by Naomi West
“Just got off the phone with her; she’s really making it her own,” Pierce grinned, feeling a swell of pride in him. “She’s doing just fine. She’ll leave quite a mark on the MC, that’s for sure.” He couldn’t have left it in better hands; Razor would do more for the MC than Pierce ever could have.
Felice chuckled. “That sounds about right.”
The office was massive, lined with books and Felice’s awards and photos of the three of them. A huge desk sat in the center of the room. The decor was solid white with hints of rich, honey-colored wood, much like their whole home. Felice insisted on keeping everything white, even though they had to hire extra help for Paula the maid to keep all of the whites white with a toddler running around the place.
The entire back wall was giant picture glass windows, displaying an amazing view of the city. Sunset across the city, lights popping up like desert flowers after the rains.
“Felice certainly knows how to intimidate people with the decor.” Pierce glanced around, feeling very small inside of this massive office, just as Felice wanted to make people who came here feel.
Heedless of her spotless, white suit, Felice picked up Lenny out of the stroller, wrapping her arms around him and planting a huge kiss on his forehead. Lenny squealed with delight as Felice stepped forward to give Pierce a kiss, too.
Fire burned along his veins, even at that gentle brush of lips. Being a parent hadn’t diminished any of Pierce’s feelings for Felice; in fact, he was pretty sure he wanted her more than he ever had. There was something deeply erotic about a woman who did it all, yet still made time for him. He could tell the kiss affected her, too; she looked up at him through her lashes, a slight blush creeping along her cheekbones that lit up her perfect face.
“And whose birthday is it today?” Felice asked Lenny, her face pressing in close to his. Lenny made a high-pitched noise and Felice laughed in return, the sounds filled with incredibly joy. “That’s right. Baby Lenny is one year old today!”
Pierce chuckled. “Baby Lenny asked for something very specific for his birthday in the car just now; do you know what it was?”
Felice grinned at Pierce, her eyes glittering like emeralds. “Please tell me you didn’t get him a puppy or a kitten; it’ll ruin the carpets.”
“Nope, even better than that.” Pierce reached into his pocket, pulling out a small box about the size of his hand. The outside had been doodled all over with Lenny’s distinctive art style, covered almost entirely in marker scribbles.
“Wait, is this for me?” Felice said, her brows furrowing. “Oooh, did you decorate this all by yourself?” Felice kissed the top of Lenny’s head, turning the baby to set him back down in his stroller. She smiled, taking the box in her hands with a gentle smile.
“Lenny wanted to get you something for his birthday.”
Felice chuckled. “I hope it’s a drawing,” she said, her eyes glowing as she opened the box. As soon as she saw what was inside, however, her face lost all trace of emotion. For a moment she seemed to stop breathing, for that second, the whole world stood still. Pierce got down to his knees as tears started to spill down Felice’s face. With a quiet, tearful solemnity, Felice slid the little diamond engagement ring out of the box and admired it for a moment, before very firmly slipping it onto her finger.
“I know you’re busy with the business, but Lenny and I were hoping that we could still find some time in your busy schedule for a wedding.” Pierce said from the ground. “Then we’d be a real family.”
Felice was crying so hard, she couldn’t speak, her green eyes lit up from the inside with a glow Pierce had never seen before. Throwing herself to the ground in front of Pierce, she threw her arms around him, her lips kissing his face frantically. “Of course I will, Pierce. Of course I will.”
And in that moment, Pierce knew what unbridled joy felt like.
THE END
***
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Bonus Book #1: RIP ME: A Dark Romance
By Naomi West
I’M ABOUT TO RIP HER TO PIECES.
What is a woman like her to a man like me?
Usable.
Disposable.
Cheap.
I’ve claimed hundreds of girls and I’ll claim hundreds more.
Most nights, I take home whichever hot little b*tch tickles my fancy.
A little fun, a little f*ck, and then boom – tossed aside.
Never to be seen again.
But this sure as hell isn’t most nights.
There’s no room for error, no time to relax.
There is only the job at hand.
When you’re in a line of work like mine, people don’t take kindly to mistakes.
In fact, screwing up this job is pretty much guaranteed to cost me my life.
Which is why I get so pissed when she walks back through the door.
She shouldn’t be here.
She shouldn’t have seen the things she saw.
Heard the things she heard.
But it’s too late now. In this life, there is no escaping the consequences of our actions.
She f*cked me up.
And now it’s time for me to do the same to her.
Chapter One
Liv
I took a deep breath, frowning down at my suitcase and wondering if there was anything I was forgetting. To take a spontaneous trip had seemed like a good idea at the time that I had booked it, but now that I was supposed to be leaving that night, I wasn't so sure anymore.
