by L. A. Fiore
We were just getting the food on the table when Damian arrived. The sight never grew old, watching him. He was still Damian, conserved his words, preferred the background to being the center of attention but I knew he loved me, as deeply and completely as a person could love. He had just reached my side when I grabbed his hand.
“I have to talk to you.” He let me pull him out of the room and up to my old bedroom. I shut the door and leaned up against it. He had a wicked little grin on his face.
“Miss me?”
“You know I did, but that’s not why I need to talk to you.”
I never knew anyone could stand so perfectly still and yet I knew I had his undivided attention.
“We never talked details, but…”
“But what?”
“I’m pregnant.”
He had no reaction, just stood there like a statue.
“I suspected, but I went to the doctor today to confirm it. Eight weeks. Baby will be born in May sometime.”
Still nothing. I hadn’t really been worried, but now I was beginning to.
“Damian?”
And then he was on me, had me pressed up against the door, the fingers of one hand pulled through my hair as his mouth claimed mine. He lifted my skirt, shifted my panties to the side and pulled his cock out, burying himself inside me like he was possessing as much of me as he could. And then he stilled, like he was committing the moment to memory.
“A baby,” he whispered.
And I knew that was exactly what he was doing, marking the moment. My heart should have burst it was so full.
No words were needed, the moment deeply poignant and then he lifted my leg to get better penetration just as he rocked his hips. I linked my fingers at his neck and pulled him closer. We found our rhythm and when we came, it was together.
He rested his forehead on mine. “Thank you.”
“You’re happy?”
He shifted his hips and I bit my lower lip because damn he felt good. “What do you think?”
“We should probably get back. There are two detectives downstairs, they will easily deduce what we’re doing up here.”
“You’re mine.” He shifted his hips again. “I don’t care if they figure it out.”
His hips were picking up speed, hitting me in all the right spots that I didn’t care anymore either. He never took his eyes off me as he slowly brought me to orgasm again, and watching him as he found his release, the moment or two when his body gave in, was my favorite because I saw right down to his soul and the depth of what he felt for me. He was beautiful, imperfect and mine.
It felt as if I had just fallen asleep when I woke. I reached for Damian but the bed was empty. He stood next to Edie’s crib and Pilot, our German shepherd puppy, stood right next him; we had named our daughter Edie in honor of my dad. I climbed from bed and joined them, my arm coming around his waist as I looked down at our little girl.
“All I feel when I look at her is love, the kind of love I feel for you.” He turned those eyes on me. “She’s a piece of me.”
I swallowed down the sob because I understood. I was his family, Anton, Cam and my mom, he had family, a big and loving one, but this beautiful little girl was a part of him.
His voice broke when he said, “Thank you.”
We had just landed and were running late. I called mom from the car to let her know we had arrived. She and Pilot were on a walk, he loved going to Grandma’s. We had hoped to drop our bags at the cottage but there just wasn’t time. Damian kept Amelia’s cottage. Right after we got married, we returned to town for a visit. We had missed the reenactment, but it had been so good to get caught up with everyone and not have any drama hanging over our heads.
Damian and I discussed selling the place, but neither of us wanted to. We may not get to visit as often as we wanted, but we liked the idea of having a place when we did, her place.
Edie started clapping her hands in her car seat. She had wild brown hair like me, but she’d gotten Damian’s eyes. She adored her daddy and her big, badass daddy adored her right back.
We reached Main Street to see a crowd had gathered at the end of it. Damian walked around the car and helped me from it, his hand lingering longer than needed, his eyes soaking me in like he had a tendency to do. He then freed Edie from her seat, tossed her in the air, which always had my heart stopping and her squealing in delight, before he settled her close to his heart. He reached for my hand and pulled us down the street.
Missy was the first to greet us then Maureen, Dinky and the others moved in for hugs and kisses. Amelia’s items were all back—the recipients of Amelia’s things were appalled when they heard the story—and Janice was serving three to five years. We turned toward the bar and the sign that was not yet lit.
“Ready?” Missy asked.
The sign flickered on.
