by Tami Lund
Shannon nodded. A set of keys dangled from his fingers. “Take my truck. Registration is in the glovebox. Yours and Leo’s luggage is in the bed. Seriously, go far away this time.”
She swallowed and accepted the gift he was handing her.
He turned to Leo and put a hand lightly on his shoulder. “I’m sorry we won’t have the chance to catch up, man, but I’ll feel better knowing you’re there to take care of Shannon.”
Damn, Nina must have really sung her praises. She cleared her throat. “Thank you.”
Marco smirked. Leo didn’t react at all.
Hopefully, it was the pain meds and not his feelings about this situation, because they were about to be stuck together, on their own, at least until he was healed enough to be able to make his own decisions.
Would he leave her at that point?
Probably, since she was about to lay it all on him. Tell him the truth. It was the only way they could move forward.
Or implode. Honestly, this could go either way.
Marco helped Leo back into the truck while Shannon stood there with Max, who shoved his hands into his pockets and stared at the ground. His jaw was swollen and darkening, and he kept wincing, like he was in pain.
“I’m sorry for bringing him up here,” Max finally said. “I thought you had been kidnapped. I thought I was helping get you back home.”
“I was kidnapped, except it was Davit’s father who took me, when I was nineteen. And you were helping me to get back home, except it’s no home I ever want to go back to.”
“I had no idea. He always made it seem like you two were crazy in love.”
Shannon nodded. “That’s what he wanted to believe. Except Davit doesn’t even like himself, so there’s no way he could ever love me. Or anyone.”
“Leo’s a much better choice,” Max said with conviction.
Shannon smiled. “I think so too.” She sucked in a breath and squared her shoulders. “Now I have to see if he’s still willing to be that choice after I tell him about my past.”
Marco closed the truck door and turned around, thrusting out his arm to shake. Shannon slid her hand into his, and they shook like business associates.
“Take care of him,” Marco said.
“I will.”
He and Max started to walk toward the cabin.
“Hey,” Shannon called out. They both turned, expectant looks on their faces.
“I know we can’t ever come back, but maybe, once we’re settled, wherever we end up, you can come visit us.”
“Sounds like a plan,” Marco said, and then he nudged Max’s shoulder and they headed inside.
The moment of reckoning had come. But a quick glance into the truck showed Leo slumped in his seat, eyes closed. Between his injuries and the pain meds, he’d probably sleep for hours. Plenty of time to get out of town before her true confessions. Hopefully, they wouldn’t be in the middle of nowhere when he demanded she pull over and let him out because he didn’t want to be anywhere near her.
Steeling her resolve, Shannon strode around the hood and hopped into the truck. She adjusted the seat and her mirrors, and then cranked the engine.
“I heard what you said to Max.”
She jumped and squeezed the steering wheel. “I thought you were asleep.”
“I probably will be soon.” He shifted in his seat and grimaced. When he didn’t say anything else, she grasped the shifter and pressed the brake.
“You told Max that Davit’s father kidnapped you. When you were nineteen.”
She swallowed. Apparently they were having this conversation sooner than later. “Yes.”
“Obviously, a lot happened in the nine years since then.”
She focused on her breathing. In, out. In, out.
“Yes.”
“When I first realized you were connected to the mob, I was instantly turned off. I’ve always had a negative view of people who are connected with Davit. Including my own brother. You’re either a good person or you associate with the mob. That’s how I’ve always seen it.”
Well, this certainly wasn’t starting well. And she hadn’t even told him anything yet. Good thing they hadn’t left. Hopefully, Marco would be willing to take her back to the B&B so she could get her rental car after Leo climbed out of the truck and stormed inside.
“But I’ve had ample time to think things through, while lying there in the hospital,” Leo continued. “And I realize that attitude doesn’t give people a chance. And I really want to give you a chance.”
She looked his way. “You do?”
He turned toward her, their gazes colliding. “I want to give us a chance. I don’t want to let go of whatever happened between us. I…”
“I love you,” she blurted.
He chuckled and then grimaced. “You beat me to the punch. Also, laughing hurts.”
“Probably shouldn’t do it then.”
“That’s going to be hard. Seems like when we’re together, we spend a lot of time laughing.”
She smiled. “I like laughing.”
“Me too.” He reached across the console, twined his fingers with hers. “I love you, too, Shannon. Are you ready to figure out forever together?”
She squeezed his fingers and cleared her throat several times before she could speak. “Yes, I am.”
“Good.” He nodded succinctly. “Now, where should we go?”
She laughed. “I have no idea, but I know I’ll be happy there, because I’ll be with you.”
Epilogue
One Month Later
Today was Leo’s thirtieth birthday. And they were spending it camping. In Colorado, with a gorgeous, deep blue lake on one side, and majestic mountains on the other.
