After dinner, we break out the wine and the Monopoly board, Danny and I protesting that Dad has an unfair advantage since he actually has property-buying experience. He has most of our money within a few hours, but I don’t mind. We talk as we play, chatting about the plans for the second location of the Dock’s End and planning scouting trips to look at potential properties and locations in the New Year. I promise I’ll come too and help them scout the neighborhoods to see if they’d be a good fit. I feel like I’m part of the team. Maybe Dad was right—maybe I do have a restaurant in my blood after all.
We talk and drink wine until it’s so late Dad says both Danny and I can just sleep in the den. We fall into the pullout couch, both happy from the wine and from Christmas.
“I don’t think I’ve ever enjoyed Christmas this much,” Danny says, kissing me softly.
“Me either,” I agree. If we still had our glasses, I’d toast too much more to come, but since we don’t, I kiss Danny for it instead, hoping the message is the same.
Epilogue - Danny
The second Naval Academy Christmas Ball at the Dock’s End is even bigger than the inaugural event had been. I’ve expanded the menu, with Charlotte’s help, and there is a six-piece swing band behind the bar providing live entertainment. I think back to how I felt last year at this very moment, with Charlotte on my arm and so much trouble finally behind us. It’s incredible, it’s unbelievable, that this year feels even better. Not only is the ball bigger, but the Dock’s End is doing better than ever. We’ve had no problems since last year, and the customers and good reviews keep right on pouring in.
We opened our second location in the fall. It’s tucked away in a trendy Washington, D.C. neighborhood that I had never heard of, but that Charlotte convinced me and Hank was perfect. As usual, she was right. It’s been a booming success, garnering its own rave reviews and a steady flow of patrons. I glance over at Charlotte, at the hand, she has on my arm, the one that’s been wearing my ring since we got engaged over the summer. I can still hardly believe that this beautiful woman is with me. She’s agreed to be mine and I’ll be hers for the rest of our lives.
She looks amazing tonight, in a sparkling red dress that makes her skin look bright and soft. Her hair is pulled back, showing off the lines of her neck and her collarbones. I still don’t know if I believe in things like fate, but I can’t shake it on nights like tonight, the feeling that everything has lined up just right, somehow.
Charlotte and I are dancing when Hank comes up and says there are people here to see us. We head up to the front of the Dock’s End. Waiting by the doors are Michael, Amanda, and their daughter, Maria.
“We just wanted to stop by and thank you, again,” Michael says, grabbing Amanda’s hand. They both look happy and healthy. Maria, bundled in a warm-looking coat in her stroller, is rosy-cheeked, smiling and giggling.
“We were talking about last year and how scared we were, and about how you changed everything,” Amanda says. We haven’t seen them in a few months, but I’ve heard nothing but good things from my friend about Michael’s work performance at the lumber yard.
“I got a promotion last week,” Michael says, beaming proudly.
“That’s wonderful,” Charlotte says, squeezing my hand.
“Congratulations,” I say.
“And I wanted you to know that I’m starting classes in the New Year to become a home health aide. You really inspired me,” Amanda says to Charlotte.
“That’s amazing,” Charlotte says, beaming. “Let me know if you ever need any help.”
“I will,” Amanda says. “We’re hoping by this time next year we can move into a bigger place and get Maria her own room.”
“It sounds like you’re really on your way,” I say, impressed. I’m glad I was right about Michael. Despite making mistakes, he was only ever trying to provide for his family, and now he’s doing it the right away.
“We have you to thank for it,” Michael says.
“So we just wanted to thank you again, so much, and stop in to tell you Merry Christmas,” Amanda says.
“Merry Christmas, sweetheart,” Charlotte says, pulling them both into hugs. “We’re so happy for you and your family.” I shake Michael’s hand and congratulate him again, and we wish them a Merry Christmas one more time before heading back into the ball.
“I’m thrilled for them,” Charlotte says as we head back to the dance floor, beaming at me.
“I am too,” I say. “I guess second chances really can go a long way.”
“They certainly can,” Charlotte says, eyes fixed on me.
“Their baby looks so healthy, so happy,” I say, thinking of little Maria in her stroller. I think of how I’d grown up, of the kids in my neighborhood and how we lived, and I think it’s clear that Michael and Amanda are already giving their daughter so much more of a head-start on life than that.
“She does,” Charlotte says, seeming nervous all of a sudden. “Danny?”
“Yes?” I ask, searching her face. She’s biting her lip and looking up at me like she sometimes does when there is news.
“I wanted to wait for another week or two, but this seems like the perfect time to tell you. I found out last week that I’m pregnant.” I feel my heart leap at her words. “I know we weren’t planning on that yet but—” Charlotte says, stopping when I cut her off with a passionate, deliberate kiss.
“We’re having a baby?” I say when I pull back from the kiss, feeling elated. Charlotte’s right—we hadn’t been planning it yet. We’re not getting married for almost a year, and I haven’t really thought about it in a real, concrete way until right now.
“We are,” Charlotte says, beaming at me. I pull her in tight, feeling her heartbeat against mine. “Are you happy?”
