Chapter 10 Gareth
GARETH
Felch is going down.
Thanks to Briar. My woman. My forever.
I’m still reeling from the recording she played me. Hearing Felch admit to threatening her, to fabricating evidence against me. I’m stunned, but not surprised. Felch is definitely the type of man to do something like this to me. I just didn’t think he’d involve her.
And I will not let that happen.
“I love you.”
The words just slip out naturally, like I’ve been waiting to say them to her for so long. Like I’ve said them a thousand times.
Briar’s eyes widen, then immediately start to glisten with tears. The look on her face goes straight to my core, like she’s putting herself fully in my hands, giving me every ounce of trust she holds dear.
I know now, fully in my heart, that my life revolves around her. Nothing will ever harm her. And I will do everything I can to make sure she’s happy.
“I love you too,” she cries. I cradle her in my arms, breathing slowly and deeply to calm her. She’s so soft and warm, but what she did for me today displayed such strength. She took a big risk to bring me this recording. A risk that will change everything.
“He’s going down for this,” I whisper, stroking my fingers through her hair. Briar is a wellspring of energy, fueling my determination to end this man once and for all.
Before, he was just a minor problem getting in the way of my career. I could handle that. But now he’s threatened her, and that changes things.
You’ve gone too far, Felch. And now you’re going to regret it.
“What are you going to do?” Briar whispers.
What I want to do is find Felch and break his face. But despite the evidence I have, he’s still the police captain—for now—and I can’t do that. Not unless I want to end up in a jail cell.
No, I have to go about this with a little bit more finesse. And I know just the move to make.
I wish I didn’t have to stand and take my arms off of Briar, but I need my phone, and it’s over on the table. She lets out a soft moan as I let go of her and stand, but I grab it quickly and come back to her, threading my fingers between hers. Then I dial Jason.
“Who are you calling?”
“Oh, just the deputy chief of police,” I reply with a casual smirk.
“Isn’t he like…a big deal?”
“You could say that. He’s Felch’s boss and an old buddy of mine. He will love to hear this recording.”
Briar’s face lights up, and I lean in and kiss her. Just a light peck on the lips, but it’s enough to make my entire world rock on its axis.
“Yo, Rawls, you old bastard!” Jason’s voice rings out from the other end of the line. “To what do I owe this pleasure?”
“Jason, how the hell are ya?” I can’t help but smile. Jason and I came up as patrolman together. He was a few years older than me and better at playing the political game, so he moved up the ranks faster.
“Jay, what would you say if I told you I had information about a corrupt cop in your department?”
Pause. I can picture him thinking right now, his face gone cold, shifting in his seat as he gets serious. Nothing pisses Jason off more than a truly corrupt cop.
Glancing over at Briar, I press speaker on my phone. His voice comes out, stony and flat, like a man preparing for a fight. “I’d say show me what you’ve got so I can bring the goddamn hammer down.”
Briar’s face lights up. I kiss her again, letting my lips linger.
“Morgan Felch,” I say into the phone. “He’s the one who instigated my IA hearing. The one behind it all. And now he’s trying to use his power to destroy the love of my life.”
Briar gasps and reflexively snatches my arm with her hands. We may have said the words to each other, but this is the first time I’ve made it public. Trust fills her eyes. I just took a big step. And that’s all I see ahead of us. More steps into our mutual future.
“Never liked that prick,” Jason murmurs. I can hear him already typing something in the background. “Always felt like a criminal with a badge.”
Smirking, I enter in Jason’s e-mail to Briar’s phone. She attaches the audio recording and presses send. “It’s coming to you now, Jay. You should have it any second.”
“Just got it,” he replies. “Let me give it a listen and I’ll get back to you.”
“Thanks, Jason.”
I hang up and see Briar staring at me, tears welling up in her eyes. “The love of your life?”
Seeing the joy and vulnerability in her face nearly levels me. This is it. This is what my life is now: making her happy. Nothing else matters. I slide down and wrap my arm around her, pulling her close to my chest. Then I lean in and press my lips to hers.
It’s not a lustful kiss. It’s the kiss between two lovers who have shared their souls together. It’s a kiss of trust and acceptance. A kiss I never thought I would have been capable of until she drove past me that night and changed my life forever.
“Yes, the love of my life,” I whisper. “That’s you. And you know it.”
She makes an adorable little squeaking noise and nuzzles my neck. She starts to say something but stops. A giggle escapes her lips as I thread my fingers through her hair.
