I turn to May who seems stunned.
“I thought she’d hate me,” She whispers, tears streaming freely down her face. “But she will, when they find out…” she trails off, pain written in her features.
“I wanted to talk about that,” I say, my heart thundering in my chest. I’ve never been so sure of something in my life.
And as I pull out the ring, her eyes widen. “That’s not…” she says, her lovely blue eyes clouding over with confusion.
“I know. The other ring felt like it would forever symbolize the lie, the fake engagement. I wanted a fresh start.” I shift, getting on one knee as her face drops into an expression of shock and joy.
“The world seems to want us together,” I say, wishing I’d prepared an actual speech. But like everything else in my life that has to do with May, I feel like whatever happens will be perfect. “And I want you in my life. No,” I amend, “I need you in my life.”
She speaks up and I listen. “Someone or something wants us to find each other. We were meant for more than we ever even knew.”
“Exactly,” I say, glad she feels the same way, that I’m not just crazy. Maybe I am crazy. Maybe we both are. “Before, I felt crazy for having fallen in love with you so fast. But after I found out who you were, it made sense. I loved you because I always have. Since that time when you were on Katie’s bike and you fell.” Her face lights up and I know she remembers too.
“You skinned your knee and it kept bleeding and you were so scared. Do you remember what I told you?” I ask and she nods, her blue eyes on mine.
“You told me to hold onto you really tight, that I’d be okay.” She’s whispering, her gaze illuminated with the memory.
“And I told you that I’d always be there when you got hurt. That you could count on me to be there.” The memory leaves warmth spreading through every inch of me. And while it all makes perfect sense now, that we were always meant to be, that even then we loved each other, we had to part ways.
She had to chase her own demons. I had to love and lose Amanda to get Grace. But there’s more I need to say. “Everything that has happened to us up until now was preparing us for each other,” I say, lifting the ring. “Will you marry me?”
She hesitates and my heart sinks. She eyes me, then the ring, before her lips part. “For real? Or just for show?” Her eyes light up with humor and I can’t help it. I kiss her.
“For real,” I murmur against her lips as we lazily pull apart.
“This has to be against the rules,” She says, planting a quick kiss on my lips before smiling, “You’re coercing me.”
Amused at her wit and teasing, I ask, “Is it working?”
“Maybe,” she says, opening her eyes to look into mine. “Kiss me again and I’ll tell you.”
I kiss her, this time our tongues meet and it feels like heaven. She melts into me like she belongs in my arms. She fits me perfectly, and there’s nowhere I’d rather be than right here, with her. Forever.
But I end the kiss and pull back a bit. “You’re killing me,” I say, watching the way she shivers as my breath cools her damp lips.
“Oh, sorry,” she says, her face illuminated with joy and humor as she studies me once more. “Yes. Yes, please. I love you.” She leans in and I kiss her, finally feeling like everything is perfect.
“I’m the luckiest man in the world,” I whisper, needing her to know how I feel. I want to tell her everything in my heart, how lucky I am, that this is perfection. But she rises up a bit, her hand wrapping in a fist around the lapel of my shirt as she clings to me.
“Shut up and kiss me,” she says, pulling me closer.
***
THE END
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Irish Daddy: A Mafia Romance
Alana
A shiver shot through me as I walked through the deserted streets on campus towards my apartment in residence. This is absolute madness; I should have left the party a lot earlier, now I’m stuck all alone at 3 AM. I wasn’t even much of a party freak to be honest, but somehow I’m always invited. Of course it was as obvious as daylight that they all just invited me because of my status. You see, my dad is one of the wealthiest men in Boston, Fergus O’Devlin. And just because of that, people seem to think I’m equally well off. They aren’t too wrong about that though. Having a rich father comes with many perks. I’m one of few students with her own apartment, a gorgeous car, which I wish I had right now, and a wardrobe that would make Paris Hilton jealous. Naturally every guy on campus wants a piece of me, but I’m not like most girls. Frankly, unlike most of my peers, I want to stay a virgin until the day I get married, and being shy and conservative doesn’t help either. In today’s day and age, it’s almost impossible to stay innocent, but I’m all about impossibilities and proving society wrong.
I pursed my lips as I tried to stifle a yawn and tears blurred my vision. Just a few more blocks and I’ll be home, then I can crash and burn for the rest of the day. Classes would have to wait; there was no way I would even be remotely interested or awake enough to sit through Dr. Richardson’s 9 AM class. I was about to cross the street to my apartment, when I spotted a black SUV, one I haven’t seen before, but then again, I never really paid much attention, much less walk around campus during the early hours of the morning. I kept a watchful eye on the vehicle and decided to stay on this end of the street until I was well past it before crossing. As I approached the entrance to the residence, I glanced over my shoulder and let out a relieved sigh. I slipped in and hurried to my place. It was pretty much the entire ground floor, or rather two apartments my father had merged into one. The Dean was opposed to it at first, but when my father offered a sizable donation for the upgrade of their football locker rooms and fields, he didn’t think twice.
I dumped my handbag on the kitchen counter, kicked off my shoes and headed straight for my king-sized bed, flopping unceremoniously down on it with a loud satisfied groan.
