Chapter Twenty-Three
After kids had been tucked into bed and lunches made for the next day, Sam showered and then checked on Joe and Jeannie.
Marti reported that Joe was resting comfortably and hoping to be released the next day after the surgery on his broken wrist.
Sam wondered how long he’d be out of work and whether Malone could do the jobs of two chiefs, while also managing his diagnosis.
Michael texted to say Jeannie and Ava were both doing well. Jeannie was getting the hang of pumping breast milk for her daughter, and they’d visited Ava in the NICU twice so far.
Nick got into bed as she was texting with Gonzo, confirming all was well at Ninth Street after hearing from Carlucci that she and Dominguez had gotten the assumed name Sergei Ivanov had operated under from the Secret Service and were making some progress on learning his movements since he’d landed in the U.S. Will have more for you in the AM.
That news ended Sam’s day on a higher note.
Nick curled up to her and put his arm around her. “How’s everything?”
She put her phone on the charger, relaxed into his embrace and passed along the updates from the others.
“Glad to hear our new tenants are settling in.”
“He said they want to pinch themselves that they live in such a big house, which is exactly how I felt when I first moved in there.” Nick had purchased side-by-side townhouses that had been renovated to remove the walls between them to make a much larger home.
“I remember your commentary about me owning a mansion.”
“Well, it was compared to anywhere I’d lived before, except for now, of course, when you’ve moved me to an actual mansion.”
Chuckling, he pinched her rear, making her laugh. “It’s nice to know Ninth will be well loved by their family.”
He slipped a hand under her T-shirt, branding her belly with his heat as his erection pressed against her back. “Speaking of well loved…”
Sam was tired and drained from the long day, but she could always find a second wind for him. “Let me turn over.”
He moved to give her room and then brought her in close to him, legs intertwining into their familiar pose. “That’s what I needed.”
She rested her head on his chest, listening to the steady beat of his heart and breathing in the familiar scent of home.
“Why does your hair smell different?” he asked.
“I used that fancy new shampoo Tracy gave me for Christmas.”
“Nopety, nope, nope, nope. Go back to the other stuff. That’s what my love is supposed to smell like.”
“Yes, dear,” she said with a laugh. “Did you see Harry today?”
“I did, and he prescribed a run to help with the stress that my wife was concerned about, and it helped.”
“Good. You need to do that more often.”
His hand moved from her back to her backside for a squeeze and then back up again, making her squirm to get closer to him.
“Yes, I do, because Brant totally kicked my ass. I almost passed away trying to keep up with him.”
“Aw, is my old man getting old?”
He moved quickly to roll her under him. “Are you calling me old?”
“I mean, you are pushing forty…”
“Shut your filthy mouth.”
Laughing, she said, “Make me.”
He swooped in to kiss her face off, which gave her something much more interesting to do with her mouth besides tease him.
Even after all this time, he rendered her helpless with his kisses and caresses and had her forgetting all about being tired in a matter of seconds.
He was also great at multitasking and had her mostly naked and desperate for more without missing a beat in the kiss of all kisses.
All of a sudden, he was gone, kissing his way down the front of her, sucking her nipples until she begged for mercy and then continuing a path to her core, where he made her come twice with his tongue and fingers.
This man on a mission did not mess around when it came to her pleasure, and he wasn’t done yet.
He pressed into her in one swift thrust that had her coming again as she held on to him for dear life.
Nothing in this world had ever made her feel the way he did, no matter what they were doing. But this…
She dug her fingers into his muscular ass and moved with him as he chased his own pleasure.
He came down on top of her, breathing hard and sweating from the exertion as he throbbed inside of her.
Sam ran her fingers through his hair and down his back, making him shiver. “You’re very, very good at that.”
He huffed out a laugh. “As are you, my love.”
“I think I was very average at it until you came along.”
“We’re not talking about you doing this with anyone else.”
She laughed. “I’m just saying… It took the right partner to be good at it. I bet you were always good at it.”
“Do I need to shut you up again?”
Before she could answer that, the BlackBerry rang.
He groaned as he rolled off her to reach for it on the bedside table. “It’s Eli.” Nick put the call on speaker. “Hey, bud, you’ve got both of us. What’s up?”
“You won’t believe it. Cleo’s parents are suing my dad’s company for her half.”
“Come on.” Nick sat up in bed. “Seriously?”
“Unfortunately, yes. The board chair called to notify me as the trustee of my dad’s shares.”
“This is completely outrageous.”
