The Devil's Own- Cassidy's Story
Page 17
“I can’t believe this is finally happening.” Even when they had watched the groundbreaking ceremony at the end of last year, she hadn’t thought it would get passed by all the committees. A great deal of money had been seized from the Bowker Street Devils’ gang after the trial. Not long after that, the police had managed to close down the Creed brothers, too, releasing more bank accounts. Some of the money was used to secure the land around the motel. It was early days yet, but what was once a war ground was going to be salvation for many of the poverty-stricken families in the area.
Ryker looked up at her and she could tell he missed the place almost as much as she did. Though why either of them felt anything but contempt for that motel she didn’t know. The trial had been long, and their resettlement was not easy. Only after two years away did she feel like she had stopped looking over her shoulder.
Tiny cries came from the other room, but were almost immediately replaced by gurgles. A few moments later, Liam appeared at the door with their newborn daughter wrapped in his arms. He’d been watching her sleep, and was there to comfort Lily when she woke.
“You’ll spoil her.” Cassidy said, taking the two-week-old infant from him and kissing him on the cheek. “I’m the one that will have to take your place on guard duty when you go back to work next week.”
Liam put the baby in her arms and lowered his head to kiss her. “I can’t help it. She’s so tiny, so fragile. What if she stops breathing?”
Cassidy patted his cheek. “She won’t. Lily is healthy and strong, and putting on weight. She is going to be fine. You need to let her sleep by herself, or we will never have any peace.”
But Cassidy couldn’t be too mad with Liam. Lily had been born five weeks premature, and had some complications for the first few days. She’d been so damn tiny, weighing just four pounds. The two of them had both sat vigil at the hospital for the first thirty-six hours.
This parenting thing was still new to the both of them, and Cassidy wasn’t sure whether either of them had the skills to bring up their daughter—but they were both determined to give her everything they never had.
Cassidy knew she was way too young to be bringing up a kid. Ryker had taken great pains to tell her that after he flipped out when she told him she was pregnant.
Jesus, that had been a rough few weeks, too. Ryker was so pissed at Liam getting her knocked up that she thought her brother would never forgive him. In hindsight, it was a miracle that she hadn’t been caught sooner.
Since that first night she’d slept with Liam, after she had run away from Kane Munch, they had never used any contraception, and since he’d joined them in their exile four months after they had been put into witness protection, they hadn’t left each other alone.
Even though she only gave birth two weeks ago, they were already finding ways to be intimate again. Though Liam had insisted that until she sorted out birth control, they’d have to find other methods to satisfy their lust for each other.
Liam looked from Lily to Cassidy. “You thought any more about my proposal?”
“Didn’t we agree to talk about this in a couple of months?”
Liam furrowed his brow. “Why do we have to wait?”
“Because…” They’d been over this.
Liam had proposed to her so many times. The first time was the night she told him they were expecting Lily. But each time Cassidy refused. She wanted to marry him, of course, but she didn’t want it to be just because of the baby. Besides, she always fantasized about having a romantic wedding—a white dress, a bouquet of gardenias, the two of them reciting their vows in some beautifully romantic location. Nothing big, just her, Liam, Ryker, and Falcon—like it had always been. But she did want it to be perfect and not just a dash down to the town hall.
“That’s not an answer, Cassidy. I want Lily to grow up with my name.”
“She has your new name, silly. It’s on the birth certificate.”
“Then all the more reason for you to have it, too.” He fell to his knee and grabbed her hand. “I love you, Cassidy, please marry me.”
“For fuck’s sake, sis, say yes. I can’t stand watching the guy mooching around. And if I hear one more proposal, I think I’m gonna puke.”
Falcon came in through the kitchen door and took one look at Liam on his knees and rolled his eyes. “Fucking hell, is he proposing again? Shit, woman, I’ll pay for your fucking wedding dress if you will just put him out of his misery.”
She chewed on her lip as she looked up at Falcon.
“And I’ll pay for the flowers and even throw in a fancy dinner.” Ryker grinned at her as she wavered.
Liam pulled out an envelope from his back pocket. “I have the license here, all we have to do is sign it, and drop it at the court house. And I have rooms booked in the Outer Banks, we can get married on the beach, looking out to sea. We can drive down there tomorrow, get hitched Friday, and be back in time for me to go back to work on Monday.”
Cassidy looked from one man to the next. “So, you all have this figured out?” They each nodded. “In that case, you need to help Liam mind the baby, Ryker. I have to go pack, and then Falcon you need to help me pick out a wedding dress.”
Liam’s eyes widened. “Is that a yes?”
Cassidy grabbed hold of him and pulled her man in for a kiss. Finally, she stepped back. “Yes, Liam, that is a resounding, yes.”
Liam’s face turned pale, and he looked at Ryker and Falcon. “Shit, I better book those rooms.”
Ryker’s hand hit his forehead. “You didn’t book?”
