by Tess Summers
“I thought you wanted to take it slow?”
“Mmm, I want to take it really slow,” she muttered, reaching down to stroke him firmly over his cargo shorts.
“Fuuuuck,” he hissed.
“Now, you’re getting it,” she teased.
A squeal escaped her when he flipped her onto her back. “You’re going to get it.”
The little vixen bit her fucking lower lip and looked up at him through her eyelashes. “Promise?”
“Guaran-fucking-teed.”
****
Cassie
They slept all day after their morning of making love and woke up to have dinner like old times—her clad only in his shirt and him in nothing but his boxer-briefs as they ate from delivery boxes on the couch, feeding each other and stealing kisses while they talked nonstop.
God, she’d missed this.
Lucas was coming home after he ate dinner with Brenna, Ron, and Dee who had come home from college when she learned Cassie and Lucas were safe. Cassie knew when Lucas came back, things would be different than they had been but in a good way. She and Luke were now a real couple, openly in love and living together. A thought occurred to her.
“You are moving in, aren’t you?”
“You’d need more than a gun and a deadbolt to keep me out now, baby doll,” he growled, placing the Styrofoam containers back in the bags they were delivered in.
She shimmied her way next to him, curling up against his side on the couch. “Good,” she murmured as she tried to get even closer to him.
He pulled her into his lap, keeping his arms wrapped around her. He didn’t say anything else, just stroked her hair while he kissed the top of her head.
This. This is what she wanted every day for the rest of her life. To feel this wanted, this content.
Annnnnd, she started bawling.
“Cass, baby! What’s wrong?” His voice was filled with panic.
“Nothing. Nothing at all. I’m pregnant, so my hormones are all over the place. I’m so stupidly happy right now, but then I think about if something had happened to me and Lucas.
She felt him smile against her hair as he held her tight.
“Hey, nothing is going to ever happen to you or Lucas as long as I’m alive. I’m glad you’re happy, that means I’m doing something right.”
She nodded her head while brushing her tears with her fingertips, murmuring, “So, so right.”
Luke pulled her tight against his chest and continued stroking her hair, resting his cheek on top of her head. She felt the vibration of his voice in his chest when he asked, “So, does that mean you’ll marry me?”
She pulled away to look at him while shaking her head. “You’re relentless!”
“Yep. You should know that by now. So, will you?”
Cassie snuggled back against his chest and quietly teased, “Yes, probably. I’ll think about it.”
His arms stiffened around her and he dropped his ear to her mouth. “Say that again. I want to be sure I heard you correctly.”
“I said, I’ll think about it.”
“No, no, the first part. One more time, I didn’t quite hear you,” he teased.
Putting her lips to his ear, she murmured, “I will be your wife and the mother of your children. And your lover, and your friend, and…”
He held her face in his hands to stare into her eyes before breaking out into a huge smile, then kissing her soundly.
“I love you, doll.”
She stifled a yawn while returning the sentiment. She hated how the exhaustion seemed to hit her out of nowhere, but loved that Luke always seemed to notice and take action, making her rest the minute he thought she was tired. This evening was no exception.
“No take-backs,” he uttered as he pulled her down to lie next to him on the couch.
“No take-backs,” she agreed, nestling against his body and closing her eyes.
Chapter Fifty-Eight
Cassie
She woke when she heard their little man scamper loudly through the patio door, Brenna, Dee, and Rex following close behind, a female voice calling, “Hello?”
Cassie had been snuggled against Luke when she fell asleep on the couch but found herself alone with a blanket tucked closely around her.
“Hey,” she said groggily as she up on the couch, setting the throw to the side.
Her niece, Danielle, squealed and ran to sit next to her and hug her tight. “Aunt Cassie, thank God you’re okay!”
“Hey, Dee. It’s so good to see you.”
Lucas backed himself against Dee’s legs, then proceeded to lay upside down over her thighs like a little monkey.