“I agree. The chair suggested we consider a settlement to make it go away, but I’m not interested in settling with them.
” Elijah’s voice broke on that last part.
“Ever since Dad and Cleo died, they’ve done nothing but try to get at my dad’s money without an ounce of concern for their daughter’s children.
Someday… Aubrey and Alden will be old enough to know about the things they’ve done.
I want to make sure they’ll be proud of how I protected them. ”
“Elijah, honey,” Sam said, “they worship the ground you walk on. They will always be proud of you, no matter how you choose to handle this latest atrocity from their grandparents.”
“Sam’s right, Eli. But if you choose to make them go away with a one-time payment, no one could fault you for that.”
“That’s what they’re hoping I’ll do. Buy them off to make them go away. Why should I make it easy for them to raid their grandchildren’s inheritance? I’m not doing that. I’m going to fight them until they go the fuck away. They’ve never even checked on the twins… Not once. Fuck them.”
“We totally respect your feelings on this,” Nick said.
“If I didn’t have the resources to fight them, I wouldn’t. The company attorneys will take care of it once I give them the go-ahead.”
“Let us know what we can do to support you.”
“I just needed someone to vent to, and I’m sorry if I woke you up after the day you guys have had.”
“You didn’t. We were still up.”
“Sam, I’m so sorry about your colleagues.”
“Thank you for your text earlier. It was a sad day for the MPD.”
“And the VP resigned… What’s up with that?”
“If I told you, you wouldn’t believe it.”
“Try me.”
“She was having sleepovers with the Russian opposition leader at her official residence.”
“What the hell?”
“Right? You’re twenty, and you know that’s a problem, so why didn’t she?”
“Jeez.”
“Obviously, you can’t repeat that to anyone. I’m sure it’ll be in the headlines before long.” He had no doubt that every reporter in the world was actively working to get at the real story behind Henderson’s resignation. It was only a matter of time before the other shoe dropped.
“Postscript,” Sam said, “the opposition leader was then murdered and was in our morgue when the bomb went off. When the dust settled, his body was gone, along with a witness to another case who happened to be in the wrong place when the Russians came to call.”
“Is this for real?”
“Welcome to our world, son,” Nick said.
“So your building was bombed by the Russians?”
“Yes.”
“Holy shit. What do you do about that?”
“The Russian ambassador has been told to hand over the perpetrators to keep from having us treat this as an act of war.”
“And here my biggest problem is an upcoming exam in honors econ.”
“Stay in school as long as you can,” Nick said. “Put off real life indefinitely.”
“You’re making me very glad I’ve decided to stay for grad school.”
“Of course, you shouldn’t let our daily madness color your impression of real life,” Sam said. “It’s not like this for most normal people.”
“We’re not normal,” Nick said. “We haven’t been for one second of the time we’ve been together.”
“And yet, you two are couple goals for everyone who knows you and millions who’ll never meet you in person.”
“Yay us,” Sam said, laughing. “How’s Candace?”
“She’s great. Did I tell you she’s been working at the daycare center on campus? She loves it.”
“No, you hadn’t told us, but that’s great,” Sam said.
“She’s going to take some classes next semester, too.”
“Good for her,” Nick said. “I’m glad she’s making a life for herself there.”
“I won’t keep you guys. You must be exhausted after this day. I’ll let you know what happens with the grandparents from hell.”
“Thanks for calling, Eli,” Nick said. “We’re here any time you need us.”
“That makes all the difference to me. Love you guys.”
“We love you, too,” Sam said.
They said good night to him and settled back into bed.
“Those people are unbelievable,” Sam said after a period of silence.
“I can’t believe how utterly craven they are.”
“I wonder if they were after Cleo’s money when she was alive.”
“How much do you want to bet that she was keeping them afloat for years?” Nick asked.
“I wouldn’t bet against that possibility, but you should mention that to Eli to pass on to the company’s lawyers. If there was a history of cash infusions, they might be able to show they’ve already gotten their piece of the pie.”
“I’ll pass that on to him tomorrow.”
“I feel so sorry for him being caught up in this nonsense with the twins’ grandparents,” Sam said as she yawned. “And to hear him worry about the twins being proud of how he managed things for the three of them…”
“I know. He was forced to grow up overnight and has more than stepped up to the challenge.”
“Such a quality young man. How lucky are we to have him as a son?”
“So lucky. Our four kids and a bonus daughter.”
“Mmm, hard to believe sometimes.”