Ashley cries when she sees it. She holds her baby protectively, kissing his forehead as she looks around the room in awe.
“You guys did this for us?”
“Of course,” Stella smiles. “I’m basically an expert renovator now.” She touches the baby’s fingers with her hand and smiles. My heart squeezes and I know that I want her to be the mother of my children.
Ashley glances at me and then nods to her son. “You want to hold him?”
Panic flutters through my chest. “Oh, I don’t think, I couldn’t—”
She thrusts her baby into my arms. I hold him gently and my entire body melts. The little boy looks up at me with Liam’s green eyes and I look at the two of them, shaking my head.
“He’s beautiful,” I sigh. Stella smiles at me, and I bounce the little boy in my arms. He looks up at me, wriggling in my arms. I swallow and hand the baby back to his mother. Ashley kisses his forehead, and Liam kisses hers.
I put my arm around Stella and we walk out to the living room. Apart from the low volume on the TV, the only sound in the room is my beating heart.
I kiss Stella’s temple. “I want one of those,” I say into her ear.
Her eyes widen. “You do?”
“With you, yes.”
She looks at me as her eyes start to mist up. Then, she takes a deep breath. “Well, I’m glad to hear that. I haven’t quite known how to say this… I went to the doctor a few days ago because I’ve missed a couple periods.”
My heart starts to race and I frown. “What?”
She bites her lip. “Remember the first time… when the condom broke?”
“It broke after I took it off.”
“I don’t think it did,” she says as a smile starts to break across her face. “You sure you still want a baby with me?”
I don’t think I’ve ever felt true joy until that moment. I pick her up and spin her around the room, laughing and smiling until my whole face hurts. She laughs as happy tears stream down her face. I put her back down and kneel in front of her, resting my forehead against her stomach. She tangles her hands into my hair and holds me close until a gasp comes from the hallway.
Ashley and Liam are there, staring at us. They’ve left the baby in the nursery and are looking at us, putting the pieces together.
“Stella, are you…?” Ashley’s mouth hangs open as she looks at the two of us.
Stella smiles, nodding. “You’re going to be an aunt.”
A noise that can only be described as a squeal comes from Ashley, and in an instant her arms are around the two of us. Liam finally cracks a smile and extends his hand towards me.
“Get ready for some serious pregnancy hormones,” he grins. Ashley smacks his arm, laughing. I hold Stella in my arms and run my hand over her stomach.
I’m going to be a father. My life has completely transformed. I’ve met the woman of my dreams and realized what an ass I’ve been. My priorities have completely changed, and I couldn’t be happier.
Stella makes a noise and reaches for the TV remote, turning the volume all the way up.
“… and John Hansen will be charged with money laundering. A federal investigation has revealed that the contractor was using multiple shell companies to launder money for an organized crime network that spans across five states. He is expected to face at least thirty years in prison. Sources say that the former mayor of Denver, Adrian Maguire, was instrumental in providing evidence to bring Hansen to justice. The trial is expected to start next month.”
Stella glances at me, wide-eyed. “Money laundering. Did you know about this?”
I snort, shaking my head. “They’ve brought me in for questioning a few times, but never answered any questions I had about the case.” I blow the air out of my lungs and shake my head. “I can’t believe I made a deal with him. Holy shit.”
“You could have gotten in so much trouble if you hadn’t cooperated.”
“Good thing I had a good lawyer,” I grin, putting my arm around her.
“You guys staying for dinner? We need to celebrate the fact that our son will have a new best friend.”
Stella glances at me as a smile spreads across her lips. She nods. “We’d love to.”
I look around at them and realize that not only have I met the love of my life and I’ll soon be a father, but I’ve gained an entire family. By caring about more than myself and my career, these people have forgiven me, taken me in, and accepted me as one of their own.
Settling onto the couch next to Stella, I put my arm around her. Liam hands me a beer. He gives me a half-smile and I nod to him. Bit by bit, our relationship is healing. Bit by bit, as I continue to make amends, I prove to myself and to my new family that I’m worthy of their friendship, their acceptance, and their love.
Stella leans against my chest and lets out a soft sigh. “I love you,” she says quietly. She glances up at me, smiling.
“I love you too, babe. You saved me from myself.”
“You’ve done the hard work,” she smiles. “I just helped you find the way.”
I kiss her gently, running my fingers along her jaw and sighing.
One thing is certain: no governor’s office or White House could ever make me as happy as I am right now. Stella is the only one that can make me better, and finally make me whole.
* * *
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Acknowledgments
Ruined was so much fun to write! It flowed out of me so easily after having a hard time getting Corrupt on the page. I loved seeing Adrian come alive, and was happy to be able to write his redemption. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.
Thank you to my editing team—you are both rock stars and very patient with me.
To my beta readers, Melanie and Renee, your typo-blasting skills are invaluable.
Thank you to my ARC team. Your comments and messages make this whole process so much fun.
