by Ravenna Tate
“But what kind of a life can I offer you? I can’t drive a car. I’ll never fly that damn plane. We will never stop running from the rest of the gang as long as we live.”
“Not true,” she said. “I have other family members, Jagger. We’ll have protection. And besides, I have a feeling most of them are going away for a long time. I don’t see how they won’t. My uncle will probably be sent back to prison as well, if it’s true he planned the kidnapping.”
“Will your family protect us against him?”
“Yes, once they hear what he almost did to me.”
The rest of her family wasn’t something he’d considered until now. He knew very little about them except what Tony had told him, and had always assumed they’d take Tony’s side no matter what. Carolyn’s words told a different story, and hope began to build.
“And anyway, what a silly question.” She kissed him on the mouth, but didn’t linger. It hardly mattered because his cock was rock hard already. They would have to think of a way to have sex without hurting themselves, or he’d die.
“What kind of a life can you offer me? What does that even mean?” She slipped her hands in his and squeezed hard. “I already have everything I need, right here. I don’t want to live without you, Jagger. This is the only life I want.”
So this is what it feels like when your heart has finally found its soul mate. Jagger kissed her on the mouth, and he wasn’t gentle about it. It hurt him to do so, but he didn’t care. She wrapped her arms around him, but judging by the staccato-like moans escaping her throat, he became afraid for her pain level, so he broke the kiss.
“You’re in pain, too.”
“A little.”
Those big green eyes told the truth. “A little? Carolyn…”
“All right. It hurts like fucking hell to lift my arms and do this, but I can’t not kiss you. I can’t not make love to you. I’ll die.”
Even laughing hurt, but he did so anyway. “I was just thinking the exact same thing.” He brushed his hands over her tank top, grinning when he realized she wasn’t wearing a bra. “Well, that makes it easier.” Jagger rolled her nipples through the fabric. She moaned softly, closing her eyes. He had to make love to her. Fuck the pain.
After easing off Carolyn’s tank top, he bent his head and suckled her nipples, alternating, moving as slowly as possible to keep the pain down to a dull roar.
“Jagger, does this hurt you?”
“A little.”
“Then we shouldn’t.”
“Right.” Jagger eased his hand between her legs. Even through her shorts, he could tell she was soaked. “Because you don’t want to either.”
A soft giggle sent his hormones racing out of control. “Well of course I want to, but I don’t want to hurt you any worse.” She took his hand and led him into the great room, then pointed toward the sofa. “You lie down. I got this.”
How could any man refuse that? She pulled off her shorts, and Jagger stared at her wet pussy, dying for a taste. He took a seat on the sofa, near the edge. “Bring that over here.”
“I said I don’t want you hurting yourself.”
“And I said, bring that over here!”
“Well.” She giggled again. “In that case…” She shoved her pussy against his face. He grasped her hips and pulled her closer, moving his tongue over her clit in the way he knew would bring her to climax soon. She held onto his head and rolled her hips seductively, moaning the entire time.
Was there anything more perfect than eating out a woman you loved until she came? If there was, Jagger had never found it.
Once her contractions stopped, she surprised the hell out of him by dropping to her knees. “We need to get these out of the way.” She tugged on the waistband of his sweats, then helped him lift his hips enough so she could pull them down to his knees. “That’s better.”
“Carolyn, I want to come inside you.”
The grin she gave him made his dick throb. “You will.” Jagger was helpless as she wrapped her lips around his dick and sucked hard. She moved her mouth up and down the length, forcing loud grunts from him as his climax drew closer. God in heaven, she is so fucking good at this!
When she played with his balls, he couldn’t hold back any longer. He let go with a loud cry, and long luscious moments went by before he was finally spent. As he gazed down into those incredible eyes of hers, he realized that day in the police station had changed his life in more ways than one.
Not only had he tried to do the right thing for the first time since he could remember, but he’d been reintroduced to the only woman on this earth who could claim his heart and soul. Coincidence? Jagger didn’t think so.
****
One week after the men kidnapped them, Carolyn received a phone call from the HR department at Goodwill, offering her a job. It was only part time for now, but she gladly accepted it. After she got off the call, Jagger tried to lift her up and hug her, but he was still in too much pain.
They settled for a long, lingering kiss instead, and lunch at the Grand Lux Café to celebrate. Carolyn treated. “I’m a working girl now.”
“Even with an income this place isn’t easy to afford.”
They had begun eating there several days a week, and she had grown to love the food as much as Jagger did. Carolyn considered it their place, and the staff now knew her by name as well.
Another week went by before they heard any news from Tim. He asked to meet them at the same FBI headquarters they’d been taken to after the kidnapping, but reassured them they were not in trouble.
Once they arrived, Tim met them inside a conference room, and this time the door was not locked from the outside. He gave them each back their phones. “They have what they need from these now.” Jagger had bought them new ones already, but he didn’t say anything to Tim so Carolyn kept quiet as well.
