by Peyton Banks
Glancing over at Max, he lifted the glass in his hand and took a sip. “I’m still working on getting that woman to forgive me for being so stupid.”
Nodding, Max laughed along with him. “Well, she still likes me, so I’m not taking your side on this. Plus, my wife loves her. So does Big Mama.”
Glaring at his friend, Nico hissed, “Where the fuck does that leave me? Everyone’s gonna abandon me for Vini? Oh, it’s like that now?”
“Yup. In a fucking heartbeat. Big Mama already keeps threatening to come over here to set you two straight. If I were you, I’d move a little faster on getting Vini to her happy place.”
“Damn. Well, that’s one thing I can’t have. You know how that woman is,” he shook his head. Just thinking about Big Mama stomping her way up the walkway made him shiver with dread. Even at her age, she was still a force to be reckoned with.
“Yes, I sure do. But, enough about that. We need to figure out how we’re going to get Diego. I can’t believe that son of a bitch put a hit out on you.”
Nico’s lip curled in disgust. After months of searching, and a lot of dead bodies left in their wake, they’d found out who was responsible for the gunshot to his side. “I can. When all that shit went down, he wasn’t happy with the result. He thought we were cutting him out of too much. There’d been too much grumbling among his soldiers that he was a bitch. They laughed behind his back about him bending over and taking it up the ass.”
When news had gotten back to Diego that Vini was no longer watching Nico’s back, he’d taken his chance. Diego tasked a couple of his best guys with taking Nico out. Too bad they’d failed. Now Diego was in hiding.
“Do you think Vini knows yet?” Max smiled a little as he asked the question.
Nico kicked at his feet. Hard. “Fuck you. You know I’m not going to tell her. Not now anyway. She’d blame herself, which I can’t have her doing.” Mainly because he blamed himself for this entire situation. If he hadn’t shown his ass in the club that night, word wouldn’t have gotten out that Vini was longer by his side. Didn’t matter what he’d said to the room after she’d left. Everyone knew they were on the outs.
Shaking his head, Max gave him a hard look. “Man, don’t do this shit to her again. Listen, I love that little firecracker. She’s my little sister. I don’t want to see her hurt because that shit makes me want to bury bodies in unmarked graves. But with this, I need to tell you; you’re wrong. Keeping her in the dark is what got you two off-track in the first place. She doesn’t like being left on the outside of shit when it comes to you. Plus, pissing her off isn’t good for your health, or mine.”
Hackles rising at Max’s words, Nico gave him a steely look. “Don’t tell me how to handle Vini. She’s my wife.”
Max’s lips thinned and his eyes flashed with fire. “Then fucking act like it. You know her better than I do. Or at least that’s what you keep saying since ‘she’s your wife’ and all that shit. Is Vini the type of woman that’ll stay in the back and let you handle the hard shit on your own? You and I both know she’s not made that way. Stop treating her like she’s gonna fucking break. She’s a goddamn warrior, Nico. We made her into a fucking killing machine. Don’t insult her by thinking of her as anything less.”
Seconds, or maybe minutes, slowly passed in silence as they stared at each other. Both knowing the other one made valid points, even if they didn’t want to admit it out loud. Nico fought against his natural instincts to tell Vini they’d found the person responsible for trying to kill him. Other than the last time months when things had gone down shit creek, he’d never gone on a hunt without her by his side.
Max broke the staring contest first. “Take a picture, it’ll last longer.”
“You’re such a fucking dick.” Nico laughed out loud at their old refrain from their younger years.
“Sure am. Get over it. Anyway, I thought we were watching the game.” Max nodded towards the big screen television against the wall.
“We are. When you quit your bitchin’.”
Max stood. Walking past Nico towards the kitchen, he pushed him hard on the shoulder. “Put on the fucking game before I call the ladies and tell them you’re being mean to me.”
“Why do you always sic your wife on me,” Nico yelled at his friend. “Damn, man. Kiana’s kinda mean when it comes to you and I’m not trying to get on her bad side. And Vini already ordered the pizza, fucker. It should be here any—” the doorbell rang “second.”
Once he closed the door behind the delivery guy, he took the food to the kitchen. They settled down to eat and watch the game, waiting for their wives to return from their shopping trip. As he thought about what to do about Vini, and hunting down Diego, he tuned the game out. His thoughts were filled with ‘what-if’ scenarios. If he didn’t tell her and he went off on his own, there’d be hell to pay. If he did include Vini and something happened to her, it would kill him. And then he’d kill everybody involved, and their families.
Neither choice was a good option.
There was only one thing he was certain of. Keeping Vini in the dark was not an option. Keeping secrets from her is what caused their problems all those months ago. He wasn’t making that mistake again.
As Vini lay in the circle of his arms that night, Nico struggled with what he’d decided. This decision might change everything for them, but he had no choice.
“Vini. I need to go hunting.”
Her body stiffened next to him. The breath flowing over his bare skin halted. The fingers tapping lightly on the skin just above his navel stopped moving. He could almost hear the thoughts going through her head.
