I take Toni by the arm and make her look at me. “If I die, please make sure to put Thibault’s name on the birth certificate.”
“I’m sure it’s already on there,” she says.
“No, I mean your brother’s name. Put him as the father.”
“Isn’t it too late for that?” she asks, frowning at me.
I shake my head. “No. I refused to fill out the form in the hospital.”
She shakes her head. “No. I’m not doing that. Do it yourself.”
My mouth drops open as she stands up and walks away. I look at Jenny, stricken. “She is so cruel.”
Jenny smiles as she wipes the floor. “It means she likes you. Consider it a compliment.” She pats me on the shoulder. “Cheer up . . . She could be your sister-in-law someday if you play your cards right.”
I lie back on the floor and stare at the ceiling. “Oh, Jesus, help me.”
CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN
I’m exhausted.” I look over my shoulder into the back seat. “So’s the baby.” Tee’s been sleeping for three solid hours, poor little nugget.
“Me, too.” Thibault lets out a loud yawn. “I could sleep for a week.”
“Can you believe everything that’s happened in the last twenty-four hours?” I ask.
“Nope.”
I sigh, reaching down gingerly to touch my bandaged leg. “Alexei showing up and getting his ass kicked at the barbecue, a five-hour hospital visit for a bullet through my leg, our second trip to the police station in less than a week . . .”
“Unbelievable,” Thibault says.
“If you had tried to tell me in any of the five years I knew Alexei that he was not mentally disabled, I would’ve slapped you. I mean, his act was flawless.”
Thibault shakes his head. “Well, he didn’t strike me as a particularly brilliant guy, but I get what you’re saying. Pavel was some kind of crazy evil genius to have thought that game up.”
“I know. I guess if you’re not part of the family, their stupid sem’ya, you’re not to be trusted.”
“It depends on the family . . .” He looks over at me.
I try to smile. “Do you think yours will ever accept me?”
“They already have.”
“But your sister’s mad about me being with you.” Even though she said what Jenny considered to be nice things to me on the kitchen floor, I still don’t know that I believe it.
“My sister’s always mad about something. She likes to be cranky. It’s her favorite mood. Don’t take it personally.”
“You told me I remind you of her.”
“Only in some ways. My sister’s really loyal, really tough, really smart . . . Those are the things that remind me of her when I’m with you. But I think in general you’re a happier and more positive person than she is.”
“I’m not feeling very positive right now.”
“Well, you should.”
“Are you crazy? I just found out that I’ve been spied on for five solid years by somebody I thought had the mental capacity of a ten-year-old. I think it’s pretty safe to say I am entirely clueless.”
“No, I think it’s safe to say you are a pawn in the middle of a very complicated scheme run by several different parties who all wanted control of a lot of bad-news business.” He shrugs. “Who knows if the cops will ever be able to unwind it all?”
“Alexei was blaming Sebastian for everything, but the police and the FBI agents all said that Sebastian has disappeared. Do you think he’s dead too?”
“I have no idea, but I’m sure we’ll be looking into it. The important thing now is that he’s gone and Alexei is too. He won’t be getting out of prison, now that they think they can link him to all those murders by his DNA. And Pavel is dead. Whatever business he put together has been dismantled and regrouped, and there’s nothing you can do to hurt them, so they couldn’t give a flying hoot about you. Going after you will just bring them heat and attention they don’t want. You’re safe.”
“I wish I could still do something. There’re all those girls . . .”
Thibault looks at me and pats my arm. “We’re not out of the game yet. Jenny was right; we can start looking at those digital footprints and tracking down the traffickers’ movements. Those girls are going to get the help they need one way or another. But at least you’re not in the middle of it anymore. At least you don’t have a target on your back.”
I rest my head on the seat, sighing and smiling. “This is the first time in years and years that I’ve felt safe.” I tilt my head sideways and look at him. “And it’s all because of you.”
“I can’t take all the credit. You’ve got to give yourself some of it, and my team was critical, too.”
“Yeah. Your team is amazing. You are so lucky. I can’t believe you were going to walk away from all of that and the people you love for me.” It still makes my heart flutter to think of it.
He shrugs. “That’s what you do when you love somebody.”
“You love me?”
“I think I’ve already said that.” He frowns playfully at me.
“You said it in the hallway of the police station. You didn’t really say it, like, officially.”
“Maybe I’ll say it later.” He’s trying not to smile.
“Well, if you ever want to see me naked, you’d better.”
He looks over at me and grins. “I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you.”
“I love you too, Thibault.”
He reaches across the seats to hold my hand, and I let myself drift off to sleep as he drives us home. Before I’m completely off in la-la land, his voice penetrates my cloudy brain.
“When exactly will I get to see you naked, do you think?”
I smile lazily. “Pretty soon, I think . . .”
