The Providence Trilogy Bundle: Providence; Requiem; Eden

by McGuire, Jamie

  “We still need your help,” I said. “We’ve read the book. We’ve all come close to death more than once trying to get our hands on it to find a loophole. Jared didn’t find anything.”

  Samuel looked to Jared, who shook his head with a frustrated expression.

  “I think you already know the answer,” Samuel said.

  Jared sighed. “I was kind of hoping that would be a last resort.”

  Samuel touched Jared’s shoulder. “It’s a means to an end, isn’t it?”

  With his last words, Samuel blinked from the space he had once occupied. Jared sat in the chair, pulling me into his lap, lost in thought.

  Bex helped Claire to her feet and then walked her to the sofa. “He’s right. It’s what you should have done all along.”

  “Stop,” Jared said.

  The nurse returned, this time with a smile. “He’s in recovery now. He’s doing well.”

  “When can I see him?” Claire asked.

  “Soon,” the nurse said, offering a comforting smile before leaving the way she came.

  Claire collapsed against the back of her seat. “That was close.”

  “Too close,” Bex said, hugging her against his side.

  “What is Samuel right about?” I asked.

  Bex glanced at Jared, waiting for his brother to answer. When he didn’t, Bex began, “We just started a war. The only way to win is to convince Heaven to fight with us.”

  I shook my head. “But we’ve tried. They won’t help.”

  One side of Bex’s mouth turned up. “They will if you give them something to fight for. They won’t let Hell destroy the baby once it’s born. We just have to protect you until it gets here.”

  “What baby?” I said.

  Jared peeked at me from under his brow. “The baby you’re carrying.”

  Everyone in the room stared at me, waiting for my reaction.

  “Me?” I said, touching my palm to my chest. “But I’m not pregnant. We haven’t—”

  “Ew! Ew! Stop,” Claire said, shaking her head.

  “Just once,” Jared said, looking up at me sheepishly.

  I remembered the night I begged Jared to help me forget about the chaos surrounding us—the night he said it wasn’t a good time to tempt fate. I didn’t realize at the time he had spoken literally.

  “How long have you known?” I said, taken aback.

  “The following morning I knew something was different. It took me a week or so to pinpoint exactly what.”

  “I’m—“

  “With child,” Bex said. “Expecting. Bun in the oven. Knocked up.”

  “Hey,” Jared said, disapproving of Bex’s last choice of words.

  “Pregnant,” Claire said, as her eyes brightened.

  Kim sighed. “You totally ruined my spring break. Just saying.”

  I took internal stock of my body, waiting to feel different, but it never happened. “No. I mean I don’t feel pregnant.”

  Kim raised her hands, letting them fall with a slap on her thighs. “Seriously. How are we going to travel to Jerusalem with Preggo over here?”

  “She’ll go,” Jared said, letting a small smile pass over his lips.

  The nurse knocked on the window, gesturing to the gurney she was wheeling down the hall. It was Ryan. She whispered into his ear, and he lifted his hand, giving us the thumbs-up.

  Claire stood to follow, pausing at the door way. “We’ll all go.”

  “Looks as if we’ll be waiting until Ryan is better before we’re going on our trip,” Jared said, pulling my hand to his lips. “We could tend to a few things while he heals.”

  “What’s that?” I asked, feeling a bit overwhelmed.

  “There’s a pretty little chapel on an island I’d like to take you to.”

  I couldn’t help but smile. “I guess we’d better.”

  “What are you doing Saturday?” he asked.

  “Homework.” I heaved a sigh and frowned. “Mountains of homework.”

  Jared frowned. “Sunday?”

  I mirrored his expression. “I guess you’re busy tonight?”

  Jared’s brows shot up. “You want to go tonight?”

  I nodded.

  He bobbed his head with a big grin. “We can go tonight if you want. We can go now.”

  “I’m ready,” I said.

  Jared grabbed each side of my face, pressing his warm, wonderful lips to mine. “How is it possible that I just went from almost losing everything I’ve ever loved, to getting everything I’ve ever wanted all in the same night?”

