“Will.” I brought my hand to my mouth. My whole body trembled with emotion.
Ian’s figure grew larger as he approached. I could see his face clearly, removing all doubt that it was truly him.
He was smiling, hands in his jean pockets, wearing a gray-brown sweater that did little to obscure the muscular chest beneath it. I pushed off the bench and went to him. Slowly at first. Then I couldn’t wait. I didn’t think about whether he still loved me or any of the things I’d wanted to say to him since he’d left. I just ran to him and threw myself into his arms.
He lifted me, and I wrapped my legs around his waist. I clung to him, and he held me so tight I could scarcely breathe. We stayed that way for what seemed like forever. If it had been forever, I would have happily accepted an endless fate in his arms after our agonizing separation.
“I can’t believe you’re here,” I whispered, nuzzling his neck. His scent filled me and brought me back to memories I had tried so hard to let go of. My chest was tight, but I couldn’t find the tears. I’d cried too many. I was too full of happiness right now to drown them with a drop of sadness.
When I pulled back, my breath caught. Every instinct told me to kiss him. I ached to feel his lips on me, to communicate without words that I still loved him desperately.
“Kiss me,” I whispered.
His gaze was dark, storming with emotion and drifting down to my mouth. But he didn’t kiss me. Instead, he loosened his grasp so I slid down the front of his body. My feet found the ground, but his arms around me held my weight.
My mouth was dry and my throat was tight as I considered the worst. What if he didn’t love me anymore? What if too much time had passed? He’d broken my heart, but I knew he’d been hurting too. Maybe it was too much to bear.
Didn’t matter. I had to tell him because I might not get another chance.
“Ian, I love you…so much.” My eyes brimmed with tears. “No matter what, I want you to know that. I wanted to tell you so many times—”
He hushed me and brought his hands to my face, keeping us connected, like we were tied together by some invisible force.
“I’ve never stopped loving you, Liv, and I’m never going to stop.” He swallowed, and his lips parted gently. “I know I’ve put you through hell. This has been the worst kind of agony for me. I only hope that one day you can forgive me.”
My heart twisted painfully in my chest. I squeezed my eyes closed, and a single tear flowed down my cheek and into his hand. Brushing it away, he brought his lips to mine with a kiss so soft and tender, I could only sigh into it.
“Take me back,” he whispered.
I opened my eyes, and in an instant, the weeks of missing him dissipated. The heartache was overrun with a love so powerful, it took my breath away. What was left was only us, here, together again. The fault line in my heart healed, because I knew now what I’d known all along. Ian belonged there beside Will, in my heart, in my future.
“I never let you go…”
Epilogue
WILL
I checked my watch again as the flight attendant came closer. She paused when I caught her attention.
“Can I get you anything, sir?”
“Another coffee would be great. And when are we due to land?”
“The pilot has us arriving a little ahead of schedule, so we should be landing in about an hour.”
“Perfect, thanks.”
“I’ll be right back with your coffee.”
I nodded with a smile, but I was still uneasy. With the time difference and the long flight, I hadn’t talked to Olivia or Ian in over a day. She was still two weeks from her due date, and all I could do was pray nothing happened while I was in the air.
Beside me, Jia stared out the window at the endless sea of clouds as we made our way back to New York from Hong Kong.
I tapped my foot, revved up from the coffee and nervous energy from being awake too long.
She glanced over at me. “Wired much?”
I laughed softly. “I’m anxious to get home, that’s all.”
She smiled and gazed down at the obscene diamond that shimmered on her finger. “Me too.”
Not long after my Paris getaway with Olivia, Jia had gotten involved with a prospective client. Allen Easton was about ten years her senior, flush with cash, and a far cry from the usual cocky finance guys who seemed to swarm around her at social events.
After our affair had ended and Jia’s reputation had been on the line, something had changed in her. She still loved the game and the challenges of the industry. She still exuded the same sexy confidence that had drawn me to her. She wasn’t above using her charm to close a client, but as far as I could tell, she’d held a firm line between her personal life and professional life. Until Allen.
From day one, he was different, and she’d told me as much. Instead of trying to figure out the fastest avenue to get her into bed, he’d taken his time to win her trust. From what I could tell, he respected her well beyond her beauty and treated her as an equal. He gave her everything she’d worked so hard for, everything she deserved.
I was happy for Jia. I was even happier for Olivia. The pregnancy hormones weren’t doing me any favors, but Jia having a committed partner had noticeably calmed Olivia’s nerves, especially when it came to trips like this one. Leaving her for the airport at the start of this journey was possibly one of the most stressful experiences of my life. She didn’t want to let me go, and I would have given anything to stay.
But duty called, and this time it was closing a whale of an investor, a connection that Frank Bridge had facilitated. It was an opportunity that we couldn’t pass up.
The past six months at the fund, newly named Donovan Capital, had been anything but smooth sailing. While Jia and I continued to pull our weight, doing it against the periodic setbacks was taxing. Always two steps forward, then one step back.
I’d done what I’d agreed to do. I instilled confidence, drummed up fresh opportunities, and made healthy profits. Despite our best efforts, when the charges came down on my father and the others, many clients who were no longer obligated to stay with us left.
