Ember: Next Gen (Snakes Henchmen MC Book 12)

by Alivia Grayson

  I narrow my eyes as he takes my hand. Marco turns and drags me toward the exit. I’m trying not to laugh out loud; I don’t want to draw attention to us as we sneak away.

  Marco and I rush along a dim corridor, hand in hand. When we’re far enough away from prying eyes, Marco pushes me back against the nearest wall. His lips hit mine hungrily, as he lifts my dress above my thighs.

  “Marco,” I groan against his mouth. This is so wrong; we could be caught by any of the production team, Caren, and three dozen extras.

  Marco kisses my neck while moving my panties to one side. He lines his erection with my opening, and I groan again because I didn’t feel him release his cock.

  “You are a goddess, Ember Marshall.” Marco pushes himself into me, and my eyes roll to the back of my head.

  Marco and I look deep into each other eyes as we fuck hard against the wall. Marco grabs my leg and holds it against his waist, fucking me harder, and I’m finding it hard to keep up with his thrusts.

  I wrap my arms around his neck and bury my head in his shoulder. I whimper because I’m trying not to scream. Marco is so deep inside of me, and it feels so good!

  “Marco, I need to come,” He fucks me hard, and I can’t hold on any longer. Marco grunts down my ear. I bite his shoulder, which causes him to fuck me harder still. I can’t breathe, and I’m coming so hard I can see stars!

  “Ember, fuck!” Marco pushes himself into me as deep as he can go, and he comes hard, holding me tightly. Marco kisses my head and pulls out of me slowly. He slides my panties back into place. “Are you okay, baby?”

  I look at Marco and smile. “I’m okay, handsome.”

  “I didn’t mean to attack you like that, but I couldn’t help myself.”

  “I know what you mean.” I press my lips to Marco’s and moan. “I’ve ever been so turned on,” Marco laughs as I stroke my fingers through his thick hair. “I love you so much, Marco. You’re always there when I need you, and I’d be lost without you.”

  “I will always be there for you, Ember. I love you, baby, and I can’t wait to make you my wife.”

  I smile. “Mrs. Ember Russo,”

  “I like the sound of that.” He growls and kisses me again. It won’t be long before we’re man and wife. Once our European tour is over, we’ll get married, and I can’t wait! “We should get changed; we have a plane to catch.”

  “Let’s go handsome.”

  Europe here we come!

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Marco

  “Where the hell have you been?” Ember snaps as soon as I climb into the back of the taxi.

  I almost didn’t make it back in time. We should have left for the airfield ten minutes ago. Colin will kill me if Ember and I miss the flight, not that the pilot will go without Dun’s Dungeons lead singers. There’s no band without Ember and me.

  Christ, I hope the jet our record company has loaned us is comfortable. I’m exhausted after the past couple of days. Organizing an engagement party, making sure I got the correct ring, and then proposing. After partying last night, Ember and I spent hours making love, which meant we got less than two hours of sleep before leaving the house to make sure Ember made it on time for her advert debut.

  I didn’t expect to be staring alongside Ember, but everyone could see how uncomfortable she was trying to act as though she were in love with that model. I know it wasn’t very professional of Ember, it’s only acting, after all. However, Ember wasn’t in the right headspace, and Caren could see that. I’m not an actor by any means, but I would do anything for Ember, including making a fool of myself in a tiny tunic.

  I don’t think Ember and I did a lousy job, but I guess it’s up to the rest of the world to decide once they see the advert. I’m not going to lie, that cologne smells like shit, but the pay was worth the assault on my nose. Besides, the perfume Ember was wearing wasn’t too bad. But then everything my girl wears turns me on, including the smell of perfume. That’s why I couldn’t stop myself dragging Ember out of there and fucking her against the nearest wall.

  I think it’s safe to say that I’m ready to drop.

  You still found the energy to take a trip into town, Marco.

  With good reason, though leaving Ember alone while I did so wasn’t the best idea. However, there was something I just had to do.

  I slam the car door with a smile on my face. I lean in and kiss Ember’s plush lips. She’s not really mad with me, though she is annoyed, she smiles despite herself. “I’m sorry that I’m late. I didn’t realize that I’d be gone so long.”

