“We should go say hi to Hadley and Wade.”
I pull back and wipe at my face again before nodding. “They’re here?”
“Yeah. I told them that I’d be doing this the right way after Waylon and I spoke, and they wanted to be part of it.”
“When did you decide to grow a pair, Jensen?”
“When I fell in love with you a decade ago.”
I clear my throat as he leads me through a throng of people who congratulate us on our way over to where Wade is standing with his arms draped over Hadley’s shoulders in front of him.
“Congratulations to the two of you,” Wade says as we approach them.
“Thank you. I would hug you right now, but I don’t think that I can stand on my own,” I tell them as Liam tightens his grip around me.
“Don’t worry about it, Isla.”
“Do you mind if I steal my fiancée away from her job a few hours earlier than we originally discussed?”
“Go for it, fucker,” Wade answers over the noise of the library.
“Yeah, I’ll fuck her all right.”
“Liam,” I try to chastise, but I know that it’s no use while he’s in this playful mood.
While he and Wade trade insults, I slip out of his grip and walk to my office to grab my things and come back out just as he walks up to me and grabs hold of my left hand to lead me out the front to the waiting car.
In the next hour, we drive to O’Hare where he has his jet waiting for us. As much as I want to look up at him and see that cocky smile light up his face, I cannot seem to take my eyes off of the diamond sitting pretty on my finger.
All of this seems surreal and impossible, but I’m in the midst of it. I’m living in this farfetched gem of a dream and loving Liam has never been so easy.
We’re approximately two hours into the three-hour-and-something flight when I wake up from a nap and stretch out on the bed that’s hidden at the back of his jet.
“Hey,” he says in the darkness, “are you feeling all right?”
“Hmmm?”
“You were whimpering in your sleep,” he says as he molds his frame to mine.
I can’t help the sudden pink flush that seems to heat my body. The dream that I was just having was rather extreme with him using his finger, mouth, and cock on me in the most erotic ways.
I won’t tell him that, though, because I’m not sure that he’ll be able to meet the erotic demands of my dream in an hour before we land. What I want him to do to me may take all day long and result in aching limbs for days to come. I cannot wait to play.
“I’m okay. Promise.”
He rotates my body so that we are face-to-face before his lips brush against my collarbone.
“Grady will meet us at the hotel when we land. I’ll have him set up in the room next to ours, and I’ll have another two men at my parents’ house. I just wanted you to be aware of them.”
“At your parents’ house? Liam, what is going on?”
He lets out a breath of hot air against my skin before nipping at it and speaking again. “RW’s central office was broken into, remember? Nothing valuable was taken, and the files that were taken were later found a couple of blocks away.”
“Well, maybe they didn’t find anything that they thought they would. I’m sure it’s just some teenagers fucking around, but what does that have to do with my having to have a bodyguard?”
“That’s the thing, though, doll. I think that they found exactly what they were looking for.”
“Why do you say that?”
“The only thing that’s missing from the office is my personal file. Remember?”
“Yes, I remember, but why would they . . . what’s in the file, Liam?”
“Not much that just anyone would be interested in. It’s mostly personal information. Information that if gotten into the wrong hands could possibly cause some issues for me.”
“I don’t understand.”
He clears his throat and pulls my body tighter against his. “The only person that Coop and I can come up with who would want that information is a leader of a ring that I’ve shut down.”
“A trafficking ring?”
“Correct.”
I chew on his logic for a few moments before realizing that he thinks that if they find him and see him with me, the biggest way to hurt him would be to take me. To sell me. To abuse me. To harm our child.
“That’s a lot to take in.”
“I understand, but we’re working with my security team to figure out who did this, and you have my word that I won’t let a single thing happen to you.”
I can only nod because as much as I don’t want to believe it, I know that I could be in a lot of trouble if this gets perilous.
It’s not like either of us has nothing to lose anymore. Each of us has more on the line today than we did a week ago; as much as I love what’s happening, it’s also scaring me.
I close my eyes and breathe in all of his masculine scent because I know that it’s the one thing that will give me the relief that I’m currently seeking.
It’s just past six in the morning in Key West when we check into Casa Marina. According to the front desk agent, we’ll be staying here for a week, and after the news Liam laid on me a couple of hours ago, I couldn’t be happier.
We’re met at the door to our suite by a man who should truly be classified as a living work of art. He straightens up when Liam and I approach him and removes his hands from his front pockets.
“Took you long enough,” Liam says as he and this giant shake hands like old friends.
“It’s good to see you shaved and showered after what we went through in that jungle.”
Liam chuckles and pulls me into his side. “Doll, this is Grady Kent. Grady, this is my fiancée, Isla Madden.”
I reach out my hand in greeting, and he takes it willingly, shaking twice before letting go. I can see his sinewy muscles move as he simply folds each of his arms over his chest. I’m sure if I gawked, Liam wouldn’t appreciate it, but it wouldn’t be gawking in a sexual attraction type of way. This man is just too much of everything. His body is past the point of being well built and athletic. He’s intimidating as hell, and I’m almost glad that he’ll be the one to ensure my safety when Liam isn’t around. If I had to guess, I probably make up a fourth of him in total.
