REMEDY: A Mafia Romance (Return to Us Trilogy Book 3)

by M. K. Gilher

  Ivy

  I'm browsing shoeporn dot com on a Sunday morning when Jacade surprises me from behind the couch. "Delia's ready."

  "Ready?"

  "Yep. All the repairs are finished."

  "Cool! Let's take her for a spin." I drop my tablet and stand to face him.

  "She's in the garage downstairs."

  I give him my sweetest smile, and his eyes glance at my lips. "Maybe I could drive her…"

  A throaty chuckle rumbles from his mouth.

  "Come on… I can handle her."

  "That you can, but I'm first. I'll let you take over after we visit Frank."

  "We're going to see Frank?"

  "Yes. I visit him on Sundays once a month. Bring your leather jacket and a hat. It'll be cold with no roof."

  "Doesn't she have a top you can put up?" I ask.

  "Nah. She's all for fun. I'll crank the heat if you get cold."

  "All right." I grab my things and follow him into the elevator.

  Delia's classic arcs glisten with no evidence of Jacade ramming through Viktor's front gate. I slide onto the leather passenger seat and flashback to lying across Jacade's lap while he sped us to Lakeshore Memorial. I focused on the radio dial as I drifted in and out of consciousness. Jacade kept his hand pressed to my wound, only leaving when he needed to shift. Blood was everywhere. I didn't know if I would make it. But just like me, Delia's been mended. Stains removed from her plush leather seats, not a scratch on her.

  "They did an exceptional job." My hand trails the fine stitching on the dashboard.

  "They'd better. I paid for the best." He shifts into gear, and we pull out into the city traffic.

  On our way to Frank's, he stops at a convenience store. "Wait here, I'll be back."

  This is strange. I watch Jacade buy two sodas and a single, long-stemmed burgundy rose.

  "For you, my lady." He hands me a soda and the fragrant rose.

  "Thank you, my lord." I accept his gifts and give him a kiss.

  We drive onto the interstate, and the wind whips my hair. I zip my jacket up and look longingly at the heater. He catches my gaze and turns the heat on. The warm air mixes with the cold in a turbulent stream against my face.

  "This is fun."

  He returns my smile. "It sure is."

  We pull down a rural road and make our way to the hangar where I first met Frank.

  I remember the debilitating fear of jumping out of a plane, but Jacade and Frank's easy familiarity helped me relax and get through it.

  Jacade parks Delia in front of the two-story front doors. We walk hand-in-hand to the office and Frank comes out to greet us.

  "Hello, Jacade. Ivy. Lovely to see you again. Hope you're doing well?" Frank's gentle presence fills the space between us.

  "I am. Thank you for asking. It's good to see you too."

  We visit with Frank and catch up on his and Frank Jr's business for a while.

  "We've gotta get going, Frank," Jacade announces and tosses the keys to me.

  I catch them and hold them in my fist. "My turn to drive?"

  "Yes, but be careful. Delia can be rebuilt. You're irreplaceable."

  I hop behind the wheel and start her up. With my hat and scarf secure, I feel like the Red Baron taking the doghouse out for a fly!

  We zoom down the road back to the interstate laughing and smiling. His rugged palm rests on the top of my thigh.

  He squeezes his hand. "You do realize this is a muscle car, right?"

  I glance over at him and he grins. Nope, you're not ruffling my feathers this time, Jordan. My heel stomps on the gas and the g-force thrusts my body to against the seat.

  The speedometer quickly hits eighty miles per hour. Jacade's onyx hair flutters in the wind, and his white teeth gleam when he smiles at me.

  "Bring it, don't just sing it, baby!" Jacade yells over the noise.

  I floor it and air currents sting my skin like I'm being pricked by a swarm of bees. It's invigorating.

  Woo-woo-woo!

  Red and blue lights flash in my rearview mirror. Not again!

  "Dammit! Five-O! What do I do?"

  "Gun it." He says with a steady voice.

  "What? Is this another test? Do your phone thing and call them off." My voice squeaks.

  "I can't." He laughs. "I don't know the cops in this district. Take the next exit."

  "Shit. Shit. Shit." I pull off the interstate and park Delia on the shoulder.

