by S K
"I can only imagine how they feel, but…"
"But nothing, Angel! Yes, you'll make some calls, but they've already had something precious stripped away from them, and that's the right to feel comfortable in their own home without wondering if they're under surveillance or not. Are you going to make some calls and get their piece of mind back for them too?" Crying, Nikki stood up, angrily pushing her hair out of her face. She glared at him as he rose as well. "Me choosing to accept the things that come along with your world is one thing, but my family shouldn't have to. The extra security that's always in place, the bodyguards that travel with me just to go shopping, afraid of making friends because I have to be careful who I associate with..." Her sister was right. Their parents aspired to more for them… just as she did for her child. She placed her hand on her stomach. "I don't want my son to grow up like that."
The tension was already thick in the room, but when Nikki uttered the last statement, Angel's face resembled a block of carved, unyielding granite. His eyes glowed with an anger that snapped out like a whip and curled around her razor sharp.
"Our son. Don't ever make the mistake of forgetting that."
"Of course I haven't forgotten it, but you promised me, Angel. You promised you were going to leave this life behind and get out of the game. Those were your words. Were you lying to me when you said that?"
If possible, Angel's eyes became more frigid. "I told you my plan was to eventually get out. I've never lied to you about anything. I was truthful with you from the beginning."
"Fine. Then just know I expect you to keep your promise. If you don't, this can't end well for anyone. I refuse to live like this the rest of my life, waiting for the inevitable, and my son damn sure won't be exposed to it."
Angel was in front of Nikki in half a second, glaring down at her. "Are you threatening me? Threatening to take my son away from me? Is that what's going on right now Nicole, because sweetheart, that's the vibe I'm getting from you." He leaned his face closer to hers. "Understand one thing if nothing else, I don't like to be threatened."
"Take it however you like." Nikki met his gaze head on refusing to back down. When Angel's cell phone rang, neither of their eyes wavered. Finally, Nikki stepped around him and snatched the cordless phone off the bed and headed out the bedroom door. "I'm going to call my parents to make sure they're okay. Give my apologies to Keisha and Dom. I'm suddenly not in the mood to smile and pretend that everything is okay when that reality couldn't be further from the truth. I'm not that good of an actress."
"Nicole! NICOLE!!" When she slammed the door behind him, Angel's first instinct was to charge after her and make her talk to him, but he forced himself to stay put. She was already upset; he didn't want to make the situation worse.
The first call he made was to his brother, extending their apologies and informing him they weren't going to be able to attend the baby shower. Dominick heard the words Angel didn't say and instinctively knew something was wrong. After making sure everything was okay with Nikki and the baby, he told Angel to call him if he needed him. Angel's next call was to a private line few had access to, even those with a high security clearance. When the person on the other end picked up after two rings, Angel spoke without waiting on a greeting.
"My in-laws in Florida had a couple of visitors today. How did that happen?"
"Angelo? I have no idea, but rest assured I'll be checking into it first thing Monday morning."
"Check into it now." The demand in Angel's voice was unmistakable.
The man on the other end cleared his throat nervously. "I, ah, I'm actually on a cruise with my wife. It's our thirtieth wedding anniversary and…"
"Listen to me closely. I don't give a fuck if you're attending your mother's funeral in the middle of the Sahara Desert, take care of this now and make it disappear. Do you understand me?"
A heavy silence settled between them before the man sighed in resignation. "I understand. Consider it done."
"I expect to hear back from you within the hour. I don't want to have to make another call like this." The threat was not lost on the other party. "Handle it!"
Angel hung up and slipped the phone into his pocket. He sat down on the bed and dropped his head back to look up at the ceiling. Remembering the expression on Nicole's face, he closed his eyes and inhaled a deep, calming breath before releasing it slowly. After a minute, the anger that coursed through his body was still present, but somewhat under control.
