by Sam Crescent
Staring down at her hand with her engagement ring, Hope smiled. From that very first moment she saw Beast, there’d been this fire inside her. Even before she realized it herself, she yearned for his touch, desperate for him.
Beast was now hers. She carried his child, and she had his love. They were going to get married, and she didn’t for a second believe it was going to be the most perfect happily ever after, but she believed it was going to be something.
She wanted their life together. She looked forward to being with him every single moment of every single day.
He came back, and took a seat in front of her, taking her hands. She saw the guilt in his eyes, and she hated seeing it there.
“I gave him the gun.”
“I don’t care,” she said, reaching out to touch his face.
She chuckled at the frown and cupped his face, pressing a single kiss against his lips.
“What? You looked so sad.”
She shook her head. “Aunt Tay is a horrible human being. All she wants to do is make everyone around her miserable in a way to justify her own misery. I don’t know. You gave my dad the gun, he paid for it whatever, and he came home, killed my mother, shot me, and killed himself. Do you see the point I’m trying to make?”
“I’m the one responsible for your mother’s death.”
“No. You’re not.” She licked her lips, wondering if she sounded crazy. “It’s … you’re not the one that fired the gun, Beast. It would be like saying that someone who sold a wife her kitchen knives is the real killer of her husband. I can’t think of a really good example right now, but you gave him the gun. You didn’t know what he was going to do. You didn’t think for a second that he was going to go home and kill his wife and try to take his kid.” She smiled at him. “So you gave him a gun. Did you tell him to do what he did next?”
“No. Never.”
“Then you’ve got nothing to feel guilty about. Guns are bought and sold all the time. I don’t blame you. Do I wish you hadn’t given him the gun? I can’t take back what happened. But would I still have my mom? Dad was going to do all those things regardless. It could have been a knife or his hands, or anything.” She took his hand and pressed it against her stomach. “This is all I know. I love you more than anything else in the world, so that I’m changing my life plan to stay with you. I’m going to get married to you, and we’re going to have a beautiful baby. I don’t know if it’s a boy or girl, but I don’t care. I only know that I love you, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you.” She laughed as tears fell down her cheeks. “We’ll probably get a few weird looks. You know, the age gap and all.”
He pulled her close and slammed his lips against hers. “I don’t give a fuck what anyone says, Hope Miller. You are the love of my life, and I’m going to spend the rest of mine loving you, keeping you safe.”
Beast picked her up in his arms and carried her through to the bedroom. “I’ve never belonged to any woman, Hope, but know that I am yours. Every single part of me is yours. I love you more than anything else in the world.”
“Now you’re really making me cry.”
He lowered her to the bed and took her lips as he ran his hands over her body.
“I was just existing before I saw you in my library. Not a moment goes by that I’m not grateful you were tutoring Dwayne.”
She truly believed it was the best decision she had ever made. Her love for this man knew no bounds, and it wasn’t just a crush either. Her future was tied to him, and it was a life she intended to enjoy.
Epilogue
Seven months later
“You’re making everyone nervous,” Hope said.
Beast turned back to look at his wife. Perspiration dotted her brow, and she looked tired, way too tired for his liking. She’d been in labor now for a couple of hours, and he was about ready to lose his shit at anyone who dared comment on him being a new father.
He’d read the fucking books, and not just that, he’d also read the statistics about some women not making it through their pregnancy.
If he lost Hope … no, he couldn’t have that thought. There was no way in hell that he was going to lose the only woman he’d ever loved in this life. He would fight for her.
Finally, a doctor entered, and he tapped him on the shoulder. “A word please.” They left the room, and Beast grabbed the man around the neck, slamming him against the wall. “I don’t know if you’re aware, but I’m Beast Carson. You’re treating Hope Carson, my wife. If she dies while giving birth, I’m going to kill you, and the entire line of your family, are we clear?”
The doctor nodded. “I can see why I was assigned your wife.”
Beast smiled. He’d have given the good doctor a warning in the hospital room, but he didn’t want to upset his wife.
Going to the head of the bed, she gave him a glare.
“Ignore everything he says,” Hope said. “He’s what the nurses are calling ‘new daddy.’” She smiled up at him. “Behave.”
“I will as soon as I know everyone and everything is going to be fine.”
She cupped his cheek, which she did every single time he was agitated. “It’s going to be okay.”
Her face scrunched up as a new contraction began. He held her hand as each one built until they were mere seconds apart, and the doctor announced it was time to push.
For Beast, he’d tortured, maimed, killed, but nothing could have prepared him for those moments of waiting, of being petrified that he would lose the only woman he’d ever loved in all of his life. She was younger than he was, but that didn’t make his feelings for her any less. That love would last a lifetime, and as he heard the screams of his little girl being born, another love swept over him, a fatherly love.
