by C. M. Steele
“Ridiculous. I’m going to marry you, so there’s no reason for me to do one of those cruises unless you leave me.”
“Never happening. You’re stuck with me for the rest of our lives.” I tip her chin, kissing her lips. “Marry me?”
“Yes.” Kiss.
“By next week?” Kiss.
“Yes.” Kiss.
“I love you.” Kiss.
“Forever.” I kiss her until a cough comes from behind us.
“We’re done, sir. Please sign.” I sign and tip them, sending them away with a wave of my hand. I have more pressing matters to attend to. The second the movers are gone, I carry Gia into our bedroom and make love to her, forgetting all about dinner and calling my mother. It can wait.
Chapter Eleven
Gia
“Hello, you must be the lovely woman I’m just learning about.” Graham’s mother throws her arms around me, hugging me tight and taking me by complete surprise. She pulls back to get a better look at me. “And so beautiful too.”
“Mom, what brings you here?” Graham grumbles out, dragging me to his side and slipping his arm around my waist.
“I figured that you were ignoring me, and I was right, but for all the wrong reasons. Do I get an introduction?”
“Mom, this is Gia Tyler. Gia, my mother, Ellen.”
“It’s nice to meet you,” I say, feeling completely out of place. His mother’s gaze tells me that she doesn’t trust me. I don’t blame her because she knows nothing about me and truthfully he’s way above me.
“Mom, I was about to call you last night, but we were tired after we landed and unpacked.”
“I understand. I just worry about you. You work too hard and forget to look after yourself. I don’t want you to die young like your father.”
“I’m nothing like him.” Every mention of his father drives Graham insane with disgust. I can’t fault him for wanting nothing to do with him.
“I know. I know. Speaking of which, I have some dreadful news to bring to you.”
“What?”
“The girls’ mother died in a drug overdose.”
“What?”
“Yes. Now they’re in foster care.” I flinch at those words. I ended up in social services for two weeks until my aunt got custody of me after my parents’ death.
“How do you know that?”
“I might hate your father for what he’s done, but they’re your sisters, and I thought you would like to one day get to know them.”
“I…I…don’t know what to say.”
“You don’t have to say shit. Those girls aren’t the ones who betrayed me. The bastard is cold in his grave, and she followed. They need someone to care for them. Even from a distance.”
“You have an amazing heart,” I exclaimed, stepping out of Graham’s arms and hugging his mother. “I could never be that generous.”
“Well, I fell out of love with that man long before I learned of his infidelities.”
“I’ll think about it, mom.”
“I’m so glad that I had my aunt to take me in instead of living at the mercy of strangers.”
“You lost your parents?”
“Yes, when I was thirteen. They were killed in a car accident, and for two weeks I’d been moved from one place to another until my aunt, who had been working in Miami, came to get me.”
“Then you think I should take them in?”
“That’s up to you, Graham. I can’t tell you how to feel about it.”
“If you’re both okay with it, I’ll contact social services and see what we can do to get in touch with them and go from there.”
“Good. Now how about we go out to lunch because I’m starving, and we have a wedding to plan.”
“A wedding?” She grabs my hand and sees the rock Graham put on it.
“Yes, I want to get married within a week; actually it’s six days now.”
“Well, your father and I waited a year and a half before getting married and see how that turned out. Let’s go eat and then Gia, and I need to do some girl shopping.”
“Oh, he’s not going to be more than a short distance from us.”
“That’s because he cares, but he’s gonna have to keep away when we pick out your gown, understood?” she asks him pointedly.
“That I’ll give you, but I’m going to call in a favor and have some security on you two just in case.”
“Whatever you have to do.”
Epilogue
Graham
"Gia, where are you?" I search the house for her, but she's not in any room. A panicked feeling takes over me. I had to head into the office, which I rarely do, leaving Gia alone. I don’t know why I feel like something’s wrong, but it hit me the second I got inside my car. I rush up to our bedroom, and she’s not there. Then I head into our bathroom. "Gia!" I rush to the tub pulling her from the water. Shit. "Breathe, baby. Breathe."
"Fuck," I choke out, dragging my phone out.
"I need an ambulance. My wife was in the tub. Come on, baby. You can’t leave me. Wake up."
"Sir, is she breathing?" the operator asks.
"No, God. Help her! Hurry!"
"You need to attempt CPR." I barely hear her words, but I’m already in the process of laying her on the floor. I start doing as the operator says. With a pump to her chest and mouth to mouth, she gasps out.
“Yes, baby. Come back to me.” I lift her head as she coughs. “She’s breathing,” I sob into the phone.
“Sir, the ambulance will be there in one minute. Please let them in.” I scoop Gia into my arms and carry her down the stairs with my phone tucked between my ear and shoulder. Her clothes are soaked, but I don’t want to wait another second to get her help. I unlock and open the front door.
“You’re going to be okay. Gia, don’t go back to sleep. Please don’t. I love you. You can’t go back to sleep.” I don’t stop the tears as they pour down my face. All I want is for her to be okay. We’ve only been married a month, and I’m not going to lose her. I can’t.
