Defying Gravity: Shattered Cove Series Book 3

by A. M. Kusi

  Bently wrapped his hand around her waist. “Hey now, give the boy some air. I’m starting to get jealous.”

  TJ and Belle laughed. She looked up into the face of the man she loved, the man who had faced his past and taken the hard road to be vulnerable with her. The man who had breathed life into her for the first time.

  “Now it’s your turn for a gift.” Bently’s smile wavered as if he was nervous.

  Her brows knit together. “My turn?”

  “You didn’t think I’d leave you out, did you?” Bently pulled a leather box from his pocket.

  The breath shuddered in her lungs. No way. Is he? Oh my god!

  Bently got down on his knee, not seeming to mind the cold snow on the frozen ground. “Belle, I know it’s really soon. But I decided that when it comes to you, I’m done waiting. I’m never holding back again.”

  She glanced to TJ. A wide smile lit his face.

  “I have already given you my heart, but I’m hoping that you’ll do me the greatest honor of letting me share my life with you. We don’t have to do it now. I’ll wait until you’re ready, whenever that is. I want you to be mine in every sense of the word. My lover, my best friend, and my wife.”

  Fresh tears spilled over her cheeks. She didn’t bother to wipe them away this time. There was so much she wanted to say to him, but everything jumbled up and stuck in her throat.

  “Show her the ring,” TJ said.

  Belle’s eyes darted to her brother who now held his phone up, capturing their moment.

  “Oh, right.” Bently opened the box.

  A dark red ruby glinted in the morning sunlight, the square-cut stone set in a delicate silver band. It was simple and elegant. It was perfect.

  “I got you a ruby because it’s the queen of all stones. Uh—” Bently cleared his throat nervously. “The ancients believed its value surpassed that of all other stones in virtue, even the diamond. There are a lot of other meanings, like protection, and it symbolizes the sun. I chose it because to me, you are the sun. You’re everything good in this world. You’re valuable and precious, and powerful. And I want to have the privilege of standing by your side forever.”

  Belle’s heart pounded in her chest. Disbelief and butterflies swirled in her belly.

  Fear and uncertainty flashed in those cerulean-blue eyes.

  Say something!

  She nodded vigorously and pulled him to standing. “Yes, Bently. I-I want that too. Yes!”

  Bently let out an audible sigh as he pulled her tight against him, kissing her. “You scared me for a minute there.”

  “Did you think I could walk away from you? From the only pure love I’ve ever known?” she asked, kissing his jaw.

  “I fucking hoped not.” Bently chuckled.

  TJ finally spoke up. “I’ve always wanted a brother.”

  Bently released Belle enough to pull TJ into the group hug. “Well, you’ve got a lot more than just me now.”

  Of course. His family was now their family. Belle’s heart swelled. That was the thing about love—just when you thought it wasn’t possible to have room for more, your heart expanded and grew to accommodate the new demand. And maybe all those times she’d had her heart broken, left in shattered pieces, it was for this moment. To be able to re-piece it all together to form something much bigger and better than she could have ever had on her own.

  “Alright, you two. I’m gonna go stop in and see Cam.” TJ smiled and slipped the phone into his pocket.

  “Drive safe,” Bently said as TJ shut the tailgate.

  “I will. See you guys at home for dinner.”

  “I’m working until seven,” Belle reminded him.

  “Love you.”

  “Love you too!” Belle blew him a big kiss as he shook his head and pulled the red bow off before climbing into his new ride.

  TJ drove away.

  Bently rested his arm over her shoulders. “That’s one happy boy.”

  “Yes, it is.”

  “Can I put your ring on now?” Bently asked.

  “Of course! It’s so beautiful.” Belle focused on the red stone as he slipped it over her ring finger.

  “You sure you want this? Even though I can’t . . . we could never have biological children?” Bently asked, a shadow clouding those pure eyes.

