The Prince and the Pawn

by Reid, B. B.

  With all of our busy schedules, it had been almost three years since I’d seen any of them. It went without saying that I missed them.

  I began to consider how deep in shit I’d be in if I blew off the first game of the season, even though I was the goddamn quarterback, to be with my friends when I yanked open the front door. A woman was standing there in a white trench coat and large rose-tinted sunglasses that covered her eyes. Her hair was pulled back in a neat bun, and behind her, a Bentley and driver waited. In a word, she looked…pricey.

  “Can I help you?” I said a little impatiently when she continued to stand there and stare. It wasn’t unusual for a sports fanatic to find out where their favorite athlete lived, but this woman didn’t look like a fan. No, she looked nervous as hell even though she’d been the stranger to ring my doorbell.

  Tyra had grown curious by now, and I felt her presence hovering just as the woman’s shaking, gloved hands rose, and she slowly removed her sunglasses. Any fear I had of too many years passing for me to recognize the woman who gave birth before abandoning me vanished. I knew before she could find the words to explain who she was.

  “Mom?”

  “For twenty years, I’ve thought of this moment and what I would say. Nothing seems quite adequate.”

  I just stood there, finding it even harder to form words. My father had been dead for seven years, and I hadn’t heard a peep. I’d already written her off, written off the possibility that she would even want me.

  Tyra moved to stand beside me, and with one hand on my arm, soothing the warring emotions inside, she shook my mother’s hand with the other. “I’m Tyra Rees. Why don’t you come in? It’s so nice to meet you.”

  My mother’s gaze flitted to me and then back to Tyra before nodding hesitantly.

  “Tyra, what are you—”

  “If you could give us a moment,” she asked of my mother, who quickly disappeared off to God knows where. She was in for the shock of her life when she saw that I had a son of my own, one I would never abandon. Tyra reached up as if hearing my thoughts and held my face between both hands. “I know that you are scared shitless and angry as hell right now, but I’m here with you, and we’ll get through this together. Do you believe me?”

  I stared at my wife for the longest while. Tyra had given me seven years of bliss and not one moment of doubt, not one moment where I questioned if I’d made the right choice in not letting her slip through my fingers a second time.

  “I believe you.” Remembering how to use my limbs again, I wrapped my arms around her. “I also love you.” My head was no longer heavy with the weight of the crown I’d been born with. Instead, my heart had been filled with a far greater honor—a husband and a father. I wouldn’t fall or fail them now.

  “I love you more.”

  “Good. Because, if this shit with my mother goes south, I’m not helping you clean up your mess.” Hefting her onto my shoulder, I slapped her ass for good measure, making her shriek and giggle before I slammed the front door closed.

  The rest of the world could wait.

  Turn the page for an extended epilogue.

  Manhattan

  “WHAT’S SHAKIN’, CHIEF?”

  Bernie, the building’s doorman, who I’d gotten to know pretty well since Bee and I moved into the penthouse two years ago, smiled at my greeting. I’d only been CEO of NaMara for six months, having spent two years under my uncle’s wing, training for the role after earning my MBA. Once Uncle Thomas felt I was ready, he stepped down and took with his wife with him to Ireland, where he was currently enjoying retirement. Repairing their marriage had taken some time, but without the lies and guilt between them, they were happier than ever.

  “Nothing but my knees if your friend doesn’t bring it home on Sunday,” Bernie replied, reminding me of Vaughn’s game this weekend. I wasn’t much of a sports fan, but I made sure to watch him whenever I could. “I bet two hundred on the game.”

  “Well then, you’re definitely screwed. You should have bet more.”

  I clapped him on the back before heading inside. I was eager to see Barbette, who’d been out of town on business. Bee’s YouTube channel had been just the start, and it wasn’t just because I’d actually flashed my dick to her subscribers. The inspiration women initially sought her out for turned into empowerment, and before I knew it, I found it harder and harder to keep her all to myself. Not without burdening my conscience and not to mention, I was proud as fuck of her.

