Chapter 27
E milie dozed as they cleaned the baby and stitched her up. Although she told Chains to go back to bed, he refused, sitting at her side, his fingers laced with hers. As per hospital protocol, unless there was a life-threatening situation, the baby had to remain within sight of both parents until the security monitor was attached to his ankle and they were set to move Emilie to a private room .
“I guess Dante called the hospital,” Viggo said with a grin. “He’s arranged for a private room so you and Chains can be together .”
Emilie smiled fondly, nodding her head. “When I had Simone, I was all alone so he had me upgraded to some kind of suite. I literally had a private chef and maid service for three days. I felt like a princess .”
“I don’t have the money he has,” Chains said softly. “But I’ll do my best to make you feel like a princess every day .”
She looked over at him. “I don’t need that kind of money—I just need you.” She looked at Jamie and Viggo. “All of you. My lover, my family, my children…and our friends. That’s all that really matters .”
“I love you,” Chains said. “Sorry I’m half- asleep .”
“You should rest .”
“As should you .”
“I actually feel great,” she giggled. “There’s some hormone or endorphins or some such thing that’s released when you give birth—with no complications, I assume—that makes you feel wonderful.” She paused. “And hungry .”
“The room you’re being moved to has 24-hour kitchen services,” Dr. Diaz winked. “Dante and Becca spoke to me about it months ago and I gave them my suggestion. In the meantime, have you chosen a name ?”
Jamie and Emilie exchanged guilty looks. “He wants James,” she said slowly. “I think James is too formal for a child and we already have a Jamie… We couldn’t come to a decision .”
“You can name him after your dad if you want,” Jamie said, though the disappointment was evident on his face .
She shook her head. “My dad is being a horse’s ass right now, so no way .”
“You could name him Viggo,” Viggo chortled, puffing out his chest. “Good strong Scandinavian name !”
Emilie rolled her eyes. “I named Simone after your grandmother, so shut it .”
“I’m not going to suggest Darryl,” Chains said dryly .
“I know you don’t want to call him Jimmy or Jim, and you think James is too formal for a little kid…but what’s wrong with having two Jamies in the house?” Jamie’s dark eyes bore into Emilie’s. “And when he’s older, if he wants to be James, he can be James or Jamie or Jimbo for all I care .”
Emilie looked at Viggo. “What do you think ?”
“I think James is a strong, wonderful name. What we call him doesn’t matter, not a lot. He can be James or Jamie. Maybe once we get to know him, his personality will dictate what we call him .”
She nodded. “And for a middle name, what about Sebastian? It was Karl’s idea a while back—he thinks paying tribute to my twin would be meaningful .”
Jamie nodded. “I like it. James Sebastian Teller .”
“Hockey player name,” Chains muttered, but his eyes twinkled even as he sagged against the side of the bed .
“Come on, let’s get you to your new room,” Dr. Diaz interrupted. “We’ll take care of the birth certificate once you’re both settled .”
“I’m going to make some calls,” Viggo said .
“I’m going to stay here and stare at my son,” Jamie admitted, flushing slightly .
“That’s absolutely what you should do,” Emilie whispered happily .
C hains dozed for several hours while Emilie ate and fed the baby. Jamie and Viggo went home to shower and get a little sleep, promising to bring her bag, phone charger and some other essentials when they returned. At some point she fell asleep as well because when she awoke Chains was sitting up in bed eating something, watching the news without any sound .
“Hi.” She smiled, sitting up and stretching .
“Hello, darling.” He gazed over at her lovingly. “I’d like very much to kiss you and tell you how beautiful you are, and how incredible it was to watch you give birth, but I’m sore as hell and don’t feel like getting up .”
“I, on the other hand,” she said, swinging her legs over the side of the bed, “feel wonderful and am going to come over there to kiss you!” She walked over to him and leaned over, pressing her lips to his .
“Damn,” he breathed. “Didn’t think I’d ever kiss those lips again .”
“I need to use the bathroom,” she whispered. “But I’ll be right back .”
A few minutes later she was in a chair next to his bed, the baby in her arms .
“You shouldn’t have come, you know,” he said after a moment .
