by Susan Stoker
Home.
She was going home.
Maria wasn’t sure where she was or how to get to the border, but she had money in her pocket, a baby who was relying on her, and a renewed sense of urgency. She’d find the border crossing or die trying.
The tall Native American firefighter arrived at Station 7 later that day for his shift. He had the door open when he thought he heard something off to his right. He’d recently had a few experiences with his woman that made him extra cognizant of his surroundings. Turning his head, hoping not to see a coyote or another wild animal, he carefully looked into the bush with one hand on the doorknob and blinked at what he saw.
He cracked open the door and called out for his friends. Not waiting for them, he leaned down and picked up what he’d at first thought was simply a dirty blanket. But when he heard the faint cooing sound emanating from the material, he knew what he was looking at. Cradling the precious bundle in his arms, he read the note that was tucked into a fold on the baby’s chest.
Missing baby. On televisión. Colorado. Nate. You take home.
The words were short and to the point, and the firefighter decided, because of the accent mark over the letter o in televisión, it was probably written by someone whose native language was Spanish.
“It’s a baby,” he told his fellow firefighters as he met them just inside the large station. “Maybe that infant who’s been on the news out of Colorado. Call the cops. If it is him, his family needs to be notified as soon as possible that he’s safe.”
The fireman took one last look around the yard, as if he could find whoever had left the child. Seeing nothing, and somehow knowing searching would not only be futile but possibly dangerous to whoever had dropped off the child, the firefighter quietly shut the door.
He never saw the skinny young woman hiding in a row of bushes across the street, unwilling to leave before making sure baby Nate was safe. She’d made some poor decisions in her life, but this wasn’t one of them. She climbed out of her hiding place and headed back to the fast-food restaurant she’d been dropped off at by the taxi she’d hailed near the apartment she’d been held captive in.
Her plan was to get another taxi and head south.
Home.
Detective Baker took a deep breath and rang the doorbell. The second he’d heard the news, he’d raced to the Anderson house. It wasn’t often he got to deliver good news in a case like this one.
When he first heard the Anderson triplets were moving back to Castle Rock, he hadn’t exactly been pleased. He remembered the brothers from when they were in high school. They hadn’t exactly been troublemakers, but they definitely were on the radar of the local cops.
But they’d done more good than even Detective Baker probably knew since they’d returned. They almost single-handedly took down one of Denver’s most notorious gangs, and they helped countless other people who needed their brand of security.
So when he’d heard that baby Nate had been found, safe and healthy, he’d been more than happy to take the drive out to Logan and Grace’s house to give them the news personally.
The door opened, and the detective looked up into Logan’s concerned face. It wasn’t until right that moment that he realized the man might take his showing up in person the wrong way.
Glancing behind Logan, the detective saw the entire Anderson family was there. Blake and Alexis. Nathan and Bailey. Even Felicity and the Anderson’s half brother, Ryder, were there. Logan’s wife, Grace, stood at his side, their other baby, Ace, in her arms.
Not wanting to stress this family out more than they already were, Detective Baker smiled and announced, “We found him.”
Epilogue
“Are you sure you don’t mind sharing a wedding day with Blake and Alexis?” Ryder asked Felicity.
She smiled and shook her head. He’d asked her many times over the past few months, and every time she’d given him the same answer. “Absolutely not. He’s your brother, and I love Alexis. Of course I don’t mind.”
Felicity marveled at the close relationship Ryder had with Blake, thinking it somewhat ironic considering their rocky start.
They’d even bought a house in the same neighborhood as Alexis and Blake. Felicity never spent another night in the apartment over the gym. She couldn’t. It held too many bad memories. Not only of being stalked by Joseph, but the horror she felt knowing Nate had been kidnapped from there right under her nose. She’d stayed with Ryder in an apartment he’d rented on a short-term basis until they’d completed the purchase of their new home.
The proposal Ryder had teased her with came about a month after Nate was returned home. Ryder had taken her down to Colorado Springs to hang out with his friends and to shoot some pool at The Pit.