  I entered the elevator and took the long ride up to the top floor. I was more eager than ever for the summer—for many reasons.

  The doors slid open, and I stepped inside. Bee’s luggage was waiting by the entrance, making me giddy as fuck.

  “Barbette!” I removed my suit jacket and then loosened my tie as I moved deeper into the apartment. “Get your ass out here, woman. Daddy’s home.”

  I waited a moment and then two before she appeared, her blue eyes ablaze. “Do you mind? I almost got your son down to sleep. Now he’s wide awake, thanks to you.”

  Closing the distance, I kissed her like a man who hadn’t seen his wife in three days should. Pulling away for air, I whispered against her lips, “You and I both know he wasn’t counting a single sheep until he saw me.”

  I plucked our six-month-old baby from her arms, and he started bouncing, all happy as fuck, as soon as I got him in my hands.

  “You missed Daddy, Lyric?”

  I stared into his brown eyes as he made random noises and drooled all over himself. It was safe to say that I made some cute as fuck babies. He even had my mahogany hair. I ruffled it as I carried him to the nursery. It was anyone’s guess where Selma, our nanny, had disappeared to. Bee followed me and watched with her arms crossed and a smirk as I struggled to get Lyric’s hyper ass down to sleep. I loved him, but he could be such a cockblocker sometimes. I was eager to celebrate the news Bee had purposely waited until she was boarding our private jet to share.

  “Come here,” I ordered as soon as Lyric finally shut his goddamn eyes. I pulled her down the hall to our bedroom before closing the door. “How are you feeling?”

  “Good,” she said, blushing like we were still eighteen and too stubborn to admit that we were in love. “It’s still early.”

  I rested my hand on her stomach where baby number two was cooking. I made a mental note to contact the builder and request they make the nursery in our home bigger. Lyric was still young, so I didn’t see any need to separate the two of them just yet—extra time for them to bond. Perhaps, I’d tell the contractor in person tomorrow since tonight we were heading to Blackwood Keep for Ever’s birthday party. How long had it been since I’d seen my cousin? I shook the thoughts from my head, focusing on the beautiful woman in front of me now instead.

  “Thank you for this.”

  “You’re welcome. I didn’t think I would be, but I’m pretty excited myself. I hope it’s a girl.”

  “Nah,” I told her as I reluctantly took my hand away and started opening the buttons on her blouse. “It’s a boy, and he’s a junior for sure.”

  Bee stared up at me as if I had shit on my face. “Jameson John Jr.? Are you kidding me?”

  I grinned down at her. “You promised me I could name this one.”

  “But it sounds so backwoods!”

  I kissed her, and she melted in my arms like butter. I didn’t give a damn what anyone thought. That was my kid, which automatically made him epic. I removed her jeans, panties, and bra before pulling her over to our king-size bed. Laying her on the plush comforter, I stared down at her as I slowly removed my clothes.

  “Two down, eight to go,” I told her.

  She stopped me when I tried to climb on top of her. “Jamie, we are not having ten kids. I don’t care how rich you are or how many nannies you hire.”

  Leaning down, I kissed her nose because she was so darn cute when she was mad. “I’m sure we can come to some kind of arrangement. How about nine?”

  “Three.”


  “Eight.”

  She sighed as I settled between her legs. “Five. Final offer.”

  “Deal,” I said quickly, making her eye me skeptically.

  “That was your real number all along, wasn’t it?”

  I lifted her leg into the crook of my arm before sliding inside of her. “Maybe.” She growled, but then it was cut short when I hit the spot deep inside of her. “Fuck, I missed you, Bee.”

  “Oh, yeah? Well, show me how much, and stop fucking me like I’m fragile.”

  I immediately stopped moving as I stared down at her, feigning offense. “It’s called making love.”

  She dug the heels of her pumps into my ass, the only item of her clothing I hadn’t removed, propelling me faster.

