“It’s the eyes.” Emma said, “He has your beautiful eyes.”
Dante gave her shoulders a squeeze, offering her some reassurance. Meeting the in-laws-to-be was hard enough, but doing it in a hospital after a bad day had to be difficult.
“I see our other son is acting like your guard dog,” said the older man, chuckling.
“Grey told me to keep her safe,” Dante admitted. “Or there’d be hell to pay.”
Emma’s eyes flickered to him and measured him up. He too was in his sixties with the same build as Greyson and Emma concluded the man was his father. “I’m sorry you had to be dragged down here at this time of the night.”
They both looked stressed, but having a son in the FBI probably did that to a parent.
“We spent many a day and night with Greyson in the emergency room. He was a wild boy.” She patted her blonde-gray curls. “I’m Reggie, and this is my husband, Christopher.”
Emma took her outstretched hand. “It’s nice to meet you both,” she answered.
Both took a seat across from her. “He wouldn’t tell us what happened, will you?” asked Croft’s father.
She debated on how much to tell them until Dante offered her a reassuring look. Emma started at the beginning and told them everything. After all, if it was her son wouldn’t she want the same respect?
“Dear lord,” said Reggie when Emma had finished giving them all the details.
“I’m glad they’re dead,” stated Christopher. “I hope they suffered for what they did.”
Reggie was appalled. “Christopher Croft! Mind your manners,” she demanded, and then patted him lovingly on the cheek.
“They paid for what they did to all the women and to your son,” answered Emma. “Justice was done.”
Both watched her, noticing she looked beyond exhausted.
“When he woke up, he was asking for you,” Reggie said, watching the woman carefully.
“Is he okay?” she asked, sitting upright. Emma was desperate to get to his side.
Dante gently patted her arm as she waited to hear the answer.
“He’s fine. He has a bad headache, and he might be out of it a little. Greyson was muttering something about his fiancée,” she said, grinning.
Emma pressed her fingers into her very tired eyes. “That would be me. His very stressed out, anxiety ridden, scared out of her mind fiancée.”
Reggie started laughing. “Oh good. It wasn’t just the knock to the head, Christopher. Our son has finally decided to settle down.”
Dante laughed, leaning into her to whisper in Emma’s ear. “This is like Christmas morning for my parents. Finally, their oldest son has procured a woman.”
The pressure broke apart in her chest and she laughed.
Greyson’s father spoke up, “I was right, Reggie. I told you he’d marry a cop. You owe me season tickets,” he grinned wickedly. “I always knew Greyson would pick a tough woman to be his wife--not some pushover.”
“If you don’t mind me saying, your son would eat a pushover alive. He needs someone to kick his ass every now and then. He’s stubborn, strong willed and doesn’t listen to anyone. Then there are his temper issues. Do we need to even discuss them?”
They all laughed.
“Do you know that he’s bossy and a borderline caveman?” she added. “Plus, the most domineering man I’ve ever met in my entire life.”
“You think you can break him of it?” asked Reggie, waiting for the woman’s reply.
Emma shook her head. “There’s no need to. I love him just the way he is,” she answered, truthfully. “Greyson is perfect for me.”
“Oh my goodness, dear. I’m very glad he found you. I think you know him better than any woman he’s ever dated. Welcome to the family, Emma.”
She was warmed by the idea of finding a place to belong. “I’m going to go kick his ass, if you don’t mind. We need to discuss his reckless nature and the fact that I’ve aged another ten years.”
They watched her walk away.
“I like her,” stated Dante.
“I think I love her,” stated Reggie. “She’s lovely, but more importantly Emma is strong enough to balance our son out.”
“You just want some red haired grandchildren.” Christopher stated laughing.
“Come on!” Dante interjected. “She’s been through hell today. Maybe ask about grandkids in a couple days and give them both some recoup time.”
Reggie smiled, knowing her oldest child was finally happy and found someone to bring him love. It was all a mother could ask in life.
“Let’s give them a few minutes before we go barging in there,” stated Christopher Croft.
Both parents turned to stare at their other child. “So, Dante,” asked his mother. “When will you be settling down?”
He started laughing, and then noticed his mother wasn’t kidding. Where to even take this one? Oh, were they going to be disappointed when he told them that kids and marriage were probably never going to be happening for him.
“We waited too long for Greyson, now you need to get on it, son,” stated his father, teasing him. Part of him was kidding, but there was a little piece that wasn’t.
The look on Dante’s face was priceless.
“Hell.”
Emma entered Greyson’s room. She saw him lying on the stark white sheets and his coloring almost matched. As she got close to the bed to give him a kiss, he moved.
“Nurse, don’t let my fiancée catch you making out with me. She’s tough and will kick your ass.”
“I know what you’re like, Greyson Croft! It’ll be your ass in the sling, you big flirt.” She watched him open those stormy eyes. She finally released the breath she’d been holding for what seemed like hours.
“How about you give me a kiss or two? I could use them.”
Emma sat on his bed next to him. She leaned down and kissed him as gently as she could.
“I’m hurt, not dead,” he reassured. “I know you can do better than that. Show your man a little love.”
