Vengeance (Oak Grove Suspense Book 1)

by Reese A. Stephens

  “Can I kiss you?” he whispers. I nod and he leans forward slowly, kissing my lips in a soft lingering kiss.

  “I’ll marry you.” I open my eyes and look at him. “I want to be your wife.”

  The earth shattering smile that erupts on his bearded face is absolutely contagious. ”Really?”

  “Yes.”

  He pulls me to my feet and hugs me tightly to him, picking me up and spinning me around as we laugh together and steal a few more kisses.

  “Well, I’d say we’ve had a breakthrough today.”

  I’d totally forgotten that we were in Doctor Martinson’s office. She is smiling widely at us, so it obviously didn’t bother her in the slightest.

  “Thank you,” I tell her.

  “How about we end on that note?”

  We both nod as she rises and walks out of her office towards the receptionist. We set our next appointment and leave holding hands.

  “Wanna get some lunch?” Ryan asks.

  “Yeah.”

  “How about we order from Rosie’s and eat on the river bank?”

  “Sounds perfect.”

  We sit on the emergency blanket I keep in my car. Our impromptu picnic is perfect and quiet as we listen to the cacophony of sounds from the animal and insect life around us. It’s not an uncomfortable silence; it’s just a companionable one. It’s nice and refreshing after a long session, especially with such a huge breakthrough. The silence is broken with a small pop and a squeak from Ryan’s side of the blanket. I turn from watching the water to see that Ryan has knelt down on one knee and is holding out a small ring box with a bright shining engagement ring. I gulp.

  “Shayla, I’ve loved you almost my entire life. First as a friend, then later as a girlfriend, and most recently as the mother of my son, but the most important thing I’ve realized over the past month is that no matter what type of love I have for you, one thing remains the same, I never want it to end. I want you always. Will you be my wife?”

  I blink and wipe at the tears in my eyes. This isn’t like anything I’ve experienced. Not when Todd asked me to marry him and definitely not when Trevor forced me to marry him. This … this is what I’ve always wanted. I’ve always wanted to be Mrs. Ryan Jacobs, I just never thought it would be possible.

  “Of course I will.”

  He takes my hand and gently slips on my ring. “It’s beautiful.”

  The ring is stunning in an understated beauty, a princess cut emerald wrapped in a ring of small diamonds on a platinum band.

  “I’m glad you like it. I wanted something simple but different.”

  “It’s perfect. I love you so much, Ryan.”

  I launch myself at him, knocking us both to the ground. He laughs as he wraps his arms around me.

  “Glad you like it. What’re you doing next Saturday?”

  He brushes the hair back from my face and looks at me with so much love that I feel like I’ll burst with happiness. This is the look I’ve always dreamt of and haven’t had since we were together as kids.

  “Nothing that I know of, why?”

  “Let’s get married in our back yard, under the tree house.”

  Maybe the thought of getting married so soon after a proposal should scare me, but after what I’ve lived through the past couple of months, I just don’t see why waiting would be necessary. I trust this man completely.

  “I swear I won’t pressure you to do a single thing. You’re in the lead here.”

  “Sounds perfect. I love you.”

  We kiss for a few minutes, then remember we are in a park and need to keep it more G rated, so we gather our things and head back home. It seems like things are happening so quickly, but really I’ve been waiting for this my entire life. I love Ryan like I’ve loved no other. He’s always held my heart. I know this is the right choice. Our life may not be perfect, and we’ll have things to work through, but we’ll be just fine. We’ll do whatever it takes to make our marriage work.

  ~*~

  A week later, I’m standing in front of my bedroom mirror, adjusting my wedding dress when there’s a knock on my door. I crack it open, then smile, and open it fully.

  “Hey, baby.” I hug my son.

  “You look beautiful, Mom.”

  “Thanks.”

  I go back to the mirror and fidget with my dress again. Dylan comes over with me, but after a few minutes, he squeezes my hand, making me stop my ministrations.

  “Are you okay?”

