by E A Hunt
“We were,” Gideon replied. How did Nia know any of this? He hadn’t talked about the mixer with anyone, especially when he’d missed out on getting to find out who the woman he’d called … “You!” he breathed.
Nia gave him a slow smile. She lifted slightly, before straddling him, “Your voice when we first talked on the phone reminded me of that night. Of the gentleman who was kind, funny and sweet.”
“Sweet is not what they call me,” Gideon replied, untying her robe. He removed it from her shoulders.
“You were sweet to me,” Nia replied, wrapping her arms loosely around his neck.
“I was trying to pick you up!” Gideon replied, leaning forward. He ran his nose along her neck. “You smelled good that night.”
“Hmm, so did you,” Nia said.
“You ran,” he said, placing his hand on her hips, pulling her closer to his wanting dick.
“Your woman –”
“You’re my woman.” He looked her in the eyes. “That night to this,” Gideon growled. “Hearing your voice again had me remembering that night too. Had me wanting to be with you. I didn’t know why I had this pull to you, but I did and now…”
“Now I’m here,” Nia said, finishing his thought.
“Now you’re here and you’re never leaving again,” Gideon replied, before placing his lips on hers.
Chapter Eight
“Eight months!” Deni scoffed, two weeks later. “You and Gideon met eight months ago. What is this some holiday Hallmark movie where you meet, fall madly in love, then separate and don’t see each other again until Fate steps in?!”
“Could you peel those potatoes, we would like to eat sometime today,” Nia chuckled as she checked the turkey she had in the oven. Deni had come over to help her with dinner but all he’d wanted to do was talk about the fact that she and Gideon had met each other eight months ago at a singles mixer.
“I’m peeling, I’m peeling,” Deni said. “So since I convinced you to go to the mixer, I get to be in the wedding, right?” he asked her with a pointed look.
“You sound like my sister. She’s informed me that she is the maid of honor since she bought the ticket all the way from Chicago,” Nia replied. When she’d called her sister the other day to ask about a recipe for sweet potato pie, Pia had asked about Gideon and how they were getting along.
While writing down the recipe, she’d told Pia about the revelation that she and Gideon had met at the masquerade singles event. Pia had screamed into the phone, saying that the ad for the mixer had been in her spam email and she’d thought about deleting it but hadn’t because she felt like something special was going to happen. And since she hadn’t given Nia a birthday present in a few years, she knew the mixer would be perfect – especially since Nia didn’t do anything but work and care for Anessa.
“I hate that she stole my job,” Deni pouted.
“I promise you will be a bridesmaid…man…” Nia chuckled. “Though I don’t know why either of you are talking about a wedding. Gideon hasn’t even asked.”
“It’s only a matter of time. He’s not letting you go, Ms. Collins. So once he asks, please call me and we will talk venues, dresses and dates!” Deni advised
“Don’t you think Gideon and I should be picking out the date?”
“Only if you’re talking to me,” Sookie interrupted, walking into the kitchen.
“Not you too, Sookie!” Nia scoffed
Sookie shrugged. Gideon had convinced – or badgered, she wasn’t sure which – her to come and spend Thanksgiving with them since the Peony didn’t have any reservations and he didn’t want her to be alone for the holiday. Not that she ever was. She had her sewing circle and a few friends who would invite her to come to their homes every year. “I have the chance to marry off one of my sons. I’m not passing that up!”
“You two are incorrigible,” Nia laughed as she began cutting the celery she was going to put in the stuffing.
“Not incorrigible, just realistic about the fact we’re going to be having a wedding soon,” Sookie replied with a smile.
“Grandma Sookie!” came two eager voices.
Sookie smiled at her granddaughters. “And what has you two so excited?” she asked the bouncing little girls.
“Balloons!” they cheered.
“Balloons?” the adults echoed.
Both girls nodded. “In the sky,” Esme clarified.
“Balloons in the sky?” Sookie asked, looking from Nia to Deni. Both shrugged, not sure what the girls were talking about.
“Come on,” Anessa took Sookie’s hand, while Esme grasped Deni’s. “Grandma, Uncle Deni – come see!” Anessa pleaded
Potatoes finished, Deni and Sookie followed the girls out of the house to see the balloons.
Grasping the bowl of potatoes, Nia turned to put them in boiling water when she suddenly felt arms go around her. Gideon and Sax had run to the store for her when she’d realized she’d forgotten the sage for her stuffing and Sax had forgotten the bottle of wine at his condo.
“Gid –” she stilled when she felt a knife at her throat.
“My father loved you and that brat so much that he left you everything. Part of the business. All the money he had… and he left me nothing!”
Nia swallowed as Harvey pressed the knife further into her throat. “How… how did you get in here?”
“I’ve been watching the happy family,” he spat, pulling her away from the stove. “Watching that ass fuck you. Watching you with those brats waiting for my perfect moment. And it just so happened that on the day we give thanks, I found it.”
Nia looked around her, there had to be something she could grab. Something she could use as a weapon. If Harvey managed to get her out of the house, there was no telling what he would do to her. Seeing the small cast iron skillet she’d picked up as decoration for today on the table, she inched towards it as Harvey tried to maneuver them towards the back door.