My father was charged and sentenced with twelve months in jail, what some thought was a paltry measure of justice. As the primary orchestrators and perpetrators of the fraud, Dermott and Reilly got hit the hardest, both being sentenced with five years.
While those charged paid restitution and had time to serve, we all knew the real justice was served when it came to their reputations. Their careers were over. Their lives would never be the same.
As the news died down, life returned to some semblance of normal. Jia and I continued to work hard and distinguish ourselves from the fund’s troubled past. The days were long, but the future was bright.
With Olivia to come home to and our baby on the way, I couldn’t ask for anything more. Life was as close to perfect as I could have ever imagined.
IAN
Olivia cursed Will all the way to the hospital.
“I can’t believe he took this trip. I told him not to. Goddamn him.” She gripped the handle on the door and hissed out a long breath.
I took her hand and held it tight while I steered with the other. “I know, baby. He’ll make it. Just breathe.”
“Drive faster,” she whispered as the contraction tapered out.
I hit the gas and silently cursed Will too.
Olivia was two weeks from her due date. The doctor had said with this being her first child, she was unlikely to go into labor before he got back. But Hong Kong was a long way away. Even though he was due back today, it would probably take a miracle to get him to the hospital in time.
“You called him?” Olivia had pain and worry written all over her beautiful face.
“I called him about twenty times and left as many voice mails. I’m sure I’ll hear back really soon. Don’t worry, okay?”
She nodded quickly, like she had too much on her mind to devote all her worry to Will’s abse
nce. Then she squeezed my hand tightly. So tightly I thought she might break something, but she was the one in labor. We’d been timing contractions for hours, since the early morning. Then her water broke, and I prayed to everything holy that Will was somewhere in this country, getting off a plane, checking his fucking messages.
We got the suite at the hospital that Will had reserved for the inevitable time. Moments later, Liv’s heavily pregnant body was submerged into a deep tub designed for this very moment. She breathed through every contraction, clinging to my hand like she’d die if I let her go.
“You’re doing great,” I murmured.
But she only glared at me before another contraction took her focus completely away. I’d seen babies delivered before, but watching Liv go through this was way outside of my comfort zone. I couldn’t comprehend her pain or her determination to endure it without meds.
I was checking my watch again when my phone rang. “Hang on a minute. I’ll be right back.”
She glared again. “You can’t leave me.”
“Nope, not leaving. I’m right here.” I answered the call while she crushed my hand through another wave of pain. “Hey.” I didn’t dare say his name.
“What’s going on?” Will’s voice sounded like a distant echo.
“She’s in labor. Seven centimeters dilated. Where the fuck are you?” I said lightly, trying to keep my tone friendly even if my words weren’t.
“I’m at the airport. Just landed. How long do I have?”
I glanced up at the nurse and tapped my watch. “How long?”
“Maybe an hour or so. She’s progressing quickly.”
“You’ve got an hour. Book it.”
“I’m on my way,” he said gruffly before hanging up.
Olivia’s eyes were wide and glossy like she might cry. “Is he going to make it?”
“Yeah, baby. He’s almost here. You just concentrate on your breathing.”
She nodded again and took a series of short breaths that seemed to give her some relief until the next contraction arrived.
“Oh, fuck. Oh, no. Ow, ow, ow, ow.”
I hushed her and held her through the longest contraction yet. The next few were consistently intense, and I got the strong sense that we were running out of time.
Then Liv’s eyes took on a wild look. “Ian, I have to push. I think I have to push.”
The nurse rushed over, and together we lifted her from the tub, dried her off, and brought her to the bed.
The nursed quickly checked her. “Oh, yeah. She’s ready. I’ll go get the doctor.”
“What about Will?” Her voice was frantic.
“He’ll be here. I promise.” Lies, because I had no idea if he’d make it, but I had to try to make her happy one minute to the next. Thank God I was here.
The doctor strolled in like there was all the time in the world, all the while Liv was groaning. All the blood had been crushed from my hand, and the nurse was showing me the baby’s head crowning. Dark-brown hair.
Liv’s baby. Will’s baby. Our baby. He or she was nearly here, and my stomach was about to drop out.
The doctor got comfortable where the action was about to happen, and the nurse talked Liv through the first push.
One contraction seemed to blend into the others, but the nurse assured us progress was being made. Just as I was about to give up hope that Will would make it, he slid in the door, out of breath and grinning from ear to ear.
“Olivia!” He rushed over to her other side.
“I hate you,” she snapped, grabbing his hand and squeezing through the next contraction.
He winced, but then his broad smile returned. “That’s okay, because I love you. You’re beautiful and amazing, and we’re about to have a baby.”
I winked at him. “Don’t worry. She’s been telling me the same thing since we got here.”
“Hate you both.” She breathed out and into the next push that brought the baby’s head farther into view.
Two more pushes and the baby came. A girl.