She looked up, wrinkling her nose. “I had to. I knew something had happened and if you weren’t already dead, I had to find a way to save you .”
“You could have died trying!” He tried to act stern, but he didn’t have it in him to chastise her. He was so awed by this strong, beautiful, loving woman he wanted to wrap his arms around her and never let her go .
“I know, and I made sure I did everything you’d told me to do…kind of.” She bit her lip. “I did one thing you told me not to, but…sometimes you have to let people in. My brother and Viggo and Jamie—I had to tell them the truth because there was never a chance they would betray us and I needed that support. Sometimes, you have to let people help you. That was something else you taught me .”
“I know, darling.” He reached out a hand and she took it. “I’m so proud of you. You would’ve made a good spy !”
She shook her head. “All I could think about was giving back to you what you gave to me .”
“I never gave you anything,” he protested. “Except friendship. And now much more than that .”
“Your quiet strength revitalized me,” she said slowly, the love in her eyes evident as they gazed into his. “The first time you grabbed me and pulled me against you, you told me everything was going to be okay—and somehow I believed you. Although I see how big and strong you are, and I know because of your past that you’re capable of killing, that’s not what makes me feel safe. I don’t see or care about that part of you; what I feel when I’m with you is a different kind of safety. You don’t have to kick someone’s ass to protect me—your very presence makes me believe I don’t need protection because the person that’s caused me the most harm is me. When I’m with you, I don’t hurt anymore. The moment you picked me up off that table at Cuddy’s, those scared, ugly pieces inside me immediately started to crack…and the first time you made love to me, they disintegrated .
“You, my love, are the glue that took the shattered pieces of my life and put them back together stronger than they were before. I knew I was broken, but it wasn’t until you touched me I realized I could be fixed. So knowing you’d sacrificed yourself to protect me… I couldn’t let her kill you .”
His eyes darkened as he listened to her, and if she didn’t know better, she might think they were a little misty. “All I thought about while she had me was that you were safe…it got me through it .”
“Was it terrible?” she whispered, looking at him sadly .
“It was…” He paused, thoughtful. “She’s not a spy or a terrorist—simply a pissed off woman with an axe to grind, which I guess was enough. She couldn’t truly hurt me until she started starving me…that’s when it got rough .”
“But how did she find you ?”
“Texted me,” he said softly. “Sent me pictures of Mum’s house, let me know that the break-in was her doing and next time it would be when there was someone home. Told me she wanted to meet with me, had things to tell me .”
“Did you know what was going on when you went to meet her ?”
“No. I met her at my apartment and since I didn’t know exactly what her involvement was, I wasn’t as prepared as I should have been. She hit me over the head and when I woke up I was tied up in some abandoned warehouse .”
“When was this ?”
“Mid- January .”
“She had you over a month.” Her vision blurred as tears filled her eyes, thinking about what he’d endured .
“Don’t cry, love. I’m okay and it’s over. I’d have happily died to save you .”
“Don’t say that!” she whispered harshly .
“Easy, sweetheart.” He squeezed her hand. “We have a lot more to talk about, but how about we table it until we get home? For a couple of days, let’s just enjoy that beautiful new boy of ours and try to do a bit of healing…because when I’m better, there will be unfinished business to attend to .”
She sighed. “Do you know who betrayed you at MI6 ?”
He sighed. “ Yeah .”
“It was Warren,” she guessed. There was no one else; he was the only one it could have been and the sadness in his eyes told her she was right .
“Not today,” he said after a slight hesitation, squeezing her hand. “The only thing I want to think about today is you—how much I love you, how grateful I am you love me too, and…how many days until I can make that beautiful body mine again .”
She smiled wanly. “Probably four or five weeks, darling .”
He shrugged. “It’s all right—we have the rest of our lives for that .”
T hree days later they went home. As the limousine Dante had hired for them pulled up to the house, Emilie let out a little sigh of frustration. Cars filled the driveway and lined the street. There were at least a million blue balloons tied to the mailbox and a huge “Welcome Home, James Sebastian” banner across the front of the porch .