She’d had the time of her life. Ryder’s friends were hilarious, and she’d had too much to drink. After she’d lost her tenth game of pool, and had laughed her head off at how bad she was, Ryder had handed her an envelope full of papers.
She’d opened it and been completely confused at what she’d found.
Inside were court papers officially changing her name from Felicity Jones to Felicity Megan Sinclair. Also included was a driver’s license, a passport, and a Social Security card with her new name. Ryder had also included a bank statement, this one with both their names on it, and a contract for the house they’d decided they wanted to put a bid on.
She’d looked up in confusion and saw that he was on one knee.
In front of all his friends, and with no embarrassment on his face, he’d said, “Will you marry me?”
And what had she said? Yes? Nope, her drunk self had said, “But you already changed my name to yours.”
He’d laughed and patiently explained. “I pulled some strings. After you were cleared by the Chicago PD for any involvement in Colleen’s death, your mother’s, and even of those bogus drug charges, I thought about what a pain it would be to try to get all new, legal identification documents. So I had the guys take care of it. They cut through the annoying red tape and got you new identification. Figured if we were going to get married, it would be more expedient to just change your name now, rather than after the wedding.”
Laughing, she’d put her hands on her hips and said, “But I haven’t said yes!”
“You will,” had been his response. Then he asked again. “Will you marry me, love? Live with me? Make me the happiest man alive?”
There was no way she could’ve held out after that. She’d agreed, and now here they were. Ten minutes away from walking down the aisle.
They’d decided that since neither had any parents, they would walk down the aisle together. Arm in arm. Just like they wanted to be for the rest of their lives.
“We should’ve just eloped,” Ryder murmured, running his hands down the silky-smooth material of her white gown. It wasn’t a typical wedding dress, merely a silk sheath. No lace. No pouf. But Felicity loved it. The sleeves came down to her wrists, and it had a high neckline. From the front it looked modest and demure, covering every inch of her skin. But the back of the dress dipped low. Very low.
Felicity felt sexy and very feminine. Ryder had seen her that morning in her dress for the first time when he’d accidentally walked in after she’d pulled it over her head. He’d ordered Grace and Bailey out and had proceeded to show her how much he liked it.
Felicity shrugged at his elopement comment. “Maybe. But I have to admit, I love that we’re sharing this with your brother and Alexis. And that all your friends came up for it.”
“Yeah, me too,” he agreed. “I have something for you. It’s not much, and I know you said it didn’t matter, that you were an adult, but I did it anyway.”
Felicity held out her hand as he handed her a festive bag with a ton of tissue paper sticking out the top. She peered in and pushed the wrapping to the side. When she saw what was inside, her eyes got huge. She pulled out her giraffe. The one Joseph had beheaded. With everything that had happened, she hadn’t really had time t
o think about it. And being sad about a stuffed animal being destroyed felt stupid, all things considered.
She pulled it out and hugged it to her chest for a moment. “Thank you,” she whispered.
Ryder kissed her forehead gently. “It’s important to you; therefore, it’s important to me.”
“I have a present for you too,” Felicity blurted, carefully placing her giraffe back into the bag.
“I got my present already today,” Ryder said with a gleam of lust in his eyes. “I got to make love to my fiancée, and later I’ll make love to my wife in the same day. You couldn’t give me a better gift.”
She smiled, remembering how he’d yanked up the skirt of her dress earlier and proceeded to blow her mind. The orgasm was the perfect way to make her relax before the ceremony.
“Wait here,” she ordered.
He didn’t look like he wanted to let her out of his sight, but he merely crossed his arms over his chest and smiled at her indulgently.
Felicity exited the small room in the back of the church and headed for where she’d stashed Ryder’s surprise. She probably should have waited until after the ceremony, but she couldn’t. This was too important.