  Ember smiles and cups my cheeks. “It’s okay; you’re here now.” This girl can’t stay mad or annoyed with me for more than a hot minute. The thought makes me laughs inside. “Did you get what you needed in town?”

  I tuck a strand of fallen hair behind Ember’s ear. She’s glowing today, not in a pregnant way, but her skin, eyes, and even smile have her glowing. She looks beautiful in her tight black jeans and tight white top with her hair tied in a messy high bun. I honestly can’t believe how lucky I am. I don’t deserve this beautiful woman, but I’ll never question why she’s with me or why she loves me the way she does. “Yeah, I got what I needed.”

  The driver finally pulls away from my house, taking us toward the record company’s private airfield. Now is a good a time as any to show Ember just what I went into town for, I just hope she likes it.

  I lift the sleeve of my black thermal shirt, exposing my left wrist. I hold my arm out for Ember to see, and she gasps. “Marco,” She takes my hand and arm and brings my wrist closer to her eye line. She looks at me with a stunned expression on her face. “Why?”

  I laugh and hold Ember’s right wrist next to my left. “Because we are one,”

  “Marco,” Ember whispers my name while resting her head against mine, still staring at our matching tattoos. “I can’t believe you did this, Marco,”

  I smile against Ember’s and kiss her hair. “I love you so much, do you know that?”

  Ember giggles and looks up at me. “I know that you love me, Marco, and I love you. That didn’t mean you needed to mark yourself for me.”

  I chuckle. “Baby, I belong to you as much as you belong to me. Of course, I was gonna mark myself for you, just as you marked yourself for me.”

  The smile on Ember’s face melts my heart. She leans in and kisses me. “You mean the world to me, and I can’t wait to spend my life with you.”

  “Ditto.”

  It doesn’t take long for us to reach the airfield. Everyone is already here waiting, waiting because I made us late. Colin is annoyed, I can tell from here. I roll my eyes while getting out of the car, then helping Ember out with her hand in mine.

  “Wow, it’s so big.”

  I chuckle because we’re not looking at a jumbo jet here. The plane will have eight seats at a push, and that’s if we’re lucky. I hope it does, at least, there’s seven of us getting on that thing, not including the pilot, and whoever else will be helping fly the plane.

  “Where the hell have you been?”

  “Don’t start, Colin, I had something to do. We’re here now,”

  Colin rolls his eyes and walks toward the plane. “Don’t worry about him; I just told him that he’s gonna be a father.” Hannah smiles widely.

  “Oh my god! That’s amazing!” Ember hugs Hannah tightly. “I’m so happy for you,”

  “Thank you. I’m happy, but Colin is still in shock.”

  “He’ll come around. Congratulations,”

  “Thanks, Marco. We best go.”

  I take Ember’s hand and lead her onto the plane. Eight seats, I was right, and all leather. Nice.

  Bob, Saint, and Caren take the back seats, Colin and Hannah take the seats in front, leaving Ember and me to sit up front.

  “Hi, everybody, I’m Sally, and I’ll be your stewardess for the duration of your flight to London this evening. I’ll be here for all your needs, so please don’t hesitate to call if you need anything.” T
hen Sally goes on to give us safety instructions, and of course, I’m not listening. Does anyone really ever listen?

  It isn’t long before we’re airborne, and Sally brings everyone drinks. Ember’s head rests on my shoulder as she holds her hand up to admire her ring.

  The light hits the diamond in the right place, and it sparkles. “Isn’t it just beautiful, Marco?”

  “I’m glad you like it, baby,”

  Colin and Hannah seem to be having a heated argument behind us. Ember looks at me and bites her lower lip. This is about the baby, it’s easy to see, I just hope Colin isn’t saying that he doesn’t want the kid. Hannah certainly does, she was excited to tell Ember and me about it.

  “Please don’t be like this, Colin,”

  “Don’t cause a damn scene, Hannah!”

  “Whether you like it or not, we’re having a baby. I know you weren’t expecting this to happen yet, but it did.”

  “I don’t want a kid, Hannah!”