“Home at last,” I mumbled to myself as I tucked my pillow under my head. The way I felt now, I knew it won’t be long before I dozed off.
I had just started to drift off when hushed voices filled the room.
“Quick, get her!” Someone muttered in a hushed tone.
My body went numb with fear the moment I realized I wasn’t alone. But before I could move, two strong hands had me pinned face down on the mattress.
“No, let me go!” I screamed as he flipped me over on to my back.
I kicked with all my might, but I was no match for him. The masked villain had reached for something in his pocket, which I assumed would be a gun or a knife, so I bucked my hips wildly and tried to push him off. It was then that he hit me with such force it felt as if my head was being ripped off my spine. I could taste blood in my mouth and I groaned in pain. Again, my attacker tugged and pulled me, and then there was a second one who grabbed my feet. The one closest to me smelled like old sweat and whiskey. He stuffed a foul-tasting rag into my mouth before pulling a black bag over my head while his partner tied my feet together. It sounded like cable ties being zipped and tightened far too harshly around my ankles, and then around my wrists. The plastic was literally cutting into my flesh. I tried to fight them but it was impossible, tied up and gagged there was no way I was going to get out of this. My brain was in shambles, I couldn’t form a single thought as panic shot through every part of me.
With my tongue, I forced the cloth out of my mouth and cried, “What do you want with me?”
“Shut up bitch before you wake up the entire fucking campus. One more peep from your sorry little mouth, and I’ll show you exactly what that mouth was meant for,” one attacker ground out.
Terrified, I shut my mouth and tried to stay calm, that’s what a person was supposed to do right? Not to panic, as i
f that was even possible.
Why me? I kept asking myself as he gathered me up and flung me over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.
“I can give you any amount, I swear, name the price…” I tried.
“Shut that fucking bitch up or I’ll gut her myself!” came a disembodied raucous voice of the other attacker sounded.
This can’t be happening, I told myself. It was like movie scene, something I never expected. I decided to stay quiet, but tried to listen for anything familiar, any voices or sounds. Maybe, just maybe, it was a bunch of college kids playing a prank, but there was nothing familiar about these men. The cool air hit my skin as they carried me out, and the next thing I know, I was being dumped ungraciously into a vehicle. The engine revved and the vehicle pulled away, causing me to tumble and crash against the side of the vehicle.
“Get a move on!”
A sob tore through my lungs, but I had this sinking suspicion that my tears would win me no favor. Whoever this was, they were out to either use me for ransom so that my dad can pay some ridiculous sum of money, or they were human traffickers, and I was going to be sold to some pathetic rich foreign bastard, to be his whore.
As we sped off, all hope to be found or saved diminished. It would be at least three hours before anyone discovered I was gone. That is if I was lucky enough for someone to come look for me. By then we could be halfway to the next state. The way my heart was beating felt as if it was going to crush right through my rib cage. I realised I was never going to see the light of day again, and I started to cry hysterically.
“Shut the hell up! Jesus you’re fucking annoying!” one of the hoodlums shouted.
“I don’t want to die!” I cried.
“Well then shut your trap and I might spare your fucking life,” he muttered.
Just then screeching tires, followed by a loud bang sounded. My whole body jerked and I crashed into the seat in front of me. My bones and muscles felt like they were being crushed. My lungs contracted with such force that it felt as if I was suffocating. If I wasn’t bound, my arms and legs would be flailing, but now I was at the mercy of gravity and velocity. As if the cloth over my face wasn’t enough, my world kept flickering from semi-darkness to complete darkness. The only sound that filled my ears was the crushing of metal and glass. Then suddenly, everything stopped and the strong smell of gasoline filled my nose. I frantically tried to move, but to no avail. Out of the blue, two strong hands gripped me under my arms and hoisted me up before tugging the bag off my head.
Oh my god, it was Irish! He worked for my father, it all made sense all of a sudden. He’s trying to play my dad and using me as bait! Frantically I tried to back away from him, hopping with my bound feet until I crashed to the ground.
“Easy Alana, your dad sent me, we don’t have much time,” he said calmly.
“What do you mean we…?”
He snapped the cable ties with a quick flick of his wrist and picked me up, cradling me in his arms, “I would love to explain it to you, but now is not the time,” he interrupted and stalked over to a BMW parked not far from the crash.
Around us the street was deserted, considering the accident I was surprised that no one came out to investigate. Other than the smashed-up SUV, there was no other vehicle involved. From what I could see, they must have swerved out of Irish’s way and hit the barrier on the side of the street.
“Where’s my dad?” I asked instead as he gently put me into the passenger seat.
“Are you hurt anywhere else besides your head?” he asked ignoring my question. But the way he carefully felt down my legs for any broken bones made me feel all warm and fuzzy, despite the circumstances we were facing.
“I-I don’t think so, just my head and my jaw,” I whispered.
“I’ll see to that cut as soon as we are out of harm’s way,” he reassured me and then walked to the wreckage. He pulled a gun out of his jacket. Two shots rang in the air as he pointed it to the injured men, shooting each one at point range in the head. Fear ricocheted through me again and I covered my head with my hands, smothering a scream.