CHAPTER FORTY-EIGHT
I find a note on the counter after dropping Baby Tee off at Toni and Lucky’s place. They have him just for tonight. Now that my baby’s officially four weeks old and sleeping through the night, Thibault and I can finally have an evening alone. I slip my shoes off as I read the handwriting that I know to be Thibault’s:
Meet me upstairs. If you dare . . . (Remember that stamina thing? Yeah. You’re in trouble.)
My heart skips a beat, and then my body gets flushed all over. I take a few deep breaths to try to calm my racing pulse, but it does no good. I could not possibly be more nervous than I am now. We’re finally going to consummate our relationship.
I make an about-face and head for the stairs. From the moment I saw him standing in front of my car, freshly tapped by my bumper, I thought he was hot. And as soon as he saw I was a woman in need that day, he lost that angry look on his face and went into superhero mode and started saving my life. One step at a time, one day at a time, he proved to me that he was the man for the job. Now, thanks to him and his team, I get to start my life over again, and I’m doing it right this time.
I’m still a numbers girl, but now I keep books for the good guys and not the bad guys. Thibault still thanks me daily for taking over the payroll duties at Bourbon Street Boys. And working from our new place with the baby by my side has made my life almost easy. Almost. Like all newborns, Tee can be a lot of work, but his happy little personality and all the help I get from the girls on the team makes it seem like a breeze compared to what it would have been like if I’d left New Orleans without looking back.
I slowly mount the stairs, wondering what Thibault has in store for me. He’s proven to be very romantic and caring when he puts his mind to it. The house always has fresh flowers somewhere with a love note tucked inside. He even cooks for me sometimes when we’re not eating over at Toni’s place or ordering in. I don’t care about that stuff, though. I live for our moments alone in bed, tangled in each other’s arms, talking endlessly about our future.
I hear music playing softly behind our bedroom door. I push it open and see the room is lit with candles. Rose petals are on the floor and the bed. Thibault is nowhere in sight.
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I slip inside and take off my clothing, no longer embarrassed by my body, which is strangely altered by pregnancy in ways I never imagined it could be. My belly is wider and no longer taut, my backside larger and softer, my breasts heavy and pendulous. Thibault says I’m perfect, and I tend to believe him, since we’ve both had a hard time keeping our hands off each other. Four solid weeks of nothing but heavy petting would be enough to test anyone’s patience. I am so ready for this . . .
“There you are,” he says, coming out of the bathroom. He’s naked. Stunning. His manhood hangs down his leg, thick and dark.
I wait for him to approach, suddenly nervous. We’ve talked about this moment a lot, but talking and doing are totally different things.
He takes me in his arms and looks down at me. “Nervous?”
I nod. “A lot.” A shiver moves through me.
“We’ll go slow.”
“Okay,” I whisper as his lips come down to meet mine.
We kiss, slowly, deeply. My arms go up to rest at the back of his neck. His hands drift to my waist and then to my backside. He squeezes me gently toward him. I feel him going hard as we press into each other.
Little shocks of pleasure rocket through me as his hands roam my body and he moves his mouth to my neck. His hot breath on my recently kissed skin gives me shivers. My nipples are hard and he pauses to tweak them.
“You better ignore the girls tonight,” I say, worried the mothering part of me will wake up and force me to put on a bra.
He moves his hand to my backside again. “No problem. I love your ass.” He squeezes it and pushes into me again.
I reach down and take his hard length in hand, stroking it, reveling in its size and heat. “I can’t wait to feel you inside me,” I whisper against his neck.
He groans. “I’m trying so hard to go slow, but it’s really tough.”
I pull back and look up at him. “Don’t go slow on my account.”
He grins devilishly and leans down, picking me up in his arms in one big motion.
I scream in surprise and then laugh. “Be careful of your leg, fool!”
He limps over to the bed. “My leg is fine. I’ll have my surgery next week and fix whatever we break tonight.”
He places me on top of the rose petals and looks down at me. His glorious hard-on stands straight out from his body, his muscles flexed and cut, and his eyes dark and full of sexy promises.
I put my arms above my head and tilt my hips. “What are you looking at, hmm?”
He shakes his head. “The sexiest woman alive.”
I try not to smile. “Oh, yeah? Why don’t you come down here and say that? See what happens?”
He moves to the bottom of the bed.
I follow him with my eyes.
He lifts his chin at me. “Open your legs.”
I shift my hips so I’m lying flat on my back. My knees come slightly apart. “Like this?”
“More.”
I open them a little wider. “How about now?”
“More. Spread your legs all the way for me.”
I let them drop open, a tiny bit of vulnerability sneaking in past my confidence. “Like this?”
He nods. “Just let me look at you for a couple seconds.”
Those seconds tick by with agonizing slowness. I could worry about what’s going on in his head, but I won’t. Because this is Thibault, and I trust him more than any other human being on this earth.