“Fiancée, huh? I’m glad this shithead took some of my advice. It’s nice to meet you, Isla. If you don’t mind, I’m going to clean up before we proceed with our day.”
“I’m going to go over a few things with Grady before we leave. I’ll be back in a couple of minutes, babe,” Liam says as he unlocks the door for me and lets go of my waist.
“Don’t be too long,” I speak in a slow drawl. I need to relieve some of this tension before I meet his family, and I know just the way to do it. If I close my eyes right now and think about him burying himself inside of me, I’m pretty sure that I’ll be able to get myself off by just standing here.
“Be good,” he growls low against my ear before he lets me slip through the door to where our bags have been delivered. I close it behind me and survey our suite. It’s decorated in neutral tones, but somehow still captures the beachy feel of any vacation home. It’s stunning, and I’m not sure that I’ll ever be leaving.
The next thirty minutes that he goes over whatever it is that he needs to go over with Grady, I use to get dressed and snack on some dry toast from room service. I’ve been struggling to keep anything down these last few days, and I’m praying that I’m at least able to keep the toast before meeting his family in person.
Once I’ve managed to swallow both slices, it comes straight back up. Surprise, surprise. I clean myself up again and walk out onto the balcony and take in the turquoise views. After sitting in the sun for a couple of minutes, I return to the room and leave the balcony doors wide open to fill the suite with the great relaxation that the ocean and beach always seem to provide.
Thirty minutes turn into two h
ours, and I can barely keep my eyes open any longer, so I lift the corner of the comforter off of the end of the bed and drag it haphazardly over my lower body before lying down and closing my eyes.
“Isla?”
His voice stirs me from the wrapping of deep sleep as I feel him move some of the hair out of my face and push it behind my ear.
“Wake up, baby doll. I’m sorry that took me much longer than I expected it to.”
I groan and attempt to flip over and ignore him. All that I want to do is sleep now, but he seems to be insistent on waking me up.
“Isla? Come on. We need to meet my parents at the restaurant.”
“Go away,” I mumble, but of course he doesn’t listen. He lifts my limp body up from the mattress and places me on his lap where he’s able to cradle me and shove his face into my neck.
“Forgive me.”
“I will if you just let me sleep.”
He places a solitary kiss on my lips before responding. “I know that you’re tired. I can’t imagine what that dewdrop is doing to you. I’ll call and cancel with them, and we can meet them for dinner instead.”
He shifts his body on the bed so that he’s able to reach his phone that’s in his left pocket.
“Liam, wait, you’d actually do that for me?”
“I’d change the time for you if you needed me to.”
I sit up on his lap and take his phone from his hand before setting it down next to his jean-clad thigh on the bed.
“You don’t have to do that. I can try and stomach something now. I’m actually starving. I got sick again after eating that toast.”
“Fuck. How long does this go on for? I’m sure that they’ll have something that you’ll enjoy.”
“I don’t know, but it’s driving me to insanity. Do you think that they will have ice cream?”
“If that’s what you want, then I’m sure they will.”
“I could go for some gelato right about now, actually. Anything that has a substantial amount of sugar and cream in it, I’m game to swallow.”
He taps my ass playfully to get me up and moving. “I could give you something creamy.”
I giggle and smack his chest. “Trust me, that won’t be welcomed right about now.”
“All right then, let’s go get this craving crushed before you starve yourself.”
Fifteen minutes later, Liam has changed into shorts and a light shirt, and we’re walking out into the outdoor dining area at Casa Marina for lunch.
To my surprise, his dad, as well as his father, are seated around a table sipping wine with his mother and sister.
Remember that thing I was saying about starving? Well, it just vanished. Poof.
I misstep as we get closer, and Liam steadies me before we reach their table. Every single one of them is just as beautiful as my fiancé is. I’m stunned, really. I could stare at this family for hours and not concern myself with anything else in the world. Hopefully, our little dewdrop will look something like them.
“Look who has finally decided to join us,” his biological father says as he stands and walks around the table to slap his son on the back and hug me once.
“How’s it going, old man?”
“Well, Liam, it’s going fucking great now. You, little lady, must be Isla.”
“I am, and you must be Connor.”
“Indeed. Welcome to Key West. Have you been before?”
“No, actually, this is my first time.”
“Good to hear it. I’ll make sure that Liam shows you around the place.”
“Thank you,” I tell him as he steps aside and allows Liam’s non-biological father to introduce himself. It’s easy to tell who is who because Liam must get his dark and brooding vibe from Connor and not his mother.
“It’s good to finally meet you, Isla.”
“As it is you, Mr. Jensen.”
“Ah, no, sweetheart. Liam took Connor’s last name years ago. Call me Mr. Burns.”
I flush. It’s something that I should have known, but Liam leans over and kisses my cheek to ease my racing heart before hugging his mother.
