“So he was killed by the bosses and they are the ones who held you captive? What a strange thing for them to do.”
“I guess they wanted to make sure it wasn’t some kind of trap. You should have seen the girl whom I went and talked to. Poor thing got the short end of the stick with that deal. I guess it doesn’t matter anymore since Collins is gone.”
“I still wish we knew how he found out that I was here. You came here by chance, but someone sent him in the right direction. His men were looking for me and they knew the exact location I was hiding.”
“Oh,” I muttered, the anger still there. “I found the mole in the FBI too. The bosses weren’t too happy that someone was leaking information. They have always held a firm line against working with anyone from the government, so when Collins crossed that line, he went right on their shit list. It didn’t take long to track down the guy who was giving information.”
“Please don’t tell me the bosses offed him too. That would be a bad idea. The FBI like to take care of their own.”
“Yeah, you don’t have to worry about that. They turned him over to the feds for some good standing later on down the line.”
“So, everyone wins? And Shannon looked like she was doing wonderfully too. I can’t believe how much she has changed since this whole thing started. Kane would send me updates there for a while.”
I shrugged. “Everyone but Collins and the men he was able to rope into his lousy lifestyle. They are being hunted down as we speak. The whore gave me some pretty damning evidence.”
Her eyes went cold. “I don’t care about that son of a bitch. He deserved everything he got coming to him and more. It’s too bad we didn’t get to kick him in the balls before they gave him his nap with the fish.”
“Easy, darlin,” I whispered. “He’s gone.”
“Yeah,” she said with a dreamy smile. “And Shannon?”
I smiled. “I can’t take any credit for that. Kane was the one to bring her out of her shell, but I don’t know how he did it. When I was let go, I had to pick between checking on them or coming to you. I hate that you made it this far. My men should have been watching you better.”
“Nonsense,” she said pointedly. “They did their best. Don’t forget that I’ve had to go on the run before, so they had their work cut out for them. Speaking of running off, I need to get ahold of Mary and let her know that I’m okay. Should I assume that she is the reason you knew where to find me?”
I nodded my head, looking sheepishly away. “Yeah. I may have told her a little bit too much, but don’t worry. Shannon was going to get Kane and they were going to go explain the situation.”
“Wow, you’ve thought of everything, haven’t you?”
I grinned. “Not everything. I can’t believe you’re having my baby. Do you have any idea what a huge turn-on that is for me? I have always wanted to be a father, but I never thought that it would happen to me. My life was always so full of hate and anger that I never thought anyone could love me enough to give me that kind of gift.”
“What are you talking about?” she asked as she took my chin in her hand. “You are an amazing man and you are going to be a wonderful father. Our child will be lucky to have someone so protective and strong to look out for him or her. I wouldn’t want it any other way. I think you are perfect just the way you are.”
“How did I get so lucky to have you?” I asked her earnestly.
She grinned. “You know, I was just wondering the same thing about you. I love you, Peyton. I have since I first met you, and I’m so happy that we found each other. Even if you were trying to kill me to start with.”
“Ha! I should have been the one on the run. You are a pistol and I wouldn’t change that for the world. I love you, too, Rosa. I never want to be away from you again.”
“And you never have to be. It’s just us now against the world,” she whispered as her hands slid down my chest.
I knew what she wanted as I groaned with pleasure. Her fingers wrapped around my limp cock and it immediately started to come back to life. We had a lot of lost time to make up for and I didn’t want to waste another second of it with words. As I pulled her back down onto me, crushing her lips against mine, I let the world slip away. Whatever was coming next could wait until tomorrow. Tonight, I just wanted to spend some time with the woman I loved more than life itself.
New Family
Rosa
Peyton ran his hands over my stomach, which stuck out further than my larger than ever breasts. The baby kicked, and he jumped, his eyes filling with pride as he looked up at me in anticipation. I smiled down at him and lovingly stroked my fingers through his hair. We were sitting in our living room, waiting on our guests for the night to arrive. It had been four months since everything with Collins had finally ended, and there wasn’t a day that went by that I didn’t thank God for everything that he had done.
The baby kicked again. “Does he always do that?” asked Peyton in awe.
I laughed. “You don’t know if it’s a boy or not, and yes. She especially likes to kick whenever I’m trying to sleep.”
“Wow,” he muttered. “I don’t want to wait another five months to meet him . . . or her.”
“Well,” I said as I sat up. I’d seen headlights pulling into the driveway. “You’ve got a while before she comes out, so get used to midnight craving runs and my huge ass hogging the bed.”
“I will buy a bigger bed if that’s what you want to be comfy, and I like the midnight runs. The town is quiet. It’s nice,” he said as he helped me to stand.
The doorbell rang, and Peyton went to answer it as I popped open a bottle of red wine. Shannon came in first, glowing with happiness as she saw me. Our relationship had changed and grown so much since we’d found each other again. I was so happy to have her safe and back in my life. She and Mary got along flawlessly, and it was the perfect blending of the old and new.
