I raise my eyebrow at him. "Wait, what about Mirana? I thought she was going to run the thing?"
"When it’s up and running, yes. But putting the whole thing together is beyond her as well, and in between raising Diego and volunteering at the shelter, something she needs to continue to do to get the experience she needs to run things eventually, she doesn't have the time to do it anyway. I need someone who can make it their focus. There’s money in the budget to hire someone, I just hadn't gotten to it yet. And a job offer like this would certainly come with a work visa so that you can stick around for as long as it takes."
"I... I don't know..."
"And I also know of a really nice house that will be vacated very soon that you can stay in. The rent is super cheap. Almost non-existent..."
"Almost?"
"Well, you certainly wouldn’t have to pay in cash, anyway. I hear the owner is willing to accept all sorts of methods of payment."
"Oh really?"
"Well, not for just anyone of course. There is a very strict screening process."
"Go on..."
"For security, it might require a strip search, to start."
"Uh huh..."
"In fact, it might be a good idea to start the process now. It can be quite lengthy and... in depth."
"Well, I'm pretty busy at the moment but I might be able to... squeeze you in."
We both laugh and fall against the bed as his lips brush against mine.
"Are you okay then?" he asks, pulling away for a moment to look at me with his deep blue eyes one more time.
"Yes," I whisper. My head tilts forward until I’m close enough to feel his breath against my lips. "Because of you, I think I finally am.”
Epilogue
"I can't believe you're engaged! It feels like last week that you were asking me who Chase Anderson even was!"
"It was six months ago, but I agree. It's flown by so fast. Anyway, the wedding won't be for a while. Chase is just going through the divorce with Mirana now and we have to be careful not to get married right after or we’ll set off red flags I'm sure."
"Doesn't she have her Green Card already?"
"Yes, but she just got it a couple of months ago. I don't know if they can take it away, but we don't want to take any chances. I would hate for anything bad to happen to her or Diego. He's such a great kid. And she’s such a wonderful woman as well. The shelter would be lost without her. She really holds that place together."
"Well I'm sure you do your part as well. If I know you, you're working just as hard."
I shake my head. "Only on the foundation side of it, not the actual shelter. Honestly, Mirana is the glue that holds that place together. She’s so strong with all of those women. I don't know how she does it. All I do is push papers and make phone calls."
Evelyn is looking at me with a raised eyebrow.
"Okay, I do more than that, especially with the expansion plans on taking the shelters nationwide. But my point is that we don't want to do anything to put her legal status at risk. So we’ll probably wait at least six months before we get married. Maybe more. It doesn't matter. I'm happy as long as we're together, no matter what form that is."
"Well shit, with a ring that size I'd be happy too!" Evelyn grabs my hand and pulls it up to her face again. "Wow, it really is gorgeous! Did he pick it out himself?"
I nod. "I would never have let him buy something so big if I had been with him."
"So you're going to ask him to return it for something smaller?"
I yank my hand back and clutch it against my chest. "Of course not!" We both fall against her couch in laughter. "Let's not talk crazy..."
"Oh Lila, I've really missed you." Eve reaches for the bottle of wine and refills both of our glasses with Chardonnay. She has a heaviness about her lately. I've heard it on the phone when we’ve talked and it was one of the reasons I wanted to get out here and talk to her in person. It could just be that her job has kept her so busy that she hasn't had time to make any friends, and we're 2500 miles apart. She has her boyfriend of course, but she needs a friend too.
"I know. I'm sorry I haven't been out here to see you more."
"It's more my fault. I haven't been to Vegas at all since you moved there. Between work and Edward, I've been so busy. But that's no excuse."
"Well, I'm here now. And you have me for the whole weekend."
"Perfect. And I made sure to stock up enough wine for an army. So it should last us until Sunday."
We both laugh again. I've really missed spending time with my best friend.
We continue to talk and finish the bottle of wine. When Lila returns with another, I ask a question that's been weighing on my mind.
"Have you spoken to Harry recently?"
"Are you kidding? After what you told me about his screwing around with those hookers? No fucking way. I blocked him on my phone right after I sent him a message telling him what kind of a piece of shit I thought he was."
Evelyn always has my back, and I appreciate it so much. I know she was friends with Harry, hell she introduced us, but I shouldn’t have ever worried that she might take his side over mine. Not that he really has a side. But I was just happy to not have her talking to him anymore. That means I no longer have any ties to him, and that is the way I want to keep it.
"What about Chase and that Denise bitch? Do they still talk at all?"
I'd told Evelyn everything of course, and she has almost as much of a hate on for Denise as I do now. I shake my head, feeling tipsy as I do.
