by Marie Force
“That’s right. You’re a good son, Freddie. She has no reason to be anything other than proud of you.”
“Thanks. I hope she’s proud.”
“She is and she’ll cry like a baby at your wedding.”
Gonzo came into the kitchen. “Oh hey.”
“How you doing?” Sam asked.
“All right. You?”
“Better now that everything is signed, sealed and delivered with Scotty.”
“I’m sure.” Gonzo got himself a beer and opened it. “Congratulations, Sam. He’s a great kid.”
“Yes, he is and thanks for being here to help us celebrate.”
“Sitting at home feeling sorry for myself isn’t getting me anywhere, so I’m glad to have somewhere else to be.”
“You’re always welcome with us—anytime. I hope you know that.”
“Us too,” Freddie said. “Don’t be sitting around feeling crappy when you could be with friends.”
“Thanks, guys. I’m going to be okay. It’s just going to take a while.”
“We’ll be here for you no matter how long it takes,” Sam said.
Nick poked his head into the kitchen. “Can you come out for a minute, Sam?”
“Sure thing.” To Freddie and Gonzo, she said, “Duty calls. Come with me?”
They followed her into the living room where Scotty was the center of attention.
“Time for some speeches,” Skip declared. “I’m going first. I want to say how happy I am to officially welcome my grandson Scotty to the family. Scotty, you’ve been a part of this family since the first time we met you. Today was about paperwork. It’s been official for us for quite some time now. In fact, it’s hard to remember what it was like around here before you came along. You make us better than we were without you, so thanks for choosing your mom and dad to be your parents so that I’d get to be your grand pop. I love you, buddy.”
Scotty went to Skip and kissed his forehead. “I love you too. Thanks for having me.”
“My turn,” Tracy said. “To my nephew Scotty, thank you for making my sister a mom. It’s the one thing she’s always wanted to be that she never was before she had you.”
“Aww, jeez, Trace,” Sam said, wiping tears. “Pull out the big guns, why doncha?”
Tracey smirked at Sam and then hugged her.
“To my best pal, Scotty,” Shelby said. “I just hope my kid turns out half as awesome as you are, and one of these days, I am going to kick your butt in Call of Duty, so be ready. Love you, Scotty.”
“Love you too.” Scotty hugged her and by the time he released her, Shelby was wiping up tears.
“Damned hormones,” she said.
“That’s what you always say,” Scotty said, laughing at her comical expression.
“Scotty,” Laine said, “from the first time your dad brought you to the farm, you’ve been an O’Connor. We love you, your mom and dad, and we’re thrilled to have you as part of our family.”
Everyone had something sweet to say about their boy, which made Sam realize just how much he’d touched them all since he came into their lives.
“Scotty, I miss you so much in Richmond,” Mrs. Littlefield, his former guardian, said. “But I couldn’t be happier that you’re settled into such a wonderful family. If anyone deserves that, it’s you. Thanks for not forgetting about your old friend Mrs. L in the midst of your exciting new life. I’ll always love you.”
Scotty hugged her tightly and whispered something that brought tears to the older woman’s eyes.
“I guess that leaves us,” Nick said, when everyone else had spoken. He put his arm around Sam. “I’ll never forget the day I walked into that state home for children in Richmond and bonded over our shared love of the Red Sox with a twelve-year-old boy who reminded me so much of myself at that age. Scotty, we want you to know how thankful we are that you decided to take a chance on us as your parents. Our lives are hectic and filled with unreasonable levels of insanity, but you roll with whatever comes our way, and that makes you a perfect fit for us. We love you so much, and we always will.” He glanced at Sam, passing the baton to her.
“And I’ll only add that I may never be a typical mom, but no mom could ever love you more than I do.”
Scotty hugged them both.
The family around them cheered for the new family the three of them had become together.
“Do I get to say something?” Scotty asked.
“Whatever you want,” Nick said.
He took a moment to gather himself. “Before I met Nick, my dad, I would’ve said I didn’t need a family. I would’ve said I had everything I needed in the home I had. It was a good home, and I was loved there. But this…” Tearfully, he gestured to the wide circle of people around him. “This is more than I ever could’ve hoped for. Thanks to all of you for making me feel so welcome and so much a part of this awesome family.”