He got up and walked to the bathroom to take a steaming hot shower. Afterwards, he dried off and tied a towel around his waist before going to find his wife. His first guess was correct. She was in the nursery sitting in the rocking chair holding one of the numerous stuffed bears in the room. Angel stood in the doorway, watching her, knowing she was aware of his presence even if she didn't turn his way.
Angel admired how beautiful she looked before glancing around the nursery she'd lovingly decorated using a safari theme. The mural painted on the wall was bright and colorful. A light blue sky boasted white, fluffy clouds which smiled down on a jungle full of laughing monkeys swinging from trees and playful lions, giraffes, and zebras running through a field full of flowers.
Bringing his attention back to Nikki, Angel entered the nursery, and as he'd done in their bedroom, kneeled beside the chair she was sitting in. He moved the bear aside and placed his hand against her stomach, smiling when his son shifted beneath his palm as if he knew his daddy was near. Angel leaned down to kiss Nikki's stomach then looked at her.
"I know you're upset, scared, and angry. You have every right to be. But I'm asking you to trust me to take care of this. Your parents won't be bothered again."
Nikki finally turned to look at him. She didn't doubt his words but what he didn't understand was that the damage had already been done. Nikki wanted nothing more in the entire world than to bring peace between her family and Angel before their child was born. She took full responsibility for the choices she made, but that didn't stop her from craving normalcy. Whenever she was around Keisha, Aleesha, and Jerra, she fought to push away the feeling of envy that tried to take hold of her. She would love to have some of the day to day problems they griped about. She loved Angel, he was her heart, but the closer she came to bringing their baby into the world, the more she rebelled against the thought of him being subjected to Angel's world and what that entailed.
As she let him pull her up and wrap her securely in his arms, Nikki closed her eyes tightly trying to block out the pain of living a life without him. But just like she'd chosen Angel over her family, she feared she'd have to make another choice in the not so distant future.
And if it came down to choosing a life with Angel or raising her child away from the dangers he would face if she stayed... the choice would be simple.
Chapter 25
"Push, baby...that's it. Breathe."
Angel held Nikki's hand as she panted through another contraction and strained to push one last time, expelling their baby from her womb and into the doctor's hands. Angel glanced down at the team of doctors and nurses attending the birth, watching them anxiously as they suctioned the baby's nose and mouth to clear his airway. Seconds later, a loud, angry wail filled the room and Angel and Nikki's eyes met in indescribable joy.
"You did it, baby. I'm so proud of you."
Nikki laughed, giddy, happy, and relieved as she listened to her son's affronted cries of outrage which were the most beautiful sounds she'd ever heard. Angel kissed Nikki's forehead before joining the doctor to cut the baby's cord. Never knowing he could feel so much love, Angel watched as the nurse wiped his baby off and wrapped it in a blanket before placing him in his arms.
"Here's your son, Mr. LaCroix," she smiled.
Angel's eyes ran over his baby's beautiful little face, seeing a reflection of himself in every tiny feature. His breath caught in his throat when the baby blinked a couple of times before staring in his direction and quieting its irritated mewling almost immediately.
Angel's chest filled to capacity as he kissed his son's cheek and brought him to Nikki, who eagerly reached for him.
"Here ya go, Mommy. He's perfect."
Grinning and crying at the same time, Nikki caressed his baby soft cheeks with a gentle finger then unwrapped the blanket to count his fingers and toes. Once she was satisfied that he was indeed healthy and perfect, she wrapped him up again and stared at him. "His eyes..."
Angel smiled and nodded then laughed in amusement when the newest member of their family shoved an itty bitty fist into his perfectly bow shaped mouth and started suckling on it.
Nikki shook her head in wonder. "It's so not fair."
Angel had an arm around her and the other around their baby. "What's not fair?"
"I'm the one who carried him for nine months and went through excruciating pain to bring him into the world. You would think there would be something on him that looks like me."
"Well...he has your..." Angel studied his son who had eagerly found his mother's breast and latched on to a nipple. "Your appetite, the one you had all during your pregnancy."