Their little girl was placed in Hope’s arms, and he felt exactly that … hope.
“Look at what we made,” she said. “Our beautiful little girl.”
He kissed her head.
“I must look so ugly right now,” she said, laughing.
“You’re the most beautiful woman in the world.” Staring into her eyes as their bundle of joy wriggled, Beast knew without a doubt, he’d found his very reason for living, and he intended to hold onto the both of them for the rest of his life.
The End
www.samcrescent.com
Other Books by Sam Crescent:
www.evernightpublishing.com/sam-crescent
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BONUS SAMPLE CHAPTER
TAKING HER INNOCENCE
Killer of Kings, 1
Sam Crescent & Stacey Espino
Copyright © 2017
Chapter One
“You think you can handle it?” Boss asked.
Viper stared out across the parking lot. A lot of shoppers were milling around today, going about their own pathetic lives, believing they were the most important thing in the world.
None of them had any idea that one of the world’s deadliest killers was amongst them. He was part of an elite group of mercenaries. He killed for the money. Whoever offered the highest bounty, he took it. He never asked questions, and he never cared about the people he killed. This was a job to him, something he was good at.
“Why can’t I handle it? Send me a picture of the girl. I’ll do the rest.”
“She has to die of natural causes.”
Viper snorted. “No problem.”
He had one month to find a woman, and to end her life. Piece of cake. He had lots of ways of killing a woman, and this would be no different.
“Deposit the money, and I’ll call you if I need more.” Viper whistled as he made his way toward the car. He put the groceries in the trunk, got behind the wheel, and waited.
Her picture came through
his cell phone, and he stared at the girl in question. She couldn’t have been older than fifteen, but from what Boss had told him, she was nearly twenty-one years old, and had been on the run for nearly six months. Curious.
The picture showed her cuddled up next to her mother, and she looked happy. Pepper was chubby, her cheeks looking like the kind you could pinch, and grandmothers cooed over. Boss had given him all the details over the phone. Viper didn’t do paperwork, reading, or worrying about something being tracked.
He memorized everything. All the little details were up in his head, and that was where they would stay until the job was gone.
Viper didn’t know why the woman in question, Pepper, was running, and he really didn’t care. The moment Boss called him and gave him an assignment, he did it. Now he just needed to figure out where she was staying.
Good news for him, he had a special guy who owned equipment that could find him this woman. Leaving the grocery store, Viper made his way across the city toward the guy who he knew would hook him up.
Whenever he was in between jobs, he would always stick around where his people were so that he didn’t have to worry about endless traveling. Working for Killer of Kings was rather lucrative. They were a company known for getting the job done. Nothing was too much, no job too hard. He had traveled all over the world to do what needed to be done, from killing people, to fucking women, to even rescuing people. If the price was right, he would do anything.
From a young age, younger than any child should ever have to deal, he had been taught to hunt, to kill, and to do it without feeling a damn thing. There were scars on his back that all bled together that reminded him a past he wished he could forget. When he saw children with their parents, for a split second he felt envious, jealous that they could be having a wonderful life, a better one than he ever had. Of course they were having a better life than he had. None of them had ever gone through the hours of pain or the training that had made him one of the deadliest men on earth.
Parking his car outside of one of the shittiest apartments in the city, he made his way toward his contact, Maurice. The guy was thirty years old, a slob, but damn good when it came to computers. He was the only one who gave Viper the facts without giving him files thick with writing and shit. Viper didn’t want to be studying. Cold, hard facts were what he was after, and he didn’t need paperwork that could be traced.
Maurice lived on the top floor. He was a tall, skinny man who wore big, thick glasses. Banging on the door, Viper waited, and when Maurice opened the door his shirt was covered in ketchup and mustard stains.
“I’ve told you to change,” Viper said, entering the room.
“Yeah, well, I didn’t think I’d see you for a couple more weeks. You usually take time off. Why are you back after just a week?” Maurice asked.
The apartment was littered with debris. Only the sitting room, the place where all the computers and equipment were set up was spotless.
“You need to get a cleaning lady,” Viper said. He hated mess.
Mess equaled mistakes.
He was clean, efficient, and he didn’t have anything to leave behind. Even his apartment where he stayed during his vacations didn’t hold any personal mementos. Not that he would ever have those. Mementos would mean caring, and that wasn’t what he did. He didn’t have a family, a past, nor would he have a future.
“Cleaning ladies touch stuff, and I know where everything is.”
Viper looked around the apartment. “It stinks.”
“So? It keeps everyone out, okay? This is my mess. My problem. Not yours. What do you want?” Maurice asked, shoving his glasses up his nose.
“Fine.” Viper handed over his cell phone. “Get me everything on her.”
“Do you have a name?” Maurice asked.