“Hey!” she called out cheerfully as Kane followed her in. “How is that baby doing today?”
“Kicking the shit out of me,” I replied jokingly.
“Aww, did you find out what you’re having today?”
I shook my head. “We decided we wanted to keep it a surprise, but I do have some good news. I finally talked Mary into working for me full-time as the bakery manager! No more long nights and early mornings for this woman.”
“That’s amazing!” she said. “I can’t believe I’m going to be an aunt. Would you have thought this was how we were going to end up all those years ago?”
“Ha! I didn’t even know you had a brother back then.”
“I don’t think I mentioned him, but you know, he was in jail at the time and I didn’t really want to brag about something like that. I always knew that he was a good guy, but after he had his run-ins with the law, my faith in him had started to falter.”
“So, it looks like things are going good with you and Kane,” I said with a wink.
Shannon blushed. “They really are. He was so attentive when I was going through all of that, and afterward, I don’t know . . . things just kind of clicked between us. I can’t imagine being with anyone else. I know that he felt terrible for his part in everything that happened. It was so hard to see him going through that. Even now, he gets upset when he thinks about how I suffered.”
“Poor guy,” I whispered.
I could understand what he was going through though. I was dealing with the same thing on occasion. Shannon was so happy and at peace with her new life, but every once in a while, something would jolt her back into that basement and we would all frantically try and make it right again. The episodes never lasted longer than a few minutes, but it was still so hard to see. It didn’t matter how many times she forgave me or tried to shift the blame away from me. We would all hold onto a piece of that dark history together.
“Hey,” she said as she took my arm. “The past is in the past, okay? We have the rest of our lives ahead of us and a little one to be celebrating now. I d
on’t want to think about that time there, and you shouldn’t either.”
“Thanks,” I whispered to her, tears in my eyes. “I just hate knowing that you will never get the same pleasure that I had when I saw him locked away. He was such a bastard. I’m glad he’s dead, but I still feel like you deserve some sort of closure.”
“I have all the closure I need standing right over there and right here. Seeing you and Peyton so happy makes me feel full. And I love Kane so much. Everything that happened was just a stepping stone to get us to this point in our lives. Don’t you see the good that has come out of this?”
I nodded. “You are such a positive person. I envy you sometimes.”
She shrugged. “I have a good reason to be positive today,” she said slyly. “My artwork got picked up by a gallery! The showing is next week in the city!”
I let out a squeal of happiness as I wrapped her in another embrace. “That is so wonderful! Don’t tell me you are going to stick around here now? The big city is calling your name! This is what you’ve always wanted!”
“I don’t know,” she offered. “It was what I wanted years ago, and I’m thrilled that my name is going to get out there, but I think I’m going to stay a reclusive artist who lives her life away from the bright lights and night life.”
I watched her gaze pass to Kane, who was busy talking to Peyton. “Now, I think I have everything right here.”
“Well, good, because we have some more news to share with you two as well,” I said cheerfully. “We are going to expand to another business! I don’t know what yet, but I’m excited that we are really putting down roots. I bought the house on my own, but it’s our home now. The only thing missing is wedding bells.”
Shannon’s cheeks blushed and her eyes flickered down to her hands. For the first time, I saw the modest but stunning ring sitting on her finger, and my eyes at once filled with tears as I sucked in a sharp breath. I couldn’t believe how much joy there was in our lives now. We had worked so hard and fought through so much together that this all still seemed like a wonderful dream. Pulling her close to me once again, I started to cry as I congratulated my friend. From behind the tears, I saw Peyton and Kane shake hands, and I knew everything was as it should be.
“I’m so happy for you,” I whispered to her. “You deserve everything that your heart desires, including this.”
“Oh, Rosa, this is a dream come true. I hope that you will be my maid of honor. We don’t want anything big, just the four of us. Peyton and I don’t really have any family beside the mafia, and they are not people I want around anymore. Maybe a couple of the guys, but that’s it.”
“I would be honored.”
“There is one more thing,” she said with a grin. “We are going to wait until after the baby is born so that we can celebrate with everyone we love, my little niece or nephew included.”
My heart was bursting with joy for her and me both as we walked over to the table where everything was set. As Peyton pushed in my chair and kissed me gently on the cheek, I closed my eyes. The night was perfect. The smell of warm food in the air and the sound of my family around me was so comforting that I never wanted the night to end. Still, I knew that whatever tomorrow brought, it would be even better than today.
Later that night, as I lay in bed next to Peyton, I thought about something Shannon had said. I rolled over and looked at the man I loved. “I have an idea for what we should buy next.”
He grinned. “Oh, yeah? Because I saw an erotic toy store coming into town the other day that would be perfect for us. Sure, we would spend just as much money there as we would make, but it sure would be one hell of a way to go.”
I laughed and shook my head. “You can use any toys that you want on me, but we are not buying an entire shop. No, I think this will be perfect, and it will give Kane and Shannon a place to call their own too.”