“I want you…I’m asking you, stay here. Max will be with me. A few of our guys will be here with you. Watching the house.” At her intake of breath, he went silent.
“Someone tried to kill you. Kill my husband. And you’re asking me to sit this one out? Is that what you’re saying?” The clipped tone of her voice warned him to tread lightly. His wife was pissed.
Oh well, so be it. “I’m not going to argue with you. I can’t be worried about you when I’m out there.”
Her body jackknifed in the bed. Her smooth, dark skin glistened in the moonlight streaming through their bedroom window. If this wasn’t such a serious conversation, he’d take her in his mouth, picking up where they’d left off earlier.
“What you’re not going to do, is try to make this about me. This is about you trying to control the situation again. Keeping me behind the scenes.” She paused and looked away. Turning back to him, the words from her mouth tore at him. “I feel like I’ve failed you.”
“Baby, no—”
“When I walked into the club that night, all I saw was another woman in the space where I belonged. It didn’t matter that I knew you were focused on taking over parts of Diego’s business. Had been for months. That even though we both play our roles when needed, we always come back to each other. My brain didn’t register everything going on, even if I was seeing it with my own eyes. My hurt and pain were overwhelming me. Suffocating me. No matter what you said to try and make it better, I felt it was my fault. That it was my punishment for all the people I’d hurt.”
As she continued speaking, Nico sat up in bed, pressing his back against the headboard. His hands itched to reach out to her, pull her into his arms. But he held back. This conversation had been a long time coming. Her soft voice held so much hurt, he could feel it on his skin.
“After that night, I felt my world crash around me, and I realized something.” Reaching her hand out to him, she rubbed her fingers against his arm. “Things don’t always go easy for us, but I’ve come to accept that. I’ve had no choice, really. But listen to me, I don’t regret the way we grew up. Our lives have been fun, crazy, dangerous, and exciting all rolled up into one. No matter what, I wouldn’t change a thing. And because of that, I know that losing our baby wasn’t our fault. It wasn’t…my fault.”
As she began to speak again, he put a finger up to her l
ips. “Vini, baby. Stop talking. I had no idea you were feeling that way. Why didn’t you tell me? No, don’t answer that. Now it’s your turn to listen to me. I’ve never blamed you for what happened, and if I knew you’d blamed yourself this much, I would have nipped that shit in the bud.” Wiping away the lone tear that fell down her cheek. “Sweetheart, please don’t cry. It was a terrible accident. And as you know, that scumbag was handled in jail. No one hurts our family and gets away with it. Not even me.” Sighing, he took a chance and pulled her close. Wrapping his arms around her lush form, he kissed her forehead. “I love you, Vini. We’ve wasted so much time.”
“At first I was angry with you. Felt you’d finally gotten tired of me and wanted to move on with your life.”
Lifting her chin with his finger, he smiled down into her soft brown eyes. “I will never get tired of you. I love you more every day. Even when you get that crazy gleam in your eyes as you’re holding that damn 9mm in your hand. You’re the only woman who understands me. And I’m the only man who will ever be with you this way, who will fuck you until your voice goes hoarse from screaming my name, and the only man who will ever lick your pussy as your juices flow and your eyes roll back in your head.”
A smile came over her face as she pulled out of his arms and climbed onto his lap. Her warm sheath resting over his rapidly hardening cock. “I won’t be apart from you anymore. I promise the next time I lose my shit, I’ll come to you first. I’ll ask questions first, shoot later.”
“Does that mean I can finally have my wife back?”
Leaning down, she kissed him deeply, her tongue snaking its way into his mouth. Tugging his bottom lip between her teeth. Her nibbles against his flesh forced a moan from his lips.
“You’ve always had your wife. I was just getting my shit together so that I could get back to the person I needed to be,” she said in a soft tone.
“I never want to be away from you again,” he kissed her neck as he adjusted her body over his thick cock. He wanted to slide inside her body again. He needed to fuck her. If she’d let him, he’d try his damndest to place another baby inside her belly. Because he wanted children, with her.
“You promise?” she hissed, sliding her slick pussy over his thick rod.
“Damn, baby. Yes. Yes, I promise. Never again.” Lifting his hips, he pressed her down at the same time. As he surged inside her, they both grunted at the sudden connection of their bodies.
“Yeah, baby. Just like that,” she moaned. “Nico… Nico…”
“I love it when you say my name. You’re so wet for me,” he grabbed the globes of her ass, kneading the flesh in his palms. Damn, he’d missed her so much.
“Nico… Promise me something,” she whispered.
“Anything. Whatever you want.”
“Promise?”
“Yes. Anything. I promise,” he mumbled as she twisted her hips. Her hands grabbed the back of his neck, pressing their bodies tight.
“Take me with you when you hunt down Diego. I want to gut that motherfucker from stem to sternum. No one messes with my husband and lives,” her smile was big and her eyes were filled with the excitement of the coming carnage. “Now fuck your wife and make me beg for mercy.”
Damn, he loved this woman. And then he proceeded to do just that.
Epilogue
Nico
Nico ran through the hospital. He’d gotten the call while at a meeting with Max and some of their connects. Vini was in labor. Fear coursed through him as he raced to the hospital. Although he and the man upstairs still weren’t on good terms, he’d said a prayer. For his wife. For his child.