“Graham. Sorry,” she murmurs. The sound is music to my ears.
“Don’t be sorry. Get better.” I kiss her temple and hold her tightly.
I hear the ambulance and see them jump out of the vehicle. As they enter, I cradle my wife. “Excuse me, sir. We’ll take over from here.” I only let her go to give them access, but I keep my vigil as they work on her.
“Okay, can you tell us what happened?”
“I don’t know. I came back, and she was in the tub, there was some blood, and I dragged her out. She wasn’t breathing.” I’m choking on my words, feeling like these could be my last moments with her.
“You got here in time it seems. Her vitals are a little weak, but they are steady. We’re going to take her to the hospital. Do you want to ride along?”
“That’s a stupid fucking question. Let’s go,” I roar. I stand up as they lay her on a stretcher. We’re in the ambulance and on our way within a minute. I send a text to my mother because I don’t want to talk to anyone but Gia at the moment. She starts to move a little more, dragging down the breathing mask they put on her face.
“Please leave it on, Ma’am.”
“Gia, love. Please keep it on.”
“I love you, Graham.”
“Then don’t fucking scare me like that again,” I scold her with a smile on my face. My heart races out of control, wondering what happened and how she ended up in the water.
I take her hand in mine and press it to my lips before settling onto the stretcher and laying my head next to her, saying a silent prayer.
For the next two hours, I watch as they run tests to make sure everything is well. “Graham,” my mom calls, stirring me from my vigil.
“Mom.” I stand up, and she hugs me tight.
“What happened, my boy? Is she going to be okay?”
“I don’t know exactly. I came early from the conference to surprise her, and I found her in our bathtub, unconscious. They say she has a bum
p and a laceration on the back of her head.”
“Oh, no. Do you know if she slipped and fell inside the tub?”
“I don’t know, but I’m assuming that’s the only way she would be in there. Fuck, I left her for a whole damn day, and this happens. I’m never leaving her side again.”
“You can’t do that. You know you have a business to run.”
“Well, then she’s coming with me. I don’t care. I work from home most of the time, anyway. I can take care of her all the time.”
“Graham. Graham.” I rush back to her side. “Gia, talk to me.”
“I love you, Graham.”
“Baby, what happened?” I kiss her lips, tasting her, and pulling away before I lose myself. I’d never forgive myself if I’d hurt her.
“Mrs. Hamilton, you’re awake. Great.” In walks her doctor, who I would gladly choke, but seeing how he helped save her life, I’ll just deal with my annoyance inside. “I know you two want to talk, but we need to ask what happened to you.” I practically growl at the bastard. I’m trying to find out what happened to her, and he just shows up interrupting her response.
“I was taking a bath because I wasn’t feeling good. I just undressed, and as I moved to step into the tub, I felt dizzy and passed out.”
“Well, I’m glad that your husband came home just in time. I’d like to discuss your medical situation. If you’d like to ask this lovely woman to leave.”
“She can stay,” Gia says, smiling at my mother who surprisingly has a blush on her face. They look around the same age. “There’s an explanation for the dizzy spell.”
“Well, what the fuck is it?” I demand to know. He’s fucking beating around the bush, stealing glances at my mother, and I can’t handle anymore fucking waiting.
“Learn patience, Mr. Hamilton, you’re going to need it. Mrs. Hamilton, you’re pregnant.”
“Pregnant?” Gia surprised gasp makes me actually crack up with laughter.
“Sorry, baby. I don’t mean to be laughing, but you sound shocked like I haven’t been trying to knock you up since we met.”
“I guess that is funny. Are you happy about the baby?”
“What? Of course, I am. I can’t say I’m happy about how you got in here, but that’s another subject. Some serious changes are going to be made to keep you safe. I hope you don’t even try to argue with me on it. I love you, and I’m not losing you to a freak accident. Understood?”
“I agree. I’ve never been so helpless in my life.”
***
“You look so pretty, Gia. My brother is going to be happy.” His sisters smile playfully as they look at me. They’re adorable little girls that look a little like Graham. We tried to get custody of them, but their grandparents got the chance first. Although they did agree to let the girls be a part of our lives.
“He’s already happy, Milly,” Tilly remarks, rolling her eyes at her twin.
“I know, Tilly, but he’s going to be a million times more. He’s in love. Like Eric and Ariel, or the Beast and Belle.”
“Yes. You look like a princess Gia.”
“I want to marry a prince like my brother. Do you think I will?”
“Yes, maybe if you wait to find a good one.”
“I won’t let you pick a frog, Milly.”
“I won’t let you either.” They are so perfect, and I hope they keep their genuinely sweet, innocent hearts when they learn of their early childhood and where they actually come from.
“It’s time, girls,” my mother-in-law says, walking up to them handing them their baskets. We’re having a small ceremony with mostly Graham’s friends and family, but it’s beautifully done. His mother is a savant when it comes to making a gathering happen quickly.
The doors open, and I make my way to my dear Graham. The look in his eyes says it all…I have found my prince.