“Unbelievably happy,” I say, overwhelmed and thrilled all at once at the idea of being a father. “I love you, Charlotte.”
“I love you too, Danny,” Charlotte says, sighing as she folds herself into me. We’re going to have a baby. Charlotte and me and a beautiful new child—we’re going to be a family. I never knew I wanted that, spent so many years trying to find happiness or at least something to distract me from how miserable I was, looking in all the wrong places. But standing here with Charlotte in my arms, feeling happier and prouder than I can ever remember feeling, I think maybe it’s all I ever wanted out of life after all.
“Merry Christmas,” I say, kissing her forehead gently and placing a hand on her stomach, letting the weight sink in of this opportunity to be a better parent to my child than my own was to me, to start this new incredible chapter of my life with Charlotte by my side.
“Merry Christmas,” Charlotte says. I kiss her again, holding her as close as I can on the dance floor. I thought last Christmas was the best holiday I’d ever had, but this one is already outshining it, and by next Christmas, we’ll have a baby. I wonder if every Christmas will continue to grow like this, to surprise me all over again.
I know with Charlotte by my side, they will.
I can’t wait for every Christmas, for every first our baby has, for every moment of my life with this amazing woman who has agreed to be my wife.
*****
THE END
The Mobster's Secret Baby
Description
“Without manners, we all turn into animals,” he said.
“And what’s wrong with animals?” she whispered.
Sylvia
All my life I’ve been on my guard, looking over my shoulders because my dad’s a mobster. And now he has made me a prisoner in one of his friend’s homes. Fedor Volkov, the big Russian mafia boss.
I expected a cold-hearted monster, but he’s sexy as hell with a beard that sets my belly on fire. He stands for everything I despise, yet I can’t stop thinking about him. I want him to be the one to take my virginity. Especially since that would royally piss off my dad.
But I got way more than I bargained for...
Fedor
Every
two years I take a vacation in my holiday home, alone. But this time, Will Stern has begged me to take in his daughter and protect her against his enemies. I couldn’t say no. Will is one of my best friends.
I didn’t expect her to be all grown up, though, a sexy young twenty-three-year-old with endless legs and a cleavage to drive me mad. But I can’t break the code, I am her guardian. I know I should stay away from her, but it’s almost like she’s out to make me fall.
How much longer can I resist?
Chapter One - Sylvia
“I don’t understand what the need for this is!” Sylvia stood aside while her father threw open the doors of her cupboard and started flinging clothes into a large duffle bag that he had brought with him.
“Think of this as a vacation, sweetie,” Will Stern said, barely looking at his daughter while he continued the task at hand - packing his daughter’s belongings.
“A vacation? I don’t need a vacation, dad! I just got done with college. I need to find a job.” Sylvia took a few steps in her father’s direction, trying to follow him around the room, but he now laid an arm on her dresser and just swept all her makeup and boxes of little trinkets into the bag. Sylvia shrieked with fright.
“Be careful with those, dad!” she yelled, but he wasn’t really paying attention. He had only one thing on his mind, and he didn’t look like he was going to take a break.
“I’ll get you a job when you come back. It’s just for a couple of weeks. It’ll be a nice break for you, after all the hard work you’ve put into your studies. You’ve never been to Puerto Rico,” Will said, finally zipping up the bag. He thought he had packed everything, but Sylvia had already made mental notes of all the stuff that he hadn’t put in - her shoes, the scarves, her prized collection of perfumes.
“Okay, dad,” she said softly, hoping that a gentler approach might work better. She walked towards him as he stood bent over the duffle bag and put a hand on his shoulder. Will Stern whipped around with a crazed look in his eyes.
“Dad, I thought those days were behind us,” Sylvia asked, the color rising in her cheeks. She was so tired of this. All her childhood had been spent running away, hiding, always looking over their shoulders to see if they were being followed. It was what had killed her mother. All that nerve wracking will to survive, to live. Her father had been a small-timer then, he worked for someone else, one of the Russian mob bosses. But now that he had a gang of his own, his own security, his own source of income, Sylvia thought that those days of looking over their shoulders were over. That their lives were never going to be in danger anymore.
“It’s never truly behind us,” Will said, sitting down at the edge of her bed with a thump. He looked exhausted.
Sylvia put her hands on her hips, standing with her legs apart. She could feel the rage rising up her shoulders, she was exhausted too. When would she ever be able to lead a normal life?
“You have the money now, dad. You can pay off people. Frighten them…I don’t know what. You can do something. You don’t have to run away!” Sylvia breathed in deeply, nearly pleading with her father. She didn’t want to leave New York. Not when she was just beginning her job hunt. No matter what promises her father made, the kind of work he’d find her was not the kind of work she wanted to do. She wanted to get away from the mob world, away from the world of money laundering and thugs and stories about people getting killed or beaten to pulp for not paying their dues.
Sylvia wanted to lead a normal life, work at a startup, have a regular desk job, get a cat.