Nikki gasped and tried to glare but couldn't help but laugh. Angel joined in but the laughter quickly faded as he looked deeply into her eyes. "Thank you. I didn't think I could be happier than the day we got married, but..." He swallowed hard as they both looked at their baby.
"I know. I feel the same way." Again their eyes held and connected. Each thought about the last few months. After the incident with Nikki's parents, a distance had settled between them that didn't seem to want to heal. Nikki acknowledged the fact that she'd resisted Angel's efforts to bring them closer. Maybe now that their son was here, he would be able to understand her concern and not brush it aside as meaningless, baseless fears.
About an hour later, Nikki was in a private suite at the hospital holding her baby with their family and friends gathered around. Things were so perfect, she wanted to pinch herself.
Her family and Angel somehow managed to co-exist peacefully, even if there were only a handful of words exchanged between them the entire month her parents visited. Raven had only been able to stay about a week due to work. For Nikki's sake, she put a muzzle on her mouth and limited her smart comments to only a few here and there.
After everyone was gone, Nikki and Angel tried to adjust to their life as a family, and after Nikki's six week examination, the two of them reconnected as husband and wife. The sex between them was as explosive as it always was. Angel loved Nikki long and hard, showing her the best way he knew how that he loved and cherished her and would forever protect and take care of her. It didn't take long for Nikki to give herself to him completely, and their marriage continued to get stronger.
Months before their one year wedding anniversary, which would also mark the day baby Angelo, or A.J. as they called him, turned six months, Nikki was at peace. She and Angel were in a good place. A.J.'s birth seemed to bring about a tolerance, which bordered on acceptance, between Angel and her family.
Nikki knew there was no way that would've happened without their baby being that bridge to connect them together. Her parents and Raven doted on A.J. His proud grandparents visited at least once a month to spoil him rotten, traveling on Angel's private jet, no less. That alone was a huge concession on their part.
Angel handled them perfectly. He would never be a man to kiss up to anyone, no matter who they were, but with Nikki's mother, he effortlessly turned on the charm to draw out reluctant smiles. With her father, it became their practice to go to the country club and play a few rounds of golf during the visits. If Nikki didn’t know better, she'd swear her father even looked forward to it.
The truce between Angel and Raven was tentative at best. She wasn't able to get out to see her nephew as often as her parents, but when she did, she and Angel were cordial with one another, even if it seemed a tad forced. Nikki didn't care, she'd take it. She was just tired of the tension so, if this was as good as things would ever get, she was okay with that.
But some things weren't meant to last forever.
With their lavish anniversary party weeks away, Nikki, along with Raven who was visiting for the weekend, walked into Nikki's home laughing and chattering excitedly. The two sisters, along with Jerra, Keisha, and Aleesha, had been out shopping all day. They'd enjoyed a delicious brunch, visited the spa, and hit some high end boutiques while sipping champagne as they browsed. Nikki was excited because she'd found the perfect dress and couldn't wait for Angel to see her in it. A feminine smile spread across her lips as she thought about the French lingerie she'd purchased to wear for their very own private celebration afterwards. Nikki nibbled on her lips and sighed. A tiny shiver ran down her spine as she remembered how her husband had loved her so damn good last night. She'd used muscles that were still a little sore, even after the hour long massage she'd had earlier.
"Oh my God, Nikki! Ugh!" Raven rolled her eyes and shuddered as she passed her and headed to the great room. Throwing the armload of packages on the sofa, she plopped down and glared at her sister in disgust.
Fighting to keep her face neutral, Nikki followed behind her slowly and sat down on the loveseat across from her with an expectant expression. More like best friends than sisters, the two of them were less than two years apart and very close. Even though Nikki lived in Vegas and Raven resided in New York, they made it a point to speak several times a week. Always the dramatic one, Nikki knew Raven was just itching to bring on the theatrics. That's part of the reason she was such a great lawyer. When she hit her stride, she had the jury eating out of her hands with hardly any effort at all. Her sister was a strong woman to be reckoned with both inside and outside the courtroom.
