There was only one thing I knew to do. My heart broke for my brother and for myself at what it might mean, but it also soared. "I love you." It was the first time I had said it out loud to her. "I have always loved you, and I always will. If you'll have me, I'll marry you, and I'll raise this baby with you. I'll protect you both with my life." It was the truth, even if I knew she would long for Aaron in her heart somewhere.
"What about Aaron?" she asked quietly. I could tell she didn’t want to say it but just had to. I wouldn’t have expected anything different.
"Whatever it means to keep you and this baby, I'll do. We'll cross that when we come to it."
"Okay," she said, sitting up with a new glow to her, though I could tell there was still a tinge of sadness there. "I'll marry you."
My heart skipped a beat, and I leaned in to kiss the only woman I had ever loved and would ever love with all the pent-up passion left in me. She was mine. Nothing Aaron could do would take that part of her away from me.
"Let’s take you to pick out a ring,” I told her, pulling away with a grin.
Chapter 9
***Aaron***
Something was going on with Aria, I could feel it. I knew that her crazy ex had made contact, twice now. He had sent a note, and he had called her, now. I realized that she must feel unsafe, even with my brother and me around all the time to try and protect her. She had even moved into the mansion with us in hopes of him having a harder time getting to her. Our security in this community was top notch. But it was more than that.
After several weeks of nonstop, mind-blowing sex with her, it had stopped. She also seemed to be avoiding me. In my heart, I worried that my brother had finally won her over, circumvented the contract we had and just took her to be only his. I knew in the back of my mind the moment she told us she couldn’t choose that her mind might eventually change. If she ever decided she wanted marriage and a family, my brother was the obvious pick. While I wanted to keep her in my arms and in my bed forever, I wasn't necessarily on that family track.
I had just been happy to have her in some capacity for the time being, so I hadn’t push. However, I was beginning to wonder if that was the wrong move.
I was on Aria duty this morning, allowing Richard to go into work. We had taken shifts with her like that until the private investigator we hired could give us better details about Chad's whereabouts and what he was up to. He could just be a crazy guy wanting to make her miserable, but he could also be a psychopath waiting to pounce. It wasn't something we were going to risk with Aria. Neither of us could lose her.
Aria padded down the stairs, looking incredibly tired. I got the feeling she wasn't sleeping much by the circles I always saw under her eyes now. I had to know what was going on.
"Aria," I said gently, setting her breakfast in front of her as she sat down. I had made her some eggs and bacon when I made my own breakfast. I was a great cook, and I knew it would be a nice gesture, especially if I was going to ask her to divulge something. "I've been trying to give you time, but I need to know what’s going on. You seem so distant, and I just want to know the truth. I can handle it."
Aria sighed and reached in the pocket of her robe to pull out something that made a million emotions run through me at once. It was a gorgeous ring that she put on a finger that meant she was engaged to someone. It was a dazzling diamond surrounded by sapphires, just the kind of ring my brother would give to a woman he loved.
"It's not what you think," she told me, obviously seeing the panic plain on my face. "I mean, it is an engagement ring from Richard, but it doesn’t have to mean what you think it does. We were supposed to tell you about everything together, but then all this stuff with Chad has me so scared and stressed. It’s been so hard."
I softened a little, ready to at least hear her out. I couldn’t imagine being in the position she was in, being under attack from someone I had once cared about and maybe even loved.
"Just tell me," I begged, reaching out for her hand, "if things are over for me and you."
"It's not like that," she tried to explain. "I'm..." She trailed off as the doorbell rang. I held up a finger telling her to hold that thought as I went to see who it was. I had ordered some protein powder online but didn’t expect it until the next day. Maybe it had come early.
But when I opened the door, I immediately got a blow to the face. The man at the door reached down and placed something against my skin, and I screamed in pain as volts of electricity ran through my body. Chad had come for Aria, and I had just let him in my house.
I tried to get up and move as he left the door wide open and went searching through the house for Aria, but I couldn’t move. It was like I was paralyzed. "Run!" I called out to her, and hopefully it was just in time.
I began to pull myself across the floor in a crawl, and I saw her running up the stairs, trying to get away from the man. But he yanked at her robe, revealing her body and making her tumble backwards.
"Please!" she screamed and cried as the man grabbed a chunk of hair and began to drag her haphazardly down the stairs. I tried once again to pull myself up on the bottom step, but Chad kicked out, getting my arm and my face. "Please, I'm pregnant. Don’t hurt me!" Tears were streaming down her face, and she looked to be in utter fear. In that moment of shock, my eyes went to her belly, and I could see the beginning of a small bump. She was telling the truth. That was what she was trying to tell me and why Richard would have proposed marriage. She was having either his baby or mine.
"No!" I cried out, knowing more than one life was at stake now. In more pain than I had ever felt in my life, I finally pulled myself up as he slammed her down onto the marble floor. There was blood behind her head, and she looked groggy as I approached from behind.
"You will have no other man’s baby. You are mine. I am your dom. You are my sub. You will do as I say." His voice was deep and evil. I reached for a clay pot that sat in the foyer and threw it at his back with as much force as I had. It gave him pause, but then he turned on me and came after me, pulling a knife out of his pocket. What was wrong with this insane man?