Gia
Four Months Later
We’re celebrating our first Christmas together. I rub my belly as I think about next year’s Christmas. I picture, looking into my baby’s eyes does something to me, and I start crying. It’s a sweet sob, envisioning their adorable features.
Graham rushes to my side as I wipe my tears. “What’s wrong, baby? Did you not get something you wanted? Did I fuck up?”
“No, you and our son are all I want. These are happy tears. I didn’t expect my life to flip overnight, but I’m forever grateful it did. I love you so much, Graham.”
“I love you.” He holds me tighter than before. After my near-death experience turned my already obsessive man twice as nuts. Most days it’s wonderful, but now when he has to actually go into the office, he demands I come with him. Even having his mother around doesn’t settle him down. He’s afraid he’ll lose me, and I can’t say I blame him. I haven’t taken a bath since then. I go into the shower and only when he’s around. When I looked up the statistics, it’s freaking more common of an event. My life almost ended as we created a new one. That makes me more emotional about our baby coming.
“My mom will be here in an hour.”
“Oh yeah. I almost forgot.”
“I haven’t. Now that dinner’s in the oven, how about I spend the time driving you to more happy tears.” On top of being a hotshot tech king, he’s also a fantastic cook. Most nights I do the cooking, or we dine out, but every once in a while, he whips up a fabulous meal that makes my mouth water and my pussy throb. A man who cooks and knows how to make you come is one magical man.
“It doesn’t take long for that. I’m mush in your hands, and you know it.”
“I didn’t say I’d stop after making your pussy come for me once. I want at least three orgasms out of you.”
“That’s a lot. I don’t think we have time for all that.”
“When are you going to learn never to challenge me, wife?”
Fifty-eight minutes later, I was getting dressed after screaming my husband’s name four times. Maybe I’ve learned too well what happens when I challenge him, and I love testing him.
Graham
Ten years later…
“We’re done after this one,” Gia shouts, glaring at me after another contraction rips through her. I hate this damn part more than the six weeks of waiting to fill her back up again. “I wish you’d stop challenging me, Mrs. Hamilton. You know I can’t get enough of seeing you swollen with my babies.”
“I know.” She loves it too. She’s just ready to have this baby come out. For the past decade, I’ve kept her knocked up. We have seven boys. We keep trying for a little girl, but alas it hasn’t happened.
“I’m sorry.” She narrows her eyes at me. “Yeah, sorry not sorry is more like it.”
“No. This is the part I’m sorry about. I hate seeing you in any pain. The rest, I can never be sorry for.” I lean down closer, whispering for only her ears. “I love having you spread out wide, taking me until you cry out my name. I love seeing you swell as my baby grows in your amazing body. I love the way you rub your belly and talk to our little ones. I love that I can do that too. Most of all I love you, Gia.”
“Oh-oh, Graham,” she sobs. “That’s so sweet.” I kiss her temple, and we sit in silence. Another twenty minutes later and out pops my next boy. Ryan, Jacob, David, Thomas, Max, and Daniel are all outside with their Grandma and Grandpa, waiting to meet their newest brother, Elliot. Yes, my mother married the good doctor who helped save my wife after asking her to marry her at Christmas. He’s a great man that I wish met my mother years ago.
“He’s perfect, my love. Thank you for giving me another treasure.”
“This is the last one. I don’t think you’re capable of giving me a little girl.” Fuck, the woman loves to toss out a challenge.
***
Less than two years later…
“Happy birthday, little princess.” I look down at my brand-new little girl. She’s a perfect little thing. I stare up at Gia, thanking my stars that we bumped into each other. “I’ll be sending Phillipe a different present this time.”
After all, he’s the reason we met.
“He’s going to love it. I think he’s going to love the pink arrowed cufflinks. They’re going to take him by surprise.” Every time Gia gives me another baby, I send Phillipe a pair of cufflinks shaped as arrows because he’s my version of cupid.
My love for Gia allowed me to forgive the past pain caused by my father. I even went to his grave to tell him that. Without him, I wouldn’t be where I was, finding my forever, my will, my heart, and my obsession.
THE END
Check Out The rest of the Obsessed Alpha Series on Amazon!
Each novella is a standalone romance featuring different couples
STONE
Book One
I shouldn’t even look…think it…
I shouldn’t follow her home…
I should walk away…
Demi Sweet’s one of the new interns. She’s here to learn about marketing and get hands-on experience with our graphic design department. But from the first time I see her, all I want to do is give her some very personal hands-on experience—knowledge only I can provide.
It’s unethical, but she’s an adult, and in a few weeks her internship will be over.
Can I wait that long?
No. I’m too obsessed with her.
COLE
Book Two
Always the protective brother, Cole Bennett found himself storming into a bar in Hawaii to warn some woman to stay away from his brother. The second he sees her, he wants her to stay away from Bishop for an entirely different reason. She belongs to him.
Aviana has had a lousy couple of years and just wanted her shift to be over at a tiki bar. Then in walks the hottest man she’d ever seen. If he wasn’t such a jerk, she would be his. Who was she kidding? She wants him either way.
This is a fast-paced, sweet romance.
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Website: www.cmsteele.com