Damen (The Marquette Family Book Two)

by Lockwood, Tressie

  “Mom always cooks pancakes on the weekend,” Gideon told them and lowered his voice. “She doesn’t do too good with eggs though, so pretend you only want pancakes and bacon or sausage. I love pancakes, so it’s okay.”

  “Pancakes sounds great,” Damen announced and winked at Gideon. His son grinned. “I’ll help you. You two, get along. We’ll talk some more later.”

  Damen cleaned up and then joined Heaven in the kitchen. She glanced over at him as he walked in. “Don’t you think you should give her a minute to tell you what she’s thinking about all this?”

  “It’s pretty obvious what she’s thinking. I figured I’d let it sink in for a little while.”

  “You mean you ran off before she could say anything.”

  “I didn’t run off, Heaven.”

  She smirked. “Uh-huh.”

  “And you didn’t?” He leaned against the counter and folded his arms over his chest. She was cute in the morning, but he wanted to see her when she hadn’t yet combed her hair or cleaned up. Earlier, she appeared all put together, which told him she had risen before ten thirty.

  “I’m making breakfast.”

  Damen moved up behind her. He had an urge to grind against her ass, and his desire had grown from the night before. Just knowing she was in the same house, lying in her bed, had driven him insane. He wanted to make love to her, but she had denied him. Damen leaned in and breathed her scent at the side of her neck. He rested hands on her waist and let her ass brush his thigh.

  “Damen,” she breathed. “The kids...”

  “Will get used to seeing us together.”

  “You said Gideon and I are now a permanent part of your lives. Don’t you think that’s jumping the gun?”

  Damen took the bowl of batter from her and started mixing while she prepared the skillet. “I plan to have Gideon in my life forever. You’re his mom. It stands to reason we have a permanent connection.”

  “Oh.”

  He squeezed her ass. “And when you say yes to marrying me…”

  She slapped his arm.

  The four of them ate breakfast at Heaven’s small dining table that was a challenge for two let alone four people. Damen insisted on rinsing the dishes and stacking them in the dishwasher, although he ground his teeth while doing it.

  Heaven laughed at him. “If you hate it, why don’t you move and let me do it?”

  “Because you cooked for me. I don’t want to be selfish.”

  “You still owe me, pal. Stacking the dishwasher isn’t work.”

  “Doesn’t stop me from hating it.”

  She laughed. “You’re a baby.”

  Damen smirked. “Waa waa.”

  Heaven swung away from him laughing, but he caught her and drew her back against him. She struggled to get out of his hold. Damen pressed his lips to her ear and whispered, “Marry me.”

  “Damen, how long are going to keep asking me?”

  “Until you say yes.”

  “So no isn’t an option?”

  “Not unless you have a better idea.”

  She pulled his fingers around that were laced over her belly, and he allowed it. “I do. It’s called visitation.”

  “No!”

  She gasped, and he surprised himself at the vehemence in his tone. He hadn’t meant to sound so angry or insistent. In fact, he didn’t realize he felt so strongly against seeing Gideon only during some kind of schedule.

  “I apologize,” he said.

  Heaven moved away and faced him. “That’s what’s bothering you, isn’t it?”

  He couldn’t deny it. “Yes.”

  “Damen, we can’t force a relationship just to accommodate the kids. Plenty of them grow up with single parents, and they’re fine. It’s not ideal, but it can work.”

  He didn’t respond. What she said made sense logically, and he knew there was plenty evidence available to back up that view. None of it changed how he felt. Damen realized in the end, she might not agree to marry him or live with him. He despised the thought while acknowledging it.

  “I need to take care of a few things,” he said. “I’d like to spend the afternoon and evening with you and Gideon. Are you busy?”

  She hesitated and then sighed. “All right. I admit it makes me happy to see Gideon so excited to be with you.”

  He grinned. “He’s not the only one. Besides, you promised me pictures.”