  She lifted her hand to his cheek, narrowing her eyes at him. “I’ve never been surer of anything else in my entire life. As long as you keep working on you, and being open and honest with me. As long as you stay rather than run. I told you—I don’t care about having biological children.”

  He blinked. “I just don’t want you to regret anything.”

  “I could never regret you,” she said against his mouth.

  His lips caressed hers hungrily as his tongue traced the seam. Teeth raked across her soft flesh igniting the fire within her. Passion and lust swirled inside her, mixing and melding and forming something much deeper and unbreakable than what she’d known before—the truest love.

  Bently broke the kiss and leaned his forehead against hers, groaning. “I’d better get you to work before I can’t stop myself.”

  “I could be a few minutes late.” She panted.

  “We have some celebrating to do tonight. I’m gonna take my time making your sweet body come all over my face.” Bently squeezed her ass.

  Electricity shot through her core. “I like the sound of that.”

  “That’s just the appetizer. Gonna see just how many orgasms it takes until you beg me to fill you with my cock,” he growled the words in her ear, ramping up her desire.

  “Mmmm. Please don’t make me wait.” She reached between them, cupping the steel rod in his pants.

  “Fuck.” Bently checked his watch. “Alright, just a preview. Then I’m taking you to work where you can show off that ring to Doctor Stanley so he knows you’re all mine.”

  “Rick?”

  He scowled.

  “Why, Bently Evans, are you jealous?”

  He tugged her back into the house as she suppressed a giggle.

  “Maybe I need to remind you who that pussy belongs to.”

  Her body shivered as he swept her up the stairs towards her bedroom. Her inner walls clenched at the feral gaze that scorched her skin through the layers of clothing. He looked like a man possessed. His wild gaze stirred something inside her, something dark and possessive. He’s all mine. Bently is going to be my husband.

  ***

  Belle accepted the cup of coffee from Katy as she glanced at the clock. Only two more hours to go and she could go home and have Bently make good on his dirty promises. He’d been kind enough to deliver not one, but two orgasms before her shift. He’d created some sort of greedy monster in her. Belle’s sexual appetite had never been so insatiable. “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome. Oh. My. God! That’s gorgeous.” Katy grabbed her hand and eyed the unique stone. “Is this what I think it is?”

  Belle couldn’t contain her smile and nodded.

  “You are the worst friend in the world! How could you not tell me first thing? You managed to nail down the Bently Evans? Is this a joke? Am I stroking out right now?” Katy exaggerated her eyes as she slapped a hand over her chest.

  “Shhh. I don’t want the whole hospital knowing,” Belle scolded.

  “Girl, the whole town is gonna be buzzing. One of the most eligible bachelors of Shattered Cove is now off the market. You will be small-town royalty to some, and the most hated by others,” Katy teased.

  “Poor Tina.” Belle laughed.

  Katy joined her and then sighed. “You two moved awfully fast. Didn’t seem like you thought much of him when we had that girls’ night.”

  “Well, we certainly got off on the wrong foot.”

  “Mm-hmm. Must be that magic cock that won you over.” Katy smirked
as her eyes flashed coyly.

  Belle burst out laughing. “You’re terrible . . . but not wrong.”

  “I knew it!” Katy giggled.

  The head nurse on shift waved them over. “We’ve got incoming. Officer-involved shooting. Five minutes.”

  Belle’s smile quickly faded. Her heart lurched. Is it Bently? Would fate be so cruel? Was all of this just the high before the lowest of lows?

  No. He’s okay. I would know if something happened. They’d connected more than just physically. She shared her soul with the man.

  “I’m sure he’s fine,” Katy said, seemingly reading her mind as they rushed to prep.

  Belle nodded, a sick feeling twisting in her stomach. This was just part of being with a police officer. She’d have to get used to it. She was going to marry the sheriff for fuck’s sake.

  “Ambulance radioed in. Looks like a DOA in the first bus.” The rest of the words were drowned out by ringing in her ears. Time slowed down as Belle faced the ambulance-bay doors. Red lights flashed as she forced air in and out of her lungs.