“I see you’ve met my son,” Luke’s deep voice was filled with humor when he walked in from the garage in jeans and a navy Marine Corps t-shirt, taking in the scene before him.
“Lucas and I are best buds,” Dee said in Spanish, flipping the little boy over in her lap and tickling his sides.
“He’s a charmer, like his daddy,” Cassie murmured.
Brenna sat on the other side of her and brushed Cassie’s hair from her shoulders. “How are you feeling, sis?”
The younger Sullivan sister cast a glance at Luke and smiled brightly. “I’m good. Really good,” she answered, then turned her attention back to Brenna. “Thank you for watching Lucas.”
“Anytime. It was my pleasure, you know that. Although I am going to sleep good tonight. I sometimes forget how much energy little kids have.”
Luke joined them in the family room, unwrapping one of the new chairs still encased in the plastic packaging.
“Did he take a nap today?” he asked as he sat down.
“A short one,” Danielle answered with Lucas still wiggling around in her lap.
“I think someone has a crush,” Cassie said with a grin.
“Can you blame him? Cousin Dede is awesome!” her niece said with a smirk, then blew a raspberry on the little boy’s neck before setting the shrieking kid down so he could run to his papa for protection.
“Hey, do you want some help unpacking?” Brenna asked as she glanced around at the dozens of boxes.
“Actually, I would love it.” Cassie sighed with relief.
“Let’s have brunch tomorrow at our place, then afterward, we’ll come back here and get started?”
“Perfect, thank you so much,” Cassie replied, then focused on her niece. “When do you have to go back, Dee?”
“I’m home for two weeks. I talked to my professors and explained what was going on, so they were cool with me taking next week off, then the following week is my spring break.”
“Oh, terrific,” Cassie exclaimed with a smile, followed by a yawn.
Brenna leaned over and kissed Cassie’s cheek. “We’ll get out of your hair. So glad you’re back, baby sister.”
“Brunch at our place tomorrow at eleven,” Danielle ordered as she stood up.
“We’ll be there,” Luke said, walking the ladies toward the door. “What do we need to bring?”
“Just you guys, we’ve got everything else covered,” Brenna responded.
“Okay, but we’re having you over for dinner this week,” Luke conceded.
“Who’s cooking? Your housekeeper, Kristen?” her niece teased.
Cassie came to stand with the group in front of the patio door and shot the college girl a look. “Ha ha, Smartass. I can cook, ya know.”
Luke came to her defense, slipping his arm around her waist and pulling her to his side. “She really can, and I’m an excellent sous chef.”
“Oh my God, you two are sickeningly adorable,” Dee said, rolling her eyes and stepping over the threshold onto the patio.
Brenna grinned and winked at the couple. “You really are. See you in the morning, neighbors.”
Dee peeked her head back in the door and called to Lucas in Spanish. “See you tomorrow, cutie! Keep practicing your English!”
Brenna kissed her fingertips, then waved at them. “Love you guys. Sleep tight.
“Goodnight,” Cassie and Luke called in unison. He stepped onto the patio and watched the pair until they walked into their own house.
“Hey!” Cassie called to Lucas. “You wanna build a fort?”
The boy jumped up and down with glee, clapping his hands. Luke cocked his head, a questioning look on his face.
“I thought Lucas could sleep in his fort,” she explained.
“And I’m assuming this fort is going to be in our bedroom?” he said with a smirk.
“Is that okay? I want him close to us tonight.”
Luke gave her a skeptical look. “I don’t want this to become a habit, Cass. He needs to sleep in his own bed.”
“I know,” she sighed, “but I’m not going to sleep very well if he’s not near us and considering his bed isn’t set up yet...”
With a small smile, he said, “He can sleep in a fort in our room, tonight. Tomorrow, I’m scheduling an alarm installation, and we’ll get his bedroom furniture ordered. Will that make you feel better?”