“This is probably Jamie’s doing,” she said. “He’s so excited .”
“Shouldn’t he be?” Chains asked, stepping out of the limo and reaching out his good arm to help her. His right arm was in a sling to keep his shoulder somewhat immobilized, but he was feeling pretty good otherwise. He’d been malnourished and dehydrated, but he’d had broken ribs dozens of times before so it barely fazed him and the gunshot wound was already healing well .
She reached down to unbuckle the baby from the car seat as the driver got their bag for them. “Yes, he should be, but I was hoping for a relaxing first day home .”
“In this family?” Chains snorted. “Not hardly .”
“We have to buy a place of our own,” she said .
“We have time.” He brushed his lips across hers and she stared into his handsome face. The black eye was now an odd greenish-yellow color and his nose was still slightly swollen from how many times he’d been hit. There was a cut on his lip that was scabbed over and a bruise on his neck she hadn’t asked about. Yet he was still the sexiest man she’d ever known. His steel-gray eyes met hers curiously and she reached up to run her fingers through his now clean and cut dirty-blond hair. Dante had sent a barber to the hospital and he’d buzzed it short to get rid of all the broken pieces from both the dreadlocks and the roughshod way Franny had cut it. There was a little length on top, though, and it stuck up slightly, giving him a tough but modern look .
“Are you coming in or do ya plan to spend all afternoon gazin’ into each other’s eyes?” Dolores demanded, throwing open the front door and putting her hands on her hips .
“Mum!” Chains’ eyes widened and he gripped Emilie’s hand to pull her along with him as he moved to hug his mother .
“Surprise!” she whispered, tears filling her eyes .
“How did you — ”
“That sweet young man—Dante—said you needed me and sent us tickets!” She leaned over to stage whisper, “First class! Treated me like royalty, they did !”
He chuckled. “I’m glad to see you .”
“My beautiful boy.” She touched his face. “And those dreadful dread things are gone! So handsome again!” She turned to Emilie. “But not as handsome as this little one!” She peered into the blanket the baby was swaddled in. “Congratulations, Emilie .”
“Thank you.” Emilie hugged her and they went into the house. A loud cheer went up and Emilie froze, blinking in surprise at all the people in the room. Her mother and Ken, Karl and Kate, their entire circle of friends from the Sidewinders and Club Inferno, and even a handful of people she didn’t know .
“Surprise!” Viggo said, his gaze slightly sheepish. “I know the timing probably could have been better for you, but the team leaves on a two-week road trip tomorrow so this was our only chance to do this for a while .”
“It’s okay.” Emilie handed the baby to her mother, and then turned to accept hugs, kisses and congratulations from everyone .
“Emilie.” Jamie waited until the end to hold out his hand and she put hers in it without hesitation. “My mother, Evelyn, my father, James, and my sister, Maddie—my brother couldn’t get off work this time but he’ll come to visit soon. Everyone, this is Emilie, the mother of my son and one of the most special people I’ve ever known .”
“Hello!” Evelyn hugged her tightly and soon Emilie was swept up in a sea of kisses, laughter and more hugging than she’d ever experienced in her life. Though she’d initially wanted to rest, now that she was surrounded by these people who meant so much to her, she couldn’t imagine changing a single thing .
“Excuse me, Chains ?”
Chains turned to an attractive woman he recognized as the wife of one of the Sidewinders, but she wasn’t someone he knew well. “Hi.” He smiled though there was a question in his eyes .
She pulled a photograph out of her purse and handed it to him. “Do you remember me ?”
He stared at the picture and for a moment didn’t know what he was looking at. He recognized himself and Shay, of course, but the other people in the picture and the location it was taken in were momentarily eluding him .
“You came to our base in Afghanistan—some sort of Intel exchange—and you joined us for a game of hoops .”
His eyes snapped to hers. “You’re Erin!” he said under his breath. “ You’re …”
“Yes, I’m her.” She smiled. “I didn’t put the name Chains together with the Darryl Carruthers I met that day. Shay talked about you all the time .”
“Shay talked about you all the time,” he said softly .
She smiled .