“To Scott Dunlap Cappuano,” Nick said, his arm around Scotty’s shoulders.
“To my parents, Vice President Cappuano and Lieutenant Holland,” Scotty said, “the best parents in the whole world.”
As she leaned her head against Nick’s shoulder, Sam was almost certain they weren’t even close to the best parents in the world, but they would be the best parents they could possibly be to the boy they loved with all their hearts.
* * * * *
Acknowledgments
Thank you for reading Fatal Frenzy! I hope you enjoyed the latest installment in Sam and Nick’s life together. To discuss the story with spoilers allowed and encouraged, join the Fatal Frenzy Reader Group at Facebook.com/groups/FatalFrenzy, and if you’re not yet a member of the Fatal Series Reader Group, you can find that here: Facebook.com/groups/FatalSeries. Make sure you’re on my newsletter mailing list at marieforce.com.
Please also subscribe to updates from my blog at blog.marieforce.com to ensure you never miss a sale or a chance to attend a local book signing in your area or other news. This is a new feature I’ve added to my website as Facebook makes it more difficult for me to stay in touch with my readers. Blog readers will also receive occasional surprise excerpts and flash giveaways, so make sure you’re signed up to participate!
Special thanks as always to the HTJB team that supports me every day: Julie Cupp, Lisa Cafferty, Holly Sullivan, Isabel Sullivan, Nikki Colquhoun and Cheryl Serra along with our “Designing Women,” Ashley Lopez and Courtney Lopes. And an extra thank-you goes to Cheryl for her research help for this book. My appreciation goes to my agent Kevan Lyon, editor Alissa Davis and everyone at Carina Press and Harlequin for their support of the Fatal Series.
Captain Russell Hayes of the Newport Police Department checks my work and helps me keep Sam’s experience as a police officer as realistic as I can make it. Thank you so much, Russ, for always being willing to help me out.
To my beta readers, Holly Sullivan, Ronlyn Howe, Kara Conrad and Anne Woodall, thank you ladies for being the first eyes on all my books and for all your support and encouragement.
Finally, and most important, to the readers who have embraced Sam and Nick’s story over the last five years, a huge thank-you for making this series so successful. There’s much more to come for Sam, Nick and Scotty, so stay tuned for book ten, Fatal Identity, in 2016. Thanks for reading!
xoxo
Marie
The Fatal Series by Marie Force
Suggested reading order
One Night with You (The Fatal Series prequel novella)
Fatal Affair
Fatal Justice
Fatal Consequences
Fatal Destiny
Fatal Flaw
Fatal Deception
Fatal Mistake
Fatal Jeopardy
Fatal Scandal
Fatal Frenzy
And
stay tuned for Fatal Identity, the next book in the Fatal Series, coming in 2016!
About the Author
With more than 3.5 million books sold, Marie Force is the New York Times bestselling author of the Fatal Series from Harlequin’s Carina Press, as well as the Gansett Island Series, Treading Water Series, Green Mountain Series and new erotic Quantum Trilogy. Contact Marie at [email protected].
The Fatal Series by New York Times bestselling author Marie Force
Their high-profile romance is making headlines…and could prove FATAL.
FATAL AFFAIR: BOOK ONE OF THE FATAL SERIES
FATAL JUSTICE: BOOK TWO OF THE FATAL SERIES
FATAL CONSEQUENCES: BOOK THREE OF THE FATAL SERIES
FATAL FLAW: BOOK FOUR OF THE FATAL SERIES
FATAL DECEPTION: BOOK FIVE OF THE FATAL SERIES
FATAL MISTAKE: BOOK SIX OF THE FATAL SERIES
FATAL JEOPARDY: BOOK SEVEN OF THE FATAL SERIES
FATAL SCANDAL: BOOK EIGHT OF THE FATAL SERIES
FATAL FRENZY: BOOK NINE OF THE FATAL SERIES
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ISBN-13: 9781426899980
Fatal Frenzy: Book 9 of the Fatal Series
Copyright © 2015 by HTJB, Inc.
Edited by: Alissa Davis
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