She kissed his cheek. “Yes, thank you. But, um, I already ordered his furniture. It’s in boxes in the garage,” she confessed.
He shook his head with a grin at her admission. “Come on, buddy,” he called to Lucas. “Let’s go build a fort!”
Luke could talk tough all he wanted, but it was he who ended up putting their sleeping son between the two of them in the king-sized bed.
He saw her smirk and defended himself. “It’s just for tonight.”
“Just for tonight,” she mocked.
“It is. I have plans for his madrastra tomorrow he can’t be in the room for.”
“Oh my,” she purred.
He leaned over the sleeping boy and kissed her gently. “You have no idea,” he winked.
Cassie caught her breath, her toes curling at the thought.
“Goodnight, baby doll. I love you. I want you to sleep in tomorrow, don’t worry about getting up with us, okay?”
Could this man be any more perfect?
****
Luke
His mandatory week off flew by. With the help of Brenna and Dee, they got the boxes unpacked and the house organized, and he had an alarm and cameras installed so even though the threat of the Guzmans still hung over their head, it wasn’t looming as large anymore.
His baby girl was getting bigger inside her mama, much to Cassie’s chagrin, and his little boy was learning English—thanks in part to his future niece-in-law. She was amazing with Lucas.
“Do you think she’d be willing to be his nanny this summer?” he asked Cassie one night after dinner as they cleaned up the kitchen.
“I don’t know. I can ask her. She usually comes home once school ends, it’s too hot to stay in Tucson. I’m sure she would if the price was right.”
He nodded absent-mindedly, lost in thought. There was a lot he wanted to talk to her about. In addition to picking a wedding date, they hadn’t discussed what was going to happen after the baby came, and he had been apprehensive about approaching either subject with her, in the event he didn’t like her answers.
As she wiped down the table, he asked, “How long are you planning on taking off work?”
She slowed the rag and replied, “I’ve talked about it with my boss, and I was planning on three months, then going part-time for a year. Which, most likely, will still translate to full-time, I’ll just be doing a lot of work from home.”
“Is that what you want?”
She sat down in one of the high-back chairs around the table, scrubbing an imaginary spot on the new wood before answering.
“It is. I love my job, Luke. The money is great and my company is amazing. Look how supportive they’ve been since I got back. I’d be crazy to quit.”
It was true, her boss had stopped in the first day she was taking visitors to make sure she was okay and to see if there was anything she needed, telling her to take all the time necessary to recover from her ordeal. The company had sent four-course catered dinners twice that week and paid Kristen’s salary for the month so she was coming five days a week, instead of two. Between Luke, Brenna, Dee, and Kristen, Cassie hadn’t had to worry about much.
“You’re right, they’ve been great,” he agreed and sat down next to her.
“What about you? Were you planning on taking any time off? FMLA says you can take up to twelve weeks.”
“Well, I have more than enough accumulated sick and vacation time…”
She smiled at him. “But…”
“I think I’d go stir crazy,” he confessed. “I need to be there for my squad, make sure shit is getting handled and they’re safe. But I know I need to be there for you and the kids, too.”
Cassie grabbed his hand in both of hers. “You will be. We’ll be fine, baby, but promise you’ll take a few weeks when she comes. We’ll get a nanny—not a hot one—when Dee goes back to school, and maybe after this month, we can increase Kristen to three days. The point is, we’ll have tons of help, and if you want to go back to work, you should. Or if I want to go back, I should. I don’t ever want us to feel guilty doing what we love because that leads to resentment, and resentment leads to unhappy marriages.”
She provided him the perfect segue. “So, when are you marrying me, doll?”
“Ugh, Luke.” She flopped back against her chair. “I’m as big as a house. Let’s at least wait until she’s out of me and I’ve had a few months to get in shape.”