I have it memorized now—the way she feels. The way she smells. I may be the rough bastard that knows just how to wear her beautiful body out, but I am also the loving, caring, partner in her life that will do whatever it takes to protect her.
“That’s okay,” I tell her. “I’m sure you’ll have a real zinger for when Felch’s career is brought down thanks to your recording.’
My soul lights up with every one of Briar’s laughs, and my body warms when she looks at me. It’s all I can do to keep myself from taking her right here and now. But there’s still one thing left to do.
Taking her phone, I open a fresh e-mail and enter in a new address. “I’ll send the recording to my friend Carol. She used to work at the newspaper, and now she runs her own political blog with a section on police corruption.”
Briar lets out an excited murmur as I attach the recording and send the message.
“Please, Lord, don’t let us go viral too,” she says softly. We both laugh and I sweep her to the floor, pressing her down with my body, feeling every one of her luscious curves.
“I don’t want you to worry anymore, Briar,” I tell her, staring deeply into her eyes. “You’re gonna come live with me now.”
Her lips part, her jaw drops, and she stiffens beneath me. Even her pupils dilate. She looks up at me like she’s trying to figure out if I’m pulling a prank on her.
“I’ll take care of everything,” I continue.
“You’re not going back to that trailer, that truck stop, or your mother.
You’re moving in with me. You’ll have a parking spot in my garage and a phone I’ll pay for.
You’ll finish your degree on my dime, and I’ll get you a job at the hospital where my mom was treated.
The staff know me there, and they’ll keep an eye on you.
You’ll be the most well-protected RN in the state. You understand?”
Briar looks back at me like she’s about to say something, but she pauses, holding back. She’s thinking. Did I come on too strong? She knows how I feel about her.
No. It’s not that.
She’s just a girl who’s used to providing for herself. She grew up hard, and she doesn’t know what it would be like to rely on someone. Someone she can truly trust.
Maybe she doesn’t want to give up her waitressing job. But the thought of those greasy men tossing lewd comments her way makes me boil with anger. I can’t have that. Not anymore. I need her with me.
“You’d do all that for me?” she asks slowly, almost like she can’t believe it.
Holding her gaze, I nod purposefully, showing her just how much I mean my words. “I’d tear the world down for you, baby.”
The tears that have been pooling in her eyes finally spill over and fall down her cheeks. She nods vehemently, pulling me closer. “Yes,” she cries. “Yes, Daddy, I’ll live with you.”
“You’re mine, aren’t you?” I ask, swelling with passion and the limitless love I hold for her in my heart.
“Yours,” she whispers.
“Say it again.”
“I’m yours,” she repeats.
I bring my lips to hers, kissing her as her tears wet both our cheeks. This is it. The vision of the rest of my life. I can see it. It’s her. Stirring inside, I lift her off the floor and carry her into the bedroom.
My phone buzzing on the floor wakes me. I blink several times and look to my left to find Briar sleeping soundly beside me, wrapped up in my arm. Without disturbing her, I manage to grab my phone and answer it.
“Hello?” I whisper.
It’s Jason. “Yo, turn on the news.”
Moving gently, I manage to get up and slip out of bed without waking Briar. She looks so adorable lying there, eyes closed, the soft skin of her shoulder exposed, that I just want to climb back in beside her. But I can tell by the sound of Jason’s voice that something important is going on.
So I quickly head downstairs and flip on the news. And that’s when I see it.
Felch is being led out of the police station in handcuffs, surrounded by officers and photographers. He’s red-faced, shouting, and straining against the men leading him down to a cruiser. I turn the volume up in time to hear him roar, “It’s all lies! Bullshit! Political assassination attempt!”
“Holy shit,” I mutter.
Jason chuckles. “Felch has been suspended pending an investigation.”
Briar comes up beside me, her jaw nearly touching the floor as she watches the scene. I pull her in close and kiss her.
“Look at that,” I tell her, pointing. “Bastard got what was coming to him. All thanks to your recording.”
“Tell that girl of yours we appreciate it,” Jason says. “I’ll probably get a commendation for this.”
“Will do,” I chuckle as I hang up. “Jason says thank you. And so do I.”
I look down at Briar. Her face is unreadable. She’s not smiling, not crying. She’s just watching with her eyes locked on the screen as Felch is forced into the car. She’s quiet for a long time, then finally says, “I hope they put him in a cell that doesn’t open. He can just sit there and think.”
Christ, that’s my girl.
She looks up at me, and we stand side by side like partners. Briar is safe now. Felch will get what’s coming to him, and I’ll be there for her every step of the way.
Mine. Always MINE.