"No, thank god. He changed his cell phone number after she started trying to text him again after the house closed. But that was months ago. The last I heard, she'd moved on to someone new. I heard that she hooked up with some internet tycoon and the two of them moved to the Cayman Islands or something. Good fucking riddance."
"Cheers to that."
"I've had it up to here with exes. Well, Mirana doesn't count. She was never really with Chase anyway, and she’s actually really nice. At least I won't have to worry about his ex-wife. What about Edward? Any lurking evil exes in his past?"
Evelyn shakes her head. "He never really talks about ex-girlfriends, so I don't think there’s ever been anyone special. Certainly no one else has come sniffing around him in the last few months, so if he did have any they’ve moved on."
"How have things been going with you two, anyway?"
Evelyn sighs as she picks up her glass and drinks about half of it in a single swallow. "It's been good, but so busy. I mean, I knew it would be, don't get me wrong, but I've never been the assistant of someone so... rich and powerful, you know? I'm constantly running around the city doing things for Edward that I barely get to see him until the end of the day - and often by then we're both exhausted."
"So you're feeling overworked and under-appreciated?"
Evelyn smiles. "Something like that."
"So take a vacation."
"Ha ha. Edward would never leave the office for a few days, much less a week. Even a weekend to him means only working for a few hours on Saturday and Sunday, although usually he at least does that from home."
"So, who says you have to bring him? Come back with me to Vegas. You can stay at our house and you and I can lounge around the pool all day. Wouldn’t you like to leave this cold weather behind for a bit?"
"Oh Lila, it sounds lovely but I don't know. We're so busy at work. I don't know if Edward would want me gone for very long. You should have heard how much he whined about it when I said I would be unavailable this weekend!"
"What if you were to tell him that you needed to come to help me out?"
Evelyn shrugs. "I don't really know much about the non-profit foundation business."
"I'm not talking about that," I say. I can't hold back my grin any longer. I can feel it splitting my face in two as I stare at my friend, excited to see her reaction. "I wanted to ask if you could be my maid of honor?"
Evelyn lets out a little scream and grabs my hand. "Of cou
rse! Oh my god, Lila, that's so exciting!" She leans forward and gives me a very tight hug.
"Well, it does mean you'll have to see me more. At least to help pick out my dress and do some wedding planning." I point out when she finally lets me breathe again. "That’s what I was thinking you and I could do if you came to Vegas. Between our pool time, of course. Do you think Edward would have a problem with letting you go long enough for that?"
"Too fucking bad if he does. There’s no way I'm missing out on helping you plan your wedding."
We both lift our glasses and take another drink. I've missed hanging out with Evelyn, but my life with Chase has been amazing. There’s never a dull moment with that man, and the fact that he’s started this whole non-profit foundation and given it over for me to run has been like a dream come true. It's busy, but we still make time for each other. I can only hope that Evelyn can find the same balance in her life.
"So you'll come?"
"Honey, I wouldn’t miss it for the world." Evelyn gives me another hug and I feel the smile threatening to split my face again. With Chase waiting for me back in Vegas, the only thing that could make things even better right now is having my best friend by my side. I squeeze her back, even harder than she’s holding me. I knew she wouldn’t let me down.
I can't wait to get back and start planning my future with the two most important people in the world.
And now for the second bonus book, Fighting for Salvation.
Fighting for Salvation
Chapter One
Joel
"Don't get in my way, boy!" Joel's father yelled, his eyes a blaze of fury.
"Leave her alone!" the boy yelled, arms outstretched in front of his cowering mother.
The back of the man's hand moved like a flash and the boy spun as he was struck, arms flailing as he hit the ground. "I warned you. Never fucking listen to me, a day in your life. Like your bitch of a mother."
Joel's father advanced again, both hands clenched into fists of black iron, dirty from an afternoon of fixing cars and strong for the same reason. He was lurching unsteadily, so his advance was slow enough that Joel was able to scramble back to his feet and throw himself between the two adults again before his father could close the gap. His mother stood hunched against the kitchen counter, hands held protectively in front of her face.
Joel's father saw the boy moving back in front of his intended target and so he swung his right arm straight this time, trying to catch his wife before his son could get in the way. Joel grabbed the arm with his right and pushed it past his father, towards the left side of the big man's body, keeping him from using his left hand for any further striking. While he still held the arm, Joel lifted his leg and swung it into the man's exposed belly...
