* * *
“Are you okay?” I ask once we leave the courthouse.
“No, but I will be,” she says, wrapping her arms around my waist. “Thank you for what you did in there.”
“Just evening the score a little,” I murmur, bending my head to press my lips to hers.
Her body melds with mine and I let my mouth linger on hers for a moment. It’s only been a few days, but I missed this.
“Hey,” she says, pulling back an inch.
Her eyes meet mine as she pulls her lower lip between her teeth. Even with her eyes swollen from all the crying she’s been doing, she still manages to steal my breath.
One day you wake up and it just happens.
There’s no rhyme.
No reason.
You wave that white flag and you surrender.
“So, not too long ago, I went on a date with this cop,” she says, releasing her lip and tightening her arms around my waist. “He took me to this little hole in the wall restaurant not too far from here, where they make the best meatball sandwiches and he talked dirty to me and promised to fuck me like a gentleman.”
“Sounds like a catch.”
“Oh, he is, and you know what the best part was? It turns out he’s a man of his word.”
“Fucked you like a gentleman, did he?” I tease, watching as she tosses her head back and laughs. It takes her a minute to sober up, but when she does, her beautiful smile is still intact.
“Yeah, he did,” she says softly. “Turns out he really is a good guy.”
A good guy who still plans on taking those meatballs to go so he can fuck her like the gentleman he is.
Epilogue
Marco
“Did the edible fruit arrangement get there yet?” I ask.
Soraya huffs out an exasperated breath through the line. I’ve been torturing her since early this morning, calling the office and her cell. I’m willing to bet the first thing she does tonight when she gets home is dye her hair whatever shade means angry as fuck these days.
“For the fifth time, I will call you when the fucking fruit arrives. Now, stop calling me, Pirelli.”
“It’s not fruit, it’s melon.”
The line goes dead and I turn back to Tig.
“It still didn’t get there yet. Should I call the place again?”
“Sure, if you want them to spit all over your pineapples.”
Unlike Soraya, Tig won’t dye his hair when he goes home, but have no fear, he hates me too. Oh, well, it’s not every day a man proposes. They’ll all get over it.
Pocketing my phone, I look at the velvet display board in front of me and go back to studying the three engagement rings. For the last two hours, I’ve been trying to decide which one will look perfect on Antonia’s finger.
“This is fucking ridiculous, man,” Tig says. “Pick a damn ring, odds are you’re gonna be back here on your fifth wedding anniversary resetting the damn thing anyway.”
Ignoring him, I reach for the solitaire again. Originally, I came here determined to get her a princess cut ring. Then the jeweler mentioned a halo setting, and we added that style to the mix. But I keep going back to this one. It’s simple and not as flashy as the other two. I think it will look perfect on her dainty finger.
“This is the one,” I exclaim.
“Thank you, Jesus,” Tig mutters, glaring at the jeweler. “Well, don’t just stand there! Ring him up before he changes his mind. And while you’re at it, take these other ones and put them away,” he says, shoving the velvet board toward him.
“For someone who won a bet, you’re awfully cranky.”
“I didn’t win shit,” he argues.
“You said we’d be ring shopping in three months and here we are.”
“Must be my lucky day. Do me a favor? When you two decide to have kids, lose my number. I don’t want to be anywhere near you when you’re trying to decide what the hell to name them.”
Three months ago, I would’ve been struggling with how to respond because I wouldn’t want to say the wrong thing and be insensitive to his and Delia’s infertility situation. But God works in mysterious ways and usually when you lose hope is when you get your miracle. Tig and Delia found out last month their little miracle is on the way and in seven months, I’ll be sitting in the hospital, waiting for Tig to come out of the delivery room with a big grin on his face.
“I’ve picked out the kids names already. Marco if it’s a boy and Marca if it’s a girl.”
Tig quirks a brow.
“Marca?”
“Yeah, I’m not a fan of Marsha.”
“You’re fucking hopeless, you know that?”
“You love me,” I say.
“Yeah, about as much as I love paying taxes. Come on, pay the man or you’ll be late for traffic court.”
* * *
Antonia
I’m going to kill Marco when I get home for sending me another edible fruit arrangement. Don’t get me wrong, it was very thoughtful and if I didn’t have to haul it on the subway on my way to traffic court to fight the tickets he issued me the day we met, I might’ve rewarded him with a blow job.
Now, I’m sitting here, holding this ridiculous thing on my lap, waiting for the judge to call my name. At least I won’t be here long. Back in the day, you used to be able to call a cop and have him pull the tickets, but because everything is electronic, Marco’s hands were tied. The only way for me to get out of the tickets is for him not to show.
“Antonia DeLuca?”
“Here!”
Maneuvering the arrangement in my arms, I jump to my feet. The guard gives me a weird look, but I flash him a smile and offer him a strawberry.
