Sighing, I reach for my phone and say with resignation, “I’ll get this over with because I need to eat. Ivy will be awake soon, and then we’ll head back and sort this mess out. Turn the boat around, if you haven’t already, and let’s get this over with.”
Richie grins and I shake my head. “Ok, how long until we’re back?”
“Three hours, sir. We turned back last night.”
“Good.”
Ritchie leaves me to it and I laugh to myself. It scares me how much he knows me, how he anticipates every storm and takes steps to limit the damage they cause. He has my back in every way and plans my life before I know what it needs. I can’t be without Richie beside me because he keeps me sane.
Sighing, I punch through the call I need to make before Ivy wakes and he answers immediately with his usual sarcastic drawl.
“You’re alive then.”
“Obviously.”
“Is she worth it?”
“Yes.”
There’s a moment of silence and then his voice comes across softer, which surprises me.
“Then we will deal with this the right way.”
“Deal with what?”
“Governor Thompson. Word is you’ve got his daughter and her fiancé’s shitting himself. Sam told me he’s been calling the club demanding to speak with you. The guys you have bugging his phone tell me he’s stalling her parents; telling them she’s feeling ill and is sleeping it off. The bastards think it’s a huge joke and seem almost proud of him for ‘breaking her in’ as they succinctly put it when they told him to keep her for a bit longer and finish the job.”
I feel sick to my stomach and a murderous rage starts to build as Lucian says in the softest voice I have ever heard him use with me.
“We’ve got this, Romeo, you’re not on your own. Tell me what you know and we’ll use it to protect you. If you want us to ruin Governor Jackson it can be arranged, just don’t start a war for the sake of a fling, make sure it’s really what you want.”
I can’t believe what I’m hearing. Who is this man? Lucian is the biggest bastard of us all and yet in this one conversation, he is becoming the older brother I so badly need right now and it surprises me.
It actually means a lot and so I match his tone and say huskily, “Thank you.”
Then he reverts back to the bastard he is and snaps, “I want my boat back.”
“Our boat, brother, don’t forget The Black Heart belongs to the whole fucking family and is not your own private pleasure palace. Let the rest of us get a look in once in a while for fuck’s sake.”
“Well, consider yourself at the back of the line now. Tell me, what do you know about Governor Thompson?”
My blood boils as I think of the piece of shit who calls himself Ivy’s father.
“I know he’s a bastard. There’s something else though, and you’re not gonna like it.”
“Tell me.”
His voice deepens and I have his attention. Lucian hates not knowing something and will be pissed when he discovers what I learned last night.
“It’s mom.”
A sharp intake of breath is all I need to know I have his full attention and I almost spit the words.
“The day before she died, she went to Governor Thompson’s home. He wasn’t the governor then, but was climbing fast. Mom knew his wife and went to her for help.”
“And?”
Lucian’s tone is curt and I try to state the simple facts with no emotion.
“And they turned her away. She offered them information to use against our father and asked for protection for us all.”
“What happened?”
“I don’t know. Ivy told me she read about it in a journal her mom keeps. It was many years later when she was trying to escape herself. She didn’t know mom had killed herself and hated the fact her parents wouldn’t help. Her father went into a rage as soon as he learned we were there.”
“We.”
“Mom took me with her. I must have been seven years old; I expect I was used as cover.”
The pain hurts so much as I think back on a life where we were used by our parents. Mom loved us, I know she did, but she was so afraid of our father it consumed her and she never had time for us to be a proper mom.
Lucian growls, “We need to get our hands on that journal.”
“Why?”
“Because that may be the key in bringing him down. You see, dear brother, if you want to keep your woman, you are going to have one hell of a fight on your hands. Governor Thompson will play dirty and we are not dealing with just anybody - he’s a public figure and will have a certain kind of protection. We need some serious shit on him and that journal may just be the bomb we need to blow his world apart. Get the journal, use what it tells us as leverage, and you get to keep the girl.”
“What do you have in mind?”
“You have a trojan horse—use it.”
“No, I won’t send her back there.”
“Then you had better think of another way because from where I’m sitting, she’s your best hope.”
I fall silent because I don’t trust myself to speak. Lucian is the most ruthless man I know and loves sitting at the head of our family. This is right up his street and ordinarily I wouldn’t hesitate, but the thought of Ivy being away from me for a second is too painful to think about and sending her back to them is a step too far. I promised to protect her, but how can I all the time she’s with them?
“There must be another way, I’m not sending her home…”
“I’ll do it.”
Spinning around, I see Ivy standing behind me, looking so small and fragile I say firmly, “No.”
“What the fuck, Romeo…”
“Lucian. I’ve got to go, we’ll talk later.”
I cut the call and jump to my feet, and Ivy holds up her hand.
“I heard you. I know what you need and I’ll get it. Whoever you were talking to is right. You need my mother’s journal and you deserve to know what was written about your mother. I can get it for you, it won’t be difficult.”