“And I have a nice surprise for Carolyn. At least, I hope it will be.”
“What is it?”
“They’re going to let you speak with your uncle.”
“What? Now?” She stood so quickly her chair toppled. “Is he here?”
“Yes.”
Her heart pounded as excitement washed over her.
“Are you sure you want to do this?” asked Jagger, his face filled with concern.
“Yes. I have to. I have to know the truth, and I want to look him in the eyes when I hear it.”
Tim crossed the room and picked up a phone on the wall. Carolyn counted the seconds in her head, but gave up when she had reached two minutes. They were the longest two minutes of her life. Finally, the door opened, and an agent they hadn’t met yet brought in her uncle. She almost gasped at the sight of him.
He wasn’t cuffed, but it would hardly be necessary. This man wouldn’t try to run. He looked beaten. That was the best word she could use to describe him as he shuffled over to the seat the agent pointed toward. He’d easily lost fifty pounds since she’d last seen him, years ago, and his eyes were dull. The Uncle Tony she remembered had dark, intense eyes that flashed with emotion. Not this man. This man had given up.
Tears sprang to her eyes as they stared at one another from across the table. The agent sat down next to him, and Carolyn knew by the look on the man’s face it was pointless to ask to speak with her uncle alone.
“You look well, Carolyn. The years have been kind to you.”
She wished she could tell him the same.
Uncle Tony eyed Jagger for a second, and it was only then that Carolyn caught a glimpse of emotion.
“He didn’t rat you out.”
“Say that again?” The only thing that hadn’t changed from the man she remembered was his voice. Still authoritative and in control.
“He didn’t rat you out. Nate lied to you.”
“Nate lied to a lot of people.”
“Uncle Tony, I need you to believe this. Jagger didn’t give up your names. It was the tattoo that convicted all of you. And that’s Joey’s fault. Why would Jagger gi
ve you all up, knowing it meant prison for him, too?”
His eyes narrowed slightly. He glanced from her to Jagger and back again several times before the corners of his mouth lifted. “So it’s true. You’re together.”
“Yes, we are, but not for the reasons you think.”
“Why don’t you tell me for what reasons, Carolyn?”
“I love him. This started out as me wanting to figure out why you’d either lied to me, or why someone had lied to you about him being the man in that photo, but it’s turned into much more than that.”
“Non tradire mai la tua famiglia.”
“I haven’t betrayed the family. You were lied to, and you used me to do something that could have landed me in jail for violating my parole. Why did you do that?”
“I needed revenge on him.”
“But he didn’t do it. No one did.”
Her uncle waved his hand in a dismissive gesture. “Does it matter now?”
“It does to me. Why did you have Jagger kidnapped?”
“You already know the answer to that one. You weren’t supposed to be taken. Those cretinos fucked up.”
“Uncle Tony, who is the man in the picture?”
“That’s off limits,” said the agent.
“Off limits,” her uncle said. “Everything is off limits, Carolyn. And I’m going back to prison for planning the kidnapping of a man who now you say may or may not have betrayed me.”
“I didn’t betray you.” Jagger’s tone of voice and his gaze held no contempt for her uncle, only pity. Carolyn had to agree with him there.
This man sitting across from her was no longer her uncle. At least, not the vibrant man she remembered. This was a hollowed-out, paranoid man who had given up on life. “Uncle Tony, even if you refuse to believe that Jagger didn’t betray you, how could you believe I would do it?”
For a few seconds, she thought he was okay after all. The look on his face thrust her back into her childhood so poignantly, that she had to blink away tears. But slowly, the dullness settled over his features once more, and Carolyn knew the uncle she recalled from her younger days didn’t exist any longer.
“All right. Fine. Neither one of you betrayed me. Are you happy, Carolyn? I said it.”
Would this pain ever leave her now, after hearing this? She wished she’d never asked to speak with him. “But you don’t believe it.”
“I no longer know what to believe.”
She knew that tone. He was done talking. This was the closest to any kind of closure she’d ever get on this issue. Cutting her gaze toward Jagger changed nothing. She could tell by the look on his face he wasn’t about to challenge Tony on this. Not in his present state. It was obvious that Jagger was in as much shock about the way Tony looked now as she was.
It was done. This was the best she’d get, and she had no choice now but to accept it and move on from here.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Another week went by before Carolyn and Jagger heard any further news from Tim. Carolyn had just come home from her first day of training at her new job, and Jagger was waiting with a bottle of champagne and take out from the Grand Lux Café.
“What are celebrating? My new job?”
“That, and news about the incident.” Whenever they spoke of it now, that’s how they referred to it—“the incident”.
“Tell me.” She was ready to jump out of her skin, but Jagger took his time, pouring them each of a glass first. Once she had hers, he asked how her day had gone. Carolyn nearly screamed in frustration.
“Oh, for heaven’s sake, Jagger. It’s retail, and you know how I feel about that. It’s not Prada and Ralph Lauren, but I like it there. I feel as if I’m doing some good for the first time in my life. Now tell me the news from Tim before I burst!”