“More shirts,” I muttered under my breath, moving already towards my dresser. But when I returned to the suitcase with the shirts in hand, I paused, looking down at the things that I already had packed. I wasn't sure that I could fit more shirts, was the thing — and I wasn't sure what to take out so that I could add more shirts.
I sighed and put the shirts down on the bed, continuing to frown down at the suitcase. Finally, I threw my hands up in the air. If I was missing anything, I would just have to go shopping when I arrived. It wasn't as though I wouldn't be able to find the things that I needed; it wasn't like I was going to someplace in the middle of nowhere.
I took a deep breath and flipped my suitcase closed, pulling the zipper around it. Then, I glanced at my watch — right on time. My taxi would be there soon.
I dragged my suitcase down into the front hall and out onto the front porch. And there was the taxi, just pulling in. I pulled the door closed behind me, checking to make sure that it was locked, and then I slipped the spare key under the front mat, where Rip and I had agreed it would be.
I still wasn't entirely sure about leaving my home to a stranger while I was on my trip, but I could use the little extra money. And anyway, I'd heard all sorts of great things about AirBnB. Rip and I had chatted a few times, both through the site and over the phone, and he seemed legitimate. Besides, he only planned to stay for a night. What was the worst that could happen?
The taxi driver honked the horn, and I rolled my eyes, carrying my bag down to the car. “Yes, yes, I'm coming,” I muttered under my breath, wondering for the thousandth time what I was forgetting. I ran through my mental checklist one more time and shook my head, reminding myself yet again that it was all right to forget things.
I got in the taxi and slammed the door shut behind me, giving one last passing glance toward my home.
At the airport, I grabbed my bag and shuffled past the ticketing counter, amazed at the length of the line, and over to the security line. It was a good thing I had printed my ticket at home; otherwise, I would have definitely been late for my flight with a line like that!
The security gua
rd took one look at my ticket and frowned, though. “You're going to need to go talk to the ticket agents about that flight,” he told me in a bored monotone.
I shook my head. “I already checked in and everything online,” I told him. I peered at my ticket as he handed it back to me. “Is there something wrong with my ticket?”
“The ticket's fine,” the man said with a small shrug. “But your flight's been cancelled. You'll need to talk to the ticket agents about it.” He pointed back in the direction I had just come from, and I suddenly realized why that line had been so long.
I groaned; that was what I got for trying to take this adventure using budget airlines. Outside, it was a bright, sunny autumn day, so it wasn't like weather was a factor here. And I was sure they were going to give me the whole run-around when I got to the front of the line too.
I morosely moved back the way that I'd come and got in line, wondering if this was a sign from the Universe that I shouldn't try to be more adventurous like I'd resolved to be.
A couple hours later, I'd finally reached the front of the line and found out that due to staffing issues of some sort, a number of the airline's flights had been grounded that day. I was rebooked onto a flight for the next day, but when I asked about hotel vouchers or anything like that, the woman only looked nervously at the line and shook her head. It was a budget airline, I was reminded, and these things happened sometimes; we had to expect them…
I knew that Rip was staying at my place for the night, but I supposed it only made sense to go home and try the whole thing again the next day. The house was plenty big enough for both of us, anyway. Anyway, it would give me a chance to check up on him and make sure that he had everything that he needed ... and make sure that he wasn't destroying the place. Even though I knew he probably wouldn't be, I just couldn't seem to shake the feeling that there might be something wrong that I didn't know about.
I was just being paranoid, I knew that, it was just…
Well, it was my home, and I had chosen to rent it out to a complete stranger. The more I thought about it, the more foolish this last-minute trip seemed to be. I wasn't spontaneous. I wasn't adventurous. And trying to pretend to be wasn't really going to change anything.
When the taxi dropped me off back at home, there was a sleek motorcycle parked in the driveway, which I took to mean that Rip had already arrived. I paused for a moment on the front porch, wondering if I should knock or ring the doorbell. But it was my house, after all, and I wasn't going to be the one feeling like a guest there.
I used my key to open the door and entered quietly, setting my things down in the front hall because it didn't make sense to drag them all the way upstairs when I was just going to turn around and leave again the next day.
I could hear Rip in the kitchen talking to someone. As I came closer, I realized he was on the phone. Although I knew better than to eavesdrop on him, the frustrated tone in his voice made me pause just around the corner, listening.
“I know it's a bad idea,” the man growled. “There's a reason no one else wanted the job.” He was quiet for a moment, listening to whoever was on the other end. “Damien, I'm well aware of the risks. But what you seem to be forgetting are the rewards that could come with helping the national president.”