Dusk had come and gone, and they were seated next to a roaring campfire, sharing a bottle of sparkling wine.
“Happy birthday,” Shannon said, lifting her plastic flute.
Leo touched the rim of his glass to hers and leaned over for a kiss. “Thank you, sweetheart. It’s the best birthday I’ve ever had.”
“Really?”
He waved at the flames. “I told you I wanted to go camping for my birthday, and you made it happen. You didn’t ask me a hundred times if I was sure, if I wouldn’t rather do something else. And you know what? It’s perfect. You’re perfect.”
“You know what else would be perfect? If we could christen your birthday in another way.”
“It’s definitely been way too long.”
They hadn’t had sex since before Davit attacked him. All the driving they’d done hadn’t exactly helped speed along Leo’s recovery, so they’d erred on the side of caution. Shannon would wait as long as it took, but she certainly would not hesitate to jump his bones if he gave her the go-ahead right now.
“I think that would be the perfect wrap to my birthday, actually,” Leo said, and her inner muscles clenched with anticipation.
Before she could leap out of her seat and rush to the tent, he said, “Have you given any more thought to my suggestion?”
“Let’s do it.”
“Just to be clear, we aren’t talking about sex right now, are we?”
She chuckled. “Nope.”
“Seriously? You want to move to England?”
She laughed at his shock. “I do. With you. I already told you, I’d be happy wherever we go, as long as we’re together. And, truthfully, running a B&B with you somewhere on the British Isles sounds absolutely perfect.”
He stood and pulled her into his arms. Squeezing her tightly, he kissed her until they were both breathless. “Hey, remember when you asked me to let you know when I figured out my dreams?”
She furrowed her brow, and he tapped her nose.
“I found them. With you. Wherever we go, whatever we do, my dreams will be fulfilled as long as I’m with you.”
She blinked against a sudden onslaught of tears. And then she shook her head and grabbed his hand and tugged him toward the tent.
“Come on. Let’s make both
of our dreams come true. Preferably more than once before dawn.”
He laughed. “That’s an excellent idea.”
THE END
Loved Tami’s mafia books? Give the Bryant Brothers a try next…
RACING HOME
Bryant Brothers book 1
C’mon, Camila, you can do this. It’s only four days. You have to report back to work on Friday, and there’s a good chance your stalker will be gone by then.
Laying low at her sister’s boyfriend’s house is the perfect solution to Camila Alverez’s problem, until top motocross racer in the country, Tommy Bryant, answers the door.
He has the celebrity status, the money, the looks, the confidence, the girls—except Camila, who wants nothing to do with him.
Too bad Tommy didn’t get that memo.
Bryant Brothers series
Racing Home
To Love & Protect
The Right Tool
Picture This
Meet the Bryants
From the moment she said “I do,” Deanna Bryant was surrounded by testosterone. The Realtor who sold them the home she and her husband would raise their children in was male. The doctor who delivered all four of her babies was male. Every dog, cat, hamster, and ferret that joined the family over the years had been male.
And of course, all four children…boys.
To rub salt into a perceived open wound, her offspring had been—and still were—boys’ boys. None of them discovered the opposite sex until much later than the average age. And even after they did realize there were girls in the world, the three oldest didn’t see them as anything more than a good time and a distraction from their hobbies-slash-careers.
Which were also distinctly and stereotypically masculine.
Tommy, the oldest, raced motorcycles. Philip, the next eldest, after a stint in the military, had taken some mysterious job that involved security and contracts. His brothers liked to call him Philip Bond, much to his annoyance.
Kyle was number three and a mechanic who, conveniently enough for his eldest brother, could fix damn near anything but specialized in motorcycles.
Elliot was the baby of the family, and still in college. About to start his senior year, he was a photography major who had no earthly idea what he wanted to do with his life. He was, however, the first to bring a girl home to meet Mom and Dad.
Funny enough, this book isn’t about him.
Chapter One
“You need to come home.”
Tommy yawned so widely his jaw popped. He was still in bed, his eyes closed, his body exactly the right temperature in the cocoon created by the sheet and a thin blanket. “Why are you whispering, Mom?”
“Your brother’s home.” She paused then added, “Elliot.”
Good thing she clarified, since Tommy had three of them.
“You’re whispering because Elliot’s home?”
“Yes. Everybody’s still asleep.”
Valid reason, except his parents’ house was huge, and his mom was probably standing in the kitchen or maybe in the family room, and both areas were plenty far enough away from the bedrooms that she could speak at a normal volume with no worries about disrupting anyone’s sleep.
Except Tommy’s, of course.
“Mom, I just got home”—he pulled the phone away from his ear to look at the screen and closed his eyes again—“six hours ago. It’s the first weekend I’ve been in town since Easter.”
“I’m well aware, since I water your plants.”