Liam shook his head, sheepishly. “I never thought she’d say yes.”
Cassidy laughed. “Well, we could always make it next week.”
Liam pulled out his phone. “No way. I’m not going to let you change your mind. I’ll make this happen.”
While Liam walked away, talking down into the phone, she wondered how this man always managed to do that. When she left Chicago to go into witness protection, she thought she’d never see him again. But his parting words before she left for the airport had been, “I’m going to come and find you,” and Liam kept that promise. It took four months for him to do it, but he’d made that happen, too.
“In that case, Falcon, you need to give me money for that dress.”
Falcon grinned at her. “Come on, then.” He took out his wallet. “How much do you think you’ll need? Twenty?”
She snatched the wallet from his fingers and rifled through. Jesus, this guy always had a stack of bills in his wallet. Sometimes Cassidy wondered whether Falcon had left their old life behind or not. Tugging out a few hundred dollars, she handed his wallet back to him. “Don’t worry, I’ll keep it under five hundred.”
“Five hundred? Shit.”
But Cassidy was already heading to the door.
When they’d all left the police station two years ago, she thought she’d never be happy again, but now she had a new life with her soon-to-be husband and their darling baby girl, and she couldn’t be any more grateful for leaving Bowker Street behind.
The End
The Devil’s Own is part of the Hell Bent series releasing across 2020
Although standalone stories, the suggested Reading Order for die-hard fans and those that hate the chaos of reading a series out of order, is…
The Devil’s Own (1)
See No Evil (2)
Highway To Hell (3)
Also by Angela Stevens
Contemporary Romance Series
Thrill Of The Chase Series
Catching Saul
Catching Gabe
Catching Nate
Catching Luke
Catching Noah
Catching Adam
Thrill Of The Chase: The Complete Series Box Set
Adult Steamy Romance
Hockey Punk Series
Changing On The Fly
Spin-O-Rama (Book 2)
Dump And Chase (Book 3)
Yard Sale (Book 4)
Home Ice Advantage (Book 5)
Light The Lamp (A companion Novella and prequel) Get this novella free when you join Angela Steven’s Romance subscribers on her website www.AngelaStevens.Net
Hockey Punk: The Complete Series Box Set
New Adult Sport Romance
Hockey Boyz Series
Hat Trick (1)
Game Over (2)
Shut Out (3)
Romantic Suspense
Hell Bent Series
The Devil’s Own (1)
See No Evil (2) coming Soon
Highway To Hell (3) Coming Soon
Multi-author Hot Hunks Contemporary Romance Series:
Angela Stevens is one of the regular Hot Hunk authors and has a series within a series…
Nolan’s Resolution (1)
Miles' Christmas Round Up (2)
Logan’s Blind Date Curveball (3)
Contemporary Romance multi—author sets: Winning At Love Boxed Sets:
Love Defines Me
Love Never Stops Winning
Love Me Deeply
Author’s Billboard boxed sets:
Angela Stevens is now a member of the Author’s Billboard Group and you can find her work in the following Boxed sets to be released in 2020
Unforgettable Joy (featuring Catching Gabe)
The Players #2: All Or Nothing (featuring Game Over)
Urban fantasy
The Vargr Clan Trilogy
The Wolf You Feed: The Vargr Clan Trilogy (Book 1)
Hold On: The Vargr Clan Trilogy (Book 2)
An Unbreakable Will: The Vargr Clan Trilogy (Book 3)
The Splits In My Skin (A bonus short novella telling Johan’s story) Get this novella free when you join Angela Steven’s Fantasy subscribers on her website www.AngelaStevens.Net
Vargr Clan Spin Off Series
The Black Walker Warrior Novels
Blood Or Destiny: A Black Walker Warrior Novel (Book 1)
Blood Brothers: A Black Walker Warrior Novel (Book 2)
Multi- Author Projects:
Acknowledgments
I would like to thank my wonderful editor, Kim Burger from Grammar Owl, who works tirelessly to marry my English heritage with writing for an American audience, as well as my proofreader, Maggie Truelove, who has done a marvelous job in catching those tricky blighters that slip through the net. Without them this project would not look so polished.
About the Author
Angela Stevens is the author of steamy contemporary romance and contemporary fantasy.
A sucker for emotional happily ever afters, she devours romance books at the rate of three a week. When she isn’t reading romance, she also loves indulging her freaky side and feeding her inner nerd with contemporary fantasy and magical realism.
Although British born, Angela has adopted America as her home and has resided in Northern Virginia since 2004. Since moving to the US she has become a rabid fan of ice hockey and can often be found rocking the red and cheering on her beloved Washington Capitals team. Her extreme love of hockey and a passion for emotional romances led to the creation of her first romance stories, Hockey Punk Series (formally known as The Cocktail Series).
Whether you pick up one of her romances or fantasies you will be treated to strong characters and emotional journeys. Find out more about Angela Stevens romance books at her website