This didn't sound like the responsible individual that I had entrusted my home to. In fact, I wasn't even sure it was the right person. I suddenly had a horrible moment of panic where I wondered if someone else had seen me put the house key under the front mat, if someone else was standing there in my kitchen right now. Maybe I should call the police and report a break-in.
Maybe I should call the police even if this was Rip. It didn't sound like he was planning a birthday party for the so-called national president or anything like that.
I leaned forward, peeking around the corner and into the kitchen. Unfortunately, I happened to make the move right as Rip turned to look toward the doorway, and our eyes met and locked.
It was definitely Rip; I recognized him from the Skype conversation that we'd had. I swallowed hard, wondering just who it was that I had entrusted my house to.
Rip's face turned stormy. “Damien, I'm going to have to call you back,” he said darkly, hanging up the phone as he stalked towards me. I felt like a deer in the headlights; I couldn't even fathom moving. “Well, what do we have here?” he asked.
Finally, with those words, I found myself able to move, and I tried to sprint back the way I had come, towards the front door. But before I had even made it ten steps, Rip caught me, his fingers digging into my upper arms. “Not so fast,” he growled, spinning me back around and slamming me against the wall. The next thing I knew, there was a gun next to my cheek. It wasn’t pointed at me—not yet anyway. But that fact did little to reassure me.
“How much did you hear?”
“Enough!” I stupidly blurted out. I struggled against him and stomped on his foot like we were taught in all of those female safety courses. But whether it was the lack of strength behind the move or the fact that it was done incorrectly, it didn’t seem to faze Rip in the slightest.
His face turned even more shadowed, if that was possible, and he got a tighter grip on me, pinning me against the wall. When he spoke again, his breath was hot against my cheek, contrasting with the coldness of the metal barrel of the gun. There was a click that I knew meant he had the thing ready to fire.
“I don't like the idea of taking hostages,” he said darkly, “but I suppose you've left me no choice. I can't have you going to the authorities and reporting me.”
I wanted to ask just what it was I was supposed to be reporting him for, but I at least had enough sense not to ask that question. “What are you going to do with me?” I asked timidly instead. Better that he take me as a hostage than that he shoot me, which is what I had thought he would do.
“Keep you until you're no longer a liability,” Rip said. “I take it you're Liv?”
“Yes,” I said meekly, still wondering what he could possibly be planning for me. I had a feeling it wouldn't be good… But I didn’t have time to speculate further as he whipped the pistol hard against my temple, cleanly knocking me out.
Chapter Two
Liv
I woke up the next morning to aches in places I had never even known existed — but I supposed that was what happened when you fell asleep sitting up, with your hands duct taped behind your back. I swallowed hard, finding that my mouth was as dry as sandpaper and blinked wearily around the living room. But Rip was nowhere to be seen.
I closed my eyes for a moment, fighting back tears. If only I hadn't been so stupid. If only I hadn't thought that I could entrust my house to a complete stranger. If only I had left at the first inkling that Rip was up to no good. If only…
My phone rang over on the coffee table, and I shifted a little, wondering if there was any way I could answer it with my hands caught behind my back like this. But even if I could answer it, what exactly was I supposed to say? If Rip overheard me talking about my plight, there was no telling what he might do. It was one thing to be held hostage in my own home; it was another thing entirely to be kidnapped — or worse.
I could still remember the feeling of that cold gun against my face.
I swallowed hard, waiting for the phone to ring through to voicemail. There was a buzz that indicated someone had left me a message, but I tried not to dwell on who it might be ... until the phone started ringing again and I got a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. Whoever it was, it must be something important.
Suddenly, Rip entered the room, scowling at me. He marched over and looked down at my phone, his expression changing into a wicked grin. “Barry Harrell,” he said, reading the name off the caller ID. “Is that your boyfriend? Does Barry Harrell miss you?”
I tried to keep my worry off my face and out of my voice. “Barry's my brother,” I admitted, mind jumping to all the reasons why Barry could be calling me right now. He knew I was supposed to be on my trip, s
o even if I hadn't already been tipped off by the fact that he had called, left me a message, and tried calling again — well, he wouldn't be calling unless it were something really important.
“Hmm,” Rip said, looking momentarily considering. The phone buzzed again, indicating that another message had been left. Then, it started to ring again. Rip frowned at it and then moved over towards me, quickly cutting my wrists apart. I cried out in pain as he tore away the tape, peeling away a few layers of skin. I was so busy rubbing at the sore skin that I barely had time to react when he tossed my phone towards me.
“Answer it,” he growled. “The last thing I need is for your brother to realize that you're missing and alert the police. But any word out of you about any of this and I swear to God...” He trailed off, letting the threat hang there in the air.