Amelia’s
Mom had Edie and Pilot for the evening and having a night off Damian and I had spent it watching scary movies and making love on the sofa. It was late and I woke to find the apartment empty. I knew where he was, so I reached for a blanket and headed to the gym. I passed the table in the living room, then stopped and walked back to study the picture…one of Damian, Edie, Pilot and me. Dad’s special box sat next to it and was filled with all the letters I had written to Damian, minus that first letter and the picture of me because he still carried them in his wallet. And just in front were his dog tags. It hadn’t been my intention, but I loved the table because it represented the journey it took for Damian and me to get to where we were. I touched his dog tags, thankful that he was home and safe and then I walked down to the gym. He didn’t have his late night sessions as often as he used to. The ghosts that haunted him were growing quieter and I liked to believe Edie and I were helping with that.
He was where he’d been that first time I’d seen him working the bag, and like then, he knew when I’d joined him. His back was bare, his devil moving as the muscles worked from his efforts. I moved right into him, wrapping my arms around his waist and pressing a kiss between his shoulder blades…right on the scar from the bullet he had taken for me. He turned and wrapped me in his arms as his chin dipped down, and for a few seconds we just looked our fill before he lifted me into his arms and carried me back upstairs. I had wished as a girl to know all about the quiet, reserved boy he had been, and I did now, I knew every part of his beautiful, complicated and damaged soul and I loved all of him. We reached our bedroom and Damian undressed us both before he pulled me down onto the bed. And to think I had once feared the silence. Words were so overrated.
The series continues with Anton Scalene
Demon You Love,
Winter 2017
OTHER TITLES BY LA....
COLLECTING THE PIECES
At fifteen I fell in love. His name was Jake Stephens and he took the abandoned, lonely girl I had been and made me whole. His love was a pure and unconditional love that made every day better than the last…a fairy tale of my very own.
But this story isn’t about Jake. It’s about Abel Madden; the man I meet after the fairy tale goes to hell. A cocky, arrogant man who says what he wants, does as he pleases, and makes no excuses for it. He irritates me—downright pisses me off at times—but he also brings me back to life.
My name is Sidney Ellis and this is my story of finding love twice—the first when I needed it most and the second when I never saw it coming.
BEAUTIFULLY DAMAGED
Burdened by a lifetime of horror and heartbreak, amateur fighter Trace Montgomery doesn’t want to want the quiet beauty, Ember Walsh. His deep self-loathing keeps him from having any meaningful relationships, but Ember is an itch he can’t scratch. The two push and pull, slowly crumbling their walls, seemingly brought together by fate, because the turmoil that haunts their pasts is interlinked in undeniable ways.
HIS LIGHT IN THE DARK
Mia Donati was my conscience when my own faltered and the light that led me home when I had lost my way.
The girl who grew into the only woman I would ever love. A woman I had to let go, but when my past comes back to haunt me and I almost lose her, I’m ready to fight for her...fight to find a way back into her heart while keeping the demons from my past from finishing what they started.
Thank you for reading Thea and Damian’s story. I hope you enjoyed their journey. It takes so many people to get a book published, so I hope I don’t forget anyone.
My Beta Beauties who read every variation of this story from the very first raw draft to the final version, thank you. Your input is invaluable and your friendship means everything...Elsie, Markella, Devine, Dawn, Meredith, Tammy, Kimmy, Rosemarie, Yolanda, Sue, Ana Kristina, Andie, Raj, Michelle, Kellane, Amber, Donna, Sarah, Helena, Lauren and Audrey.
Trish Bacher, Editor in Heels, this is the fourth book we’ve worked on together and I’m still amazed at your attention to detail.
Erica Smith for your artistry in building the ebook files.
Hang Le, I love this cover! It took us a while, but you nailed it. It so beautifully represents Damian and Thea. Thank you!
Melissa Stevens, you leave me in awe every time. The typeset and formatting for the paperback are amazing. And the devil tattoo you created is exactly what I envisioned. I can’t wait for our next collaboration.
Kiki, Ruth, Amber and Sybil for your tireless work in promoting my books, thank you. You are the best and I adore you.
Kylie and the Give Me Books team for helping to get the word out on Devil You Know.
And finally thank you to the readers for taking a chance on my books.
THE BEAUTIFULLY SERIES…
Beautifully Damaged
Beautifully Forgotten
Beautifully Decadent
THE HARRINGTON MAINE SERIES
Waiting for the One
Just Me
Standalones
His Light in the Dark
A Glimpse of the Dream
Always and Forever
Collecting the Pieces
Devil You Know
Elusive: Summer 2017
Demon You Love: Winter 2017
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