When the driver’s door opened and closed next to me, I looked at Irish, “Who were those men?”
With one hand on the steering wheel, and the other resting casually on the center console as he half leaned to the side, he simply stared straight ahead. The way his brows were drawn together and his lips were set in a tight line, he looked dangerous to say the least. Clearly, he was not going to answer my questions right now.
I pulled the hem of my shirt up and tried to wipe the blood from my face.
“Here,” he said and handed me a handkerchief.
Talk about strange days and weird people, I thought as I patted the cut above my brow and wiped the blood from my face. He just killed two men in cold blood and then he hands me a handkerchief like a real gentleman.
Liam “Irish”
That was too fucking close for words; I should have been there much earlier. I was pissed with myself for almost losing Alana to those fuckers, god knows what I would have done if that was the case. Fergus had trusted me with the safety of his daughter, and not even 12 hours later, she’s abducted.
I drove for about an hour before turning off onto a small dirt road. I stopped the car and got out to pull some branches and leaves across the open path to obscure it from passers-by. If I was going to protect Alana, I was on my own; I couldn’t trust anyone, not even my own men. Fergus’ men were working on clearing his name, his best legal team was on this, but getting past the FBI was no easy task. Look, Fergus was no innocent bystander, he’s a king pin, but so far, he has avoided the Feds, and they haven’t been able to pin him to any of the underground crime syndicates. Until now. The thing is, this current mess was not his doing at all.
A wickedly devised plan by one of the rival gangs had placed his name at the center of one of the biggest scandals to ever hit the city. His hands may be dirty with laundering real estate money, but he never gotten involved in the drug scene. That was one thing O’Devlin avoided at all costs, and now the FBI was hunting him down for just that. Someone who posed as O’Devlin imported illegal drugs and pharmaceuticals and now his name was more tainted than ever. Not even our FBI informant could get Fergus out of this one without being caught himself.
With Fergus in exile God knows where, I am the one to protect Alana, at least for now. Unfortunately for her, and with the current state of affairs, she would not be able to attend college and she would have to be in hiding too. Alana would serve as excellent bait for both the Feds and the Bronx Raiders to lure Fergus out of hiding.
We drove for another hour before pulling up to a cottage. The place stood dissolved into the shrubs and looked like an abandoned shack barely fit for human occupation. To most, it would be a discomforting and sinister place, but it was the only place I had to escape the rest of the world. Ivy and other creepers crawled over the house as if nature itself was trying to hide dark secrets that lay beyond the threshold of this place.
“Why did you bring me here?” she asked confused.
“Because this is the only place you are safe at.”
I had to keep it short at simple. Fergus had worked hard to keep his alter ego a secret from his daughter, and if I had to tell her who her father really was, I doubted that would go down well.
“Well I insist you take me to my father, I’m sure he won’t be impressed if you kept me here,” she muttered and shoved the door open.
I couldn’t help but let out a frustrated breath. She really had no idea what her father was involved in. I casually opened my door and got out, then leaned with my arms on the roof of the car and watched her limp a few feet down the dirt road.
“The moment you get to the open road, you’ll be roadkill sweetheart, those men who came after you are not likely to let you just slip out of their hands like that.”
She carried on walking and I counted down from ten.
“Have you ever heard of the Bronx Raiders?”
The mention of one of the most renowned gangs in Boston made her stop in her tracks. I casually dropped my arms to my sides and circled the car before leaning back against it.
“What are you trying to say Irish?”
I shrugged, “Those are the guys who abducted you tonight, they are out for blood,” I said plainly.
She huddled back until she was a few feet in front of me. She had the same challenging glare in her eyes that her father often wore. Only, her green eyes were more intense against her pale skin.
“Why my blood?” she asked.
“Long story short, they’re after your father, and you’re the only way they can get to him.”
“What the fuck does that mean?” she said raising her voice slightly.
“Mind your tongue.” I scolded and then nodded with my head for her to follow, “Let’s get inside first and I’ll give you the run down.”
“I’m not going into that place,” she protested.
“Then stay out here, but I promise you, it will be much safer in there than out here.”
Without a glance back at Alana, I grabbed my bag from the trunk and headed to the cabin. Home sweet home, at least that’s what I kept telling myself. It wasn’t much, a small cabin with a small nook as a kitchen. To the left was a full bed, and next to the bed, a small door that led to the bathroom. I haven’t been back here for a couple of months, and dust had settled on the furniture. Simple rustic chairs, a small table big enough for two people was about all I owned, aside from the few books I kept on a makeshift book shelf I put together with pallets.
I kept a watchful eye on her as she stood worrying her lips outside. With the weather turning, she wasn’t going to stay out there for long. Leaving her to her thoughts, I carried on stacking logs in the fireplace and getting the food ready for lunch. It had been a long night and an even longer morning. I still couldn’t believe that I lost her at that frat party she was at. One moment she was clinging to a pretty boy, and the next minute she was gone. My first fear was that she was somewhere in one of the bedrooms getting laid.
Seal's Professor: A Military Roommate Romance Page 47