  “Do you believe in guardian angels?” I asked, kissing him again.

  Epilogue

  “One bathing suit, one white dress, and a few undergarments—that’s what I’ve packed for my wedding getaway,” I said, watching as Jared effortlessly clicked shut the buckle of my seat belt.

  “That’s all you need, sweetheart,” he smiled, checking the buckle one last time.

  The stewardess went through her routine, and then the pilot came over the speaker, informing us of our place in line for takeoff and the current weather in Nicaragua.

  “Should be a pleasant flight, Mr. and the soon-to-be Mrs. Ryel,” the pilot said.

  Jared’s grin stretched the width of his face. “I might have paid him extra to say that.”

  “I figured as much,” I teased. I looked out the window to the dreary Providence weather. In just a few hours, I would be lying on my favorite Caribbean beach with my husband. It didn’t seem real but, at the same time, it was expected. We had earned this moment a thousand times over.

  The chartered jet taxied to the runway and, within moments, gained momentum. The fuselage shuddered until the wheels left the ground, taking off in graceful, weightless flight. The lights of Providence became smaller, until they were just a cluster, separated from other cities by the dark countryside.

  I relaxed against Jared, my eyes heavy.

  Jared kissed my hair. “Do you think you’ll have good dreams?”

  “Yes,” I said without pause. “Maybe I’ll dream about the baby. Maybe I’ll see what she’ll look like.”

  “She?”

  “Yes, it’s a girl,” I assured him.

  “And what if it’s a boy?” Jared asked, playfully nudging me.

  “It’s not. It’s a girl.”

  “Blond, of course,” Jared said.

  “With blue-grey eyes,” I sighed.

  “No. She’ll have your eyes,” Jared insisted.

  “You could have told me,” I said, nuzzling against his arm.

  “I thought about it. I went back and forth so many times about telling you or letting you find out the normal way.”

  “Nothing about us is normal.” I smiled. “Why start now?”

  Jared planted a sweet kiss on my forehead. “I don’t have a preference. I just want him or her to be . . .” He trailed off, worried how his next words would affect me.

  “It’s going to be a long nine months, protecting us until the baby gets here.”

  “You worry about all the normal pregnancy stuff. You leave the rest of the details to me.”

  I frowned. “You talk as if it’s crib assembly and child-proofing.”

  “I wish.” Jared smiled.

  “Me too,” I said, resting my head against his warm skin. He wore a short-sleeved, white t-shirt in anticipation of the warmer weather of the Caribbean, but the light clothing allowed me more access to his soft, heated skin. The feeling of his skin against mine was a natural sedative.

  Before long, I dozed off, sleeping deeper than I had in months. I didn’t dream of our baby or of Jack or Gabe or of anything at all. I closed my eyes and was lost in a peaceful darkness until Jared kissed me awake when the plane was about to land.

  The pilot made his announcements on the intercom, and Jared checked my seat belt one last time.

  “It’s fastened,” I said, smiling.

  “I just want to make sure. . . .” he said, laughing once to himself.


  We landed without event, and once we set foot on the pavement, I grinned. “It hasn’t changed a bit, except for the number of people waiting on us this time.”

  “We only have two suitcases and no tech cargo. It’s been an easier trip for me this go-round.”

  “I’d say so.” I laughed. “It even smells the same.”

  “And the last time we were here, you were only pretending to be Mrs. Ryel.”

  An instant grin lit my face, and I followed Jared out of the terminal to the waiting men outside.

  Jared carried our suitcases to an old, rusty pick-up truck and then spoke in Spanish to the men as they loaded our belongings. Taking my hand, Jared helped me into the truck and nodded to the driver to proceed.

  After a short drive, our island chauffeur slowed to a stop beside the pier. As we boarded the small boat Jared had secured for us, it occurred to me how unlikely it would have been for anyone else to have made arrangements at such late notice, and so early in the morning. Jared, however, had enough connections to do whatever he set his mind to.

