Dangerous Redemption: A Single Parent Forbidden Romance Novel (Paths To Love Book 4)

by Grahame Claire

  When I saw what was inside, my eyes bulged.

  “Your hair looks beautiful,” Muriella said, temporarily distracting me.

  “Wait until you see her in this dress, M. She looks like a queen.”

  “I thought we were just trying things on,” I said, still staring at the dress. “When did you buy this?”

  Vivian slipped the white satin down off the hanger. The skirt flared and the sleeves were long. The neckline dipped into a modest V. It was simple, elegant, and when I tried it on at the store, I’d felt like Cinderella.

  “Oh wait. Go put these on first.” Vivian tossed a silk bag in my direction and shoved me toward the bathroom.

  Inside, I found a white lace strapless bra and matching lace underwear. “You bought me underwear?” I called even as I pulled on the soft stockings.

  “They must’ve thrown them in the bag,” she yelled back. “Have you got them on yet?”

  I’d just clasped the bra and adjusted it in place when Vivian and Muriella barged into the bathroom. Both had changed and had on dresses of their own.

  “He’s going to love that,” Vivian muttered. Muriella smacked her in the arm, and she shrugged. She held open the white dress for me, and I stepped into it. When she zipped me up and spun me to face the mirror, I couldn’t believe what I saw in my reflection.

  With my hair and makeup done, I really did look like a queen. Muriella gently arranged a headband that looked like it was made of diamonds in my hair. Vivian pressed earrings into my palm. My hand trembled as I threaded them through my lobes.

  “You’re gorgeous.” Muriella’s eyes glassed over as she looked at me in the mirror.

  “You haven’t even seen the shoes yet,” Vivian said.

  “You didn’t?” I asked as she rushed from the room.

  “I so did,” she said when she returned with the box.

  Nestled on a bed of tissue were diamond crusted heels. They were exquisite, something made for royalty.

  “You look too good not to show you off,” Vivian said once I had the shoes on.

  They each took my hand and half dragged half led me from the room. Vivian looked down at my feet once we were in the lobby.

  “Sorry about the stairs,” she said unapologetically.

  We burst into the stairwell, and at the top Gabriel was waiting for us in a suit. Dots I had already begun to form connected.

  “Oh my God,” I whispered.

  “Hey, Mama,” Gabriel said cheerfully. “You’re so pretty.”

  “Thank you, baby. You look handsome too.” I straightened his bow tie.

  He took my hand in his small one. I swallowed hard, and butterflies took flight in my stomach.

  “Ready?” Muriella asked as Vivian pushed open the door to the rooftop deck.

  It had been transformed into a winter fairy garden. There were lights and flowers strung everywhere. It was perfect.

  My feet wouldn’t move when I caught sight of Carlos. He stood at the end of the aisle his dark eyes locked on me. In a suit, he was devastating, but it was the unbridled love radiating from him and directed at me that had my knees going weak.

  Carlos’s chest stopped moving as Gabriel and I neared him. Once I was at the altar in front of him, he caressed my cheek.

  “You’re perfect,” he said with a reverence I’d never heard before.

  I blinked rapidly, trying not to cry. “You did this?” He nodded. “I thought . . . I thought you’d—”

  “Do you like it?”

  “It’s more beautiful than my wildest dreams,” I said honestly.

  A satisfied smile shaped his lips. “I asked Gabriel for your hand.”

  I couldn’t stop the tear that escaped. He swiped it away with his thumb. This was the most thoughtful man who ever lived. He showed me day after day just how much he loved me and my son. I didn’t care about the things he’d done or the things he would do. He was more than I’d ever wanted or ever thought I’d have.

  “I said he can marry you, Mama.”

  Everyone chuckled, including me.

  “Are y’all going to get married or stand up there and talk all day?” Stone asked.

  I beamed at Carlos. “We’re definitely getting married.”

  Chapter Fifty-One

  Carlos

  “Are you happy?”