She smiles bravely and I feel helpless as I know they are both right. It’s the easiest way to get what we need to keep her with me but send her back—as if nothing’s changed, I’m not sure I can live with that.
Chapter 22
Ivy
As soon as I stepped on deck, I knew Romeo was talking about me. I heard every word he said and know if we are to stand any chance of making this work; I need to do whatever I can to help. The last thing I want to do is go home. The thought of what that could mean strikes fear in my heart. But I love Romeo. It may only have been a couple of days, but he’s been inside my heart for years. I suppose I have always known someone is watching out for me, and when I discovered he was my silent knight who watched over me at church; it sent me a powerful message. He was ‘the one’ even before I knew it.
He has shown me what love feels like and I am keen to experience more, so I say with determination. “I know you disagree, but I’m the perfect person for this. It may seem strange to you, after all, they are still my parents, but I fell out of love with them years ago. If anything, love grew to hate, and I tried so many times to escape.”
Heading over to him, I take his hand and say earnestly, “Please, Romeo, let me do this. I need to do this, they deserve it. Let me be the one to help bring them down because they are the worst kind of people. I’ll be perfectly safe, I’ve survived up until now, just let me say goodbye in my own special way, I’m begging you.”
His eyes are as black as his boat and should scare me, but they don’t. Nothing about Romeo Romano scares me except the possibility he will walk away. Having just found him, I can’t let that happen and so I slide my arms around his waist and bury my face in his chest. “Please, I need to do this.”
His arms wrap around me and I hear the steady beat of his heart as he holds me so hard, I think I might break. His voice is husky as he growls, “I hate the thought of sending you back
there—for me, for us, my family. We don’t have any right to ask you to betray your own parents, despite what they did. I will find another way, there always is one, I won’t let you put yourself in danger for me.”
Leaning back, I capture his lips and kiss him long and slow. My body responds to him as I’m getting accustomed to by now, and he groans against my mouth. “Ivy, you are the most important person in my life, period. Why would I take a chance on sending you to face something that may harm you, it doesn’t make sense?”
“It does to me.” My voice is low but firm. Whether he likes it or not, I am going back and I will return with enough evidence to set myself free. I need this and I suppose he must see the fire in my eyes because he sighs heavily. “Then we need a plan, one that won’t fail. Come, we’ll discuss it over brunch.”
Hope flares inside as I take my seat beside him, and I’m surprised when he raises his hand and a man steps out from the shadows and approaches.
“Ivy, meet Richie, the most important part of me. We will discuss this with him and knowing him, he already has a plan.”
Richie smiles and looks at me with interest, and I return the greeting. Like Romeo, he prefers to dress in black and has a rugged appeal and looks as if he could murder a man with just his eyes. The men that Romeo surrounds himself with are powerful in many ways and just breathing the same air as them is hard to deal with.
Romeo takes my hand and laces our fingers together, and it makes me relax. With him, I am safe and trust him to come up with a plan that will deliver results.
The food arrives and I fall on it like a ravenous dog. I am so hungry, probably due to the excess exercise I’ve been enjoying, and Romeo laughs softly as I polish off a cheese omelet before they even start the conversation.
He pours us some coffee and fills Richie in, and I feel his interest as he looks deep into my eyes. It’s almost as if he’s assessing me, making sure I’m fit for the job, and I stare back at him with a hard stare, willing him to dare stop me.
He shares a look with Romeo and grins. “This could be interesting. I’m guessing that Drew is feeling mighty nervous right now and would be only too happy to have Ivy back by his side.”
Romeo growls, “This had better end with me killing him slowly and painfully, otherwise I’m not interested.”
They both laugh, but I’m not so sure it was a joke. The more time I spend on this boat, the more I realize these men don’t play by the rules.
Richie grins. “We inform Drew to meet us on the dock and return his fiancée.”
He turns to me and smiles. “Use him to reassure your parents that all is well. They won’t know of Drew’s arrangement with Mr. Romano and won’t suspect a thing. Do you have a plan on how to secure the journal?”
“I do.”
I nod and say quickly, “My father leaves at 8 am every morning, he has a driver pick him up. Mom has many engagements planned through the day, and Tuesday’s are particularly busy. Usually, I accompany her to the country club, followed by lunch before the afternoon is spent attending various charity meetings or shopping. My mother has many friends who she often meets and they usually return home for dinner. If I pretend to be sick, I could be excused from accompanying her and when she’s left, search her office. Hopefully, it’s in the same place as before. If not, it may take a while. The only problem may be if she has moved it somewhere else, but if it’s there, I’ll find it.”
Thinking about Drew makes my skin crawl, and then something occurs to me that I’ve been meaning to ask ever since we set sail. Turning to Romeo, I say quickly, “Will Drew be angry that you left with me on board? What shall we tell him, I mean, he will want to know why I was still here?”
To my surprise, the two of them share a look and Richie raises his eyes and Romeo nods.