  “It’s awfully dark to be wandering around in the ocean, isn’t it?” I said, unsure as the boat captain steered in the general direction of the island. The boat was quickly swallowed by the night, and the cool air off the water won over the thin fabric of my jacket.

  “Cold?” Jared said, wrapping his arms around me.

  “Not now,” I smiled.

  “He’s made this trip enough times, I’m sure he could do it blindfolded.”

  “When it’s this dark, he pretty much is,” I said, a bit anxious.

  The salty air whipped by as we shot across the black water, a stark contrast to the turquois blue I remembered. Jared could hardly sit still, and had I not been so nervous about a possible head-on collision, I might have been just as excited to be back to the only place we had ever been able to be normal.

  A half-hour later, the boat docked at the small pier of Little Corn. I sighed with relief. The waves had just begun to rock the boat a little more than I was comfortable with, and lightning had started to spark across the horizon.

  We met another small truck with our luggage, and a small, sleepy man by the name of Jose drove us to the same casita we’d stayed in during our previous trip.

  Speaking above the distant thunder, Jared spoke kindly to Jose in his native tongue and then pulled our suitcases from the back of the truck, opening the door for me.

  It had just begun to rain when he set our suitcases on the floor beside the bed, and the smell of the rain combined with the sound of raindrops tapping on the roof and bouncing off the palm fronds took me back to a not-so-distant past when everything seemed innocent and exciting.

  Inside were the same simple accommodations, with only two differences: every surface was adorned with glowing candles, and a tall fan waited at the end of the bed. It stood stationary, ready to serve its purpose while I slept next to Jared’s feverish body in the Caribbean heat and humidity.

  I covered my mouth with my hand as I yawned. My long, undisturbed nap on the plane left me feeling groggy. “It’s beautiful! Better than I remember,” I said, trying to muster the appropriate excitement in my tone. Speaking through a yawn dampened that prospect, but thankfully, Jared could feel what I couldn’t adequately express.

  “We’re finally back.” Jared sighed, a content smile on his face.

  I returned his smile. Time had stopped for us here, and I had a feeling that once the wedding was over I wouldn’t want to leave.

  Jared lifted me off my feet and carried me to the bed. He lay on the bed, his face just inches from mine. His blue-grey eyes were bright and soft at the same time. I didn’t want to close my eyes and miss a second of that expression on his face, but exhaustion had settled in.

  “You should rest, Miss Grey. We have work to do.”

  “Work?” I asked, sleepy. “What kind of work?”

  “We’re changing your name tomorrow,” he whispered in my ear.

  Eden

  For Mimi.

  Thank you for being there for us in every way you knew how.

  For your support, love, and your smiles.

  For Beth.

  You said I could and you always have.

  Eden Table of Contents

  The following is the table of contents for Eden (Book Three only).

  To return to main table of contents for the Providence Trilogy, click here

  1. Tomorrow

  2. Promises

  3. Trial

  4. Little Heaven

  5. The End

  6. Answer

  7. Broken Promise(s)

  8. Breakthrough

  9. Due

  10. Matches

  11. Last Minute Forgiveness

  12. Road Trip

  13. The Road Home

  14. The Most Important Thing

  15. Questioned

  16. Direct Flight to Hell

  17. Departure

  18. Sepulchre

  19. Trapped

  20. Legion

  21. Mother

  Epilogue

  A Note from the Author

  1. Tomorrow

  Happily ever after. That was the end, right? The hard part was over. It was smooth sailing now. I lay in bed next to my handsome, celestial Prince Charming, the tropical breeze blowing through the window screens of our little Caribbean hut, waiting for the sun to rise so I could begin my wedding day.

  Funny how happily ever after isn’t the end after all . . . at least, not when Hell is trying to kill you.

  That trivial little fact was easy to ignore with the light rain tapping the tin roof and the palm fronds brushing against our casita as the wind gently pushed its way through the trees. The first glimmers of sunlight danced along the ceiling as translucent dashes of warmth. Those shuddering, glowing dots above me were the first thing I saw when I opened my eyes. Jared Ryel was the second. He smiled, waiting for my eyes to focus.