“This happened in Afghanistan.” He ran tender fingers over the third-degree burns on her forearm that he’d heard covered most of the right side of her body .
She nodded. “ Yes .”
“I’m sorry. Even sorrier about Shay.” He looked away. “I owe you one, though. Em told me it was you who figured out who Franny was, as well as who the traitor was .”
“I found out more than that,” she said, pulling some papers from her purse. “This is a classified report. I’m going to need you to read it and burn it .”
“Of course.” He nodded. “Thank you .”
“You’re welcome.” She paused, turning before going back to join her friends. “Technically, you owe me two,” she said, a twinkle in her blue eyes .
“Two?!” He shook his head. “I don’t bloody think so. You cheated .”
“I did not!” she huffed, folding her arms across her chest .
“Cheated.”
“Did. Not.” She narrowed her eyes and leaned forward, as though examining his shoulder. “How long until that pansy-ass wound heals ?”
“Two weeks !”
“Four weeks!” Emilie interjected, scowling at both of them. “I have no idea what this is about, but whatever it is has to wait at least four weeks .”
“Fine.” Erin tossed her hair. “Four weeks. You pick the place. Rematch .”
“How are we going to rematch without the same players?” he grunted .
She looked around. “I see a whole room full of able-bodied men and women .”
“We’ll choose teams .”
“Fine.”
“Fine.” They glared at each other .
“What, um, what are we talking about?” Emilie asked carefully .
“Basketball!” They spoke in unison, giving each the other one more dirty look before bursting out laughing .
“It’s a military thing,” Erin’s husband, Drake, whispered in Emilie’s ear. “Just let it go .”
“Yeah…definitely.” Emilie pretended to tiptoe away .
S everal hours later, after everyone had been eating, drinking and celebrating to the point of exhaustion, Emilie found Chains in their room. He was sitting in the rocking chair in the corner, the one she usually rocked Simone in, a sheaf of papers in his lap .
“What are you doing?” she asked quietly .
He looked up. “Lamenting all the mistakes, all the betrayal, all the misery of my life before you .”
“What does that mean?” she asked, sitting on the edge of the bed and leaning forward .
“Warren. Bloody Warren!” He shook his head. “My friend! My mentor! Why? Why would he do this to me? And more than that—why would he do it to you ?”
“Greed?” Erin had given her the condensed version of what was in the report she’d given Chains, since most of it was classified, and Emilie had spent a lot of time trying to come to terms with Warren’s betrayal .
“How much money makes a man do those kinds of things?” he muttered .
“I don’t know exactly what he did or how much he got for it,” she said carefully. “But I think he realized he’d made a big mistake and putting us together was his way of redeeming himself .”
“He destroyed me—my career, my reputation— everything !”
“He didn’t.” She dropped to her knees beside him. “He made you stronger. He didn’t do that part on purpose, but that was what he did, no matter what his intentions were. You’re the man you are today because he betrayed you. If he hadn’t, you wouldn’t have gone to work for Joe. Wouldn’t have come to Las Vegas. Wouldn’t have met me .”
He cupped her chin in his hand. “If he wasn’t a greedy bloody traitor, I would forgive him everything just for giving me you…but he betrayed his country, the agency, and his brothers in arms for a few dollars .”
“A lot of dollars, but yes, he did. Some people are clearly motivated by money .”
“Not you.” He knew that already .
She smiled. “Don’t be fooled…there will be designer shoes and handbags and dresses in my future—but not at the expense of my family. Or the way I feel about you. We both make six figures; that’s a lot of money for most people and Jamie and Viggo will be supporting their children. That’s a lot of play money for us .”
He snorted. “What about our children ?”
She grinned. “I don’t recall you asking me if I wanted more children .”
“Darling.” He cupped her cheek and leaned forward. “Would you do me the honor of bearing my children ?”
“Plural?”
He chuckled. “If we have a boy, you might be off the hook. A girl means you’d have to try again .”
She swatted his hand away. “How about you let me recover from this one first ?”
“Take all the time you need, love. I’m not going anywhere .”
“I love you, Darryl Carruthers .”
“I love you, too, Emilie Sjoberg .”