And of course, thank you to Mr. Monroe, who puts up with my particular brand of crazy.
* * *
His Vow
The Protector Series: Book 1
1
Zane
As our car approached the meeting point, I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. It wasn’t nerves, exactly. It was more like a string of tension that pulled my spine straight. Undercover operations were high-risk, and this one was more dangerous than most.
The men I was meeting were armed, vicious, and not afraid to exact revenge whenever and however they wanted. The Russians were known for being remorseless. I’d met some Russians during my time in the Marine Corps, and they were not men that I wanted to cross.
…and that was exactly why I wanted to meet them. I’d fought hard to be placed on this CIA Tactical Unit after my time in the Marines. I’d even spent three years learning the Russian language. That skill gave me a fast track to the Central Intelligence Agency job that became my post-military obsession.
And now I was here, nearing the end of mission. Everything was going exactly as I had planned.
One man, Senator Nathan Blanchet, would have to pay for what he did to me. Fifteen years in the making, my revenge was going to be sweet, vicious, and fucking glorious.
And now, with the help of these corrupt Russian fucks,
I would finally be able to do it.
Chris, my driver and right hand man, stopped the car outside an old, stately house near Glover Archbold Park. Chris had been in the Marines with me. He knew my past, he knew what was on the line with this operation. He was the only person in the world who knew my past and knew what Senator Blanchet had done to me.
He stared at me as I stared out the window. I knew the area—the Russian Embassy was only two blocks away.
My heart thumped. Fifteen years of hoping, wishing, seething in my own fiery rage—it would all come to a head in the next few weeks. Today was the day that things would finally be set in motion. Senator Blanchet would feel my wrath.
“We’re right here with you, Zane,” the earpiece buzzed. I grunted, ripping it out of my ear. I needed to do this on my own. I could hear the tinny voices in the earpiece as I dropped it in into a hidden compartment in the back seat.
“Zane?” Chris looked at me in the rear-view mirror. His thick, black eyebrows were drawn together in concern.
“They sweep for bugs every time I go near them.” I straightened my tie, avoiding Chris’s piercing blue gaze. It wasn’t exactly true, but it was close enough.
“Those earpieces are undetectable. You shouldn’t be going in there solo.”
“I’d rather be alive and solo than dead with an earpiece.”
I slammed the door behind me and marched towards the big house. A bead of sweat dribbled between my shoulder blades in the muggy, late-August heat. The air felt thick and heavy with summer and the tension of the upcoming meeting. I gripped my briefcase tighter as a sense of calm started to wash over me.
This was it.
This was the moment I’d been waiting for. I’d gained Mikhail Ivanov’s trust as his lawyer, and now I would broker a deal between him and Senator Blanchet that would land them both in prison forever. Today was the day we would start the paperwork that would seal both their fates.
And, if things went the way I hoped, I’d be able to shoot Blanchet myself and blame it on the Russians. No one would blink at a dirty Russian deal gone wrong.
My hand was steady when I rang the doorbell. Years of training in the Marine Corps allowed me to keep my heartbeat slow and my face relaxed. This was another mission, another tour. It just happened to be in my own backyard.
A large wall of muscle opened the door.
“Grigory,” I nodded. My six-foot-three frame looked almost tiny next to the massive Russian. His deep-set, expressionless eyes swept over me. After a few tense seconds, he finally stepped aside.
“Ofis.” He nodded his head down the hallway towards the office, keeping his eyes steady on mine. Even after three years, I wasn’t sure if Grigory liked me or hated me. I was leaning towards ‘hated’.
“Is everyone here?”
“Da.”
Grigory could speak English, but he refused to do it. Three years ago, when I first started the undercover operation, I’d met Grigory in a bar. I’d been tasked with gaining his trust, and that involved vodka—lots of vodka. But as I got drunker, Grigory somehow remained stone-cold sober. He’d put his meaty palm on my shoulder.
“The English language is vague and weak,” he’d told me in his thick, rolling accent. “Just like its people. Speak the language, and you will become it.”
He never spoke English to me again, but I was in. For the next three years, I became Dennis Norton, lawyer and premier counsel to the Russian mob in Washington, D.C. Every bit of trust that I gained was hard-won and even harder to maintain.
But it would be worth it in a few short weeks.
I could still feel Grigory’s eyes on me as I made my way to the office. I heard voices through the thick oak door, and I forced myself to keep my steps measured and my back straight. Showing weakness in here was not an option. I was in the lion’s den.
When I pushed the door open, my heart stopped.
Despite my years of training, I wasn’t prepared for this. A man was sitting across from Ivanov. His name almost slithered through my lips before I stopped myself with a cough. The hatred curled through my chest, gripping my heart like a vice. He didn’t turn to look at me, but I’d recognize him anywhere. I had pictured his pudgy, red face every time I had target practice for the past fifteen years.
Here, in the flesh, was Senator Nathan Fucking Blanchet.
