by Hart, Rye
At that point, the only thing I’d need to run into town for was gas for the generator, which I stored away by the gallons in a shed I’d built with my own two hands out back.
Every day I woke up, I thought of her. The innocent little songbird that sang among these mountains. I wondered what she was doing, or if she ever thought of me. I’d wanted to track her down years ago when my body craved her the most. Just to see what she was up to. Just to make sure she was okay and happy.
But I’d stopped myself on many occasions. I couldn’t risk the Del Vecchio family finding out about my weakness for a woman whose name I didn’t even know. She was too pure. Too good for me. Besides, developing any kind of personal relationship with her would put her in danger.
Danger she didn’t deserve.
But now that Junior and I had settled into our new lifestyle—now that I had left all of that bullshit behind—it was finally the right time to check in on her.
A knock came at the door just as I threw the meat into the stew. Junior looked at me with fear in his eyes and my gut pulled with guilt. I knew I’d made the right decision by leaving that lifestyle behind. Just the look of fear that rattled across his stare was enough to make me sick, even after all this time. I walked over to him and kissed the top of his head, telling him to stay put while I saw what was going on.
Then, I made my way to the door with a gun holstered on my hip.
“Don’t panic. It’s just me.”
I sighed with relief, and I opened the door. The private investigator I’d hired to track down the girl held a massive manila envelope in his hand. I ushered him in and we sat down on the couch. Then I called out to Junior and told him everything was just fine.
He didn’t say anything back, but I could hear him pressing the buttons on his gaming system, so I knew he had settled himself down again.
“Did you find her?” I asked.
“I did,” he said. “Since you knew she lived in the area, she wasn’t hard to track down. I didn’t even have to risk tapping into the old footage of the club you owned in order to find her.”
“Good,” I said. “How is she?”
“She’s… as good as can be expected,” he said.
“What the hell does that mean?” I asked. “Has something happened to her?”
“She does still live in the area,” he said. “She lives just on the other side of this mountain. Works at a diner called Stevie’s. Ever heard of it?”
“No, I haven’t,” I said.
“It’s not too far from here. Maybe a thirty-minute drive. Anyway, you said you encountered her three years ago, right?”
“Yes, what’s happened to her?” I asked.
“Take a look inside.”
He handed me the manila envelope, and I practically ripped the top off it. My heart was pounding in my chest and my blood rushed heavily through my ears. I pulled out page after page, tossing everything to the floor as a picture of her finally came into view. Those beautiful peridot eyes and that milky skin were exactly like I remembered, matching the image of her I’d had burned in my brain. My heart ached at the sight of the black hair that had felt so soft against my fingers and those beautiful, luscious lips I’d dreamed about for years.
I studied her luscious curves, noting their subtle changes. Her breasts were a bit larger, and her hips were a bit wider. Her thighs were a bit thicker and her cheeks were a bit fuller.
And then I saw it. The “thing” that happened.
I flipped over to a picture of my songbird sitting in a park. She was nestled beside a woman with brown hair and tan skin, while a teenaged boy was settled at her other side. And there was a girl looking over her shoulder, with big blue eyes, radiant tan skin, and dark black hair.
Hair just like her mother’s. And eyes just like mine.
I flipped through picture after picture of the little girl and my stomach sank to my toes. I did the math in my head as I shuffled through the papers on the floor. I found the little girl’s birth certificate and clocked her birthday.
Eight months and three weeks from the first time—and only time—I’d ever plunged myself into my songbird’s warm, wet, inviting body.
“Her name’s Rose Brugman,” the detective said. “She’s twenty-four years old, takes care of her thirteen-year-old brother since her parents died in a car accident when she was nineteen. She dropped out of culinary school for that and took a steady job at the diner once she figured out she was pregnant.”
“With my child,” I said, whispering.
“She looks just like you,” the detective said.
I couldn’t believe it. This beautiful, picturesque woman was the mother of my child. Her body had swelled with my seed, rounding out her features perfectly while she blossomed with my child. For three solid years, she did nothing but sacrifice to take care of this family. The family that fate had brought together through tragedy and chance. Her family that she’d become the foundation of.
“The woman next to her in the park is her roommate and cousin, Cassandra Anderson,” the detective said. “Cassie for short.”
But I didn’t care about any of that. Not right now. My perfect princess—my innocent songbird—was working at a diner to make ends meet while she raised my daughter. She was sacrificing everything in her life, becoming as strong as she needed to in order to support the family she loved. I ran my fingertips over the face of my smiling daughter, who seemed to know exactly where to put her eyes every time this detective took a picture of them.
“Thank you for your service,” I said.
“I assume the money’s just gonna… appear in my account?” he asked.
“I put it there a couple days ago,” I said mindlessly. “Remember the NDA you signed.”
“I do, don’t worry. If there’s one thing I can get behind, it’s the protection of children. I don’t even know what you look like.”
He stood and left me with all the information I needed right in the palms of my hands. Pictures of my daughter. Rose’s address. The people she hung out with. The people she loved. Where she worked and when she usually worked.
Everything I needed to easily find her in this mountain town.