  The heartbreaking sob coming from Hannah sends a shiver down my spine. I look at Ember, and I know if she were to tell me right now that she was pregnant, I’d hold her that much closer. I’m not going to pretend that I want kids anytime soon, but accidents happen.

  Ember shakes her head, and I groan because I know she’s about to blow her top. I shake my head at her, but Colin is getting louder, and Hannah is sobbing harder.

  “Fuck this!” Ember is out of her seat before I can stop her. “You bastard!” Ember yells at Colin, loud enough to stop all conversations. Hannah gets out of her seat and rushes to the bathroom.

  “Stay out of it, Ember, this has nothing to do with you.”

  “It’s everything to do with all of us. If you didn’t want us to know your business, then you shouldn’t have been yelling at your pregnant wife so we could all hear you!”

  I move over to the seat; Ember vacated and turn to look at her as she sits in Hannah’s seat next to Colin.

  “We’ve been friends a long time, Colin, so I know this isn’t about you not wanting kids.”

  “You don’t have a clue, Ember.”

  “Them tell me because you can’t act like this. What you just said to Hannah destroyed her. Why would you hurt her like that, Colin?”

  Colin won’t look at Ember; he stares out of the window beside him. Ember grabs his arm, and he turns to look at her and shrugs. “This isn’t about not wanting kids, is it? No, this is about you being afraid of what could happen to Hannah during childbirth. What happened to Jenny won’t happen to Hannah, you have to know that?”

  Jenny, how could I have forgotten? Colin’s older sister died six years ago, giving birth to her son. It was a tragedy, one that Colin has never gotten over. But it was no one’s fault. Jenny had an underline heart condition that was never diagnosed, that’s what killed her, not the baby. Colin had nothing to do with the child for three years, and he still doesn’t see the boy often. Colin doesn’t blame the child for Jenny’s death, but he does find it hard to love him the way he knows he should.

  “You don’t know that, Ember. You don’t know what it would do to me if I lost Hannah.”

  “I know how much you love Hannah, Colin. I also know it would kill you to lose her, but don’t you see, you’ll lose her anyway if you don’t support her on this. Whether you want her to have the baby or not, the fact is that she’s pregnant, and she needs you. Hannah loves you more than anything, and if you want her to get an abortion while we’re in London, then that’s what she’ll do. But I want you to understand that there will be no coming back from it, Colin. Things between you will never be the same. I also want you to know this. You will not lose Hannah because I know you’ll take every precaution to make sure she’s healthy. You will be a wonderful father, Colin, just as you’re a wonderful husband. When that baby arrives, you won’t even remember your life before they came into it.”

  I see the tear fall from Colin’s eye right before Saint catches my attention. He looks at me while biting the inside of his cheek. He feels as awkward as I do right now. But no one is saying anything because we’re not as good at this shit as Ember obviously is.

  “But what if I can’t love my child, Ember? What if I treat my child the way I’ve treated Theo all these years?”

  Ember wraps her arms around Colin. “Oh, Colin. I know how much you love Theo deep down. He loves you too, and all you have to do is tell him that you love him and everything will be okay. As for your baby, you won’t be able to stop yourself from falling in love because that child is you and Hannah. I know you’re scared, but we’re all here for you, Colin.”

  I watch Ember pull away from Colin and cup his cheek. “Whatever you need, I’m here for you don’t ever forget that. Now you need to be honest with Hannah about how you’re feeling. She will understand, Colin.”

  “She’s never gonna forgive me, Ember,”

  “Of course, I will,”

  Everyone looks over to see Hannah standing by the bathroom door. I’m not sure how long she’s been there, but it seems she heard most if not all of what was said.

  Ember gets out of her seat, allowing Colin to pass. “Hannah, I’m so sorry,”

  I’ve seen Colin cry maybe twice in the years I’ve known him, but he’s openly crying as his wife wraps her arms around him. “It’s okay, baby. I should have realized what was wrong. I’m sorry that I didn’t, but I do understand.”

  I watch Colin pull away from Hannah slightly and take her face in his hands. “I love you more than anything in this world, and I will love our baby too. But I am terrified, Hannah. I’m scared that I’m gonna lose you. I don’t know who I am without you.”