  “Hold on.” She ran out of the kitchen and returned a few moments later with an envelope. “These are for you. I saved them special. I have more, and we can look through them when we meet up again.”

  Damen’s chest tightened, but he took the envelope, paused staring at it a moment, and then peeled open the flap. Inside were two small photographs. Both were of Gideon as an infant. In the first one his son lay sleeping with dark curls slicked to his head, and a white blanket with powder blue stripes covered him. Gideon’s skin was much paler than it was now, his hands as white as Damen’s before he tanned.

  The other photo showed Gideon being held in someone’s arms, he assumed Heaven’s. This time, Gideon’s eyes were open, and he stared into the camera. One arm was raised, tiny fingers curled as if he tried grabbing for the object in front of him but had no motor control to reach it.

  Damen raised both photos and the envelope to his forehead, shutting his eyes. He waited for his emotions to calm down, embarrassed for Heaven to see him choked up. “Thank you,” he whispered after some time. “This means a lot to me.”

  She hugged him. “Of course.”

  “Heaven, can you tell me why you kept him from me?” Damen didn’t mean to sound resentful, but he knew he did when she spun away. “I don’t blame you.”

  “Yes, you do, but I understand. If it was the reverse, I’d scratch your eyes out.”

  He winced.

  She looked at him. “I take full responsibility for my choice because it was mine to make.”

  “But?”

  “My dad. Did you know my dad is Alfred Burk?”

  “Wait, the English professor? Why didn’t I realize that?”

  She twisted her hands together. “Because we didn’t get along. I almost never saw him, even then. He was supporting me, of course, so when I found out I was pregnant, I told him. He wanted to know who the father was.”

  “He knew me. He’d become my mentor.”

  “I know.”

  Damen couldn’t believe the connection, and he had kept up with Professor Burk over the years. The man hadn’t mentioned his daughter more than once or twice, and never by name. Could their disagreement be that severe? “You told him about me?”

  “Yeah, I told him. He said you deserve to have a better life than to be dragged down by an unplanned pregnancy because I wasn’t careful.”

  Damen’s eyes widened. This sounded like fantasy. He knew Professor Burk, or thought he did. As he recalled the many conversations they had had over the years, he realized they centered around learning and whatever scientific advancements interested Damen at the moment, nothing more intimate like a daughter and his own son. The sense of betrayal burned in his veins.

  “It took two to make our son,” he ground out.

  “Yeah, well, my dad didn’t see it that way. He saw it as me causing more heartache in your life. He knew about your past.”

  Damen nodded. “I’d discussed it with him once or twice.”

  “What about you, Heaven?”

  “Huh?”

  “What about your past—with him and your mom and…?”

  “There’s not much to tell.” She started to move away again, but he caught her up to his chest. He kissed her lips and felt her tremble a little.

  Damen nuzzled her neck. “We’ll pick this up later, when you’re going to open up to me.”

  “Damen.”

  “No arguments.” He left her standing in the kitchen to find Gideon. His son sat in his room on the laptop. Nita had sprawled before the television in the living room. Damen wondered if they would ever get along
and then recalled the way Heaven handled the two. With time, he decided, working together, they would be a family. “Gideon, what do you say to some sightseeing in New Orleans today?”

  Gideon looked up from his computer screen. “Sightseeing?”

  “Yeah, we can go anyplace you want to this afternoon.”

  His son appeared to think about it. “How about a city of the dead? And there’s a new sci-fi movie I want to see.”

  “You got it, but don’t you think you’ll be afraid visiting a graveyard?”

  “It’s different. All the graves are aboveground. I read about it before we moved here.”

  “Fine. I have to take care of some business, and then it’s us four together.”

  Gideon hesitated. “My…sister doesn’t like me.”

  Damen smiled, liking how Gideon worded it. He’d at least begun to accept Nita. “Give it time. Neither of you have had a sibling before. In fact, this is new to all of us. We’re going to make it work though. As a man, can I count on you to help me with your mom and sister?”