My life flashed before my eyes, and I hoped Aria would take this chance to run, but just as she was hitting the door, he brought her back again, yanking at her hair until she fell and hit her head, falling unconscious.
Just as the knife was about to dig deep into my abdomen, a shot rang out. Chad collapsed, and I saw my brother standing in the doorway, holding the gun that just shot the man that was trying to harm the woman we loved. Richard immediately dropped to the ground where Aria lay in tears, his hands quickly covered in her blood.
I reached for the phone to dial 9-1-1, but then I heard the ambulance already approaching. Which one of us had won her didn’t matter anymore; I just needed her and that baby to live. If not for me, then for my brother. He would never recover from that, and I knew it. Were they going to be able to save them both?
I watched as they loaded her into the ambulance, covering her naked body up. Richard instantly told them about the baby, and I told him to be the one who rode with her; I would catch him there. Busted arm and all, I was going to drive there so my brother could be with that child that was growing inside her because something inside me was telling me it had to be his.
Chapter 10
***Aria***
I looked down at the ring on my finger, somehow untainted by the blood I had lost in the fight with Chad. By now, Aaron must have realized about the baby. The nurses and doctors in the hospital had been monitoring its life as well as mine for the past twenty-four hours. By some miracle, there had been no obvious damage to the baby, though I had a severe concussion and needed a partial transfusion. The only comfort I had in this event was the fact that Chad was gone. Even if he made it through recovery, he would be locked up and never allowed to lay his hands on somebody like that again.
Now that I was coming to, and the pain medicine was helping the ache in my skull, I knew that I had to talk to them about how we were goin
g to handle this. My hands went to my stomach, and I rubbed the small bump that was there affectionately. One of their children was growing inside of me. We were going to be a family, whether traditional or not, and we needed to decide what that would look like. I couldn’t keep breaking hearts anymore. But I knew that I wasn't ready to give this ring back.
The door to my room opened, and in walked both men carrying bouquets of roses; blue and yellow. They smelled wonderful. I smiled at them both and waited for the door to close before I said anything.
"You both saved me," I told them, feeling nothing but grateful. "And you saved our baby." I looked down at my stomach happily. I could see tears in both their eyes. "I don’t want to give either of you up. I want to be a family, but that means I'm keeping this ring and marrying Richard. I need a partner to help raise this child, and I know that Richard loves me and this baby for all time." They were about to speak, but I stopped them. "I don’t want to know whose it is. I know it sounds crazy, but there are others who live this way, so just hear me out. What if Aaron was our third? We could live together and be our own little family, and if Aaron ever finds a woman he loves and wants this with, he is free to leave. Otherwise, I can still have you both, and you can both have me. I can be your wife." I looked at Richard who came to me and put his hand on my belly. "And I can be your lover." I looked at Aaron, and he nodded.
"I can live with that," Aaron said, and Richard nodded in agreement, overwhelmed by emotion. "So, when’s the wedding? I call best man." We laughed-cried at Aaron, loving just how he always made everyone feel better.
"I've always wanted a winter wedding," Richard admitted quietly, sitting down on the side of my hospital bed.
"It sounds perfect," I told him as he leaned down to kiss my forehead, and Aaron leaned over and kissed my cheek. What an adventure this life was going to be.
THE END
Bonus 16 of 20
Red wolf
Description
Kiera knew that going into the forest alone was a bad idea, but as she walks around, she gets lost, then attacked by a mysterious creature. Knowing that death is near, she braces for the worst, but is soon saved by two mysterious creatures, the rumored red wolf she’s heard about.
However, when she wakes up, she’s certainly not around wolves anymore, but instead two attractive men. Immediately, the sparks begin to fly, and she soon begins to realize her thoughts are driving her both to her curiosity about these men and a need for something more. But of course, these two are hiding a secret, and with the legend of the red wolf at the helm of her thoughts, Kiera knows there is a connection to that legend and these two men. But will they let her know the truth before it’s too late, and will they let her in on what’s going on?
Chapter 1
“Where am I?” I asked myself as I stepped along the pathway. I could’ve sworn that this was the correct path. I mean, it’s not like I was going in circles or anything, but something about this felt like it was off. I looked around, the moonlight of the night showing the pathway. It was the only light that I had, one that wasn’t going to do me a lot of justice unless I got out of here soon.
This was what I got for being a nature photographer it seemed. I should have known by now to have headed back, but I really wanted to see if the red wolf rumor was true. Then again, maybe it was just some stupid pipe dream, something I followed simply because it was the right thing to do. I continued trudging forward, the cold night air chilling my bones. I needed to find something, anything to help me get back on the right path.
I heard a rustling in the bushes. When I looked about, there was nothing, absolutely nothing there. I began to wonder if I was imagining things, and soon, I started to shake my head.
“I can’t be imaging it. There is something out there,” I muttered to myself. Was it the red wolf, or was it something else? As I continued forward, I heard it again, whipping around to potentially get a view of whatever it was. I hoped it was some small animal that found its way here, but there was that part of me that knew it wasn’t the case.