“Okay, I’m intrigued. Are you going to tell me what you have in mind?”
I shook my head. “Not yet. I want to see if it will work first.”
“Well, then,” he said as he closed the book he was reading. “If there is nothing else to discuss, I’d like to move on to the evening’s entertainment.”
I giggled and slapped his chest playfully. “I love you.”
“And I you,” Peyton whispered.
And just like that, our perfect evening turned into a perfectly wild night.
Epilogue - Eight Months Later
Rosa
Peyton bent down and kissed the sleeping girl in my arms and I shivered with joy. The cool morning air blew through the opened door at the back of the Irish pub we had just purchased. Men were bringing in construction materials and stocking the bar. In just a few more days, we would be opening to the public, but for now, Arabella and I could sit around and watch as the world moved around us.
Kane stumbled down the steps, barely awake after another night of working on the upstairs apartments. There were three of them, but he and Shannon had converted two into a large master apartment while the third would have cots and toiletries for those who were too drunk to make it home. The last thing any of us wanted was our drunken Irish friends trying to find their way home in the middle of the night. I slid a hot cup of coffee to him as he sat down and brushed Arabella’s hair back. She hardly stirred.
“I can’t believe how beautiful she is. Good thing she doesn’t look like her daddy,” he muttered playfully.
I laughed and she stirred in my arms again. “Shh! You are going to wake her up. You think the construction is bad all night? Try dealing with a screaming baby.”
“Well, you both look fantastic, considering everything you have going on.”
“You’re one to talk. The wedding is in a week. How do you feel?”
I watched him smile. “Like I’m on top of the world. I never thought I would be lucky enough to land a girl as wonderful as Shannon. She’s the light of my life.”
“I’m so happy you two have each other.”
“What about you and Peyton? Any wedding bells in the works there?”
Peyton rolled his eyes. “I keep telling this woman that she can make an honest man out of me anytime she wants.”
I grinned at him and he kissed my cheek as Kane went back to look on the kitchen progress. The pub was as much his baby as it was Peyton’s. My wonderful boyfriend wrapped his arms around me, and I felt warm happiness pass through my body again. I knew that he would marry me when I was ready, but things had been so blissfully perfect that I hadn’t even stopped to think about it.
“I can’t believe how wonderful she is. And you,” he said, softly biting my ear. “You are an amazing mother. I don’t know if I tell you that enough.”
“Baby, you tell me every single day. You are an amazing father too, you know that?”
“Of course I do. I learned everything I know from you.”
Someone called for Peyton from the back room but he didn’t let go of me. “They can wait.”
“Go,” I said as I shoved him away enough to grab his shirt and pull him back. Our lips met, and the kiss between us ignited the flame of desire once again. Our love and passion would never die out. “We have the rest of our lives to kiss each other, but I don’t think the hired help back there want to wait around.”
“Then let them go if it means I can spend another few seconds with you two.”
I shuddered with pleasure and joy. “Peyton, I love you.”
“And I love you, darlin’,” he whispered as he slipped away.
Arabella stirred in my arms, and I gazed down at her just as her blue eyes opened. When she smiled up at me, I knew that I finally had my happily ever after.
About Roxy Sinclaire
Roxy Sinclaire writes steamy, suspenseful romantic stories as the main genre, and this includes a variety of different topics. Some of these include dark romances, action packed romances, mafia romances, and many more. She currently works in customer relations in New York City, but is trying to fulfill her passio
n in writing and eventually have her dream job become a reality.
Please see her Author Central Account on Amazon for a full list of her titles.
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For more information, be sure to check out the links below!
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Also by Roxy Sinclaire
Romance Sampler Bundles:
Book Boyfriends
Pass To Win Series:
Touchdown: A Bad Boy Sports Romance (Book 1)
Line of Scrimmage: A Secret Baby Sports Romance (Book 2)
Between The Tackles: A Bad Boy Sports Romance (Book 3)
Fourth and Goal: A Bad Boy Sports Romance (Book 4)
Game Winning Catch: A Secret Baby Sports Romance (Book 5)
Mafia Romance Series:
Dirty Indiscretions: A Dark Mafia Romance (Book 1)
Her Protection: A Bad Boy Mafia Romance (Book 2)
Deadly Ink: A Dark Mafia Romance (Book 3)
His Revenge: A Mafia Revenge Romance (Book 4)
His Betrayal: A Bad Boy Mafia Romance (Book 5)
Dangerous Indulgence: A Dark Mafia Romance (Book 6)
Romantic Secret Agents Series:
Lethal Seduction (Book 1)
Deadly Seduction (Book 2)
Toxic Seduction (Book 3)
Deadly Passion Series:
High Stakes (Book 1)
Double or Nothing (Book 2)
Triple Threat (Book 3)
City Bad Boys Series:
Object Me: A Bad Boy Lawyer Romance (Book 1)
Entitled: A Bad Boy Romance (Book 2)
Tempting Me: A Bad Boy Romance (Book 3)
Dangerous Indulgence Page 12