  Gideon’s narrow chest poked out. “Yes, sir.”

  “Thanks.” Now all Damen had to do was bring around a very angry older brother of his own.

  * * * *

  Damen paused in Marquette’s kitchen. “Someone, a vodka on the rocks, please.”

  Within moments, he held the glass in his hand, and he knocked back most of the alcohol.

  “Isn’t it a little early for you?” Shada asked. She kept her back to him as she worked. He heard a sour note in her voice, but he couldn’t see her expression. So she and Creed hadn’t made up. Great. He had been hoping they did, and it would mean he’d find his brother in a better mood. Not that Creed scared him, but the bear soothed was better than being ripped by his claws—the claws being Creed’s temper.

  “It’s after one,” he said.

  “Whatever.”

  Damen waited for more from her, but she said nothing. He checked her left hand. No ring, but that didn’t mean anything either. She’d kept removing it with the excuse that she didn’t want it to drop into a pot or get damaged in some other way. No one believed the excuse, least of all Creed. An instance of pity washed over him regarding his brother. His choice wasn’t an easy one.

  Hell, neither is mine.

  Damen finished the drink and set the glass in the sink before heading down the hall. He didn’t bother knocking on the door or inquiring of one of the others as to whether Creed was in. Creed was always in if he wasn’t in New York. They had hired competent managers for the parent company, and Creed had stepped down as CEO, so New York wasn’t as much of an issue.

  As soon as Creed spotted him, he frowned. “Ever heard of answering your cell?”

  “I had it on silent.” Damen shut the door and dropped into his desk chair.

  “Damen—”

  “Let me get right to it, Creed.” Damen pushed his glasses up on his nose. “I’ve asked Heaven to marry me.”

  “You fucking what?” Creed raged.

  “You heard me.”

  Creed slammed a fist on his desk and surged to his feet, but Damen didn’t move from his position. “I suppose she jumped all over it, probably has the gown waiting in the closet.”

  “She turned me down.”

  “A ploy.”

  Damen sighed.

  “You can’t tell me you believe her. We’ve had women pretending their bastard children are ours before. This woman was probably fucking several other men at the same time she was with you. Her son—”

  Damen clenched his hands atop the desk. “Say what you want about Heaven. I care about her, and I happen to think she’s a good woman. I understand you have your doubts about her character because you don’t know her. But say one single word against my son, and I will forget I hate violence and wipe the floor with your ass.”

  Creed’s eyes grew round in shock. “I wasn’t about to. He’s just a kid, subject to believe whatever his mother told him. Seeing you so obviously convinced without evidence disgusts me. Damn it, Damen, think. She’s after your money. Why can’t you see that?”

  “Let’s say that’s true. Gideon is mine. Everything I have is his and Nita’s. You’re saying I should turn my back on him?”

  “No, but before you offer her our name, check her out. You saw that guy who came in here yesterday. There might be something to what he’s saying. He says the boy’s his.”

  “It’s always about our name with you, Creed.”

  His brother ground his teeth.

  “You act like the Marquette name is special. It’s just another name.”

  “It’s all we had coming up.”

  “No, we are all we had. We are, and we’re still here, you, me, and Stefan.” A new thought came to Damen. “Other people recognize the name now though. They respect it, and it opens doors. I’m going to adopt Gideon and give him my last name.”

  “Wait, so he’s not your son. You’re going to try to take Heaven’s son?”

  “No, I don’t have to take him away from her to adopt him as my responsibility and one of my heirs. I want to be on his birth certificate as his dad, and I want him to carry my last name.”

  Creed rubbed his eyes. “Damen, I always knew you were stubborn, and you just had to do whatever popped into your head. You, along with Stefan, have pulled some crazy stunts. This—this beats all of it, and it’s wrong.”

  “No, you’re wrong. I’ve made my decision.”

  “Test him,” Creed suggested. “Get a paternity test to make sure. If it turns out he’s blood, I will support you in everything you do concerning him.”