I was determined to be a part of her life. I was determined to be a part of my daughter’s life. I was determined to make her life easier. To show her what it meant to me that she was willing to carry my child and take care of her.
I wanted to show her what that night three years ago meant to me and, now, I finally could. Now that Junior and I had escaped our horrid past.
CHAPTER ELEVEN – ROSE
I picked up the dinner shift after I took Ana to her doctor’s appointment to make up for the loss in my tips. It still wasn’t enough to completely make up for it, but it would help to make ends meet until the Sunday lunch rush. The last customer had just left and I was honestly considering locking the doors fifteen minutes early. I wanted to get home to Ana to see how she was doing after having all of her shots. I knew Cassie had a handle on things, especially with Kevin really taking a liking to her, but all I wanted to do was hold my little girl and comfort her.
But my wishes were blown to shreds when the bell above the door rang as another customer entered.
I turned around and saw a tall, rugged, muscular man walking in. Clad in a flannel shirt that clung to his chest and worn-down jeans that seemed to fit him just right, I couldn’t help but sense a familiarity about him. The dark brown hair on his head was stuffed underneath a hat, and the thick beard on his face was trimmed close to his square jaw. I couldn’t make out his eyes from, though I watched him, and the way he directed his attention towards me suggested he knew me.
Then, as I approached him and placed a menu in front of him, I realized why he looked so familiar. His piercing blue eyes ripped through me. He was my dark prince from all those years ago.
My hands shook and my eyes widened. I watched as he held my gaze, just as steady as he’d done that night in the city. My palms were sweating as I
reached down and grabbed him a coffee cup, looking for something to do while his eyes studied me intently.
Did he know? Was he here to hurt me? To take Ana away from me?
He’d have to fight through me to get to her. That much was certain.
I grabbed the coffee pot and poured him a cup and, all the while, he simply watched me. His menu was left untouched and his body didn’t budge.
My nervous lips broke the silence hanging between us. “What are you doing here?”
I knew it was him. Back then, he had been clean-shaven and he was wearing a mask, but I knew those eyes. I knew that stare. I felt that familiar thrill rush over my body while his eyes followed me. I would’ve known that feeling anywhere, even if he had spotted me from across the street.
I was blown away by how handsome he was without the mask. His strong hands were rough, boasting thick callouses, and his beard suggested he’d been in the area for a little while. He looked like one of the locals. The full beard suited him in a way I would’ve never thought possible and, as I poured him a cup of coffee, all he did was shrug.
That was when fear rushed through me. Did he not remember me?
He stayed silent, not ordering any food, but he didn’t touch his coffee, either. I went about my business, trying to clean up around me so that when he did finally leave, I could get home to my daughter.
Our daughter.
“We’ll be closing in a few minutes,” I said. “Is there anything you’d like, to go?”
“I don’t want to order anything,” he said in that same slight accent. “But I would like to talk to you.”
I felt my body freeze as I slowly panned my gaze over toward him. It was him and he did remember me. That voice was unmistakable and I felt myself growing weak at the knees. Sensations from that night echoed through my system and I had to brace myself against the counter just to keep my balance.
And all the while, he kept staring.
I never once considered telling him about Ana after she was born. Trying to track down a man I knew was dangerous and telling him I was pregnant with his child seemed like a bad idea. I wondered how he found me. After I informed Crystal that I was pregnant, she immediately launched into the rumors she’d heard about him. Rumors of him being tied to the mob, being the head of a ruthless family, having so much blood on his hands he could drown the entire city in the carnage he left behind. The stories shook me to my core and kept me up crying at night, even as I curled up and kept my arms braced around my stomach.
My stomach that carried a child I vowed to protect with all my might.
Plus, he owned a sex club. He wasn’t exactly the stereotype of the perfect “baby daddy.” Sure, he was rich, but that didn’t mean anything if his history put us in danger. Suddenly, a chilling idea crossed my mind. What if he was here to fight me for custody? What if he was here to take her from me? I wasn’t about to let him take my daughter and introduce her to a world filled with blood and criminals. I would have to keep my secret from him. I would have to safeguard Ana with my life, no matter what he wanted to talk about.
I continued to clean the counter while his coffee was left untouched.
I felt a thread of fear winding through my stomach. Why was he here, acting all mysterious? Did he already know about Ana? Surely, if he had me tracked, he knew about her, but I couldn’t be sure. All he was doing was staring at me like he had that night and I had no idea what was going on in his mind. I assumed he would want nothing more to do with me, especially after leaving me the lines of that Yeats poem like he did.
I still had that note, even after all these years. I used it as a bookmark for the books I allowed myself to dive into whenever I did have a little bit of free time on my hands, which wasn’t often.
“I assumed you didn’t want anything to do with me,” I said as I walked back toward him. “You were gone when I woke up.”
“Did you get my note?” he asked.
“I still have it actually.”
I felt his stare burn into me as my eyes rose to meet his.
“Some cryptic Yeats poem about losing innocence, portraying yourself as dangerous. I heard you loud and clear. So, I left. Why are you hunting down a booty call from three years ago?”