Emma leaned down to kiss him the way she wanted in the first place. All the pent up fear and emotions broke free and washed over them both. When Emma pulled her head back, tears were running down her face.
“Wow,” he whispered, and then saw her tears. “Oh God, honey! Really! I’m fine!”
Emma couldn’t stop the flood of tears.
He pulled her down next to him and rested her head on his shoulder. Stroking her hair, he left a few kisses on her cheek. “It’s all going to be fine. I have a really thick skull.”
“No, it’s not okay, Greyson Croft!” she sniffled, breathing in the scent that was distinctly him. “If I was a few minutes late you would have been killed.”
“You weren’t late, and that’s what matters. Honey, it all worked out. I’m fine, just a little bruised and battered. Nothing a little TLC and a whole lot of sex won’t cure.”
She laughed. “I love you, Grey, and if you ever go and get yourself abducted again, I swear I’ll kick your ass the next time I have to track you down.” She looked up at him and whispered the truth. “I was terrified.”
“So was I,” he admitted.
“When I found your blood at Billy’s, I couldn’t breathe.”
“I wasn’t worried. I believed in you, Sheriff.”
She kissed his chin, avoiding the scar on his cheek and the twenty stitches. “Just stick real close to me. I was fine until you came stomping into my life, now I can’t think about you leaving.”
“Me? Stomping? What about the minute I saw you? That smile did me in, and fast. You stole my heart that first day. It’s a good thing I have a hard head. I’ve been banging it against all the walls you’ve thrown up to stop me from getting you to fall madly and hopelessly in love with me.”
“I loved you the second I saw you,” she admitted.
“Love at first sight is an amazing thing,” he admitted, feeling her relax in his arms. When her breathing slowed and calmed, he kne
w she fell asleep.
“Emma?” he whispered softly. When she didn’t reply he smiled. “Go ahead, baby. You earned it. I love you more than anything.” Croft inhaled the lavender and simply relaxed.
At the soft tap on the door, he glanced up as his mother, father, and brother stood there. With his free hand, he motioned them in.
“We met your sheriff,” whispered Reggie to her son.
He dropped a kiss on the top of her head. “Isn’t she amazing, Mom?” he inquired.
“I think so. Your father just wants red haired grandchildren.”
The men in the room laughed, knowing the truth.
“When is the wedding, son?” asked Christopher, taking a seat and pulling his wife down into his lap.
He thought about it. “As soon as I’m out of this bed, I plan on kidnapping her and dragging her to Vegas. She’s stubborn, tough, and tricky, and she might try and sneak away.” Greyson rubbed his chin in her hair. It was silky and perfect. “We’re eloping.”
“What about her family?”
He told them the story and hoped that she wouldn’t wake up mid-tale. Croft pulled her closer. “I think she will want a simple wedding.”
“I think you are probably right, sweetheart. I guess I don’t have to ask you how you feel about her.”
The emotions swamped him and filled his eyes with tears. “I cherish and love her more than my own life, Mom. Emma is everything to me. Before her, there was nothing, and now, it’s like I just woke up and started living.”
“I’m happy for you,” Reggie sniffled, wiping a tear from her cheek.
“Me too, Mom. She’s definitely the one.”
Monday Afternoon
Five days later
Emma sat behind her desk filling out paperwork before it was time to go. At the approaching sound of footsteps, she glanced up to see Deputy Reese stroll into her room.
“Hey, how’s it going?”
He dropped into a chair. “It’s good, Emma. How’s Agent Croft?”
“Greyson is doing good, Reese. I believe he headed out this morning. He told me he had some things to take care of today.” Emma riffled through her papers.
“Is he coming back?”
Emma laughed. “I hope so,” she answered, grinning.
The man got serious. “Are you coming back?”
She stared at the man who gave her everything she had after her brother had been killed. If it wasn’t for him as her stand in brother, Emma didn’t think she would have made it.
“You look sad,” he said, already knowing the truth.
“We need to talk, Reese.”
This didn’t bode well at all. “I take that as a no. So, you’re really going to run off and marry a man you’ve only known two weeks?” he asked, his voice empty of all emotion.
“I’m planning on it,” Emma answered. “I believe we’re heading to Vegas,” she paused, “and I have something for you.”
She handed him a sheet of paper and watched as he read it from the top to the bottom.
“You’re resigning and leaving me as active sheriff?” He didn’t know what to say.
Emma nodded. “As of today, the mayor isn’t in the right capacity to name someone. I checked with the council, and I can then nominate my replacement. The job is yours for two more years until the next election.”
“Emma.” He looked up at her. “I don’t know what to say.”
“That’s the beauty of family, Reese. You never have to say anything. They just know.
“I love you, Em. I’ll miss you,” he said, touching the letter.
“Wait, there is one other thing.” She opened her desk drawer and tossed her brother’s baseball hat across the desk.
Reese stared at it and ran his fingers over the lettering. “This was his favorite one, Emma. You can’t give this up.” Emotion finally got to him.
“I want you to have it, and I know Gage would too. If it wasn’t for you, I never would have ended up in Celestia, and I might not have met Greyson,” she paused, catching her breath. “Thank you, Reese. You made all the difference on this journey.”