  “I can’t make you promises, Colin, but I can tell you that I will do whatever it takes to make sure we’re all okay. People have babies every day and have done since the dawn of time. Yes, some lose their lives while they give life to another, but it’s rare, Colin. Jenny was unlucky, but she had a heart problem, and nothing could have saved her.”

  “I know,” Colin kisses Hannah’s head and holds her in his arms. “We’ll be okay,” He mumbles repeatedly.

  I retake my seat beside Ember and take her hand in mine. “The drama,” I sigh dramatically with my eyes closed.

  Ember chuckles and kisses me. “Let’s hope that’s the last of it for a while,”

  Ever heard the saying, ‘Pigs might fly’? Yeah, it’s one of those moments.

  It didn’t take long for Ember and me to fall asleep. The moment Ember laid her head on my shoulder, I closed my eyes and drifted off. However, a huge bang has me jolting upright in my seat. I look around the aircraft and see that everyone is doing the same thing, looking around and wondering what the hell happened.

  Ember clutches my hand, and I can feel the panic falling from her as her chest rises and falls. “What’s going on?”

  “I don’t know, baby, but I’ll find out.”

  Just then, Sally comes rushing toward us. “Everyone, please don’t panic, we’ve just hit a snag,”

  “A snag?” Caren snags. “Don’t fob us off, and tell us the damn truth!”

  Sally opens her mouth, but the plane starts to nosedive. Hannah screams, and Ember holds onto me tightly.

  “Ladies and gentlemen,” The pilot’s voice comes through the loudspeakers. “Please fasten you’re seatbelts and prepare for an emergency landing.”

  “Marco,” I wrap my arm around Ember and pull her against me. “What the hell is happening?”

  “I don’t know,” There is so much talking going on behind me, everyone is scared of what’s about to happen. The fear inside of me is something I’ve never experienced before, and I’m terrified that we’re not going to make it out of this alive.

  The lights suddenly go out, and each woman screams. I look out of the window beside me, and notice that the front of the plane is on fire!

  I wrap my arms around Ember and hold her as tightly as I can. I kiss her head as she whimpers against me. I want to tell her that everything will be okay, but I can�
��t because it would be a lie.

  Dun’s Dungeon is now officially a rockstar cliché. Each member will die before their time, and all we’ll be remembered for is how we died in a plane crash.

  “Everybody put your seatbelts on, and brace yourselves!” Sally yells over the noise of the engines before rushing off to strap herself into her seat.

  “Marco,” Ember takes my face in her hand. “I love you!” She yells. The sound of the plane hurtling to the ground is deafening. My stomach is turning over, and the terrified screams coming from Hannah, the panic of my friends, is drowned out because I need to hear Ember. If I am to die right now, the last thing I want to see and hear is my girl.

  Ember was almost my wife; we almost had a perfect life. How is it that we’re going to die without ever knowing what our lives could have been?

  Suddenly, I’m wondering what it would have been like to have a child. Ember would have been a wonderful mother. Would I have been a good father? I’ll never know now, and that makes this whole thing worse.

  What could be worse than being killed in an airplane crash, Marco?

  “I love you, Ember.” I press my forehead to Ember’s.

  “I’m so scared,” She sobs in fear, then screams again when another loud bang rocks the plane. We’re going down fast, and there’s not a damn thing any of us can do to stop it.

  “I know you’re scared, but I’m here with you, Ember. I love you,” A tear slips from my eye, and I kiss Ember softly.

  I hear Colin telling Hannah that everything will be okay, and I know he thinks that he’s cursed. After everything he said, all the fears he had about losing Hannah are about to become a reality. Though he’ll more than likely be joining her in death. None of us are going to make it out of this, and I’m not about to lie to the woman I love when she knows it too.

  Smoke starts to fill the cabin, and all I can do is hold Ember. I send a prayer to God, asking him to protect Ember when I’ll no longer be able to. I beg him to take me and let her live. This can’t be it for Ember, she’s too important to too many people. She’s needed here, and as I pray my hardest, my world goes black.