  “Except marrying Heaven?”

  “Damen, see reason.”

  Damen stood up and walked toward the door. “If I get my way, Heaven will be my wife. I hope you’ll be at the ceremony and welcome her into the family.”

  “Hold on.”

  Damen glanced over his shoulder, tension in his muscles as he expected his brother to continue fighting him on his decision. “What?”

  “Why her? You don’t love her, right? It could be anyone because you still love Vita. Why get married again at all?”

  Damen hesitated to give voice to thoughts that had been swirling in his head since seeing Heaven after so long. He still wasn’t clear on everything, but he believed the few words he spoke to his brother. “Because Heaven is the woman that should have been my wife years ago, no matter what I decided later or how I feel now.”

  Chapter Ten

  “Hello, roomie.”

  Heaven cut her eyes at Damen and then focused on the bedroom where Gideon had already dumped his bag and was off to find the game room Damen claimed to have. She took in the wooden four-poster bed, the chandelier overhead, the gleaming hardwood floors, and the silky drapes hanging from the window. “First, it’s only for the week, and second”—she gestured to the room—“this doesn’t actually scream eleven-year-old boy.”

  “Yeah, sorry, the house was furnished when I bought it, a foreclosure, and I figured I didn’t have anything down here, so why not? Also, Nita already claimed the bedroom next to ours—”

  “Yours.”

  “So, we can get it redone the way Gideon wants. It’ll be a cool project between father and son.”

  “Hm.” She hid a smile. “I guess that does sound like a good idea, but I’m still not your roomie.”

  “You’re staying in my bedroom, aren’t you?”

  “Only because I suspect you had the furniture removed from the other bedrooms.”

  He widened his eyes in innocence, but she wasn’t falling for it.

  “And I don’t know why you insist we do this now when the kids have to get to school.”

  He tugged her into his arms, and she decided not to fight him this time. Damen nuzzled her ear and nipped her earlobe. Goose bumps rose on her skin. “Like I told you we’re only about fifteen minutes from your apartment. I can just as easily get Gideon to school from here as you can from over there.”

  �
�But.”

  “Don’t say but, Heaven. We will make this work for them and for us.”

  “For us?”

  He kissed along her throat, and she chewed her bottom lip attempting not to moan. “Yes, I’m a good catch, so you should try to make me happy.”

  “What?” She broke away, but he caught her hand.

  “Your money…”

  “Has nothing to do with it.” The bum put her hand on his cock and wiggled his eyebrows behind his glasses. “Do you know what I can do with this? Very good catch.”

  She burst out laughing, and he frowned.

  “Why are you laughing?”

  She glanced around her to make sure they were alone. The beeps and booms of video games sounded from somewhere inside the house, along with Gideon and Nita arguing. “Because you think I should swoon over your dick. I can have you on your knees for this right here.”

  She pointed to her pussy, and Damen’s eyes glazed over. “I don’t believe you. Get naked and see if I fall to my knees.”

  “No way.” She ran down the hall past his room. He caught her, hauled her off her feet, and carried her back to his domain. When he kicked the door shut, she protested. “I know you don’t think I’m having sex with you, Damen. Gideon or Nita could come here at any time.”

  “I locked the door.”

  “They need supervising.”

  “They’re okay until I finish proving my point.”

  “You don’t have a point.”

  He dumped her on the bed, and she rolled over to scowl at him. The tent in his pants arrested her gaze, and she licked her lips. “My point,” he repeated. Heaven rolled her eyes.

  When she slid to the edge of the bed, Damen pushed her shoulders and followed her down until she lay flat and he stretched on top of her. His hard-on slid between her legs like her pussy was a homing beacon. If they weren’t both dressed, she knew he’d be inside her by now.

  Damen stroked her cheek and turned her head gently to face him. “Are you saying you’ll deny a poor man all week long? I have to sleep beside you, smelling you, hearing your moans and not be able to touch you?”