“Pepper. I want everything on the face though. You’ve got your computers that can track CCTV. I want to know where she was last seen.”
“This could take a while.”
“Don’t care. I can pay.” Viper moved into the sitting room and took a seat. It was the only place he was willing to park his ass while he waited, and there wasn’t a chance in hell he was leaving until he got what he wanted.
Something was bugging him about this assignment, which was strange because he usually didn’t care. Swift, efficient, done. That’s what he’d always been about.
Maurice was humming as he got to work, scanning her picture, and then tracking it through the database. On the big screen in front of them, he saw several names and pictures as it did the recognition thing.
The beauty about security and live feeds everywhere was anyone could be tracked or traced. Unless someone knew how to avoid the cameras and the recognition software, no one was untraceable.
“She’s young this one.”
“You’re not paid to worry about that.”
“This isn’t a rescue mission though, right? I think I saw something about this girl’s mother a few weeks ago.”
That made Viper pause. “What did you see?”
“Only that her mother had died, and Pepper’s stepfather was taking over the company that should, by rights, go to this Pepper girl. We’re talking a billion-dollar company. Stocks, shares, and they have stakes in pretty much everything. I’m surprised you don’t know that.” Maurice munched on a potato chip as he spoke.
Viper didn’t follow the news. He didn’t read the papers, nor did he care about pampered princesses. “Out of curiosity, what happens to this fortune if the girl dies?”
“It goes to the stepfather.”
Sitting back, Viper thought about the terms of his latest contract. Pepper needed to die of natural causes, and the stepfather would inherit everything.
He didn’t like the twist in his gut.
This was just another assignment like everything else, and he wasn’t going to let feelings or emotions get in the way. Patting his fingers on his thigh, he watched the computer screen as faces all seemed to roll into one. This was the one part of the job that he hated.
He was bored.
When he was bored, he was able to think.
Thinking made him remember the past, and he didn’t want to remember the past. He wasn’t someone plagued by his fears. He had no fears.
“There she is,” Maurice said.
Viper looked up as her image was brought into focus. It was a really clear image. “When was it taken?” he asked.
“Three days ago. A grocery store near the coast.” Maurice rattled off several details and directions.
Viper didn’t need anything else. He already knew where he was going. Pulling out a wad of cash, he handed it to Maurice, and made his way toward the door.
“Viper,” Maurice said.
Turning, he saw Maurice standing, holding his keyboard. “What is it?”
“You don’t have to do this, you know? She’s innocent. There’s nothing on her. No criminal record, nothing. Her slate is completely clean. This is not like your usual kills.”
“You don’t know what I’ve got to do, and remember, anything happens, any word gets out, and you’ll die, Maurice.” He wouldn’t want to kill the man in front of him. Even though he was a slob, he kind of liked him, and that wasn’t heard of much in his line of work. He shouldn’t use the same man over and over again, but Maurice had proven himself, and he didn’t want to lose a valuable asset.
“See you soon,” Maurice said.
Viper was already out of the door, but he heard it.
****
Pepper stared out at the ocean, wondering if she would be able to stay here for another couple of days. It was a quaint, little town near the sea, and it was home to a lot of tourism. The beach where she stood right now was completely covered with people, with families. Would she be safe here?
She didn’t know how far her father was willing to push everything. He wanted money. She knew that. From the moment her mother, her sweet, beautiful mother, had brought him home, Pepper had seen through him. He’d been a gold-
digger. A horrible excuse for a human being. She had even seen him cheating on her mother with one of the staff. That had really sickened her, and what she hated most, her mother hadn’t believed her.
Yes, Pepper came from a rich family, but her relationship with her mother had always been solid. When her father died, they’d had each other, until this monster came out of nowhere, and was intent on destroying them. She hated him to her core, and that didn’t help. Even when the abuse and violence had started, her mother hadn’t been able to see past her own insecurity.
Then, of course, Pepper had to run, and now she couldn’t even go home for her mother’s funeral.
In order to gain the fortune, her stepfather needed her dead. She wasn’t an idiot. All he’d wanted all along was her mother’s fortune, and when Pepper died, it would all go to him.
A gust of wind hit her, and she held onto the hat, making sure it didn’t blow off. She was wearing a hat and a pair of glasses. With her image over the news, she didn’t want anyone to see her. Fortunately, there wasn’t an updated picture, and she looked nothing like she did when she was fifteen. The picture was a cold reminder of the last time she was happy, when her mother was happy. She should probably dye her blonde hair, but it grieved her to change the locks that her mother spent hours lovingly caring for. They would sit in her father’s study, and her mother would brush her hair, waiting for him to finish. Pepper looked similar to her mother, only lighter, and fairer-skinned. She burned easily in the sun, and always had to use sun lotion, which she hated wearing.