  “Yes, sorry. I’m just really nervous. I shouldn’t be; this is what I’ve wanted since before you were born.”

  “You’re getting your wish. We all are. I know I didn’t know about Dad for a long time, but even when I didn’t, I always dreamed of being a real family one day. This isn’t like with Todd, I could tell back then you didn’t really want to marry him. Then … yeah, that other thing was just messed up. This is your dream wedding.”

  I smile at my very intuitive son. “It is. Everything looked so pretty last night. I can’t wait to go out there.”

  “Then why are you so nervous?”

  I think for a few long moments. “I guess because of what happened with Trevor.” Dylan winces and I rub his upper arm. I don’t want to think about it, but I feel it needs addressing. “I’m worried he’ll show up. I know that’s impossible, but we both know Jason is still out there. I have this overwhelming fear he’ll show up and ruin everything.”

  “Dad said the last report he got was from Interpol saying that he was seen in Europe. I think you’re safe today, we all are. Try not to worry about it. Dad has this whole place on lockdown. I think every FBI and CIA person he and Pop knows is here. The whole police force would be here too if they didn’t have other duties.”

  I giggle. “You’re right. Everything will be fine. I think it’s just pre-wedding jitters. It's normal.”

  “Yeah, totally normal. I should get back out there. Dad needs his best man.” He turns to leave, but stops. “Oh, I forgot to tell you, I had sex with Faith.”

  I stare open-mouthed at my son for a few minutes. “You did what?”

  He throws his head back and guffaws. “Just kidding, I asked her to be my promise partner.”

  Now I look at him confused. “What?”

  “At church, we had an abstinence pledge night and they said if you had a girlfriend that you felt strongly for that you should give them a token of your love as a pledge to be each other’s promise partner. You know, to agree to wait for each other until marriage.”

  A huge smile crosses my face and I hug my son. “I’m so proud of you. I had no idea the two of you were that serious.”

  “Yeah, it wasn’t until the accident, but I realized when I thought I’d never see her again that I regretted not telling her I loved her. I don’t want to have any more regrets. I really like Grammy’s church and I really think the promise pledge is awesome. I mean, I’m telling Faith that she’s worth waiting for. That’s honoring her, isn’t it?”

  I cup his sweet, sweet face. “Oh, baby. That is such an honor for you and her. I really am proud of you. That’s one of the best gifts I’ve received today. You’ve really turned into a strong young man. I love that you want to go to church and that it has inspired you in this way.”

  “I do. I might want to be in the ministry one day. It would be awesome if we could go as a family.”

  “You bet, sweetheart. I’d love to go with you.”

  “Great! I’ll see you out there.” He turns again. “Oh, one more thing, I asked Dad if I could change my last name. I think we should all be Jacobs.”

  He kisses my cheek and hurries out of the room. I start to cry. I can’t help it. My son is just too much for me to handle sometimes. I don’t know what I did to deserve such an awesome child, but I’ll thank God every day for allowing me to be the one he calls mom.

  “Oh, why the tears?” My mom bursts through the door, looking worried.

  I wave her off. “Just an overly sweet son.”

 
She grins. “He told you about the name change?”

  I take the proffered tissue. “Yes, and about the promise pledge.”

  “That’s wonderful, isn’t it?” I nod, but say nothing. I’m so overwhelmed with joy. “It’s time to get out there. Are you ready?”

  “Yeah, let me touch up my makeup.”

  It takes me a few minutes, and then she leads me down the hallway to my father. He wraps his arm around one of mine while my mom is on the other as we start our descent down the stairs and to the yard where Ryan waits for me. The joy on his face is enough to knock me down, it’s beaming so brightly. He looks fantastic in his black suit with white shirt, his hair is pulled back in a bun and his face is neatly groomed. I was against the beard for a while, but it’s honestly grown on me. He looks like a sharp polished businessman, with a fun playful side. Now that I think about it, that is very indicative of his personality, serious and hardworking, but fun and loving with those he cares about.