Ryder paced the small room as he waited for Felicity to return with whatever present she’d gotten him. He was a little annoyed because they’d agreed not to exchange gifts before the ceremony. The giraffe he’d arranged to be mended didn’t really count, in his eyes. He’d wanted to get her a diamond pendant or a tennis bracelet or something, but had refrained because they’d agreed on no gifts. He was mentally kicking himself, trying to decide if he could send someone to the store to pick up something he could give her after the ceremony when the door opened again.
He turned, expecting to see his soon-to-be wife enter. Ryder stood absolutely still and stared at the woman who walked through the door. Felicity had told him she had a surprise for him, but he’d never imagined this.
He stared at his fiancée as she entered behind the other woman, walked around her, and came to his side. “How . . .” Words failed him.
Luckily, Felicity understood him anyway. “I knew you wouldn’t ever look for her, so I got Alexis to ask her hacker friend if he could find her.” She gestured toward the woman standing next to them. “He did.”
Grabbing hold of Felicity’s hand as if he’d float away if he didn’t, he stared at the beautiful stranger. He’d recognize her anywhere. She was an adult now; years had passed since he’d last seen her, but it was as if no time had passed.
Her black hair now brushed her shoulders and swung freely as she moved. She was slender and healthy. Tears sprang to Ryder’s eyes. He wasn’t normally a crier, but seeing Zariya in front of him . . . smiling at him, was more than he could take.
The last time he’d seen her was etched in his mind as if in glass. Scared out of her mind. Hurting. Bleeding. Flinching from him.
“Zariya,” he choked out.
She held out her hand, and Ryder immediately took it in both of his. She smiled at him and didn’t protest when he didn’t let go. “It’s so good to see you again,” she said with a melodious accent.
Ryder just stared at her, wanting to know everything, but afraid to ask.
Felicity pressed up against Ryder’s side. “Thank you for coming, Zariya. It’s so good to talk to you in person.”
Ryder’s head came around at that. “You’ve been talking to her?”
Felicity looked up at him. “Well, of course.” She looked back at the other woman. “I couldn’t exactly spring you on her. So I called her up after I got her number. She’s been living in South Carolina. Told her who I was. We’ve talked a lot, and she agreed to come and see you.”
Suddenly needing to get the words out that he hadn’t said all those years ago, Ryder said, “I’m so sorry, Zariya.”
Zariya squeezed his hands, then finally let go. “Don’t be sorry. You saved my life that day, Ryder.”
“I . . . I don’t understand.”
“Felicity told me what you thought might’ve happened to me, and it probably would’ve if it hadn’t been for a soldier. Not one of the ones who was with you that day, but a different one. My parents came and collected me and told me I was a failure. That my duty was to marry. They had another man, even older, ready to marry me. But first I had to be punished for humiliating them. I was tied to a stake, and everyone had rocks ready to throw at me, but a soldier happened upon me and snatched me up. He didn’t even blink when my parents yelled at him. He just took me back to the base and refused to let anyone near me. I was scared, really scared, but eventually I realized you had saved me from an awful fate.”
“But I didn’t . . . he . . . I . . .” Ryder shook his head in frustration.
“The man . . . he arranged for me to come to the United States. I was adopted. I’ve been living in South Carolina for the last nine years. I’m happy. And it’s because of you, Ryder. I thought of you many times over the years. The memories of my time as a child in the village have faded, as has what happened to me, but I’ve never forgotten the soldier who took the time to smile at me. Bring me candy.” A tear fell from her eye. “Who braided my hair.”
Ryder couldn’t take it anymore. He felt Felicity’s touch at the small of his back, always there by his side, supporting him, as he held out his arms. “Please, I need to hug you.”
Without a word, Zariya stepped into his arms. Ryder looked up at the ceiling as he did his best to keep the tears in his eyes from falling down his face. God. In a million years, he never would’ve expected this reunion would ever happen. Without letting go of the little girl turned woman in his arms, Ryder turned his head and looked at Felicity.
“I love you,” he mouthed.
She smiled back and returned his words to him.