"So elegant, Raven. I mean, really. 'Ugh'?" Nikki taunted her with an arched brow which relayed her amusement.
"You're so gross, you know that?"
"Excuse me? What did I do?"
"Suffice it to say, I'd appreciate being put in a bedroom further down from yours and Angel's." Her face screwed up with distaste and again as if she'd just visualized something unsavory. "Eww!"
"Okay.’Ugh'. 'Eww'. We really need to work on your vocabulary."
"I heard you two screwing your freakin' brains out all night! Is that plain enough for you?? I could tell that's what you were thinking about when we walked in. I mean, do you two go at it like that all the time?"
Nikki kicked her shoes off and curled her legs up under her. She sent her sister a wide grin and shrugged. "What can I say? My husband has a very high sex drive and if you think I'm complaining, think again." She fidgeted around on the couch as flashbacks of last night came back like an erotic assault on her senses. "Rave, that man does things to me I should be embarrassed to even think about, but I'm not."
"You are so damn nasty, Nik."
"What's nasty about it? That's your problem now. You need to find somebody to throw your back out and dust the cobwebs off that coochie."
"Whatever. I have friends with benefits I can call if the occasion ever arises where I need to relax a little bit. But I'm too busy to be bothered with that right now."
"If that's the attitude you have about sex, you definitely haven't been getting it right."
"Anyway..." Raven flicked her hand up in a dismissive gesture. "Mom and Daddy are excited about flying down for your anniversary. Mom's been talking non-stop about her handsome grandson."
"I'm still trying to convince them to come to the party, at least for a little while, but Mom won't hear of someone else keeping A.J. while she's here." Nikki chewed on the corner of her lip for a moment then blurted out something she'd been contemplating for a while. "I've been thinking about asking them to move back to Vegas. What do you think?"
Raven's brows lifted in surprise. "Really?"
"Yes. I mean, I know they've made a new life for themselves in Florida, but they still have friends here. Their grandson is here." Nikki leaned forward, her excitement gathering as she told Raven the rest. "I've even been looking at houses for them not fa
r from mine. I would love to have them close by."
Doubt flashed over Raven's face. "Nik, I don't know. Yes, they and Angel seem to be getting along better, but I don't know how that would work out it if they were here full time. It's not like he can stay on his best behavior 24/7."
Nikki's eyebrows knitted together in a frown. "Raven..."
"What?? I'm just sayin'. Yes, you may have lulled yourself into this little fantasy world thinking you two are just like the Joneses, but Nikki, if Mom and Daddy were here full time, they're bound to hear things, things that could cause some serious tension between everyone. Honestly? I think it's best if you just leave things the way they are for now. It's seems to be working so why screw with it if it ain't broke?"
Nikki was quiet for a long while, momentarily deflated at the realism her sister brought to the table. "He's not going to live his life like this forever, Raven," she said quietly.
Raven's response was just as subdued. "Do you really believe that?"
Before Nikki could respond, the housekeeper quietly came into the room. "Mrs. LaCroix, I'm so sorry, I didn't know you were back. Would you like something to eat or drink perhaps?"
Nikki glanced at Raven, who shook her head, then smiled at the older woman. "No, thank you Mrs. Thomas, we're fine. But could you tell me where Mr. LaCroix and my son are? I need to make sure my husband is still in one piece after keeping A.J. all day by himself," Nikki joked, but she wasn’t worried. Angel was an excellent father and enjoyed every minute he spent with his son.
"He's in a meeting in his study. I offered to watch the baby, but he told me he would be fine."
"Oh. Okay. Is he on the west wing?" Nikki tensed when Mrs. Thomas nodded. Angel used that section of the house to conduct business which pertained to parts of his operation he didn't discuss with Nikki. If he was there with some of his associates, she could only imagine what they were discussing...with her son right in the room. Nikki sent the older woman a stiff nod. "Thank you Mrs. Thomas."