“Mister Norton.” Mikhail Ivanov rose from the tall leather chair behind his desk and spread his arms towards me. “So good of you to join us.” Two men flanked him, as they always did. Mikhail was never unprotected.
My eyes flicked from him to the man sitting across from him. He wasn’t supposed to be here… not yet. I was supposed to have more time to plan, more time to execute. Not everything was in place to catch and convict these corrupt assholes. I cleared my throat.
“Mikhail,” I nodded.
His icy blue eyes glinted as a grin swept across his lips. Mikhail’s bodyguards stayed as still as statues, their faces impassable. They were as tall as me and made of pure, Russian muscle. One of them blinked, but that was the only indication that they were human.
Mikhail Ivanov gestured to the man sitting across from him. “Meet Senator Nathan Blanchet. Senator Blanchet was kind enough to pay us a personal visit today to make sure that all the arrangements are in order. This is my lawyer and good friend, Mister Dennis Norton.”
More like he was kind enough to make sure he gets his fat check.
The Senator’s eyes swung towards me and a glint of recognition flitted across them. I hardened my face, keeping it steady. It had been fifteen years. I was a grown man now, not a seventeen-year-old boy. My hair was darker, I was taller. I’d packed on thirty pounds of muscle. I’d been to war. I looked nothing like I used to.
Still, when the Senator rose to shake my hand, he held it for a moment too long.
“Dennis Norton… Have we met?” His deep trombone voice was still the same—the voice that had penetrated my nightmares for most of my adolescence.
“I don’t believe we have,” I answered, holding his gaze. He nodded, and then dropped my hand.
“Well,” Mikhail smiled genially. “Shall we get down to business? Mister Norton here has made all the necessary arrangements.”
“Mr. Ivanov is ready to place a large order for the weapons and ammunitions in this list, as long as your partners are able to fulfill the order.” I turned my eyes to Blanchet and handed him a paper. A vein in his jaw ticked, and hatred flared inside me.
“My partners are still on board.” He didn’t take the paper. I placed it on the desk in front of him and folded my hands on my lap.
“Yet you’re still unwilling to divulge their names.” I tilted my head.
“What good would that do me? Once I receive my commission, you’re free to trade at will.”
Greedy bastard.
“We’re all in this for the same reason, Senator,” I said. “We all just want to make money. American weapons are highly sought-after. This will be very profitable for everyone, once the vote on Senate Bill 747 goes through.”
“I understand your reservations to giving us your source,” Ivanov interjected in his overly generous way. He smiled. “But one needs… assurances… that the product is satisfactory.”
“I can get you samples.”
Ivanov nodded. “Good.” The two men flanking him puffed their chests, and Blanchet swallowed. He was nervous.
As he should be.
This was just the beginning of the end of his career, his fortune, and his life as he knew it. As soon as he brokered this deal and we caught these guys trading weapons illegally, both the Russians and Blanchet were going away for good. We had enough to arrest the Senator on conspiracy charges, but we needed more. We needed hard evidence.
We needed Blanchet with Ivanov and a bunch of fucking guns. Anything less would be too easy for a good lawyer to wriggle out of.
This corrupt Senator would be going down in flames. If I had my say, he’d be going down with a bullet in his he
ad.
Nathan Blanchet nodded at Mikhail.
Mikhail smiled. “Excellent. We’re agreed.” He leaned back in his chair, and the tension in the room eased. “I hear your daughter is engaged. Congratulations.”
My heart skipped a beat. I had blocked Blanchet’s daughter out of my mind. She was too hard to hate. It was easier not to think about her.
But… Sadie was engaged? Since when? Last time I saw her she was still an innocent pre-teen who cared more about her dogs than she did about anything else.
I swallowed, stealing a glance at Blanchet.
“Thank you.” The Senator’s voice was strained. He smoothed the front of his suit down and shifted in his seat. He wanted to leave.
“And she’s engaged to such a prominent businessman,” Mikhail continued as if he hadn’t noticed anything. He smoothed his tie and folded his hands over his stomach, but his eyes never left Blanchet. “It’s a match made in heaven, as you Americans say.”
“It is.” Blanchet stood, and I resisted the urge to shove him back down in his chair and explain himself. Selling himself to the highest bidder was one thing—but his daughter? This man was worse than the shit under my shoe. He didn’t deserve to have a daughter like Sadie.
Anger flared in my chest, burning bright and hot in my veins. I clenched my fists. Nathan Blanchet nodded at Mikhail, and then gave me a hard look. He turned and walked out without another word. As soon as the door closed, Mikhail started chuckling.
“Shame about the daughter.” He waved the two other men away, and they stalked out the door after Blanchet. “It would have been convenient for her to marry my son, Alexei. I’ve seen her, and she’s a pretty little thing, for an American. Having our families united would have prevented the Senator from doing anything stupid. He’s not the type of man that inspires trust, don’t you think?.”
Ruined: An Enemies to Lovers Romance Page 17