  “Crazy happy,” she said. “I still can’t believe we got married.”

  I played with the ends of her soft hair, and she stroked my stomach.

  “I didn’t want you to ever doubt my commitment to you.”

  “I keep thinking it’s not real,” she said in disbelief. “It’s insane. But I know it was the right thing to do.”

  “Heart and head are on the same page?”

  “Getting there.”

  I appreciated her honesty. It would take time for us to build trust, but we would.

  “Donato and Daniel referred me to someone who can help us start the adoption process.” She sat up straight, her palm hot against my chest. “Did you think I wasn’t serious?”

  “No. I-I just didn’t expect it so soon.” She stared down at me with uncertainty. I ran my fingers up and down her spine.

  “This isn’t a trial period. There is no expiration date. Gabriel is my son, and I want it to be legal. For all of us.”

  “He’s already happy. He won’t know the difference. In his mind, it’s the same.”

  “But I will.”

  I sat up and leaned against the headboard. She shifted between my legs and remained facing me.

  “It’s hard,” she admitted. “I’m so used to handling everything myself. What I’ve always wanted for him is right here, but I’m scared it’s too good to be true.”

  I related more than she could ever know. Having her as my wife felt like a dream. I kept thinking I’d wake up and be back in hell. But instead of dwelling on the negative, I focused on what was right here in arm’s reach.

  “Things are changing quickly,” I said. “I’m more afraid than I’ve ever been in my life. Because now I have so much to lose.”

  “We’re not going anywhere either.”

  The reassurance eased some of my tension. I had faith she’d stay with me no matter what, but nothing ever seemed to go as planned.

  “To move forward with the adoption, I have to know who fathered Gabriel.”

  She backed away, and I longed to grab her, keep her in place, tell her she could trust me with her secrets. But she had to learn that on her own. I had to be patient.

  “He doesn’t matter,” she said. “He wants nothing to do with Gabriel.”

  “We’ll likely have to give him the chance to waive his paternal rights. There may be some loopholes, but I want this to go as seamlessly as possible.” The urge to hurt the man crept through me, but I held it at bay.

  “I’m not ready. I’m not sure I ever will be.”

  I hated there were secrets between us. “If we don’t communicate, we’re making our relationship that much more difficult.” She seemed to shrink in on herself, and I couldn’t stand that. “I don’t want to pressure you. You can confide in me in your own time.”

  She pulled a blanket around her. “I know you’re right,” she said, resigned. “It’s all in the past, and I don’t want that to be part of our future.”

  “You know I of all people understand that logic.” Part of me wanted to tell her she didn’t have to do this. Seeing her struggle was beyond painful. All I wanted was to make it stop.

  “What you told me about your life took courage.” She closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths in and out. When she opened her lids, determination had transformed her. “He was charming, and I wanted a prince.” Okay, so maybe I didn’t want to hear every detail. “I wanted to feel special.” She winced and looked away. “That’s so stupid. Saying it out loud makes me realize how foolish I was.”

  “You are neither stupid nor a fool,” I said adamantly.

  “It was one date, but I liked him. I didn’t think if we slept t
ogether it would make him care about me. I just felt a connection and decided to do something for me.” She fisted the blanket. If I hated the man before, I certainly did now. Though if he’d treated her the way she deserved, she wouldn’t be my wife now. Gabriel wouldn’t be my son.

  “After we . . .” She averted her gaze as she trailed off. “He threw me out of his place. Didn’t even offer me a ride home. I couldn’t call a cab because I didn’t know where I was. The police stopped me for walking through a ritzy neighborhood in the middle of the night. At least the officer was nice. I went home in the back of a squad car.”

  Rage flamed underneath my flesh. No one should have treated her that way. She was a beautiful soul. He’d tried to taint that. She was more judicious, but she’d held on to the piece of her that viewed the world as a good place.

  “Why did you tell him about Gabriel after what that piece of shit did to you?” I asked through gritted teeth.