  On the right of Ryan stands the preacher of the church Dylan attends, First Baptist of Oak Grove. To Ryan’s left is Dylan, Marsh, Jon, Riley, and Paul; his team and best friends. They went above and beyond what any of us could have asked for. They are truly part of our family now. On my side stands less people, but they are still important to me, Jessica, Julie, and Laney. Jessica was relentless in her search for Dylan and I. Julie has been there for me since I started at the hospital, but really stepped up to the plate when we were recovering. And Laney, my very soon to be sister-in-law, has never wavered in her love and support of our little family. These women have been a huge help and blessing to me.

  As we reach the end of the aisle and the pastor asks who gives this woman, my parents both proudly state that they do. All the while, I can’t take my teary eyes off of Ryan and his equally teary ones. He takes my hand and I know that no matter what happens to us from this point forward that we will face it together as a team. The wish I made long ago on my birthday has finally come true. Choices, some my own, and some out of my control, led us the long way around, but we’re here now and nothing can stop us.

  EPILOGUE

  Ryan

  Eighteen months later:

  “So how does it feel to officially be a senior?” I ask my son as he climbs in my car after his last official day of his eleventh year of school.

  Dylan’s smile lights up the world. “So good. I can’t wait to get this next year over with.”

  “Don’t rush it. Enjoy your youth while you can.”

  “I’m not trying to rush my life away. I just want to start my career. I’ve already completed four college courses. I’m taking a couple this summer too.”

  Ah, my son the overachiever, not that it’s a bad thing. He’s very focused on what he wants. It’s what he wants that gives me pause. His plan is to go to college for Criminal Justice, then go through the police academy, and then on to Quantico. I have no reason to stop or discourage him. It’s actually an honor that he wants to follow in my footsteps; I just worry about his safety. That worry seems to have gotten worse over the past nine months.

  “You’ll do great. I have faith in you.”

  “I know you do. Speaking of Faith, she’s coming for dinner so you and Mom can go out.”

  I grin. “You two spoil her.”

  “No way. She’s perfect.”

  “I agree.”

  We arrive at our house a few minutes later and Dylan sprints inside. Once Shayla and I married, I went to work merging our houses. My house was on such a good corner lot and combined with her childhood home, I couldn’t resist. Oh, when I say merge, I really mean that. Our houses were about fifteen feet apart, so we built an extension between the two and made it one large forty-five hundred square foot house. We took out my kitchen and turned it into a huge family area, but we left everything else the same for now. So we now have a five bedroom house, which we plan to fill with children.

  “Hannah!” Dylan calls as he enters the family room.

  She immediately starts babbling. Hannah’s our honeymoon baby. Whatever hang-ups Shayla had were gone by the second night of our short honeymoon. Then, three weeks later, we found out that we were going to be parents again. Going through everything with her this time was absolutely amazing.

  We were a little hesitant in telling Dylan, but we shouldn’t have been. He was over the moon happy to have a sibling. It didn’t bother him one bit that she was almost seventeen years younger than him. Watching him with her sometimes reminds me that I would have been about his age when he was a baby. I hate that I missed those days, but so glad I can have this now with Hannah and Dylan.

  Hannah is named after Shayla’s biological mom, and rightfully so, as she looked just like her grandmother and, in turn, just like her mother, with bright blue eyes and gorgeous blonde hair. Having a daughter has been life changing. The first time I laid eyes on her, I was a goner. There was nothing in this world that could come at us that I wouldn’t stop. There was nothing I wouldn’t do for this little bundle of screaming joy. It also triggered my need for more guns. I now have a locked room set aside on my old side of the house that’s pretty much full of every weapon I could get my hands on. Extreme to some, namely my wife, but to me it will never be enough until every person like Mathis is out of our lives for good.

  Mathis is still a thorn in my side. We’ve kept tabs on sightings of him over the past nineteen months, but for the past five, he’s been off radar. I haven’t mentioned it to Shayla, there’s no need for her to worry, but Tom and I have spent hours locked away in my office, planning and searching. His CIA contacts have truly come in handy. I was floored when Tom shared his past with me. It explained so much that I didn’t understand when I first started coming around Shayla.