They placed her on Liv’s chest and cleaned her. Liv held her, tears in her eyes and an exhausted, contented smile on her face. My heart exploded with happiness and more love than I knew I was capable of. Somehow, the love I’d carried for Liv these many months had instantly multiplied and spread to include the incredible little human she’d just given birth to.
Will cut the cord, and the nurses took the baby to weigh her and check her vitals. Liv wilted back into the bed, glowing with energy and happiness.
Leaning down, I kissed the beautiful warrior woman who’d given us the greatest gift.
“I’m so proud of you,” I whispered.
OLIVIA
The second my parents walked into the penthouse, my mother’s countenance tightened with concern. While Will greeted my dad, my mother walked over to where I sat on the couch and put her hand on my cheek.
“Olivia, you look exhausted. Are you getting enough sleep?”
I laughed and leaned in to hug her. “I have a newborn, Mom. Sleep isn’t really happening a lot right now.”
“Are the boys helping you?”
I smiled because she routinely referred to the two men in my life as boys. The term made Ian roll his eyes. If Will cared, he didn’t show it, but he had more experience schooling his features in mixed company. Neither would complain though, as both my parents had mercifully avoided discussing our relationship or living arrangements since Darren had taken the opportunity to explain it to them, in no uncertain terms.
“Yes, they’re definitely helping,” I reassured her, “but I’m the one nursing, so they can only do so much.”
A small cry came from the nursery.
“Oh! There she is. She must know I’m here.” My mom’s eyes lit up. I’d never seen her so happy as when she held Amelia.
Not long after she’d learned about the pregnancy, she and my father had rented an apartment in the city so she could be closer. She’d been staying there for the past two weeks since Amelia was born, on call whenever I needed her or invited her over to visit.
Before I could go check the nursery, Ian appeared. Amelia’s little body was swaddled and nestled securely against his broad chest. She looked like a little pink peanut, nearly swallowed up by Ian’s strong arms. He rocked her and clucked quietly as she fussed. Her tiny feet kicked at the blanket that held her.
“I changed her, but I think she’s hungry, Liv.”
“Bring her here.”
I held out my arms, and he lowered her into them with care. She was so small, her skin still pink and so velvety smooth. She began rooting, and I pulled down the top of my tank to give her my breast. She latched on instantly, as she had from the day she was born. Overachiever for sure.
“Olivia.” My mother spoke in a tight hushed voice.
“What?” I looked up, mystified by her reaction.
She glanced to where my father stood in the kitchen chatting with Will and then back to me. She shook her head and opened her mouth, but shut it again. “Sorry. I’m out of practice with things, I guess.”
I sighed, only mildly concerned about my lack of modesty and the discomfort it might have caused her or my dad. I was too tired and too in love to care. Instead, I stared down at my daughter, riveted with every precious noise and movement.
I hadn’t known true love until Will and Ian had come into my life. But the explosion of adoration that hit my heart when Amelia came into the world was unmatched. Her perfect little feet stretched, and I marveled at her delicate toes and fingers.
She was the greatest gift I’d ever been given.
All the moments of fear and regret and worry disappeared the minute they laid her against my chest. The world as I knew it had stopped, and everything recalibrated to orbit around her—her needs, her comfort, her future.
While my mother had been relatively detached throughout Maya’s pregnancy, something had shifted when she became a grandmother. Maybe after years of my brothers and me defying h
er best wishes, we’d finally broken her. Where I’d grown used to fielding pressure and expectation at every turn, I now found resignation and acceptance. We didn’t discuss wedding plans or why Ian shared our home. They knew, and if avoidance meant acceptance, I could handle that.
My dad’s demeanor had changed over time too. Some of the tension that seemed to follow him around eased. He smiled more, worked less. Our growing family provided the perfect excuse. They were grandparents now, and as soon as Vanessa gave birth, which would be any day, they’d have three little people to dote on.
For the first time since we’d been children, I felt like we were a family again.
As Amelia nursed contentedly, my mother leaned close and brushed a loving caress over her soft brown baby hair.
“She’s perfect,” Mom whispered. Tears glistened in her eyes, and then she tucked a tendril of hair behind my ear with a smile. “Just like you, my princess.”
Bonus Scene
From Darren & Vanessa
DARREN
“You’d better run faster than that.”
Vanessa giggled and scurried across the apartment toward our bedroom. I could have caught up to her on the way up the stairs but decided to make the chase a little fun and give her a head start.
She flew into the bedroom and attempted to shut the door, but I put my hand on it before she could. No match for my strength, she gave up quickly and spun for the bathroom. Two more paces and I caught her by the waist before she could escape. She squealed when I pulled her tight against me and nuzzled her neck.
“Got you, baby.”
I wiggled my fingertips against her ribs and down her sides.
“Don’t!” She laughed and tried to squirm away.
The chase was over, so I took us down to the bed. I crawled over her, eating her up with my gaze the way I had all night at Cam and Maya’s after dinner. Her auburn hair fanned out on the bed, and her light blue eyes were bright with mirth.
Some days—most days—I couldn’t think of much else but tearing up the sheets with my new bride. Today was no exception. I couldn’t get enough of the woman.
Over the Edge: The Bridge Series: Book Three Page 24