  All right then.

  An hour later, we were showered and dressed and kissing our son good night before heading out into the New York night.

  “You look beautiful, baby.” I kissed the side of her neck as I held the door of the limo that was waiting to drive us to Blackwood Keep open for her. “And I can’t wait to make more babies and grow old and gray with you.”

  Bee kissed my lips before pulling back to peer at me. “Are you just sucking up so I’ll agree to the name Jameson John Jr.?”

  I laughed because there was no such thing as getting anything past my wife. “You got me.” Leaning forward, I whispered in her ear. “But you should know…I’d rather go down than suck up.”

  Blushing, she stepped away from me before peeking over her shoulder with heat in her eyes. “Well then, you better get started, Mr. Buchanan.”

  “Right away, Mrs. Buchanan.”

  Eagerly, I followed Bee into the car, pressing the button for the partition before the limo even took off.

  Sunset Bay

  “LICENSE AND REGISTRATION, PLEASE.”

  Peering up from the open window, I forced myself to smile and act normal despite the load of trouble I was undoubtedly in. Sunset Bay, where Wren and I had found our forever home, was a small town. Nothing ever got by anyone. Especially my husband. I had still been adjusting to small-town life when Wren relocated us here shortly after our home in Blackwood Keep became a crime scene. It had been a hard choice, moving away from our friends, but we were all comforted by the fact that there were only a couple of hours separating us. Less depending on traffic. For a while, we’d stayed with Winny, twiddling our thumbs until Wren and I had a long, long talk. And somehow, during that discussion, we both figured out what to do with the rest of our lives. The first step, since we were both high-school dropouts, had been getting our GED.

  “Officer, is something wrong?”

  “License and registration,” he ordered more firmly. Grumbling, I reached into my glove compartment before handing both over. He didn’t even bother looking at them as he pinned me under his glare. “Do you know how fast you were going?”

  “I don’t know, but I’m sure you’re going to tell me.”

  Anger and something akin to retribution flared in the man’s blue eyes. “Sixty-five.”

  “Is that bad?”

  “It is when the posted speed limit is thirty miles per hour, ma’am.”

  “Oh…” I pretended to think it over before snapping my fingers. “Shoot, you know what probably happened? The pedometer on this old thing has been a little trippy,” I said as I patted Paula’s steering wheel. “She’s well past her prime, but my husband loves her.” I pouted then. “Probably more than me.”

  The man’s lips twitched as his brown hair blew in the wind. “I’m sure that’s not even a little true.”

  “Oh, for sure, he does. He waxes her twice a day even if we don’t take her out.”

  “So, this car belongs to your husband?”

  “Maybe.”

  The cop perked a brow as he leaned his forearm on the roof of the car. Inhaling his scent, my panties flooded with arousal, and I prayed I didn’t ruin my pencil skirt. Driving all the way back home was out of the question. “You don’t know how fast you were going, and you don’t know who the car belongs to, but I bet you know that he’ll be pissed as fuck if he finds out you’re speeding around town in his ride.”

  I folded my forearms on the open window and fluttered my lashes. “But I don’t think he’ll be upset, officer.”

  “Is that right?”

  “Yes…because my husband doesn’t have to find out.” Daring to reach my hand out, I ran a finger down his chest, feeling his muscles and heat underneath the white button-up. “I’m sure we can come to some kind of arrangement. The back seat is pretty spacious. My husband and I tested it out a few times ourselves.”

  “I’m sure we can,” he said with a smile, “and it’s Lieutenant.”

  “That’s impressive,” I returned with a smile of my own. Letting my hand trail over his belt buckle and his badge, and then the smooth material of his dress pants, I massaged the bulge growing there. I couldn’t wait to feel it inside of me. “But not as impressive as this.”

  “What will your husband think of you rubbing my dick?”

  “He doesn’t have to know about this, either, Lieutenant.”