Shortly after they’d returned from going after Diego and annihilating his entire crew, Vini began to get sick in the mornings. They both thought she’d caught some type of virus or sickness from traipsing all over North and South America looking for Diego. Turns out she’d caught something all right. Except this parasite wasn’t going anywhere soon.
“Nico,” he heard his name and turned to find the source.
“Kiana.” Making a quick turn in her direction, he frantically looked around. All the people who mattered were here, most notably his parents, Max, Mama Bishop, and Big Mama. “Where is she?” Was that him hyperventilating?
“In here. Come on. You have to get changed quick. I think your little one is about to make their entrance.”
Joy filled him as he pictured the face of his child. He hoped their baby looked like Vini. Walking into the room, he looked at the woman he loved, and felt a tingle in the area of his nose and eyes. If he broke down and cried, Max would never let him live that shit down. Didn’t matter though. This was his wife. His child. He could have this moment. Her stomach was huge, their baby nestled inside, ready to make their way into the world. He was ready to meet their little person. It was time for he and Vini to reclaim this part of their life.
“Vini.”
“Fuck you, Nico. My damn water broke and now I can’t get an epidural. They keep talking this bullshit about giving me something to take the edge off. That shit isn’t working for me. You know what, give me your gun. Somebody’s about to get shot up in this bitch.”
Leaning down, he kissed her softly on the lips. “No. You’re not allowed to commit murder in the hospital while having our baby. Your father would never forgive me if you were sent to jail after giving birth to his first grandchild.” At her pause, he pulled back, “Vini, I’m not giving you a weapon.”
Vini’s eyes were filled with tears and her breath was coming out in shallow gasps. “Oh fuck. Something’s happening. I think I need to push. Nico,” she grabbed his hand, squeezing hard. “Don’t leave me, Nico. I’m scared. Help me.”
The nurses ran from the room to get the doctor. Nico stood next to her, rubbing her brow and kissing her softly. “It’s going to okay. Just think about it, Vini. Our baby’s about to be born. I can’t believe we made it to this point. We made it.”
“I had no doubt,” she whimpered. “You’re still a demon.”
“You’re still my angel.”
After a deep exhale, she lifted her hand to his face. “Have you finally found peace? Are you happy?”
“Baby, you are my peace. Are you done seeking out the chaos?”
Tears filled Vini’s eyes as he spoke. Nico wiped the tears away from her cheeks as he looked into her eyes.
“As long as you’re by my side, the need isn’t as strong. You’re my rock. You keep me grounded. I love you, Nico.”
“I love you too,” he said just as the doctor entered the room.
Fifteen minutes later, their daughter was born, announcing her way into the world with a scream. Her loud cry could be heard in the hallway as her extended family celebrated her arrival. For the first time in his life, Nico felt his heart grow and fill with love for someone other than Vini. “My Angel,” he whispered to their daughter. “I’m so glad you’re here.” Leaning close to wife, he whispered, “Thank you for loving me. Thank for not giving up on us, for fighting for us. I love you, Lavinia Mitchell.”
“I love you too, Nicolas Mitchell. Now give me my baby and go grab our family. I need start teaching our little princess all the ways to disarm and maim a man in under five seconds.”
Laughing as he handed their daughter over, he turned to walk out of the room. “Isn’t she a little too young for that?”
“Nope,” Vini laughed as she adjusted the blanket around their daughter. “She’s never too young to cause mayhem and chaos.”
Smiling, he opened the hospital room door. “Just like her momma.”
“Damn, right,” she yelled behind him.
“Damn. That’s my girl.”
About the Author
Reana Malori is a USA Today Bestselling Author. She writes Contemporary romance focusing on Multicultural / Interracial couples. She firmly believes that love in all its forms should be celebrated and her stories reflect that belief. She hopes to weave stories that pull the reader into her world and helps them to share in her
universe, even if only for a short time.
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When not writing, you can most often find her enjoying a good book as she is, first and foremost, a romance reader. Reana currently resides in Montclair, Virginia with her husband and two sons who keep her busy laughing, having fun, and making sure she doesn’t take herself too seriously.
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Private Property
M’Renee Allen
He’s a dangerous criminal.
She’s dangerously curvy.
Having her around could possibly destroy everything he’s worked hard for. Yet, he can’t seem to stay away from her.
* * *
Former hitman, Constantine Novinkoff is close to paying off his debts to his former boss. Soon, he’ll be able to retire from a life of crime. Then in walks temptation. Her name is Cristal Dawson and she’s nothing like the women he’s used to. She challenges him at every turn. Her smart mouth makes him want to kiss her until she can’t speak. Her curvy figure haunts him when he’s awake and when he’s asleep.
* * *
Yet, it’s the sadness he sometimes witnesses in her gaze that makes him want to claim her. It makes him want to protect her. It makes him want to find out who hurt her in her past so he can destroy that person and everyone that person loves. The sadness in her pretty brown eyes makes him want to protect her from the cold hard world.