Twenty-Eight
“H ow much?”
My ears perk up. Leaning back, I peek around the wall that half separates the dining room from the kitchen to see Draven’s eyes the size of saucers.
It must be good then.
We haven’t heard one word from any of the Creeds since the day I left Alex at the altar, but Dray’s hacker friend has been working overtime trying to make sure we stay ahead of them.
He’s also been trying to get us some reparations.
“Holy fuck,” Dray laughs. “And you’re sure he won’t find out? Screw it, for ten million, I’ll fight him with a toothpick and a garden hose. You’re fucking amazing.”
Ten million.
It’s more than Ephraim would have paid me in a dozen lifetimes. It’s more than I thought possible, and it’s more than enough to set a bastard and a pawn up for life.
We’re gonna be fine, and we never have to go back.
Smiling softly, I place my hand over my growing belly. It’s still small, but I see the changes every day. I feel her growing, changing, preparing to carve out a place in this world for herself.
I haven’t told Dray yet. The doctor just called last night, and he was sleeping so peacefully I didn’t have the heart to wake him. But we’ve got names to pick out and a nursery to decorate, so as he says goodbye to Damian and meets me in the kitchen, I blurt out, “It’s a girl,” before he can tell me about the money.
The smile that takes over his face is blinding. It’s so beautiful, so genuine it makes my chest tighten as I glide my hands along my stomach absentmindedly.
“I knew it,” he says happily, his mouth crashing to mine before trailing down my neck to my belly. “Hey, baby girl. I’m your daddy.”
“She knows. I can’t feel her moving just yet, but she knows.” I lean down, planting a quick kiss to the top of his head. “If only she knew how rich she just became.”
Dray chuckles, rubbing his nose along my skin affectionately before standing to cradle my face. “Now I can take care of my queen and my princess so they never have to lift a finger. I’m gonna spoil the fuck out of you two, you know that?”
“Mmm...” I tilt my head in a playful argument, then nod. “You better. I earned my freedom. So did you, and we did it all for her. Let’s enjoy the rest of our lives on the back of the man who tried to take it from us.”
“We will. Makes it easier to leave him alive. Killing him would give him an easy out, and I’d rather he sit there every day knowing he lost to you.”
His eyes drop slightly like he wants to say more, so I tip his chin up and ask, “What?” as gently as I can.
“I guess I just want Verna to suffer more. She got away with everything, and although I’m sure she’s over there pissed off at the world, I want her to hurt. Only way that would happen though is if Alex left too, and we all know that won’t happen.”
“Knowing you’re out there somewhere happy and safe? She’s going mad,” I tell him softly. “She’ll live out her life the way she always has, and while it’s not fair, it’s not our business anymore. As much as I want to go back there and burn their house to the ground, ruin everything they’ve ever loved and dance on their graves when it’s over... the best revenge we can possibly take is living and living happily.”
I can tell that was exactly what he needed to hear because he wraps me up in a tight hug. “I am happy, little keeper. You make me truly happy... probably for the first time in my life.”
Some men use the fact that they’ve never been loved right as an excuse to be assholes. Cold, cruel monsters full of hate and vitriol, blaming it all on families who never showed affection or young girls too fickle to know their own hearts. But not my Draven. Dray used his lack of love as an excuse to cannonball into it the second he had a shot at it. He’s thrown everything he has into loving me, our baby, and the future that once seemed like a pipe dream.
The future that is now very much within our grasp.
“I love you,” I say gently. “I—”
A loud knock cuts me off and scares us both. We’re in the middle of nowhere right now in a cabin rented under an alias. We chose it to stay off the radar, to hide from Ephraim until we knew which way the chips would fall. So who the hell would come here?
“Remember what I told you?” he rushes out in a whisper, a gun sliding into my palm as he walks me toward the bathroom. “Shoot first, ask questions later. I love you, too.” He kisses my lips quickly and grabs another gun from the entryway table, approaching the door cautiously. “No housekeeping!”
“Is that supposed to make me think you’re not home?” The voice is muffled, but it’s clearly Alexander. “It’s hot out here. Open up.”
Draven’s shoulders sag in relief before he opens the door, but he doesn’t fully relax until it’s locked again and Alex and Morella are standing in front of him. “How the hell did you find us?”
“Can you put the gun away? Jesus.” Alex moves in front of Morella protectively, but there’s a hint of fear in his eyes as Dray huffs a laugh and stuffs it into his waistband.
“Pussy.” He’s joking, but the tension in Alex’s jaw only grows.