“You’re not as big as a house, you’re beautiful, and I want to marry you before our daughter is born, Cass. I know it’s unnecessary and old-fashioned, but I want our daughter’s parents to be married when she’s born. I want her birth certificate to say, Mother: Cassandra Jo Rivas. Just a small ceremony. We can go to the Justice of the Peace or have it here on the beach. We’ll have a big party on our one-year anniversary. Please, Cass.”
Her expression was sad. “I know it’s important to you, but I’m sorry. I don’t want to get married while I’m pregnant. I’m wearing your ring, and I promise I’ll marry you but later. We can even set a date. I think sometime in August will be perfect.”
“August?! That’s over five months away. I can’t wait that long.”
She sighed. “Can we talk about this later?”
Can we talk about this later? was her old standby when it came to discussing things she wanted to avoid, and frankly, it was starting to piss him off.
“No, I want to talk about it now.”
“Please, Luke? I’m too tired right now.”
He looked at her skeptically, then leaned over and kissed her cheek before standing up. “You’re lucky you’re so damn adorable.”
“Thanks, baby.” Cassie batted her eyelashes and smiled. “I swear, we’ll sit down soon and pick a date. On another note, what do you think about taking another week off and getting out of town next week for a few days? Maybe take Lucas to Disneyland? Take advantage of having Dee here to help.”
As he loaded the dinner dishes into the dishwasher, he couldn’t help but feel offended.
“I don’t need help with Lucas. I’m perfectly capable of taking my son to Disneyland without a nanny, Cass.”
She smirked and gestured to her baby belly. “Well, I do need help. Have you been to Disneyland lately? It’s insane, Luke. Besides, Dee’s feelings would be hurt if we didn’t include her.”
He thought about it for a second and shrugged. “I’m sure I can take another week. When do you want to leave? Saturday?”
His baby mama shook her head. “I thought you have that golf thing with Ron Saturday morning?”
“Oh, yeah, I almost forgot. It’d probably be hard for him to find a replacement with this short notice. How about Sunday?”
“Let me check on hotel availability.”
Chapter Fifty-Nine
Cassie
She had so much to do to get ready for this weekend. She hoped Luke was going to be surprised and happy. The thought of him being upset she tricked him caused her momentary stress.
“He’ll love it,” she whispered to herself as she walked out of the dress shop late Friday afternoon.
It had almost taken an act of Congress for Luke to let her go out on her own. San Diego P.D. had recovered her stolen Lexus, and since the cartel had put less than ten miles on it, there had been no damage. Still, Luke had insisted it be cleaned and detailed and double-checked for any tracking mechanisms other than the one installed with her anti-theft device. Cassie felt like a teenager being allowed to take the car out alone for the first time when she slid behind the wheel.
“I want you to call me after every stop,” he demanded as he stood at the driver’s side window before she pulled out of the garage.
“I will, baby. I promise.”
“I wish you’d let me come with you.”
“Luke, you can’t be with me every second. I just have a few errands to run, then I’m going to stop in at work to make sure there aren’t any fires I need to put out. I’ll only be a few hours, and you can call me anytime, and I promise I’ll answer.”
He pursed his lips, then leaned inside the window and kissed her mouth softly. “Hurry back, doll. I love you.”
As she placed her dress carefully inside the trunk, she smiled, imagining the look on his face when he came home tomorrow.
Maybe because she had been lost in her daydream or simply hadn’t been paying careful enough attention, but she failed to notice Dante Guzman in her backseat until she buckled in and started the car, her purse and phone on the passenger seat.
“Keep driving, Cassandra,” he instructed, his tone low.
“What do you want, Dante?” It couldn’t have been her or Lucas, otherwise, why would he have let them escape?
“I came to let you know you have nothing to worry about from my family. It’s over.”
She slowly pulled into traffic. “Why are you telling me this?”
“I don’t want you worrying and constantly looking over your shoulder for the rest of your life. I’m sorry my family put you through that, but I’ve taken care of it. You have nothing to fear from us, for you or your children.”
-->