Hey, it worked with Judy.
I step inside the courtroom and the smile falls from my face—the fruit falls too.
All over the damn courtroom.
“What are you doing here?” I ask Marco.
“I’m the officer who gave you those tickets. It’s my job to be here.”
If there wasn’t a judge sitting as a witness I might—wait, where’s the judge? My eyes dart around and I realize it’s just me and Marco in the room.
Suddenly, he drops down on one knee in front of me and my heart—the organ I once deemed as treacherous, hammers in my chest. As luck would have it, my heart didn’t betray me after all. It led me to the man of my dreams. The man I want to spend the rest of my life with.
“Antonia DeLuca—”
“Yes!” I blurt.
“What are you saying yes to? I didn’t ask you anything.”
Oh, right.
I should probably let him do that.
Smiling at me, he reaches into his pocket and pulls out a small velvet box.
“Three months ago, you blew a light and I pulled you over. You took off your helmet, shook out your hair and our eyes connected. I didn’t realize I was staring at my future wife for the first time and I wrote you three tickets. One for speeding, another for blowing the light, and a third for failing to produce your insurance card.”
“I remember.”
He laughs.
“The thing about tickets though, is they are only valid if all the information on them is correct and there seems to be a discrepancy in your last name.”
“Is that so?”
“Yeah, they should read Pirelli.”
“It does have a nice ring to it,” I whisper hoarsely.
“Speaking of rings…”
He flips open the box and turns it around. Nestled in the lush velvet is the most perfect engagement ring. My eyes fill with tears as they meet his and he takes my hand in his.
“Marry me, take my name, and give me the honor of loving you for the rest of my life.”
“Yes, a million times yes!” I exclaim, pulling him to his feet. My lips collide with his and I wrap my arms around his neck. I never dreamed I’d be the girl who got the happy ending. After all, I’m the daughter of a criminal and he’s a cop. We come from two different worlds
, but somehow, we abolished the line drawn between us. We found love. We built trust. He took care of me and now, I get to take care of him for the rest of our lives.
* * *
Dear Anonymous,
First, let me start by apologizing for the delayed response. Your story sounds an awful lot like something a friend of mine is going through. She hasn’t reached out to me and I suppose that’s because I’m her boss and the cop she’s dating happens to be a friend of mine as well. But I’ll tell you exactly what I would tell her, not every guy is an asshole. The right man is out there, and he might not necessarily be your usual type or what you pictured for yourself, but you should still give him a chance. As for your dad, don’t let his paranoia dictate the course of your life. Follow your heart.
It just might surprise you and who knows, it may even lead you to love of your life.
-Ida
P.S. Marco isn’t a crooked cop
P.S.S. Answer your phone!
P.S.S.S. Antonia! You’re fired.
P.S.S.S.S. (Is that even a thing) I was just kidding. You’re not fired, but please answer your phone.
Want to keep up with all of the new releases in Vi Keeland and Penelope Ward's Cocky Hero Club world? Make sure you sign up for the official Cocky Hero Club newsletter for all the latest on our upcoming books:
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Also by Janine Infante Bosco
The Tempted Series:
Illicit Temptations
Forbidden Temptations
Uncontrollable Temptations
Reckless Temptations
Lethal Temptations
Eternal Temptations
The Nomad Series:
Drifter
Wanderer
Roamer
Loner
Satan’s Knights Transition of Power Series:
From the Ruins
The Devil Don’t Sleep
Riding the Edge
Parrish
The Leather and Lace Duet
Blackout, Book One
Blackout, Book Two
Satan’s Knights novellas
Rite of Passage
Satan’s Knights Prospects Trilogy
Shifting Gears
Breaking the Chains
Walking the Line
Standalone Novels
Raging Inferno – From the Burn Me Anthology – Full novel
The Riverdale Series:
*should be read in series order*
Pieces – Book One
Broken Pieces – Book Two
Fitting the Pieces – Book Three
Jake’s Journal (Book 3.5) novella–companion to the series
About the Author
Janine Infante Bosco lives in New York City and is an International Bestselling Author. When she was thirteen, she began to write her own stories and her passion for writing took off as the years went on. At eighteen, she even wrote a full screenplay with dreams of one day becoming a member of the Screen Actors Guild.
Janine writes emotionally charged novels with an emphasis on family bonds, strong willed female characters, and alpha male men who will do anything for the women they love. She loves to interact with fans and fellow avid romance readers like herself.
When she isn't writing, she is busy planning the Tempted & Tantalizing Author Event, an annual book signing in her hometown of Staten Island, New York. She also recently started a mystery box subscription services that caters to bad boy characters and the various authors who write them.
She is proud of her success as an author and the friendships she's made in the book community but her greatest accomplishment to date would be her two sons Joseph and Paul.
www.janineinfantebosco.com
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