“Plants you gave me.” He’d never admit that he actually liked the greenery. It gave his otherwise barren apartment a somewhat comfortable feel, which was nice for someone who spent the vast majority of his time on the road, living out of hotel rooms. He should make an effort to do more to make it feel homey, except whenever he was home, the last thing he wanted to do was decorate.
“And the fact that you’ve been gone so long is a perfect excuse to come visit your parents.”
“I planned to stop by,” he defended himself. “No way I’d come into town and not gorge myself on your cooking.”
“Don’t even pretend you only come here for the food.”
“Fine, I won’t, although your cooking is definitely one of the top ten reasons for visiting.”
“Good, then come over right now. Well, in an hour. I’m making brunch.”
Okay, that was tempting, considering he hadn’t been able to talk himself into stopping at the grocery store when he rolled into town in the middle of the night last night, and he was pretty sure he didn’t even have bread to make toast at this point.
“Just a few more hours,” he countered anyway.
“Elliot brought a girl home from college.”
Tommy’s eyes popped open. “Seriously?”
Holy shit, none of them had ever brought a girl home. He was pretty sure none of them had ever introduced a girl to their mother, even as a friend. It was too risky. She was likely to start planning the wedding within the first ten minutes.
Poor Elliot. He probably should get over there, if only to play interference between his baby brother and Mom’s need for an estrogen rush.
Plus, he wanted to meet the girl his brother was willing to bring home and risk Mom throwing out baby names over dinner.
“Fine,” he said on a sigh.
“Stop and get a couple bottles of champagne on your way.”
“What? Why?”
“Can’t have brunch without mimosas.”
Tommy blew out a relieved breath. For a minute there, he thought they were going to toast his brother’s engagement, and while that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, he figured he ought to actually meet the girl before the banns were posted.
***
When Camila parked her Mustang next to the curb in front of the address her sister had given her, she noted that the door was open and two cars were parked inside the garage, plus two vehicles in the driveway. One was Maddy’s old Ford Focus and the other was a tricked out, newer model, black on black Silverado pickup truck.
The house was a colonial, situated in a western suburb of Detroit. This place was actually closer to the bar where Camila worked than her own apartment was. The siding was white, the shutters dark green. Established bushes and trees dotted the front yard, and a mass of red, white, and purple petunias spilled out of a half barrel on its side next to the walkway leading to the front door.
This was what her life had been reduced to? Begging her younger sister to ask complete strangers to take her in so she could hide from some unnerving bar patron who had decided he and Camila should be together forever, regardless of her opinion on the matter?
She’d called Maddy and casually (well, that was the goal, anyhow) mentioned that she was looking for a place to stay for a few days—but not with their parents—and her sister had invited her to hang out with Maddy and her new boyfriend at his parents’ house.
C’mon, Camila, you can do this. It’s only four days. You have to report back to work on Friday, and there’s a good chance your stalker will be gone by then.
There was, wasn’t there? Being stalked was messing with her sleep schedule, as in she wasn’t getting much of it at all because her brain wouldn’t stop imagining all those scenes from too many Criminal Minds episodes that could actually happen to her.
Her purse vibrated, and she dug out her phone to read the incoming text.
Maddy: Where are you?
Why was she stalling? This was a far better option than spending the week alone in her apartment. Plus, Maddy had mentioned a pool. It was practically a vacation.
Scratch that, there was no practically about it.
Sucking in a deep breath and expelling it slowly, Camila shot a reply to her sister that simply said, “Coming,” and then she climbed out of the car, grabbed her bag, and headed toward the house.
Keep reading HERE
Contemporary Romance by Tami Lund ~
Bryant Brothers Series
Racing Home
<
br /> To Love & Protect
The Right Tool
Picture This
Sexy Bad Series (co-written with Misti Murphy)
Sexy Bad Neighbor
Sexy Bad Daddy
Sexy Bad Boss
Sexy Bad Escort
Sexy Bad Halloween
No Jerks on Monday (co-written with Misti Murphy)
Detroit Mafia Romance
Detroit Mafia Series Box Set Books 1-3
Paid by the Mob
Trapped by the Mob
Freed from the Mob
Born into the Mob
Controlled by the Mob
Tough Love Series
Naked Truth
Undercover Heat
Delicious Deception
Baby, I’m Home
Separation Anxiety
(free read available on Tami Lund’s website)
Paranormal Romance by Tami Lund ~
Taming the Dragon Series
Dragon His Heels
Hungry Like A Dragon
Dragon in Denial
Bewitching the Dragon
Let Go My Gargoyle
Lightbearer Series
First Light & Broken Light (prequels)
Into the Light
Dawning of Light
Light Beyond the Darkness
Change in the Light
Cupid’s Light
Twisted Fate Series
Of Love and Darkness
Prim and Proper Fate
Prisoner of Fate
(Blood Courtesans Vampire Series, written by multiple authors)
Resist
Eternity