  Get it together. He’s fine. Bently’s fine.

  The doors opened and two men pushed a stretcher inside, a white blood-stained sheet covering a body. Bile rose in her throat. Her heart screamed at her that something was wrong. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end as Bently’s ashen face came into view behind the stretcher. All the color had drained from his complexion. His bloodshot eyes had turned dark. His brown uniform was saturated in crimson.

  Oh my god. Bently!

  Chapter 44

  Belle

  She sucked in a breath, tears burning her eyes as she tried to pull herself together. She was going to make a terrible sheriff’s wife.

  “Are you okay?” she asked.

  He dragged his gaze to hers as if they’d been weighed down by something heavy. She reached out, checking him with gloved hands for injuries, taking care over the site of his gunshot wound from a few weeks prior. None of the blood seemed to be his. His body was tense and trembling. His chest heaved. Blood-stained hands gripped her wrists as tears shimmered in his eyes.

  “I’m fine.” His voice cracked and broke as if he’d swallowed shards of glass.

  “No, you’re not.”

  Bently’s body quaked as a storm of energy bellowed from him, swirling and swallowing up all the attention in the room. It had grown silent as she stared up at him worriedly. Fury radiated from him.

  Fear slithered around her spine. A warning blared in the back of her mind. Something was very wrong. “Bently? Was it one of your officers?”

  He grimaced. “I’m so sorry.”

  “What?”

  He gripped her face in his hands, his gaze steady and unwavering despite the fear bleeding from his eyes. “I love you. Please don’t forget that I love you.”

  “You’re scaring me, Bently.”

  “I tried—” His voice choked. His eyes darted towards the room with the sheet-covered body and time stopped. The pieces clicked into place. Officer-involved shooting. Air ceased to exist, ripped from her lungs as she shook her head.

  No. No. No!

  Belle turned and ran to the room before pulling back the blood-stained sheet. Hands gripped her, tugging her back as TJ’s open eyes stared up from the stretcher. Empty. Vacant. He was no longer here. Her brother. My brother! No!

  A guttural scream pierced the air as her lungs burned. She floated high above her body in the corner of the room, watching herself struggle against the nurses who tried to drag her out, away from the dead corpse of her brother. Bently stopped them, holding her up. His touch jolted her back into her body.

  Screams tore from her throat as her knees buckled. Her stomach emptied itself on the floor. She panted, gasping for oxygen as her body shook. Bently’s arms wrapped tightly around her. His mouth moved, but his words went unheard. She pounded her fists into his chest, relentless and unforgiving. The glint of his badge was the source of her aggression. She ripped it from his shirt, pushing him away. He just held on tighter.

  TJ was gone. Her sweet boy had been murdered. He’d had his whole future ahead of him. He was going to be a doctor. He was going to be a dad someday. He was going to fall in love. He was going to . . . No. He wasn’t going to do anything now. Because someone had stolen his future with a bullet and a badge.

  She gasped, trying to suck in oxygen despite the heavy weight crushing her chest. It hurt too much. The agony of her heart being ripped from her sternum was overwhelming. She screamed, wailing from the loss. It was all too much. She needed to escape. Belle gave in. She held her breath and closed her eyes, chasing the darkness. She wanted to switch places.

  Let him live. Take me.

  Her prayers fell on deaf ears, swallowed up by the empty space that took everything good in her life. All that was left were death and destruction. Emptiness and horror. Devastation and darkness. And she wanted none of it. Without TJ, she didn’t have a reason to keep going. Without him, life wasn’t worth living.

  ***

  Belle’s eyes fluttered open. She winced in the harsh light. Her head pounded. Machines beeped. Where am I? She gasped. It wasn’t just a bad dream. TJ was really gone. Her life was now the real nightmare.

  Bently’s worried expression was grim and somber as he held her hand. Pain etched in the shadows on his face, but something more sinister lurked in the darkness of his eyes. Guilt.

  Could he have? No.