“She needs to know.” Then he turns to me and says gently, “I’m sorry little one, you’re not going to like what you see.”
“See?”
Richie takes out his phone and I see him scrolling through some images and my heart pounds. What is this? Will it change my view on this, on Romeo?
What’s on that phone?
Richie hands the phone to Romeo, who says gently, “Everything I did was to get you away from him. It was all planned, and I was never going to lose. Just remember that, and I want you to know that at no point were you ever in danger from me. It was all an act, a show to make him believe it was all a bet, a game that I wanted to win. The stakes were higher than he thought, but you need to see the man your parents chose for you.”
I can feel my heart thumping madly as I stare at the small screen, and the only sound is the voices on the video playing before my eyes.
I watch the whole thing without uttering a word. There is no comment and no indication that I feel anything. I don’t. the whole thing leaves me feeling numb as I witness the man who was supposed to love me, settle his gambling debt with my virginity. If that wasn’t bad enough, he begged Romeo not to tell me. To make me think he had rescued me somehow and was responsible for my safe return. I feel physically sick as I witness something I could never imagine really happens and as the video ends, I look at Romeo sharply. “I can’t believe it.”
He says with disgust, “Men like Drew will never change. As I said, you had a lucky escape. If the drink and drugs don’t get him, someone he double crosses might. Your life would be spent rocking from one scandal to another and trying to pick up the pieces.”
“Like my mother?”
It all becomes as clear as the bright sunlight beaming down on the deck. “Mom is that woman. I’m guessing she married a man like Drew. It’s obvious the way they are with each other. Any sadness she may have had has been replaced by bitterness. I don’t think she even knows normality anymore and spends her day playing her life like a game.”
Turning toward Romeo, I see the hard edge he wears so well but know he is nothing like my father. I am nothing like my mother, so I take his hand and say through my tears, “Thank you.”
He says nothing, but the emotion in his eyes says it for him. He knows how much he means to me. He saved me, and not just once. He shouldn’t care, but he does. Where my parents turned him and his mom away, he stepped forward to help me and I will not let him down.
Richie stands and clears his throat. “I’ll make the necessary arrangements. We should dock in Miami in three hours.”
As he heads off, Romeo looks concerned. “Are you sure…”
I cover his words with my hand and say huskily, “We only have three hours, Romeo, talking is overrated, it’s action I want now.”
I love the way his eyes darken and his body stiffens. I love the way his hand curls around my waist and pulls me hard against him, and I adore the way he gently nips at my neck and growls, “Then I will take the time we have left to remind you where you belong. By the time you walk away with that waste of space who calls himself a man, you will only have one man on your mind. The one who as soon as that journal is in my brother’s hands, is making it so you will never leave me again.”
“What do you mean?”
“I want you to marry me, Ivy. I want you to be my wife and that means forever. You are the only woman I have ever loved and the only one I want to bear my children and be my family. I want to love, protect and care for you and I will never give you cause to fear me. I only want to love you and show you what that love means, so Ivy Thompson, beautiful girl from the apple tree, will you marry me?”
Chapter 23
Romeo
Ivy looks at me in shock, and who can blame her? I mean, what idiot proposes after a couple of days to a woman who is already engaged to another. I do. I have never followed the rules and am impatient to make a life with this woman who I fell in love with many years ago. I know it’s right, and she is the only woman for me. I don’t need time to confirm that. Maybe I’m being impetuous, foolish and destructive, but I know I’m not. Why waste time when none of us know how long that will be? When you live the life I do, time takes o
n a new meaning and I want as much time as possible with her, the girl I fell in love with on the branch of an apple tree, who stirred a black heart and let the sunshine in.
Her eyes are wide and she blinks several times because there are tears building that tell me one thing. She feels the same because those are not tears of pain, desperation, or fear as they have been before, now they are tears of happiness as she nods and whispers, “Yes, of course I’ll marry you, there is no other answer to give.”
Stepping forward, I crush her lips to mine in a frenzied passion. I can’t believe how much she affects me, and three hours just won’t be long enough to demonstrate that.
Sweeping her off her feet, I carry her with me and she giggles and kisses my neck as I carry her to my cabin.
Kicking the door shut behind us, I set her down on the bed and stare deeply into her eyes and whisper huskily, “I love you little flower, I always have.”
Then I kiss the woman I have worshipped from afar for too many years. A woman who has sat in my heart and I never dared believe would be here now. All the faceless women I have kissed and fucked over the years were Ivy in my mind. I suppose that’s why I became so desperate and cruel, because they never repaired the ache in my heart not having her with me caused. Now it’s bursting as I ease every inch of fabric from her body, slowly and with care, as if I’m unwrapping the most desired gift.
I don’t want to rush this because moments don’t come sweeter than this. I’m about to make love to my future wife and it feels good knowing she will always be here. The faceless women have gone and everything has connected in place.
Ivy moans and arches toward my touch like a flower opening its petals to the sun. I kiss every inch of her skin and love how she shivers with pleasure.
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