The wedding was small. The brothers had only invited close friends. Detective Baker and Detective Peterson from the Denver PD were in attendance, as were quite a few of Joel’s classmates. Alexis’s family was there, including her brother, Bradford, who’d gotten the time off from his new job as a cruise director for a large cruise line. He’d brought his partner, and the two men beamed at Alexis from their seats in the front row of the church.
All the men from Clayson’s Auto Body shop, where Bailey worked, were there. Duke, Henry, Ozzie, Bert, and Clayson had showed up in their overalls. But they were quick to point out that they were their good overalls. Not stained with grease.
Brian and Betty Grant, Alexis’s parents, hadn’t stopped smiling since they’d arrived three days earlier. They’d insisted on paying for the rehearsal dinner and had generously paid for a honeymoon for not only their daughter and Blake, but for Ryder and Felicity too.
Francesca Scarpetti was standing at the back of the church, and as soon as the ceremony was over, she would be rushing back to her restaurant to make sure everything was running smoothly for the reception. It was being held at her Italian restaurant, Scarpetti’s. When she’d heard about the double wedding, she’d insisted on it.
Bailey and Grace were standing to the left and acting as bridesmaids, and Logan and Nathan were on the other side as the groomsmen. Grace held Nate, and Logan held Ace. Both babies were sleeping soundly, as if the excitement of the moment didn’t interest them in the slightest.
The wedding went off without a hitch, and Felicity only giggled once, when the pastor asked her, Felicity Sinclair, if she would take Ryder Sinclair to be her lawfully wedded husband. He’d definitely jumped the gun and caused confusion all around by officially giving her his name before they were married. But she couldn’t argue that it made her life easier. She was pleased she wouldn’t have to worry about changing her name . . . again . . . now that they were officially wed.
Later that night, as Felicity swayed back and forth on the makeshift dance floor at Scarpetti’s in her husband’s arms, she looked up at him and said, “I’m happy.”
She felt his hands on her lower back, caressing her just above her ass with his fingers. She wished sh
e could feel his fingers on her bare skin. Biting her lip, and wanting him . . . again, she looked up at him.
“I’m happy too, love. You’re all I ever wanted in my life. All I’ll ever want.”
It was sweet. Very sweet. But Felicity didn’t want sweet. She wanted passionate. The quickie they’d had on their way to the reception hadn’t been nearly enough. Ryder had stopped by their house, carried her over the threshold, fucked her in their entryway, and had whisked her back out to his car and to Scarpetti’s before she had a chance to think. She would’ve been embarrassed, but Blake and Alexis had arrived thirty minutes after them, and it was obvious her new husband had the same ideas as Ryder. Alexis had had a dreamy, yet satisfied, look on her face when she’d followed her husband into the restaurant.
Trying to take her mind off how badly she wanted Ryder, Felicity looked around the dimly lit space. She spied Zariya sitting at a corner booth, Ro at her side. They looked to be deep in conversation. She gestured to the duo with her head. “What do you think?” she asked her husband.
Ryder glanced over and saw who she was talking about. He looked down at her with a huge grin on his face and shrugged. “I can’t lie. I’d be over the moon if that worked out. Seeing Zariya happy and with a man I like and respect would be like a miracle to me. But don’t get your hopes up. Ro’s a hard man to really get to know, and I can’t see him settling down anytime soon.”
“Hmm,” Felicity agreed. “I just want her to be happy.”
“She is happy,” Ryder said. “Thank you again for tracking her down and flying her out here. Seeing her alive and well and healthy is a miracle.”
Felicity smiled at him, then tilted her head to the side when Ryder dipped her and brought his lips to her ear. “Enough chitchat. Think we’ve been here long enough for Francesca not to give us the riot act if we leave?”
“We’ve cut the cake, danced our first dance, and the toasts have been given. I don’t care if she bans us for life. I want to go home and fuck my husband,” Felicity murmured, feeling goose bumps race down her arms at the feel of her husband’s warm exhale against her neck at her bold words.