“I’m not running away. You’re going to Puerto Rico by yourself. I just don’t want you to get caught up in this. I don’t want your life to be in danger,” Will said, running his hands through his closely cropped dark curly hair. Sylvia noticed the graying of his sideburns. She hadn’t realized before but her father was getting old. But this didn’t mean that she wasn’t still angry with him. For trying to snatch a normal life away from her, again!
“Well, I’m not running away either. I’ve had enough of this. I’m staying right here. What the Hell am I going to do in Puerto Rico of all places?” Sylvia folded her arms across her chest, and then she saw the shift in her father’s eyes. He was determined. She had seen that look in his eyes very often in the past. She knew it scared people, but it didn’t scare her. She looked back at him directly, defiantly.
“You’re going. You’ll be staying with my friend. He owns a mansion there. He’s on holiday there and he’s agreed to take you in for a few weeks. You’ll be safe with him.” Will stood up from the bed and picked up the duffle bag up. Sylvia could feel tears bubbling up in her eyes, from the rage. She knew she had lost the fight. There was no convincing him now.
“I know what all your friends are like. They are all like you. Dirty criminals. You’re all alike. You’re all disgusting!” Sylvia screamed after her father as he left the room, expecting her to follow him as he went.
Sylvia clenched and unclenched her fists, she stamped the floor repeatedly, and then breathed out deeply to calm herself. This was not going to work. Her father would eventually get his men to physically drag her to his waiting car outside if he had to. Her struggle, her reasoning was useless.
So instead, Sylvia just opened her cupboard again. She pulled out one of her Louis Vuitton bags and started stuffing in the shoes her father had forgotten to pack, and then her scarves and her perfumes.
Just a few more weeks of this life, she told herself as she packed. Then it’d be over. Then she’d be done with this life and would start afresh. Maybe she’d leave the country. Maybe she’d move to London or Sydney or somewhere else where her father couldn’t hunt her down. Sylvia could feel the blood boiling in her veins, but she knew there was absolutely nothing she could do about it now.
Chapter Two - Fedor
Fedor Volkov swirled the glass of Scotch in his hands. It was only midday, but he was on vacation now, so he allowed himself the treat. Back in Chicago, he didn’t take his first drink before all the day’s work was done, not before midnight. He needed to be thinking straight at all times.
He definitely needed this break. Puerto Rico was good for him. His mansion was isolated, well-guarded and he never invited any of his friends or associates along. A few weeks at his getaway meant just that: a getaway. In complete isolation. It gave him somewhere to think, to actually think.
But Will Stern might have spoilt it all. He had called on his direct line the previous night, sounding crazed, afraid. If Will sounded afraid, it had to be something big. He nearly begged Fedor to hide his daughter, to give her protection till he could sort out this gang war. Fedor couldn’t say no, he couldn’t say no to one of his closest friends. Will and he had both risen through the ranks together. Will was an outsider, he wasn’t Russian, but he had the guts to play with the big boys. They always had each other's backs, and this poor girl didn’t even have a mother anymore. He couldn’t possibly say no.
“Boss, she’s here,” he heard Pyotr’s voice say in Russian behind him.
“Bring her in,” Fedor replied and folded one leg over the other, sinking a little further into his leather chair.
He heard the clicking of heels on the marble floor outside, and he immediately had an impression of Will’s daughter. She definitely walked with a lot of confidence. He hadn’t met her since her mother’s funeral. She was only twelve then. She was twenty-three now, practically a grown woman.
Pyotr opened the large oak doors of his study and Fedor looked up from the glass in his hand. When she walked in, she brought with her a sharp all-encompassing scent of her perfume. It was unmistakably musk, but a gentle feminine musk that tickled his nostrils.
Whatever image of a twelve-year-old little girl he had in his head went hurling out of the window. Sylvia Stern was a woman now and what an absolutely gorgeous one she was, at that.
She walked directly towards him, with her back straight and taking large quick steps in her high heels. She didn’t need Pyotr to make introductions o
r show her the way.
Her skin was dark, shining in the natural tropical light streaming through the windows of the room. Her hair was just like her father’s, tight dark curls and she kept it open like a halo around her head. Her eyes were a dark chocolate brown. Her lips were thick and luscious and she had painted them in a rich plum red. She wasn’t dressed like a regular twenty-three-year-old either. She was in a slim pencil skirt with a white silk blouse tucked in. This girl had style.
Fedor stood up out of courtesy, but she didn’t seem pleased.
“I’m Sylvia Stern. My father sent me here to be your captive.” She stuck out her hand towards him, taking him by absolute surprise. Fedor stared at her, and then at her hand, his mouth hung open a little. He was expecting a spoilt brat maybe, or a meek little girl, someone more like her mother, her late mother who was afraid of her husband’s job. Fedor had met Cassandra a few times since he started working with Will, and he had always felt sorry for her.
But their daughter was nothing like either of them, and he wasn’t expecting this.
“My captive? Is that how you look at it?” Fedor shook her hand, clasping her small hand in his and giving it a rough quick shake. He was about to offer her a seat, but Sylvia sat down across from him on the empty leather chair without his invitation.
Hot Boss: An Office Romance Page 29
