That’s not true. He loves you very much. I know that for a fact.”

  “But he loves you guys more, and it’s fine. Whatever.”

  But Jensen shook his head. “It isn’t whatever, Wren. You shouldn’t be talked to like that, and he loves you. More than anyone, I know, he talked about you all the time when we used to go out. You’re his world.”

  “He has a funny way of showing it.”

  “He’s just trying to protect us.” She nibbled her lip as she looked down at her hands. “What?”

  When she glanced up at him, her eyes were full of tears that he reacted to before he allowed her to speak. Gathering her in his arms, he pressed her body into his as he held her tight against him. She fit against him like a glove, her legs falling right along his, her center pressed into his thighs as her belly laid along his groin.