“I’ll miss you, Emma.”
She walked over to him and gave him a hug. “I know. I’ll miss you too. Tell the guys that I said goodbye, and enjoy being the boss.”
It was hard to walk out the office and past the people she’d come to love, but it was time. Emma knew she was strong enough, and knew that because of the man she loved, her heart could carry on and get her through.
There weren’t bloodstains on her hands or soul anymore.
Love washed it away.
It filled her and it gave her purpose.
Emma couldn’t wait to live again.
Today was the first day of the rest of her life, and Emma Starling was with the man who owned her heart and soul.
~ Epilogue ~
One week later…
Emma stared down at the gorgeous, sparkly wedding ring on her finger as she stood on the balcony overlooking the breathtaking view of the strip.
Finally, she was a married woman.
It was hard to imagine that in less than three weeks she’d managed to find a killer, meet the man of her dreams, and get married.
She couldn’t believe it.
When she arrived back at her cabin, there was a note with instructions for her to pack a bag and meet her fiancé at the airport. It was all very FBI-like and made her laugh. As she hurried out the door, Emma was met by Briggs who told her he was her escort, in case she got cold feet or decided to make a break for it.
Once at the airport, Emma was in for the surprise of her life. Standing there with a dozen roses and an engagement ring was the most handsome man in the world. Yeah, his face was still bruised, and the vicious scar ran the length of his cheek, but to her, there’d never be a more sexy man.
As she approached, he dropped to his knee in the center of the airport, garnering stares. He broke out the ring and so many words laced with love. It still brought tears to her eyes.
With a simple nod, she accepted and was swept up into his arms. The kiss that followed had everyone clapping when they finally broke apart.
She had to give him credit. Emma would never forget the proposal. He managed to make it memorable.
Once on the flight, they sat together in first class, drinking champagne and cuddling. The romance continued while they flew to their ‘honeymoon’ and wedding. Greyson decided to do it backwards, romancing her the entire week before they said ‘I do’. He didn’t want to rush to a chapel to get hitched.
Instead, he wanted to build the memories of a whirlwind courtship. Most importantly, it gave them something to remember for the rest of their lives together.
It had been an amazing week of the beach, sex in every conceivable place he could think of, or plan, and moments where they both simply stared at one another.
It was the best week of her life, and it was kicking off the best happily ever after she could ever dream of too.
Emma glanced over at her husband and smiled. He was fighting with a champagne bottle, and when he looked up at Emma, her heart melted. He was her life, healing bruises and all.
“Hey, honey, what are you thinking?” he asked, finally popping the cork of their champagne. He poured two glasses and carried them to his wife.
God, the word caught in his chest every time. It was hard to believe that this copper haired vixen was all his for the rest of his life.
She was his biggest treasure.
“Just that I’m a married woman.” She reached out for Greyson’s hand and the waiting champagne.
“I personally think that Emma Croft is a very sexy name,” he answered, pulling her into his arms for a kiss.
Emma wouldn’t ever get enough of him.
“Mmmmmm, Greyson,” she whispered.
Her words wrapped around him like silk and caressed his senses. He’d made love to her before they got married, and now, he was already thinking about marriage sex. He forced himself to
refocus.
“How do you like Vegas?”
Emma turned, staring out at the surrounding city, the twinkling lights, and the wandering people. “It’s pretty in that ‘Elvis is tacky’ kind of way. I love this view.”
Croft grinned, sipping his champagne. If his beautiful wife liked the views, he’d make sure they always had them. Now, he knew the next step, but he needed to be sure before buying their new place to live. “We can go back to Celestia if that’s where you want to be.”
She started to laugh. “That’s going to be hard to do since I quit my job. I know you love your career, so we can return to Philadelphia, Grey. I’ll be fine. I can get my old job back.”
Now, it was his turn to laugh. “Well, remember that job I told you about here in Vegas?”
Emma nodded as she drank her champagne.
“The first day we were here, while you were out by the pool, I disappeared.”
“I recall wondering where you ran off to that day.” Emma assumed it was wedding related. He was always planning things to be romantic.
“I had the interview for the position. It’s mine if we want it.” Nothing made him prouder than the ability to work his way up through the ranks of the FBI. This position meant double the money and a more comfortable life for the woman he loved.
The smile on her face said it all. “So, you’re going to be heading up a field office, huh?” she said grinning.
He absolutely would be, if she was okay with it. “Quantico was on overload, and they recently opened FBI West out here for this coast. I get to head up one of the satellite branches and report to Directors Blackhawk and Blackhawk. I won’t be out in the field as much, and I can spend more time as a newlywed keeping my wife occupied.”
“I’m so damn happy for you, Grey,” she whispered as she hugged him tightly.
Croft kissed her softly. “I happen to know that tomorrow you have an interview with the local police department. They seem to have an opening.”
She stared at him and wondered why she was surprised he was micromanaging her life now too. Greyson Croft was a bossy man, and her heart couldn’t love anyone more.
Celestia is Falling (A Croft & Croft Romance Adventure Book 1) Page 51