That signature grin she adored so much graced his handsome face as he lifted his glass. “Between their confessions that they did indeed pull the job at the Art Institute, and the kidnapping, all were assured they’d get no less than forty years to life if they went to trial.”
“Whose confessions? Who pulled the job?”
“Nate, Joey, Maury, and Kurt. Nate was the man in the photo. He told you uncle it was me to try to throw off suspicion on him, because once he saw it, he was convinced the police would recognize him.”
“No one was recognizable from that photo.”
“Just shows you how paranoid both he and your uncle had become. Your uncle was not in on the robbery, but Nate told him they were going to do it, so they’ve got him on obstruction plus planning the kidnapping. And the items were recovered this time. So, instead of risking trial, all of them took plea bargains, including your uncle. The most any of them will serve is twenty-five to thirty, but it will be in a Federal pen.”
It felt as if someone had let the air out of her. “Even my uncle?”
Jagger nodded.
“That’s a long time.”
“Yes, it is. By the time they get out, the fight will have gone out of them. None of those men are under forty-five.”
“That’s true.” She nodded several times. “And my family will make sure no one comes near us while they’re inside.” She had already spoken with them, and no one had taken Tony’s side, just as she’d predicted. In fact, most of them had been pissed off as hell to realize Tony was still alive. Her family hadn’t taken kindly to knowing they’d grieved for nothing, or to realize he’d put Carolyn in so much danger. She and Jagger would be safe now.
“What about being able to talk to them?” she asked. “I know you want to.”
“Not going to happen.”
“I’m sorry.”
“It’s all right. I’ll wait and do it when I can see them face to face. I owe Kurt something for slapping you, and I won’t rest until I give it to him.”
How could she help but be madly in love with this man? “Well then, you’re right. It’s a victory.”
“It is indeed.” He clinked his glass against hers. “So let’s drink to your new job, to plea bargains, and to the surprise I have for you.”
“You mean this wasn’t it?” When he laughed nervously, Carolyn narrowed her eyes. “What are you up to?”
“Patience, beautiful.”
A shiver ran down her spine at those words. He’d said them to her so many times while they were fucking and playing, that erotic images now danced through her head. Their bruises were healing well, and they were almost back to the raw, dirty sex she adored so much.
“Have a seat.”
A look of both anxiousness and excitement covered his face. What was going on? Carolyn took her seat and watched him drain his glass. She did the same. Jagger placed both glasses on the coffee table. He stared at her for long moments before kneeling in front of her.
At first, she thought he wanted to kiss her or something else, but when he reached under the sofa and pulled out a small box, she gasped. “Jagger…”
“Hush. Let me get this out before I die from fear you won’t give me the answer I want.”
“But…”
The look of desperation in his eyes shut her up. Carolyn bit her lip to try to hold back the tears when he lifted the lid of the box, revealing the most exquisite ring she’d ever seen. It was an emerald, surrounded by tiny diamonds, and it sparkled in the sunlight streaming through the windows.
“Do you like it? The color reminded me of your eyes.”
“Oh, Jagger. It’s stunning.” She gazed into his eyes, so filled with love now that Carolyn was certain her heart would burst.
“Carolyn, I know I said I’m not a hearts and flowers kind of man, and I’m still not. But I can’t imagine a life without you. And while I realize a piece of paper from the state doesn’t prove what you mean to me, I still want to make this official. I want you to be mine in every way possible.”
There were no words. She couldn’t speak. She could barely think. Carolyn had never been one to imagine this day, but now that it was here, she was filled with so much happiness
that she wasn’t sure her body could contain it.
“Will you marry me?”
“Yes.” She tried not to cry, but a huge sob escaped her throat. She had to blink several times because there were so many tears. “Oh my God, yes, I will marry you. Jagger, I love you so much.”
“And I love you, too.” A huge smile spread across his face. He slipped the ring on, and of course it fit. Why should that surprise her?
“You didn’t steal this, did you?”
“If you mean did I pay a ridiculously low price for it, and that it was once part of a collection that belonged to a friend of a friend, and this collection included items that may have been unrecovered from an unsolved theft that took place decades ago, then yes. I did steal it.”
“Jagger.” Carolyn laughed as she held up her hand to admire the ring. “What am I going to do with you?”
“Hey, how else was I supposed to find the perfect engagement ring for you? It’s not like I’d be comfortable walking into Tiffany and Company to buy you one.”
“No, I don’t suppose you would.” He stood, taking her hand. She rose and then hugged him, squeezing as hard as she dared right now. Carolyn had never been this happy. Every bad dream, every fear, every doubt melted away as she held the man she loved in her arms.
Their lives might never be a fairytale, and their pasts were far from perfect, but they were perfect for each other. She knew that as certainly as she knew her own name. And Carolyn vowed that she would spend every second of the rest of her life making sure Jagger knew how very, very much she loved him.
The End
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