  “Tell Daddy bye-bye, Hannah.”

  I look up to see my son waving his sister’s chubby arm as she laughs and drools all over the place. He is really the best brother and an excellent babysitter, if I do say so myself.

  “Can’t I at least say hello to my daughter before you kick me out of my own house?” I ask indignantly.

  “Suit yourself, but if you’re late picking Mom up, you have no one to blame but yourself.”

  “It’s worth her anger.” I scoop up my daughter and cover her face in kisses, making her squeal in delight. “Are you sure you and Faith don’t mind watching her? I’m sure Gail and Tom, or even my mom would keep her. You should celebrate your last day of school.”

  “Maw’s had her all day and Gran is all the way across town. It’s fine, honest. Faith and I are going to play with her, feed her, and then put her to bed. We’ll get our courses lined up for this summer and watch a movie. I swear things will be fine.”

  “I know I’ve said it a thousand times, but please try to pace yourself. I don’t want you burning out before you’ve even gotten out of high school.”

  “I’m not, Dad. This is what I want. I want to be a cop. I want to help, to make a difference, just like you’ve done.”

  “I’m proud of you for that, but you’re still a kid. It’s not your job to babysit your sister every Friday.”

  “It’s not every Friday. Next week, I’ll take Faith out.”

  “Your mom is on vacation next week. You’re off Hannah duty all week. Go get Faith and go to the beach or something. Just make it a point to do some fun things.”

  “I will. We’re planning on volunteering at church with the Shepard program so we’ll be busy with that during the days most of the summer. You can’t be against that. It’ll look great on college applications.”

  “I’m not against you helping inner city kids. I just want you to have the childhood that your mom and I never did. I don’t want you to have regrets.”

  “I won’t. I swear.”

  “All right, I’m going to get your mom. Love you both.”

  I kiss my baby girl on the cheek before handing her back to her big brother, whom she absolutely adores. Shayla and I hit the jackpot with those two. They are both more than I could ha
ve ever hoped or dreamed. I’m so ridiculously happy that I can’t help but to grin like a fool as I make my way through town to pick up my wife.

  Shayla hurries over to my car and jumps in. “You’re late.”

  “Last minute baby snuggles and chat with the oldest.”

  “Ah, I miss my baby snuggles. What chat?”

  I tell her briefly about our talk. I know she agrees, but she rarely mentions it to him. She feels like he’s capable of making his own decisions. I do too, but I also like to give my opinion, needed or not.

  “So, where are you taking me?”

  “Date night tonight will be bowling and greasy food.”

  “Yum. I can’t remember the last time I bowled.”

  Shayla and I make it a point to set aside one night a week for just us. We need the break and the reconnection that it provides. Sometimes we do an activity she enjoys, others that I like, but each time it is something that helps bring us closer. Our relationship is more solid now than it has ever been. Our past is behind us and nothing has held either of us back when it comes to each other. We are the happiest we’ve ever been, we’re a strong unbreakable team.

  We spend the night laughing, talking, flirting, and even poking fun of each other’s game. It’s the perfect night which ends with us kissing on our front steps, like most date nights, but tonight is slightly different. When we finish climbing the stairs, we notice a package sitting by the front door. Thinking nothing of it, I pick it up and carry it into our kitchen. I set it on the table before heading to the refrigerator for a drink. I’m about to ask Shayla what she wants when I notice her staring at the box.

  “Honey, what’s wrong.”

  Her head turns slowly to me, her eyes wide. “I recognize that handwriting.”

  I hurry over to her and pull the envelope attached to the box. I open it, taking out the unsigned letter.

  You have a lovely family, Ryan. Your son seems so enthralled with his sister. Almost like he’s the father, maybe he’ll be the one to raise her someday.

  I’ve so missed the chase, Ryan. I ache for it. The thrill of holding a life in my hands, knowing I’m the one who decides if they live or die. It’s exhilarating.