  “Who?” One word was all she was capable of. She wanted the name of her brother’s murderer. She wanted to know what had happened.

  Bently’s jaw ticced as he swallowed and looked down. “One of my neighbors called nine-one-one. Reported a break-in at my address.”

  She swallowed the emotion down. She couldn’t fall apart again. She owed TJ this.

  “They saw him moving the boxes.” Bently’s voice broke as tears streamed over his face.

  She watched as they dripped along his jaw, falling to the bed. Drip . . . Drip . . . Drip.

  “Officer Luke Parsons was first on the scene. I’d been at Remy’s getting coffee.” His grip tightened, the shame so thick and heavy in the room it was suffocating.

  Parsons. Officer Parsons was the dick who had given her a hard time at the station. The one who’d looked down at her like she was scum.

  “By the time I heard the radio—it was too late.” He choked up.

  “He was shot in your house. Moving boxes in. By one of your officers. One of your neighbors called the police because a Black boy was in their neighborhood.”

  “I’m so sorry, Angel. I don’t know what to say. I can’t fix this.” His voice was tormented.

  “Why did they shoot? TJ wasn’t a threat. He’s a good boy. He was going to save lives. He—he was—”

  “I know, baby. I know. I’m so sorry.”

  Had TJ been scared? Had he died alone? Did he suffer?

  Stabbing pain radiated in her chest. She winced.

  “Did you arrest the murderer?” Her voice was cold and dead like her heart.

  This was where the line would be drawn. Maybe she’d been naive enough to think this day would never come, that she and Bently could exist in a world together.

  “There will be an internal investigation. He’s been suspended until further notice.” Bently cringed.

  “An investigation? A fucking suspension! Why is he not in handcuffs? You know he murdered TJ. Why isn’t he being treated like the cold-blooded killer he is?” she shouted.

  “I’m too close to this case. It’s been taken out of my hands. I’m also suspended until further notice because I . . . attacked him.”

  Her eyes fell to his torn fists for the first time. He’d chosen. He’d already chosen what was right rather than to help the man hide behind the badge. She should have felt relief, but beyond the numbness, there was only ago
ny. And if she let herself feel anything, the pain would destroy her.

  “He just started classes. He was going to celebrate with us at dinner. He—”

  “I know, Angel. It isn’t fair.”

  Fair. Equal. Freedom. Words thrown around this country like a pretty dress worn to hide the ugly reality. America the beautiful. America the brave. America the murderer. TJ had been killed for the perceived threat, not because of fact but bias. He’d been assumed to be dangerous because of the color of his skin.

  No. It isn’t fair.

  But when had life ever been fair for a Black man?

  Chapter 45

  Bently

  Grief was like being drowned above water. Like having your heart stop while your body continued to live on. Grief was all-consuming. A million emotions all compounding inside you at once, and just when you thought you’d reached your limit, they doubled down again. Bently’s body hummed with rage, with shame, with guilt, and terror.

  Belle was a shell of the woman he’d asked to marry him only twelve hours ago. The joy in her eyes had been replaced with emptiness. And TJ’s life had been stolen by a man he’d once respected.

  This was why he should have stayed away from Belle. Everything he touched turned to ruin. He destroyed everything good in his life. Happiness was never supposed to be his. If he’d stayed out of her life, if he’d never asked her to move in, her brother would still be alive. TJ should be laughing with Cam, falling in love for the first time. He should be worrying about his first exams, not lying in a cold morgue, alone, with five bullets in his back.

  Guilt ate at his insides until his guts burned with acid. I could have prevented this.

  Maybe if he’d heeded Andre’s warning. Maybe if he’d stood up to Parsons more. Maybe if he’d looked past his own blind spot and recognized that his whole team needed some sort of de-escalation and sensitivity training, TJ would be walking through the front door any minute.

  How could Parsons do this? He’d taken the same oaths to serve and protect as Bently had.

  Belle picked at the dried blood on her wrist as she stared at the steps.