“I found you because I’m your brother,” he says flatly. “We may not have always been friends, but we’ve always been brothers. I know you, sometimes better than either of us realize.”
A second passes where they just stare at each other, frowns creasing their handsome faces like they aren’t sure if they should hug or fight, but ultimately Dray chooses to avoid violence. “How’d father take it?”
“As well as you’d think. He was ready to send every man in his employ after you, but you’ve got more friends than you know. The Keepers and Wardens outright said no, and you...” he turns to me, nodding. “Your father told mine in front of the entire church that if anything happened to any one of us, even an accident, even if my father had an airtight alibi... he’d hang him for it.”
My stomach swoops with surprise. It shouldn’t, not really, but this is a man who stayed silent through everything else. Who watched me move across a chessboard, inching around under the careful control of a mafia don. No, not the mafia. Whatever. “He did?”
“Mmhm.” Alex steps forward, making Draven move closer to me. “There isn’t anything he can do. He seethed for days, of course. But in the end, he decided two forgotten sons were better than a noose.”
“I’m surprised the Keepers had my back after what I did. Do they not know it was me or somethi—” Draven meets his brother’s gaze and abruptly switches his question. “Did you say two sons?”
“They didn’t have your back, they had hers, and yes. Two sons.” Alex pulls Morella to his chest and kisses her head. “He gave me a choice. I chose my true family.”
That makes my man smile. The big one that always brings me to my knees, and I swear everyone in the room can feel his pride. “No shit. Got your balls back, big bro?”
He nut checks him for good measure, the back of his hand tapping Alex in the groin before he can react, and chaos ensues after that.
Morella and I duck out of the way as those two wrestle like they’re kids all over again, slamming each other against the wall, to the ground.
“Should we stop them?” she blurts, but I just shake my head.
“No, I think they need this. They won’t hurt each other... much.”
The laughing we can hear helps kill the tension, and before long, my man has his older brother pinned just like I knew he would. “You’re out of practice, Alex. When’s the last time you got in a fight?”
“That’s what we had you for,” he grunts, tapping Dray’s back. “Okay. I’m done. I’m old.”
“Poor old man,” Draven teases, moving off of him to help him back on his feet. “Glad you got your nuts back. I’m sure Morella has been enjoying them.”
“Say what you want, but your girlfriend is the only reason either of us got them back,” Alex counters. “I didn’t see you making a move before she did.”
Sighing, I interrupt. “We can argue all day about who did what and who owns the balls in this room, but it doesn’t matter. Both of you did what you needed to do when it really mattered, so can we move forward please?”
“She doesn’t take compliments well,” Dray teases. “I told her she was the hero in this story, and all she did was tell me how great I am. You’re right, Alex. I was fucking frozen and this woman saved me. Saved all of us.”
Morella steps forward and takes my hands, shocking me to the point I almost tug them back, but the gardener has a tight grip. “Thank you, Sullivan.”
It’s hard not to remember the things she said about me, the way she looked at me. But it’s over. I can’t say that I’d have acted any differently if Draven had been promised to someone else, so I let it go. I was the intruder after all. “Where will you go now?” I ask. “Should we make up the guest room?”
Alex shakes his head as he fixes his shirt. “No, we won’t impose. I tracked you down so you’d know you’re safe since neither of your cell phones were on. But we’ll find our own place somewhere at the edge of the world.”
“We have new phones,” Dray says, his gaze flicking to mine to ensure I’m okay with what he’s offering. “Maybe I’ll give you a call one of these days?”
I hide a smile as Alex looks to Morella for the same confirmation. Finally, the balance of power is as it should be — two powerful men brought to heel by the women they love. If only the whole world worked the same.
“Yeah. Here.” Alex hands over his phone to get our new numbers, then pulls Morella back to his side. “We got married, by the way. It was our first stop after we left.”
Draven hands it back when he’s done, a playful smirk on his face as he regards them. “About damn time. Congratulations. We haven’t yet. My poor little keeper doesn’t even want to hear the word wedding yet, but I’ll get her soon. I know she’s the one for me. We do have some good news though.” He walks over to stand behind me, both of his hands falling to rub my belly lovingly. “It’s a girl.”
Grinning wildly, Alex’s eyes drop to my stomach. “Even better. I bet she’s going to be amazing.”
Of course she will. And while Draven is correct — I’ve gagged every time he’s brought up the possibility of another wedding — I’ll get there. On our terms, in our own way, when we decide.
We pushed the chess pieces off the board and carved out our own little slice of heaven. We’re not in a hurry anymore.
DECEMBER