Chapter Eleven
Phoenix
"Ihave a question," Cara says, her eyes shining with mischief as she peeks at me before turning to look up at my dad across the table.
We're at the bar in the Toyota Center, plates of nachos abandoned between us.
She looks fucking beautiful, her earlier anxiety all but gone now.
All that's left is the bright, happy smile plastered across her gorgeous face and the impish look in her eyes.
I fucking love seeing it. Judging by the way my dad grins at her, he does too. As expected, he loves her. I never had any doubts. I think he sees pieces of my mom in her, and he will always ride hard for my mom. The man has been wild about her since long before I came into the world.
I feel the same damn way about the woman sitting beside me. It doesn't matter what life throws at me. It doesn't matter where I end up or how I get there. All that matters is her now.
"Fire away," my dad says, lifting his beer to his lips.
"Did you know that your son was a drug dealer, a secret billionaire, and that he's in the running to be People's Sexiest Man Alive this year?" she asks.
My dad chokes on his beer, his blue eyes flicking to me. "Uh…what the fuck?"
"Traitor," I mutter to Cara, who bites her lip, trying to contain laughter.
"You accomplished all of that in the last month?" my dad asks like he's impressed. Honestly…that tracks. He grew older. He never grew up.
"Fuck no," I groan. "My teammates are just assholes who can't be trusted. Never give them marching orders unless you're fucking specific or this is what happens."
"You mean you're just figuring that out?
" My dad shakes his head. "You should have learned long ago never to trust a teammate with an important mission, son.
They have too much goddamn fun going rogue.
" He smirks at me. "You know how many times I ended up scrubbing toilets in the arena because your uncle is an asshole?
We'd have the vague shape of a plan, and then he'd decide to fuck it all up.
Somehow, I always ended up taking the fall. "
"You probably deserved it," I mutter.
"Fucking probably." He chuckles. "But I'll never admit it." His gaze drifts to Cara. "He's been keeping you busy, huh?"
"Little bit," she agrees, smiling sweetly.
"Not my fault. I can't even keep track of all the shit I've allegedly done this week. I told them to start a vague rumor, not turn me into fucking D.B. Cooper."
My dad laughs again, his eyes light.
But Cara turns wide, triumphant eyes on me. "So, you're finally admitting it, huh?"
I cup her cheek, smiling. "Depends, baby."
"On what?"
"Do you love me?"
Her gaze bounces from me to my dad, her cheeks pink. "Phoenix…"
"Answer the question, Cara."
"Yes," she whispers.
I brush my thumb across her bottom lip, my heart bottoming out. Fuck. I'm never going to get used to hearing it. Never. "Then yeah," I say, my voice rough, "I'm finally rich enough to afford the expensive truth to your expensive question."
Her entire face goes soft, and I can't resist kissing her. I don't give a shit if my dad is watching. She's looking at me like I hung the moon. I have to kiss her right now.
She doesn't stop me. Instead, she melts into me, humming against my lips. I linger just long enough to make sure she feels me, and then pull back.
My dad is watching us, a soft grin on his face. "So…my future daughter-in-law is a reporter like your ma," he says. "She's going to love that."
"Yeah, she will. She always wanted another reporter in the family. Guess she's getting her wish."
Cara gasps beside me, but I just smile to myself and let her stew over what I just said. At least for now.
By the time dinner is over and we've said bye to my dad, she's a ball of nervous energy at my side. I wrap my arm around her, leading her toward my SUV.
"I…" she starts, then stops with a stern shake of her head.
I chuckle to myself, boosting her up into her seat.
"You…"
I wait for more, but she never finishes that sentence either. Instead, she just stares at me like she doesn't know what to say or think or do. It's fucking cute. I like when she's off guard, not sure what to think. I like knowing I can do that to her with a simple truth.
I brush my lips across her cheek and then buckle her in before jogging around to my side.
"Did…?"
"What's that, baby?"
"Nothing," she grumbles.
I smile to myself, pulling out.
Three different times on the way to my place, she starts to ask and then stops herself again, almost like she's afraid of the answer.
"I meant it," I say as soon as we're parked, the garage closing behind us.
She startles beside me, turning wide, luminous eyes to me. "What?"
"When I said my mom is finally getting her wish, I meant it." I climb from the SUV before she can answer, circling around to her side. I barely have the door open before she's standing in front of me, staring up at me in awe.
"Phoenix…"
"I meant it, Cara," I murmur, cupping her cheek. "You're going to be her daughter-in-law. As soon as you're ready, I'm putting a ring on your finger and giving you my last name."
"What?"
I tug her up against me, placing my lips at her ear. "You're marrying me. Maybe not today or tomorrow, but as soon as you're ready."
"Yes."
I freeze, then blink. "What?"
"Yes."
Jesus. Is she…?
She lifts up on her toes, wrapping her arms around my neck. Her face presses against my throat. "I'm saying yes, Phoenix. Whenever you ask, I'm saying yes."
Jesus Christ.
I lift her off her feet, making her squeal a little as she grabs for me. But I'm already moving, storming into the house. I don't stop until we're on the same chaise where I fucked her for the first time, with her pinned beneath me, staring up at me with the sweetest smile.
"I'm hearing shit," I mumble. "Because I could have sworn you said—"
"Yes."
"Fuck." I flatten myself on top of her, my lips seeking hers as a bolt of something I've never felt rips through me. It's ecstasy, desire, and purpose all at once. It's everything.
She wraps herself around me, kissing me back like she's never going to stop. "Yes," she mumbles against my lips. "Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes."
I pull back to look at her, just so I can see her when she says it again. "You want to marry me? You aren't fucking with me?"
Her lips curve, her entire expression soft. "I want to marry you, Phoenix. Whenever you're ready to ask, I'm saying yes."
"Marry me," I blurt instantly.
Her eyes widen.
"I mean it, Cara. Marry me."
"Mm. I'll think about it."
I growl, flipping her over onto her stomach. My hand comes down on her ass in a hard smack.
She shrieks with laughter, bucking beneath me. "I'm kidding!" she cries. "I'm kidding."
"Too late." I smack her ass again, yanking her dress up so I can watch it jiggle in her panties. "You had your chance."
She moans, arching up for more.
I spank her once more, and then yank her panties down before pinning her beneath me, my lips at her ear as I fumble with my zipper, trying to free my cock. She doesn't make it easy, not when she's writhing beneath me and moaning my name.
"You're marrying me," I groan as I push inside her, sheating myself in her tight heat. "Say yes, Cara."
"Yes," she moans immediately, pushing back against me. "Yes!"
It's the only word she says for a long time.
Believe me, I'm not mad about it.