  “He had a right to know.” She sniffed bitterly. “My thanks for that was an accusation I was only after money.” Her jaw set, steel in her eyes. “I’ve never asked him for anything. Not even to claim paternity. There’s only one signature on Gabriel’s birth certificate and that’s mine.”

  The wrath of God was nothing compared to what I would do to that scum when I found out who he was.

  “He’s irrelevant,” I said, determined to erase him from Holly’s memories as best I could with ones where she felt no less than cherished.

  “I'm glad he doesn't want anything to do with Gabriel. That's terrible to say, but my son is so much better off without that man.”

  I didn’t disagree. “Everyone who has a child isn’t meant to be a parent.”

  She crawled onto my chest, and I enveloped her in my arms. “He hasn’t legally claimed Gabriel as his son, but I don’t want to take any chance that he’ll try to take him away later because we didn’t close every loophole. If we have to get his consent for you to adopt Gabriel, he’ll never agree.”

  “How are you so certain? You said he doesn’t want him.”

  “He doesn’t even believe he’s his. But he will use whatever leverage he can find to get what he wants.” She sounded despondent. But Gabriel’s father had no idea who was coming for him. He would sign whatever was required. I’d make sure of it.

  “Do you still communicate with him?” I asked when it occurred to me as if she were speaking of someone she knew instead of a one-night stand.

  “Sometimes,” she said quietly.

  “What does he want?”

  “I don’t know. I’m so afraid he’ll come for Gabriel.” She clutched my side.

  “Why would he do that?” She wasn’t making sense. If he didn’t want Gabriel, then he shouldn’t try to take him away.

  “Because he can.”

  Chapter Fifty-Two

  Carlos

  “I don’t feel good about this.”

  I cupped Holly’s face as we stood outside Donato’s SUV in the parking garage.

  “It’s either this or run. That’s no life for us.”

  I’d set up the meet with Eduardo for later that evening. Holly and Gabriel were spending the night at Donato’s family compound in Connecticut. Muriella had declined to go. She felt safe with Stone and Daniel, and no amount of coercing could convince her.

  “Don’t play the hero. I just want you to come home.” Her stern mom-voice got me every time.

  She kissed the corner of my mouth.

  “We can do better than that.”

  She lifted her chin. “I’m not kissing you like it's the last time.”

  “Kiss me like I'm the man you want to spend eternity with.”

  Her lips were soft as she pressed them into mine. She was in no hurry, yet I felt her urgency when she fisted my sweater and pulled me closer. I splayed my hands on her back and prayed I’d never have to put her in a situation such as this again. Her bravery was inspiring.

  “I love you. You aren’t alone.” She kissed the center of my palm. It was a promise of her commitment to us. She stood behind me, and I was all the stronger for it.

  I returned the gesture and helped her into the back of the SUV. Gabriel was secured in a car seat. I double checked the seat belt before I dug in my pocket. “I want you to have this. Keep it with you.” My mother's rosary fell into his palm, the beads dangling.

  Gabriel studied it for a second and then held it out to me. “You keep it today. I'll take it when you get home.”

  I didn't object, nodding abruptly and shoving the rosary back in my pocket. I wondered for a second if he knew something I didn't.

  I kissed both of their foreheads. “I love you.”

  “I love you too, Daddy.” Would I ever get used to those words?

  “I’ll see you tonight.”

  Closing the car door was one of the hardest things I’d ever done. I slapped the roof of the car twice and watched until the taillights faded. It was time to end this part of my life once and for all.

  * * *

  “Sabotage” by the Beastie Boys blared through the speakers in Muriella's Range Rover. I couldn't picture her listening to music like this, let alone at this volume, but this was part of my ritual. In the noise, I found solace and could focus on what I had to do. I didn't particularly want to end Eduardo’s life, but I wouldn't lose sleep over it either. It was the repercussions that would keep me up at night.