  "Relax, sweetheart. You look guilty."

  "Of course I do! I can't believe you got us pulled over! Lucky for you, you're fucking hot as sin and amazeballs in bed."

  He chuckles and grins at me. "You're the one with the lead foot, but I am pretty amazeballs in the sack."

  "Shush. He's getting out of his car." I smack his taut abs and peek in the rearview mirror.

  An older, portly cop with reflecting dark glasses approaches the car. "License and registration."

  I hand him my license, and Jacade gives him the registration from the visor. I'm glad he didn't delve into the glove compartment. I'd hate to have to explain the weapons that are probably stashed in there.

  "Out of the vehicle." He chews on a toothpick in the corner of his mouth. He's wearing a silver star with broad points. Above the city logo, the words Lt. Marconi are engraved in an arc.

  "Why?" I ask him as a younger, thinner police officer strides to Delia's passenger side.

  Jacade looks up at the lieutenant. "Officer, what's the problem here?"

  "Step out of the vehicle. I'm not asking again."

  Jacade grabs his door handle and whispers to me, "Just do what he says."

  My jaw drops as Jacade steps out of the car with his hands up. Why is he giving in so easily?

  "Out of the car!" Lieutenant Marconi yells at me.

  "Hey! No need to shout at her!" Jacade raises his voice.

  The younger cop slams Jacade's cheek against Delia's trunk. Jacade's shoulders go slack and the younger cop handcuffs him.

  I step out and the lieutenant handcuffs me.

  "You can't just yank us out of the car and cuff us for no reason!" I shriek.

  Jacade's eyebrows narrow in disapproval of my insolent tone. C'mon, Jacade. Take control here!

  "Officers, I'm Dr. Jacade Jordan. The car is registered to me."

  The younger cop jerks Jacade upright. "Well, Doctor, this car has been reported stolen, so you're both going to the station while we sort this out."

  "You've gotta be fucking kidding me!" Jacade says.

  This is ridiculous. Jacade wouldn't steal a high-profile car like this? Or would he?

  The lieutenant guides me to the back of the squad car and places me in the backseat. The other cop escorts Jacade in next to me.

  "Jacade, I'm worried. Tell me this is a mistake."

  Please. Tell me it is.

  "Don't worry. I purchased this car at a public auction. This is just a mix-up." Jacade focuses on my face. "Keep quiet. I'll get us out of this. I've done it before."

  Yeah, when we were teenagers! Oh shit. What if I was driving a poached vehicle?

  We arrive at the police station, and they guide me down a hallway… away from Jacade. I make eye contact with him, and he shoots me a confident nod, like everything's going to be all right. How the hell does he know that?

  My belly somersaults as they take my possessions and sit me alone in an interrogation room.

  I drop my head to my arms on the table and stare at my shoes. My heart is about to leap out of my chest. How did we get ourselves into this mess? What if they arrest Jacade for his illegal business deals? What if they figure out he killed Chowder? We could both go to prison for a long time.

  As I'm trying to control my erratic breathing, a pair of thick-stitched Italian leather shoes steps into my field of vision.

  I look up and Jacade is standing there. "Jacade! What the hell! You scared me. Did they let you in here? Are we getting arrested?"

  He's holding my leather moto jac
ket folded over his forearm. "Do you remember this place?" he asks me.

  Metal table. Single light bulb. Video camera in the corner. "Yes. This is the same interrogation room I was in eighteen years ago."

  "Exactly, and tonight you visited the field where we first made love."

  "That's right. The field by Frank's hangar. I didn't realize it when we were there."

  "The gas station we stopped at was the same one where we were arrested together."

  "Oh my gosh."

  "Our love story began here, so I thought this was the ideal place."

  "Ideal for what?" He's talking in riddles. "Are we going to jail?"

  "You're not going to jail. You're going to marry me."

  He is not. He is not getting on one knee.

  Holy crap. I don't know what to do.

  "Ivy, I've loved you since I first saw you, and I will love you till the day we depart this earth and for eternity in heaven. Will you marry me?"

  "Wait. We're not getting arrested?"

  "No, baby. I set this up. You're safe."

  Oh, whew. But… "You set this up?" What a jerk! He was just scaring me?