“Did you know if you die, if that brat dies, I get the money my father left you?” Harvey laughed. “I didn’t know. I spoke with a lawyer and he looked into the trust and your inheritance. If anything happens to Nia or Anessa Collins, all monies go to Harvey Tridal.” He licked her ear. “So I planned. I had the perfect plan. It was going to be an accident at the office. A truck was going to run into your car when you had that brat in it. But I had to wait. Had to bide my time. Give it a few years so no one would be the wiser. Then people started wanting their money. People stopped taking my markers. You stopped making money for the company… and I couldn’t wait any longer, I had to move up my plans.”
Nia felt a trickle of blood drip down her neck. “I won’t let you hurt me or Anessa.”
“Who’s gonna stop me,” Harvey huffed.
“Me!” Nia shouted before she grasped Harvey’s privates and twisted. Once his arms dropped from around her, she picked up the small pan and smashed it into his face breaking his nose. Then she hit him over the head as he went down. Hearing Gideon’s joyful laughter, she turned as he walked into the kitchen
“Doll?” Gideon said, seeing Harvey on the floor and blood on Nia’s neck.
“Call the police. We can serve them dinner while they arrest this ass” Nia said with a little shrug.
Epilogue
“How come I’m always jealous of a blanket that touches you,” Gideon chuckled as he walked over to Nia who was sitting on the chaise lounge at the back of the Peony.
“Because you like being my blanket,” she replied with a bright smile on her face.
She was right. He loved blanketing her, especially when she was moaning below him. Lifting her from the chaise, he sat down placing her on his lap. Lifting his hand, he ran his thumb over the small scar on her neck. If it hadn’t been for Sax, he would have killed Harvey for touching her. Hurting her.
“Don’t think about it,” Nia replied, covering his hand with hers. Harvey was in jail for harming her and for plotting to kill her and Anessa. The guy he’d hired to arrange
the accident had been an undercover FBI agent. Once Harvey had paid him, they’d issued a warrant for his arrest. But before it could be executed, he’d come after her. Their Thanksgiving, a week ago now, had turned out to be a day when they’d been more thankful than either of them could have imagined.
Leaning her head back, Gideon placed an open-mouthed kiss on her wound. If he ever saw Harvey Tridal again…. he was pulled from his murderous thoughts by Nia’s moans.
“The girls sleeping?” Nia asked. She knew that even if they weren’t, they’d be in Sookie’s third floor apartment enjoying their time with their Grandmother. It had been Sookie’s idea to come to the Peony until their home sold and they found another. Nia had jumped at the chance, not wanting to be in the house with Harvey’s murderous essence still there.
“Yes, they went right down. It’s all this mountain air,” Gideon replied, running his tongue over her neck, watching her swallow. He had something she could swallow. “Let’s go to bed.”
“First you have to tell me how your meeting went.” Nia inquired, lifting her head.
Gideon didn’t want to talk about his meeting with Valencia. Not when his woman was nice, warm and ripe for the taking.
“Meeting first. Then you can have a private meeting with me out here?” Nia winked at him. She was positive she was going to check another fantasy off her list – making love outside with the mountains as her backdrop.
“She signed the paperwork and took the money,” Gideon said. He knew she would. Gideon had asked –actually he’d sent a car – for Valencia to come to the winery. There he’d presented her with even more evidence of her being a bad mother. According to his PI Valencia would use Esme to scam men out of money. Telling them she would go public with the fact they’d touched her daughter while she was sleeping in the other room.
All the men paid until they had refused to pay anymore. And she’d run through the money as fast as she could get it. Faced with all the evidence and the confidential statements from all these men, she signed away her rights to Esme. As a ‘thank you’ Gideon had given her a check for fifty dollars. It would hopefully be enough for a bus ticket to somewhere that was not Atlanta.
“Good…. ‘cause I want to adopt Esme,” Nia announced.
“And I want to adopt Anessa,” Gideon countered.
“Good, cause I think Esme and Anessa should legally be sisters. I would hate for their baby sister to not have both sisters legally –”
“What did you just say to me?!” Gideon interrupted, eagerly.
Nia took his hand and placed it over her stomach. “Santa brought our gift early,” she said. Before they’d left for the Peony she’d had an doctor’s appointment to confirm what she’d suspected for weeks. As Gideon was handling Valencia today she’d gone into Atlanta to get the results of the amnio she’d requested after confirming her pregnancy.
Gideon splayed his hand over her stomach. “No, Doll, he brought my gift months ago.” He kissed her, happily. “I love you.”
“I love you too,” Nia smiled into another kiss. “Marry me?” she asked.
“Yes!” Gideon didn’t hesitate.
Coming Attractions
Carlton (Men of the Lucky Lou)
The Four (Book Four) – Kendrik’s Temptation
Shifter Chronicles: The Hart’s – William and Martina
Battle Scars
Viktor and Peter (The Cage – Book Two)
Contact EA Hunt
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