The crowd roared around Joel as his opponent stood up unsteadily after being knocked to the ground. His shirtless back was covered in sweat despite the cool breeze that blew through the alleyway, and a large gash was slowly starting to ooze blood from where he had just sliced it on the concrete. The man's right arm shot towards Joel's face, but he was too quick and he stepped out of the way, grabbing the arm with his right and pushing it left across the man's body, blocking him from throwing a punch with his other arm and exposing his belly.
With a swing of his powerful hips, Joel spun on the ball of his left foot as he brought his right leg up and out, slamming it hard into the exposed mid-section. With a sharp exhalation of breath, the other man doubled over. Joel released his arm as he did and then grabbed his bent over body with both hands and pulled him forward, slamming him into the wall behind him. The man was only able to raise his hands just in the nick of time to keep himself from hitting the brick headfirst.
The crowd of 20 or so around Joel roared in cheer as arms went up and they widened around the two, shifting formation to maintain a rough circle and give them enough room to fight.
The other man, the one who just called himself "Crush", pushed himself off the wall and whirled around to glare back at Joel. He was panting now, clearly winded from the blow to the stomach, but he shrugged it off and moved forward again, bringing his arms up and squaring his hips back into his fighting stance.
Chapter Two
Amber
The only thing good about this apartment is how close it is to the subway, Amber Sinclair noted as she bounded up the stairs two at a time to emerge from the underground into the dark and cool night. She hated working the late shift at the bar, but that's where the tips were made and tips were the only salvation she had towards getting into a better neighborhood. With bars like hers, near a college, the weekends started on Thursday's.
She absently clutched her spring jacket around her. Not from the cold, since despite the breeze the night was still warm enough, but because it almost felt like it was an extra blanket of security against whoever may be lurking in the shadows. Her mother had warned her about moving into this building, but it was only at night that she really wished she had listened to her.
Her building was in sight pretty much as soon as she had come above ground, but it was still about a five minute walk to the front door. That was enough time for the creeps to settle in, so she hurried her pace. There weren't really any people around, but there did seem to be a lot of yelling coming from somewhere. As she got closer to home, the noise only got louder.
By the time she reached the front security door of her building, it sounded as if the yelling was right next to her. It took her a moment to realize that it was coming from the alleyway next to her building. Despite not really wanting to get involved, the sounds of a cheering crowd made her feel safer than she probably should feel. You can still get raped by a group of men, it doesn't just happen with one. She could almost hear her mother's admonishing voice in her head.
She peaked around the corner and was surprised to see a group of at least 20 in a circle, shoulder to shoulder and all yelling and clapping. They were standing too close for her to see what it was they were looking at, but she did see some females in the group which made her feel even safer. Their attention was on whatever they were watching, not her.
She inched closer to the crowd until she was standing behind one short female who she could see above. What in the hell?
Two men were standing bare-chested in the middle of the group, arms up defensively in front of themselves. There was a car backed into the alleyway and it's headlights were on, shining towards the group and lighting the night up.
One of the men had short cropped black hair, military style, and looked to be some sort of mulatto mix. He had a bleeding scar on his back that looked pretty fresh. He was short, and squat, but heavily muscled. One of his eyes were puffy, and his lip looked swollen as well, but the grimace on his face made it seem like those injuries just made him angry instead of hurt.
The other man couldn't look more different. He was taller, and although his body was very well defined and muscular, it seemed to be more of the kind of muscle you get from working all your life as opposed to lifting weights. He had much fairer skin, as well, and blond hair that was short but not cropped. He had an angry looking bruise on his cheekbone but other than that didn't seem to be in such bad condition.
Both men were covered in a thin film of sweat. She was about to tap the girl in front of her on the shoulder and ask her what the hell was going on when all of a sudden the shorter man charged towards the blond and grabbed him by the waist, slamming them both against the brick side of her building. The crowd around her roared and she saw a couple men high five each other. What the fuck is this, fight club?
Chapter Three
Joel
"Get the fuck off me Joel, or you're next, so help me!"
Joel gripped his father by the waist as his mother ran from the living room, taking the escape her son had provided for her without another thought as to what might be in store for him by offering it. He heard the bathroom door slam and the lock click. That wouldn't stop his father for long.
"You think you're big enough
to stop me now, you little shit? I'll always be stronger than you. You ain't a man yet. As soon as you are, I'll be happy to kick you the fuck out of this house without having to worry about the fucking cops bringing you back."
His father pushed an elbow into the back of his neck painfully, but he held on tightly. At seventeen, he was already as tall as his father but in this position, holding him by the waist, his height was no longer an advantage.
Silver and Chrome: A Bad Boy MC Romance Page 43