  Wait. Shit. He just proposed and he's kneeling before me. He digs into the lining of my jacket and pulls out a rose-gold ring with three pavé-set diamonds.

  "Aunt Helen has a ring like that in yellow gold," I say.

  "Yes, and Vera had one in rose gold." He looks inside the band and reads the inscription. "To my girls, all my love, Ray." His eyes meet mine again. "Raymond gave both his daughters the same ring in different metals."

  "He gave my mom a ring like that?"

  "He gave your mom this ring."

  "This is my mother's ring? But… How did you get it? Why is it in my jacket?"

  "Boothby was wearing it the night we got arrested. He must've stolen it from Vera's body. I took it from him eighteen years ago in the bathroom of this police station. It's been in your jacket the whole time."

  "No way. How?"

  "The night I made my life-changing deal with Bernard, he put me in a cell. I asked to go to the restroom."

  ***

  Jacade

  Bang-bang-bang.

  My fist reverberates off the door of the holding cell.

  "I gotta take a piss."

  Heldman gestures down the hall with his head. "Let's go."

  As I angle my shoulders to slide past him, he sniffs behind my ear. The hair on the back of my neck stiffens. I get in his face. "What is your problem, asshole?"

  "Careful."

  We glare into each other's eyes. He puts his hand on my back and shoves me toward the restroom.

  "Make it quick." He scowls. "Don't try to run. I'm watching the door." He holds the bathroom door open for me.

  "Whatever, grandpa. Do you need a cane to stay upright?" I mumble under my breath as I walked to the last stall.

  At the john, my dick still sports a boner from my fantasy of Ivy through the glass. I grasp my cock and stroke up and down once.

  Fuck it. I spit on my hand and rub one out. I imagine her yanking off her hoodie and showing me her tits. She pushes them together and asks me to fuck them. I shove my cock between her warm globes, and she squeezes me hard and tight. I grunt as the visual sends me over the edge and an orgasm powers through me. I exhale and catch my jizz in my hand. I freeze when I hear the door to the bathroom open.

  "Will I see you at the track tonight, Boothby?" A male voice echoes off the subway tile.

  I leap onto the toilet seat and peek through the crack in the stall. The rookie who arrested me, Mahoney, and the cop that questioned me—Commissioner Gerry Boothby, according to his badge—walk over to the urinals.

  "Not sure," Boothby replies.

  They flush and move to the sinks. Boothby drapes his sport coat over the basin to his left and slides a shiny ring off his pinkie. He places it next to the knob on the sink.

  "What happened with the young piece I brought in tonight?" Mahoney's voice carries a childish excitement.

  "She's freaking out an interrogation room. I'm gonna offer her some comfort from Daddy."

  Son of a bitch.

  I hop off the seat and ball my fists. My jizz oozes between my knuckles.

  Heldman's voice calls from the door. "Gerry, you've got a situation in room six. Viktor's not too keen on spending the night in the can."

  "Damn." Boothby tosses a paper towel in the trash and bolts out of the bathroom with Mahoney on his heels.

  I exit the stall, and as I wash my hands, I glance down at the pansy-ass ring he left by the sink. I wouldn't be caught playing dress-up in a preschool with that ring on. A good way to get your ass cheeks split open by another man's boot.

  I stare at the ring and put my hands in the pockets of my motorcycle jacket.

  How much money you got in your pocket?

  You'll want to put a decent ring on her finger.

  I swipe the pinkie ring from the sink and slide it into a hole in the lining of my jacket, well hidden behind the pocket.

  I stroll out of the bathroom with a smile on my face. Bernard gives me an exasperated sigh. He didn't like waiting on me to beat off? Too bad. I had a great time in there.

  He clutches my left bicep. "Come on."

  His fingers dig into my muscle, pushing my shoulder up as we shuffle to the front of the station. He returns me to the holding cell to the left of the check-in desk, and the door clicks shut behind me.

  Rose, so her nametag says, walks in about ten minutes later. I'm still amped up and worried about that asswipe hurting my sweet Ivy.

  I stand and Rose hands me my wallet and keys in a clear plastic bag. "You're free to go. Sign by the X."

  "Before I sign, this isn't my mine." I shrug off my jacket and hand it to her. "It's Ivy's. The girl I was brought in with."