  “It’s tomorrow,” he whispered.

  Splatters of pinks and purples had just breached the windows, and the rain had all but left us for the bigger island, reduced to droplets. The fading purple splotches on Jared’s forehead, cheek, and chin stood out in the early light, and they brought back a flood of memories from the days before.

  He and I had already survived the impossible—coming face to face with one of the most frightening beings in Hell and a few hundred of his minions, human and demon alike. Simply celebrating another day would have sufficed. That was the moment realization hit, and Jared’s eyes brightened with amusement as my sleepy expression perked.

  “It’s today?” I said softly. I reached up to touch his skin and the residual marks from his skirmish with Shax.

  Jared pushed himself onto his elbows and then leaned his head closer to my belly. “Good morning, little Bean.”

  “Bean?” I said, one eyebrow shooting up.

  “Yes, she’s no bigger than a bean. That’s what the book says, anyway.”

  “The book.”

  Jared reached to the floor, pulling up a thick book, its cover dripping in hideous pastel colors and childish writing.

  “I thought I should be prepared for anything that might come up.” Jared flipped through the pages and then peered up at me, waiting for approval.

  “Is there a chapter on balance-disrupting angel babies?” I said, grinning when Jared’s eyebrows pushed together.

  He tossed the book to the floor and then playfully situated himself over me, nuzzling my neck.

  “Jared!” I squealed, making a poor attempt to push him away. “Stop!”

  “I’ll stop if you say it,” he said, his voice muffled against my skin.

  “Say what?” I laughed, wiggling in vain.

  Jared lifted his head to look me in the eyes. “Bean,” he said, his eyes a soft blue-gray.

  I pressed my lips together, forming a hard line, but when he tickled me again, I caved. “Okay!” I pleaded. “Bean!”

  A wide grin spread across his
face. “I wish I’d known how well this tactic of persuasion works on you three years ago. Life would have been somewhat easier.”

  I swatted at him, knowing he would duck. “Not fair.”

  Jared kissed my lips, his warmth soaking into my skin. It didn’t seem as warm as usual, but I attributed it to the tropical heat raising my own temperature.

  “You know what’s not fair? I don’t get to see you until this afternoon.” He left me alone on the bed, pulling a white T-shirt over his head.

  “What do you mean?” I said, pushing up on my elbows.

  “You’d better get dressed, sweetheart. We’re expecting company in five minutes.”

  “Company?”

  Jared tossed a tan summer dress to the bed, and I scrambled to put it on, knowing better than anyone that Jared wasn’t mistaken about things like time. I pulled my hair into a messy ponytail and then stood awkwardly while Jared opened the tin door. A line of villagers made its way to our casita, led by a frazzled-looking Beth. She held a white garment bag, and when her eyes met mine, her smile widened to its limit.

  “Beth!” I said, rushing down the steps. Mud squished between my bare toes as I ran to her, enveloping her in my arms. Her auburn hair was damp, plastered to her forehead and cheeks. She was sweaty and red-faced, trying to catch her breath as Chad pulled the garment bag from her fingers.

  “She wouldn’t let anyone else carry it,” he said, shaking his head. He held the bag out for Jared, but Beth quickly grabbed it back, smacking his hand away.

  “Jared can’t see it!” she said. She held the long bag up, away from the mud, but behind her to protect it from Jared’s hands.

  Jared was amused. “I won’t look, Beth. I’m going to take Chad to the chapel now. You two have the whole day.”

  I shouldn’t have been surprised—Jared could arrange anything—but I was speechless. Beth and Chad had arrived just eight hours after us.

  “How did you . . .?” I began.

  Jared’s smile widened. “We’ve taken care of everything. I didn’t want you stressed.”

  “We?” I frowned, more confused.

  “Mom is waiting for me at the chapel. See you there.” He grinned from ear to ear. I’d never seen him so happy. He leaned down to kiss my cheek and then gestured for Chad to follow. “You’ve driven a motorcycle before?”