However, what happened next stunned me. I was immediately attacked from behind, claws digging into my skin. I cried out, feeling the trickle of blood already. Damn he got deep. I fell to the ground, my golden blonde hair in front of my face. I tried to scramble forward, but it was no use. The creature had me and I was stuck here. Would this be the end? Or was it going to be the beginning of whatever would happen next? I didn’t sense anyone about and I knew that calling out for help was only going to make matters worse.
The only place around was some billionaire’s mansion. I didn’t know who it was, but if he had this hanging as close as he did to me, then I didn’t want to take my chances.
I felt the mouth of this mysterious creature right against my own. It was a bear. I noticed it finally after coming to. The daze I felt when I got bit seemed to loom over me and I could feel my body growing hazy as my consciousness slipped away. I began to hope for something, anything that could save me from whatever the hell was going to happen next.
That mouth was right near my neck. It was dangerously close to biting there, snapping the tendons and killing me. I wondered if I’d make it out alive, but I doubted it. I guess this was my way to go. I knew being a nature photographer did pose quite the heavy risk, but this was insane. This was completely and utterly insane.
I started to feel my consciousness slip away as I felt my body lose all of its strength. This was it. At least I’d be unconscious when this beast decided to devour me. I then felt something hit right up against the bear, startling my body from its clutches. I felt my body thump to the ground, causing me to let out a hiss of pain, but then, unconsciousness screamed against every single tendon, making it hard for me to even pull my head forward.
However, my ears still worked. I heard screams, almost as if the beast was being torn apart by whatever it was that saved me. But I wondered if this person was friend or foe? I wasn’t totally sure. When I heard the sound of the beast’s dying wail, I struggled to get up, to thank whoever it was that saved me. Of course, was it worth it to thank them? They could be here to kill me in the same light, but there was something within me that spoke otherwise, especially regarding that. However, I couldn’t keep my eyes open, or my body up, so I passed out.
Maybe I would die here. I don’t want to think so, but that’s what was at the forefront of my mind as I lay there, unconscious and unsure of where I would end up. There was a presence near me, and I struggled to flutter my eyes open, but it was no use. I prepared for the sweet release of death, and soon, the creature grabbed me. I braced myself, knowing this could be the end of it all. Instead of it killing me, I was pulled somewhere, almost dragged to a new location. I was then carried almost in a bridal-style by whoever it was that did this. I mean, deep down I did thank them for what they did, but I also had no idea just what this person or creature was capable of. Would it kill me? Or would I live to tell the tale.
The only thing I did know was that when I did open my eyes, a gasp emitted from my mouth. This was what I was looking for, the creature that I had yearned to spot, only to avoid it up until this time.
I was being carried by the red wolf, whatever this creature was. I knew this would be quite the story, if I did manage to get out of this alive and with all of my limbs intact. There wasn’t much I could do, as the darkness of my consciousness seeped away, leaving me almost dead to the world in this mysterious creature’s arms.
Chapter 2
I woke up shortly after my rest, or at least that’s what I called it. I thought I was dead, or at least that’s what I expected. I realized I was in a perfectly made room, with velvety sheets, a beautiful high ceiling and furniture that looked more expensive than the type I was used to.
“Where the hell am I?” I asked.
“You’re awake. That’s relieving. I didn’t think you would make it, especially with how close to death you were,” a voice said.
I looked, seeing that it was a myster
ious man. He was about my age, with sandy blonde hair, green eyes and he wore a perfectly pressed tux. I looked at him, my face contorted into that of confusion more than anything.
“Where am I?” I asked.
“You’re at Master Richard’s home. I’m Spencer, his head butler and servant,” he said.
I extended my hand, awkwardly looking at him. Damn he was cute. “Kiera,” I told him.
“Well Kiera, I’m glad you’re alive. I made sure that you were taken care of. Seems you got attacked by a bear and the wounds were deep,” he said.
I tried to move, noticing that it didn’t hurt. “Yeah, but it doesn’t hurt,” I said.
“I’m an apothecary, along with being the head butler here. For master, I make a variety of concoctions, some of them including healing ones,” he said to me.
I listened to this, but in all honesty, I felt like there was something more.
“Where is your master? I have a few questions,” I said.
“About what? He is still sleeping, so I don’t assume he’ll be up for a while,” he told me.
I blushed, trying my hardest to figure out what to say.
“About what I saw last night. I could’ve sworn I was taken in by a red wolf,” I told him.
He looked at me, his face almost changing on instinct. Was there something he knew that I didn’t. Finally, he shook his head, looking at me directly.
“You’re making that up. You know that’s a legend just as well as I do,” he said.
“Right. But I could’ve sworn I saw it,” I said.
“You probably were just seeing things since you were right at death’s door. Don’t think any more of it, for it’s probably that,” he insisted.
I wanted to believe that, but in all honesty, something about that seemed very wrong. However, I didn’t question it.
A Sugar Daddy’s Secret: Billionaire Romance Page 48