  Surprisingly, he gripped my wrist, stopping me from unzipping his pants and pulling him out. I was ready to suck him off through the window somehow if I had to. “Are you sure you have time now, or is there somewhere you have to be?”

  “Shit!” I jerked my hand back inside, remembering that I’d been speeding because I was running late for my first day of work. “Sorry, but I’m going to have to take a rain check.”

  He silently handed over my license and registration before bending down to kiss me deeply. The rest of the world and the fact that I was late faded away once more. “No more speeding,” he ordered before pecking me once more. “I mean it.”

  I placed the side of my hand to my hairline in a mock salute. “Yes, sir!”

  Wren immediately stilled. “Louchana.”

  “Okay, I won’t speed anymore,” I whined.

  “I know you won’t because I’m following you,” Wren announced, already backing away from the Impala.

  “Is that really necessary, officer?”

  “It’s Lieutenant,” he shot back, reminding me of his recent promotion.

  “What’s the difference? All you pigs look alike to me!”

  Shooting a rare and gorgeous smile, Wren simply shook his head as he stalked for the all-black Charger. When he first graduated from the academy, I went from jumping his bones whenever he was in uniform—holy hell, he looked damn good—to giving him a hard time.

  I was so proud of the steps Wren had taken not just to turn over a new leaf but to right the wrongs of his past. Wanting him to feel that same pride I felt, I turned a few leaves myself though it had taken me a whole lot longer. I’d only just recently obtained my master’s degree in social work, and today was my first day on the job. Did I mention that I was already late as hell?

  Still, I sat there for a few moments more, watching Wren climb into his ride. He pulled up beside me and lowered his passenger window, probably wondering why I hadn’t already taken off yet.

  “Race you there?” I joked, making him scowl. “Kidding! See you at home?”

  My husband nodded his head toward the road ahead, ordering me to get a move on. True to his word, Wren followed me while I drove with one hand resting on my belly. I smiled to myself, impatiently waiting for this day to be over so that I could finally tell Wren the good news. He’d been my best friend turned lover and now husband.

  I had no doubt he’d make a wonderful father.

  Blackwood Keep

  I INHALED DEEPLY ONCE AGAIN as I watched the woman outside planting flowers. The small garden surrounding her was beautiful—a hobby, no doubt, that required passion as well as patience. Rosalyn and I were both surprised by her green thumb. It had done her so much good. To focus on something other than finding love in all the wrong places. She’d even come to a few of my races. The biggest thing, however, was when she’d contacted my fathe
r, telling him all about me. The months that followed had been trying. I was still getting to know my father and my younger half brother, but the distance made it somewhat difficult.

  I took another deep breath before forcing myself to step through the sliding door. I’d been so confident about this next step I was about to take that I’d made Ever keep his plans to visit his father in prison. He’d been visiting Sean ever since his father was sentenced to fifteen years for manslaughter. Though harsh, Ever and Wren’s testimony that he had been defending them had kept Sean from facing the rest of his life in prison for murder. He was even up for parole in a few months as long as he kept on his good behavior. After slowly repairing their relationship with their son, Thomas and Evelyn had run away together to Ireland to work on their marriage.

  Hearing me approach, Rosalyn looked up, a soft smile covering her face when she saw me. It had been years, and it still felt like getting hit by lightning. I was buzzing with warmth and just a little bit frazzled. She quickly set down the hoe she’d been using to make a new hole for the flower pot next to her and stood.

  “Four, it’s good to see you.”

  A few small steps, and she was hugging me. I inhaled the floral scent of her hair and wondered if it had always smelled this good.

  “Hey,” I greeted when she finally pulled away. “I hope I’m not interrupting?”

  My hands began to shake as I itched to call Ever. I couldn’t do this. At least, not alone. I needed him.

  “Nonsense.” Noticing my nervousness, she gently pulled me over to the patio table and chairs she’d set out among her plants. “Lemonade?” She gestured toward the pitcher that still had condensation dripping down its sides.