The next couple of minutes are spent doing introductions that don’t really need to be done. His mother watches as I’m greeted by Liam’s older sister, but for some reason, his mom doesn’t come up to me at all. She just takes her seat again at the head of the table after greeting her son. We’ve spoken before via video chat, so I do not entirely understand why she’s being so standoffish.
I glance down at my feet and try to calm myself down by counting the number of laced loops on my Converses. Surely she’s just being obtuse. Liam doesn’t come down here often, and I’m sure that she just wants to spend some time with him without having me around.
I take a seat beside Liam and his sister, Delaney. She glances over at the two of us, smiling as she watches him move his hand to my thigh, securing his fingers in place as he orders a tumbler of whiskey.
“Isla, I don’t mean to be rude, but I didn’t know that you two were engaged.”
Fucking hell.
Way to call out the elephant in the room.
I shift uncomfortably and lift my head to glance at his mother, Adaline, before speaking.
“It’s relatively new, actually.”
Liam finally comes to my rescue when he squeezes my thigh. “She officially said yes last night.”
“What?” Delaney almost shouts but manages to hold back at the last second. “Holy shit, am I about to gain a sister?”
“As well as a niece or nephew.”
For the love of all things, Liam-fucking-Jensen.
He cannot keep his damn mouth shut long enough for me to get comfortable. Is it just me, or is the ocean starting to recede with my dignity?
“Excuse me?” his mother asks as she sets down her glass of rosé.
I knew she was awfully proper, but not pompous . . . or so I thought, but she’s starting to prove me wrong by the damn second. Just swallow your pretty pink wine and shut the fuck up.
Holy hell. I need to tape my mouth shut before some of these thoughts decide to shoot out like everything else does with this morning-sickness bullshit. Whoever decided to call it morning sickness can shove it up their ass—it’s an all-day-all-night thing that never stops.
Liam looks over at me and leans in to place his lips against my cheek. As soon as the warmth of them leave my skin, he speaks while still looking at me. “We’re expecting.”
Hello?
What happened to waiting until I’m twelve weeks along before announcing such things?
His mother doesn’t smile, but she nods once. Just once because why would she bow her head once more in my direction at the expense of her bogus poise? I’m sure that she assumes that it is the only reason why he asked for my hand. She turns her attention back to her menu while Connor leans over the table to shake Liam’s hand. This is why I cannot trust women. She’s the epitome of every bitch that has held me back over the years.
“Congratulations, son. Isla, welcome to the family.”
“Thank you,” I manage to say before picking up the menu and turning to the back page to where I know I’ll be able to find their desserts. I’m craving sugar like crazy, and it might be the only thing that will help me keep my mouth shut right now.
As I read over my few choices, I try to breathe in deeply and bring my mind back to my body instead of sprinting away from here in whatever direction is the safest.
When it’s my turn to order, I just go for it, not giving a fuck what anyone says. “I’ll have the Chocolate Island Volcano, please.”
“Yes ma’am, and for your main?”
I glance over at Liam when the waitress is done speaking.
“That’ll be her main. I’ll have the All-American Burger, medium-rare.”
“Oh. Of course.”
I watch her scamper away from us and around the table but she continuously casts glances over at Liam as she takes Connor’s order from the other side of the table. Jealousy is no
t my thing. I’ve watched all kinds of women fall over Waylon and Liam for years, but right now, I want to shove my fork between her eyes if she looks at him once more.
She does.
My entire body tightens as I reach for my fork, but Liam’s hand moves over mine, dragging my attention to him. “What’s wrong?”
I don’t say anything because now I’m appallingly self-conscious, and I don’t want him to know what these hormones are doing to me so I just look over at her while she watches him before looking down at my lap again.
Keep your shit together, Isla.
“You own me,” he says as he tilts my chin up and locks his lips with mine, kissing me with a heated hunger and more need than what is appropriate in front of his parents or even in public.
He doesn’t stop when I try to pull away, nor does he stop when I speak his name against his lips. He kisses me like it’s the last time he’ll ever get to be this close to me until his mother interrupts.
“Honestly, Liam.”
He chuckles and replaces his hand where it seems to belong on my thigh, only, this time, it appears to be higher up than it was earlier.
“There’s just you, Isla,” he says in a whisper against my ear, and I want to rip off his shorts right here and ride him at the table until I can’t hear anything but the low buzz of an orgasm roaring through my body.
“You didn’t have to do that.”
“I did, now relax before I take you upstairs.”
I’d much rather he does that than sit through this lunch, but I nod and lean back against my seat as the conversation starts to flow at the table. Delaney starts telling everyone about how much work she has to catch up on at her law office, but that she took this precious time just to come and see us.
Are they all this damn smug and self-absorbed?
“Isla?” Connor asks, and I look up at him. For some reason, I know that I’ll more than likely get along with him the best.
“Yes?”
“How far along are you with my grandchild?”
“I’m not very far along at all, really. I’m at ten weeks today.”
“You take care of that little one, you hear me? That baby already has a large fund in his or her as yet undecided name. You let me know if you need anything at all that my son isn’t providing.”
Intertwined: A Redemption Novel Page 20