I slammed my rag onto the top of the counter and his eyes narrowed. In that very moment, I knew I’d made a fatal mistake. A rush of heat drenched my panties, even as that thread of fear grew into a pulsing tree that spread its limbs throughout my body. As petrified as I was of this situation, he was still so hot. So dominant and self-assured. I knew I’d never find someone who could make me feel the way he did that night. So, I hadn’t bothered to date. Not while I was pregnant and not after Ana was born.
But there was something in his stern stare that told me he already knew. He already knew all of it.
“You’re hiding something from me, songbird,” he said.
I poured all of my energy into my little girl. Being a single mother was tough, especially when you were raising two kids. Your entire life gets put on hold for them. I sacrificed everything to make sure my family stayed together, but the moment those words flew from his mouth, I was hooked.
Hooked on him again, just like I was that night.
My pulse sped up with the rough turn of his accent. His voice had dropped into that octave that sent my knees quaking. I looked away from him, not wanting to say the words that were sitting on the tip of my tongue.
But I didn’t have any choice. I knew he knew.
I walked away from him and came out from around the counter. I had to continue cleaning up so I could close this place down. My boss had already left, and the cook had slipped out the back, leaving me alone with this beautiful, petrifying man while I swept the floor. His eyes were hard on my body as I came closer to him and, when I was within arm’s reach, he yanked me from the floor and pulled me onto his lap.
I squealed as his hands pinned my arms behind my back, thrusting my chest out to him. Without any warning or any words spoken, he kissed me harshly. My lips automatically swelled underneath his touch while our tongues danced a familiar tango and I felt myself short of breath by the time he pulled away. All this time had passed and his kiss could still render me speechless.
The attraction between us was so strong, I could feel it electrifying the stale air of the diner.
“Tell me what you’re hiding,” he said.
I turned my head away to try and disconnect what I knew was brewing between us.
“Now,” he said darkly.
I tried to fight the animal magnetism between the two of us. I could feel my entire body trembling as he tugged harder on my arms. My chest wrenched out toward him and his lips descended to my skin, pressing his barely-there kisses while he watched the whole of my skin pucker at his touch.
But the soft moment was soon gone. He grabbed my ponytail and forced me to look him square in his eyes.
Those beautiful, icy eyes that brought both hope and fear into my life.
“You’ll tell me, or I’ll punish you,” he said.
His words made me hot and I started to squirm in his lap. I remembered how his spanking made me feel last time. How his finger had slipped effortlessly into my virginal hole. He forced me to bend farther, my back threatening to snap as his free hand wrenched my work shirt over my face. He pulled it so high that it covered my eyes while exposing the lower portion of my face and that’s when I felt it.
His lips pressed once again into mine, and I whimpered softly at his touch.
He bit my bottom lip, pulling a moan from my throat that caused him to growl. I started grinding down into his lap, feeling his erection swell in his pants while his hands traveled to my bra. I started to backtrack from him, trying to get off his lap as his grasp held me in his lap.
I knew the moment he saw the stretch marks that trailed up the sides of my breasts that he would know.
He pulled my bra down, and my breathing sped up. For a moment, my nipples were bared to the warm air of the
diner. I could feel them puckering underneath the dark prince’s gaze, hardening as I spilled into my panties. His fingertips rose to the side of my breast, tracing every lightened stretch mark he could find as I visibly quaked in his lap.
I was panting with fear while my pussy was growing wet with desire.
Suddenly, his lips dipped to my pert nipples. He licked and sucked, the sensations driving me crazy while I continued to moan. The electricity that shot through my body could’ve powered the entire town and, as I bucked wildly in his lap, I could feel the vibrations of his voice echo off the corners of my mind.
“Tell me your secret,” he said.
He ground against me, causing me to gasp for air. I wanted him and I knew he could tell. But I hadn’t told him what he wanted to know. I hadn’t told him that we had a daughter. A beautiful daughter who looked just like him. My nipple fell from between his lips and his knee pressed against my clit, causing me to lose myself in his body again while he moved me back and forth.
My arms stayed taut, and his hand stayed wound in my hair as my body shook with the pleasure coursing through my veins. He rocked me to my precipice, my clit swelling with lust and wanton passion as my body started to shiver. My body jolted and darted with my orgasm as he rocked my body faster and faster against his leg, his lips wrapping around my nipples and riding me through the wetness pouring out from between my legs.
I shook helplessly on his lap as my orgasm barreled over my body and, once I collapsed, I felt him readjust my bra and pull my shirt down.
My hazy gaze found his stern eyes, and even though I was flushed with the pleasure he’d just given my body, he still wouldn’t let me go. I stared back at him, truly afraid of what was coming next, but something inside of me chanted a very familiar tune.
You can trust him. You can trust him. You can trust him.
CHAPTER TWELVE – CAMILLO
I’d left my nephew with the nanny I had my private detective check out. I kept her on speed dial and monetarily comfortable, so I could have her at the drop of a hat. I knew this would be the night I’d go to see Rose. The night I would take in her luscious body with my eyes again and devour her essence with my lips. I called the nanny up and told her to come over before I kissed my nephew goodbye and told him he could play games until he fell asleep if it helped him to sleep better.
