“You ready to mingle?” I ask my new husband with a giggle.
He rolls his eyes, a grin on his face. “If we must. But you know what I’m really looking forward to?”
“What?” I ask, already pretty sure I know the answer.
He leans in to whisper in my ear, “The honeymoon.”
I giggle and nod. “Yep. Me, too. But first, we mingle.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Hunter replies. “Whatever you say, wifey.”
I can’t help but beam at the new nickname. It’s hard to let go of him for even a moment, but we spend the rest of the lovely afternoon chatting with wedding guests. We play with Flora and Forrest. We talk with Sam and Sage. Hunter commiserates about work with his groomsmen, and then he shares a sweet, poignant moment with two guests we weren’t sure would attend: two of the former foster siblings Hunter had growing up. During the ceremony, they stood in the back with tears in their eyes, happy to see that little Hunter has grown up to be such a fine, successful, happy man. And I know they must be overjoyed to know that the monster who made their childhoods a living hell, that bastard Ronald, is no more.
In fact, everyone’s pretty damn relieved to have him out of the world. My book about the White Lilac killer has been a massive success, and because I pinned all of Hunter’s work on him, he got to die in hated infamy. There are talks about my book possibly being turned into a movie at some point, but Hunter and I are still on the fence about that. For now we’re just happy to leave the past in the past, especially since we have such a bright and shining future to look forward to now. Together. As it should be.
At the end of the evening, when the music is playing, Hunter and I dance slowly and closely on the green. We spin and hold each other, glowing with love and fulfilment. “This is everything I ever wanted,” I whisper to him, holding back happy tears.
He kisses me softly on the cheek. “You are everything I’ve ever wanted. And I’ve known that since the first day we met, since the first time we held each other underneath a branch of these,” Hunter says. He pulls a tiny sprig of white lilac from his coat pocket and gently tucks it into my hair. I’m so surprised and touched that I can’t keep the happy tears from falling. Grinning up at him, I see my whole world. My whole heart.
“There was a time when I thought I was too far gone to find love,” he admits. “I thought I was too broken. That I would have to be alone. That I would never be good enough for a woman like you. But Blossom, you have given me back my happiness. My innocence. Everything that was stolen from me, you’ve returned to me tenfold.”
“And you have given me hope. You’ve shown me that I am strong, that I deserve the kind of love I thought only happened in dreams. You seemed too good to be true, but here we are now, and nothing has changed except the world around us. I love you, Hunter. I loved you then and I love you now more than ever,” I murmur.
My husband looks into my eyes, softly and adoringly, and replies, “And I love you, my wife. Now and forever.”
Also by Alexis Abbott
Romantic Suspense:
Hitmen Series:
Owned by the Hitman
Sold to the Hitman
Saved by the Hitman
Captive of the Hitman
Stolen from the Hitman
Hostage of the Hitman
Taken by the Hitman
The Hitman’s Masquerade (Short Story)
Bound to the Bad Boy Series:
Book 1: Bound for Life
Book 2: Bound to the Mafia
Book 3: Bound in Love
Standalones:
Criminal
Ruthless
Innocence For Sale: Jane
Sights on the SEAL
Rock Hard Bodyguard
Abducted
Vegas Boss
I Hired A Hitman
Killing For Her
The Assassin’s Heart
Hunter’s Baby
Romance:
Falling for her Boss (Novella)
Most Wanted: Lilly (Novella)
Bound as the World Burns (SFF)
Erotic Thriller:
The Dangerous Men Series:
The Narrow Path
Strayed from the Path
Path to Ruin
About the Author
Alexis Abbott is a Wall Street Journal & USA Today bestselling author who writes about bad boys protecting their girls! Pick up her books today if you can’t resist a bad boy who is a good man, and find yourself transported with super steamy sex, gritty suspense, and lots of romance.
She lives in beautiful St. John's, NL, Canada with her amazing husband.
Connect with Alexis
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Hunter’s Baby Page 17