  She looks at me with dubious eyes but takes the jacket from me. "Fine."

  I sign and give the pen and clipboard back to her. "You'll make sure she gets it?"

  She mumbles a placating "Yes" and leaves the cell.

  I follow her out and scan the check-in area for Ivy.

  Nothing. She's a ghost. A memory already.

  I jam my hands deep in my pockets to shield myself from the cold wind as I exit the front doors to the station.

  At least she'll be warm… and safe, with Viktor.

  I want to wait for her, but it's not our time. I'm not the man for her.

  But I will be.

  Someday.

  I wander to the parking lot and force my gaze to remain forward. I only glance over my shoulder at the station doors once.

  Okay, maybe twice.

  ***

  Ivy

  I return to the present with him and gaze into his glistening eyes. I run my fingertips along the crinkles at his temple, down his face, and cup my hand around his dimple. This man is so incredible. At every moment, he shocks me with the depth of his love and faithfulness. And I know I'll never doubt him and never tire of him.

  "I ended up coming back to the station later to check on you. I truly wasn't planning on kissing you, but you were so damn convincing, I took you and made you mine. I swore that night I'd come back for you someday, and here I am--begging for your hand in mine for the rest of our days. We'll have a glorious life together. I promise. Say you'll marry me."

  "Jacade." A huge tear drops down my cheek. "Yes. Yes. I'll marry you."

  His grin blossoms into a victorious smile, and his face beams like a beacon in the night. The pain, the suffering, the regret he always carries with him, have finally lifted. He's free to love me, and I'm damn well going to love him forever.

  He slips my mother's ring on my shaking left hand.

  "That's your engagement ring," he says. He pulls out a velvet pink box from his inside jacket pocket. "This is your wedding ring."

  A huge diamond ring sparkles in the cushioned box.

  I raise my hand to my mouth and gasp. "My god, it's too much."

  "You can handle it. The r
ing. The life. Everything. Meant for me. Only woman in the world." He clears his throat and points to the chunks of diamond perched on the intricately woven band. "Three stones. Past, present, and future. The future is the biggest one. Accept this ring, my beloved, as a reminder of our unbreakable love and my eternal fidelity to you."

  I nod, and he slips the gorgeous new ring next to my mother's old ring. Past, present, and future on my left hand.

  I drop to my knees and kiss him. He grabs me around my waist and presses my body to his. Our kiss is deep and passionate. The love in my heart bursts through my chest and beams into his. We're together and connected in the most intimate way two people can be, forever.

  "Our time has come." His grin caresses my ear.

  "Yes. It's our time now."

  He pulls away as the door opens, and I flatten my clothes trying to regain my composure. The lieutenant and his younger cohort enter the interrogation room with sheepish faces.

  "Ivy, this is Lieutenant Marconi and Detective Silas. Friends of mine from the Chicago PD."

  They nod at me and I smile back.

  "What's with the rough treatment, boys?" Jacade asks them.

  "Uh, sorry, boss," Marconi says. "We got a little carried away."

  "Yeah. Check yourselves next time."

  Next time?

  Oh shit.

  What the hell have I just signed up for?

  Chapter 29

  Six months later

  Ivy

  My fingers caress the intricate bumps and contours of the ivory lace and hand-sewn glittering crystals of my wedding gown. Two months ago, Bryn, Aunt Helen, and I walked into Lana's Boutique, and I knew from the moment I saw it on a mannequin it was meant to be mine. The mermaid fit with silky gold underlay enhances my curves, and the vintage appliqués on the translucent court train float behind me like clouds. The tiny capped sleeves make me feel covered compared to the low plunge exposing my back.

  I run my fingers through the loose spirals Kimber gave me and peruse my silhouette in the mirror. Is this who I am now? The bride of a mobster? I mean... the bride of a legitimate businessman?

  I guess I am. I certainly give every indication of being a Mafia princess in this tiara and veil. I have to admit, it looks good on me and feels right.

  "It's time, little one." Raymond calls to me from the entry to the bride's room. I suppose some might be intimidated by the eminent Raymond Carillo in a tuxedo with an onyx cravat, but all I see is my kind-hearted grandfather.