  It seemed as if I’d only been in the car long enough to play the song once when I stopped it a few blocks from Daniel’s warehouse under a busted streetlamp. I felt at my calf, confirming the knife strapped against my skin. I cocked my gun, made sure it was loaded, and shoved it in my waistband. Another gun with a silencer went into the front of my dark slacks.

  I briefly clutched the rosary, praying for protection. That Holly and Gabriel and Muriella would be safe, and I would be granted another day with them. I thanked my mother for what time I'd had because these past few weeks had been the best of my life.

  I crossed myself and stepped out of the car onto wet pavement, darkness surrounding me, sucking me into its cocoon. This was it. The beginning or the end.

  Chapter Fifty-Three

  Holly

  Please come home. Please come home.

  I paced the foyer of the monstrosity of a house, wearing a path in the marble flooring. Carlos would be out late, yet I couldn’t stop myself from waiting by the door.

  “I made some tea.” Valentina set a serving tray on a table between two wingback chairs positioned near the staircase.

  She poured each of us a cup and sat. “I’ve spent more nights in this foyer than I care to admit.”

  I stopped, and she offered me a teacup.

  “Why do you think I put a seating area right here?” She pointed toward the parlor just off the foyer. “From this position, I have a perfect view of the driveway.”

  I looked out the window and found she was right. Standing, it wasn’t as clear, but when I took a seat, I’d see headlights as soon as they were visible.

  “How do you stand this?” I blew on my tea before I took a sip.

  “It never gets any easier. Sometimes I wish I would’ve gone through with the arranged marriage my father set up. Then I wouldn’t have cared if he came home or not.” She winked, and I wasn’t sure if she was serious.

  “Your father arranged a marriage?” That was something from distant history, wasn’t it?

  She smirked. “He should’ve known I never did what I was told. I warned him not to pay for a wedding. Did he listen? No. It’s not my fault all of it went to waste.”

  “You left him at the altar?”

  “For that, I would’ve had to show up. My parents were furious when I told them I was already married . . . until they found out who their new son-in-law was.” She casually sipped her tea, though there was a youthful mischief in her eyes.

  I wondered what it was like to have a family who was there, even if they were doing meddlesome things like arranging a marriage.


  “Carlos doesn’t want this world, but he’s stuck. It’s all he’s ever known. But you can help him get out.” She spoke as if she knew him well, though I supposed in a way all men in organized crime had similar traits.

  “Does it bother you? The things Donato has to do?” I didn’t really know what those things were, but I had my assumptions.

  “I trust him with my life, our family’s safety, and to do what’s best. When we go to bed at night, it’s the boy I fell in love with who holds me and the world is a better place because he’s in it.”

  When I was with Carlos, it was the same. If it wasn’t, I wouldn’t be with him. For some reason, I felt I should have more of a conscience about what he’d confided in me about the past. And he hadn’t spelled out what was happening at this moment, but I knew. If it would make us safer, I wasn’t sure how much I cared, and I didn’t know how to come to terms with that.

  My phone vibrated in my lap. An unknown number flashed on the screen, but I answered immediately in case it was Carlos.

  “Holly, it’s me.”

  A pit formed in my stomach. “Where are you? You need to turn yourself in and get some help.”

  “I can’t. They’ll kill me.” There was less swagger in Jason’s voice than usual. He didn’t have that angry edge either. “I can’t talk long. I wanted you to know I’m okay, but I have to disappear for a while.”

  Where was the demanding attitude? He almost sounded sober.

  “You have to stop this,” I said. “It’s not too late to start over.” I wished he would.

  “I’ll call when I can,” he said, glazing over my advice. “Give Gabriel a kiss for me.”

  Who was this person? He sounded nothing like my brother of recent years.

  “Please stay away from those people.”

  “I gotta go.” There was a stretch of silence, and I thought he’d hung up. “Thanks, Holly. I know I’ve been a pain. All you’ve ever tried to do was help me.”