“You are so beautiful,” he says.
My body turns to liquid heat. I put my hand between my legs and touch myself. “You’d better get over here soon, or I’m going to get started without you.”
He puts his hand on his dick as he moves closer to the bed. He gets on the mattress on his good knee and comes toward me. When he’s between my legs he stops and licks his lips. “You ready for me?” The tip of his dick slides against my folds. It meets with no resistance. I’ve been ready for him since before I came up those stairs.
I nod.
“Oh yeah, you’re ready.” He positions himself. “You might want to hang on to something.”
I grab the headboard behind me as he slides his hard length into me, inch by excruciating inch. My eyes fall closed and I moan. Then tears come. It feels amazing . . . beautiful . . . hot . . . meant to be.
His body presses against mine as he settles over me. “Oh my god, that feels so fucking good,” he whispers.
I look up to see his face twisted in what could easily be pain, but I know it’s pleasure.
“Is your knee okay?” I ask.
“Don’t worry about my knee. I can’t even feel that. All I can feel is you.” He pulls out and pushes into me again, this time faster. Harder. His neck muscles bulge, the veins standing out. He looks fierce and sexy as hell.
I moan and let go of the headboard, grabbing on to him instead. He’s killing me with what he’s doing to me, pressing into me, stretching me, making me want more.
“Do it again,” I beg.
And so he does. I hang on with my arms and then my legs too, as he pushes in and pulls out, setting up a rhythm that is first torturously slow but then so fast I feel like it’s going to leave me behind. I grip him with my nails, the sweat of his skin making them slide and leave marks behind.
A flutter starts down between my legs and moves up into my core. Heat builds there. There’s almost a tickling sensation and then a sense of leaving my body entirely as the warmth between us builds higher and higher.
“Thibault!” I scream, desperate to understand what’s happening to me.
“Hang on, babe!” he grunts in my ear.
Sweat falls from his chest to pool with my own. I start to cry and whimper. Unable to hold back. “I think I’m having . . .”
A scream is torn from me as my body explodes with light. My insides are pulsing with need being satisfied. He moves against me, pulling this sensation from me, ripping it out of me, demanding it and taking it. He yells too, arching his back, driving into me with all his force. I’m dizzy. I feel like I’m falling. I hang on to him as I weep.
Eventually, when I feel like I can’t take another moment of it, his movements slow, and I have to let him go. My muscles are aching and I have no strength left.
“Are you okay?” he asks, kissing me gently on the forehead. He stops and waits for me to answer.
“Yes.” I reach up to wipe my eyes. “Just lost my mind a little bit there.” I feel as though I’ve run a mile at top speed. I’m euphoric and a little dizzy.
He smiles. “I made you cry happy tears.”
I can’t help but grin back at him. “Yes, you did.”
“Maybe we should call me Superman.”
I grab him and kiss him hard on the mouth. “Maybe we should.” I glance down. “Calling you the Man of Steel isn’t that far off, I don’t think.”
He chuckles and nuzzles my neck. “You love me.”
I smack him gently on the butt. “Yes, I do.”
Cold air brushes across my skin as he separates himself and falls to the side.
“Oh shit,” he says, sighing, his hand on his stomach as he looks at the ceiling.
I take a moment to get control of my emotions before rolling to my side so I can look at him. “What’s up?” I ask. God, I love this man so much. He’s so damn handsome it should be illegal.
He turns his head to look at me. “You make me really happy.” He frowns.
“Then why do you look so sad?”
He grimaces and looks down for a moment at his leg. “My knee is killing me.” He looks up at me, an apology in his eyes. “I don’t think I can do that again until I have my surgery and recover.”
I get up on hands and knees, moving toward him. “You mean it hurts your knee if I do this?” I straddle him, carefully positioning myself over his already responding dick.
A smile slowly takes over his face. “Mmm, I think I can manage this.” He pulses his hips up a couple times, encouraging his hard-on to hurry up and get
there. “Oh, yeah, I definitely can.” His jaw bulges out as he grits his teeth and takes my waist in either hand. I love how he goes from sweet boyfriend to sexy lover in such a short space of time.
I smile too. “Well, all right then. Show me some of that stamina you were talking about.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
He slides into me and then spends the next several hours proving in several different ways that he really is Superman, not just outside the bedroom but inside it, too.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Elle Casey, a former attorney and teacher, is a New York Times, USA Today, and Amazon bestselling American author who lives in France with her husband, three kids, and a number of horses, dogs, and cats. She has written more than forty novels in less than five years and likes to say she offers fiction in several flavors. These flavors include romance, science fiction, urban fantasy, action adventure, suspense, and paranormal.
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
CONTENTS
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
CHAPTER NINETEEN
CHAPTER TWENTY
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
CHAPTER THIRTY
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR